Body Bar: Strength Resolutions

Lashaun Dale
Year Released: 2003

Categories: Total Body Workouts


Carol did a nice breakdown of this workout, so i will just provide my impressions of it. I did the vhs version.

I used a 12# body bar and 2, 5# dumbbells. A step is used for the 1st 45 minutes of the workout: for the warm-up and then later as a bench and for planks.

First impressions: this is an AWT/Functional fitness type of workout. It almost struck me as “Firmish” with its 4-limbish movements, the step, and the high reps. As Carol mentioned, there are some balance moves using the lighter bar(s). The functional fitness aspect comes into play when she has you holding the light bar in one hand, you stand on 1 foot, do a deadlift, move back into upright position (with leg not touching the ground), then extend the leg out whilst holding the bar, repeat without touching the ground with that lifted foot. Lots of sequences like the one I mentioned where she has you stand on 1 foot. I didn’t have my HRM on, but I can tell that due to the high reps and use of larger muscles groups (shoulder and then leg muscles), it had an aerobic effect.

The warm-up using the step was non-complex, but at the same time, it was a bit hard to follow because in a few instances, I noticed that she doesn’t use “conventional” terms when cueing. After that, the standing moves flowed a bit better. Toward the end of the 1st 45 minutes, it seemed a little tedious only because she does many different moves on each side of the body. After that, it was quite pleasant because the core work is not your usual ab-crunching segment, but several different moves that flowed nicely together.

I got this vhs as a sase and was wondering whether to get the DVD version since it is on sale at BodyBar. At this point, I am undecided. It’s very similar to other workouts that I own.

This is the second video I’ve done with Lashaun (the other was Equanimity, which is a different type of workout but good).

Instructor Comments:
upbeat but not overly perky, inventive choreography.

She strikes you as cheerleader-ish in trying to motivate you but this didn’t detract from the workout. For example, she said “Are you there” to her 2 background exercisers (Clare Dunphy and Violet Zaki) but they didn’t reply as if they had tuned her out! She is definitely knowledgeable and provides form pointers throughout.

bzar

09/11/2007