Get Ripped & Chiseled

Jari Love
Year Released: 2007

Categories: Total Body Workouts


I'm fairly new to Jari's workouts but have really been enjoying them--I love how she pushes you to work hard yet doesn't kill you. I was thrilled to be able to preview her newest video, Ripped & Chiseled. I found it to be most similar to her Get Ripped Slim & Lean in that it is a long workout (just over an hour) which really challenges your endurance. However, Ripped & Chiseled is different in that Jari uses 2-3 consecutive exercises per muscle group, so each area really gets hit hard! (Which also means that you'll probably have to go with lighter weights for this one.)

Jari's background exercisers here include Gaylene from Ripped 1000 (who amazingly is 57 years old!), Judy, and Mike. As with the other Ripped workouts, you have your choice of using different types of equipment, including dumbbells, a barbell, and weight plates. Also, the weight loads for each exerciser are shown (this time BEFORE the exercise starts, which is great because it gives you time to set up) as well as the total number of repetitions. The music sounds pretty similar to the other Ripped workouts, and Jari actually makes several comments about it here, even swaying to the music a little during the biceps work!

Again Jari uses a high number of repetitions with varied counts (singles, 2-2, 4-4, 3-1, 1-3, and pulses), but she adds some new twists here, such as high/low pulses on the squats and 1-7/7-1 counts on the triceps work. There are a total of 15 exercise tracks as follows:

1. Warm-Up
This is Jari's standard warm-up where she leads you through the various muscles groups using light weights.

2. Lunges
These are static lunges performed with your back foot on the step.

3. Squats
Jari adds high and low end pulsing to these; she also specifically states that those who are advanced should NOT be coming up all the way.

4. Stiff Leg Deadlift/Bent Knee Deadlift
Unlike her previous videos, Jari clearly distinguishes between these two exercises here. I tried 15# DBs and was REALLY feeling it by the end.

5. Chest Press
Jari and crew do these on an incline step; I tried them on my stability ball using 10# DBs and found the segment VERY challenging.

6. Push Ups
You "only" do 36 reps here using the following pattern: 8 singles, 4 reps of 3 pulses, repeat series 3 more times. Very doable compared to S&L, RTTC, and Ripped 1000. Also, Jari does them on her toes (Judy & Gaylene are on the floor, and Mike is doing them off the step).

7. Chest Fly
Okay, your chest muscles are going to be QUITE tired by this point, so you'll probably need to keep the weights low; performed on bench.

8. Back Track
Here the crew does standing double-arm bent-over rows. You start with your palms facing in (working more lower back), take a brief stretch, and then continue with palms facing down (working more mid-back)

9. Triceps Dips
Jari says that Judy and Mike "lost a bet," so they do triceps push-ups off their toes, while Jari and Gaylene do dips off the step, Gaylene with her legs straight.

10. Skull Crushers
Jari adds a new slow count here; I used only 5# DBs, but my tris felt it the next day!

11. Pull Overs
Again, your triceps will be tried, so you'll probably need to go light.

12. Overhead Press
This segment actually includes two exercises. The first is the overhead press, with the entire crew actually dropping down in weights halfway through. The other exercise is a front raise, moving arms out to the side in a T position, then lowering, and then doing it in reverse.

13. Biceps
Standard bicep curl work; includes both high and low 1/2 curls.

14. Hammer Curls
Again, a standard double hammer curl, but Jari also has you do single hammer curls to the inside.

15. Cool Down
During the floor stretches, Jari chats with Gaylene and Mike, who are students from here classes (this is where we learn that Gaylene is 57). She continues with her standard standing stretches to finish.

With the exception of the triceps dips segment, which is a bit shorter, each track averages around 4.5-5 minutes, and the total workout time is right around 63 minutes. As you can see, Ripped & Chiseled does not include abs work, but the abs section from Slim & Lean (a nice quick abs routine consisting of 4 exercises performed in 2 sets), can be found under the bonus section of the DVD. The DVD Bonus menu is as follows: Abs Workout-Talking Nutrition-Healthy Recipes-Other Programs-Previews.

Although this workout is similar to Slim & Lean (which I wound up getting rid of), I enjoyed it much more! It just seemed to flow more smoothly, making the time, although lengthy, go by more quickly. I do miss having the abs included, although others will probably like the option of doing them or not. Also, the abs work that is included, from S&L, is actually my favorite of all of Jari's abs segments: she performs dead bug, pike crunches, butterfly crunches, and oblique crunches, running through the entire series twice.

Although not as intense overall as Ripped 1000, which includes cardio, I believe that Ripped & Chiseled is Jari's most intense ENDURANCE workout to date. Since you are working each muscle group several times before moving on, you will probably need to use lighter weights than with Jari's other workouts. Furthermore, this would not be a good workout to use as part of a heavy lifting routine.

The best thing about this workout was that I felt great after I was done! Definitely an excellent endurance workout for intermediate to advanced exercisers; highly recommended.

Instructor Comments:
Jari is very straight-forward and business-like. Some might find her dry, but I like her--her no-nonsense manner reminds me a bit of Karen Voight. It though she did a better job of giving form pointers here than in some of her other workouts. She cues well, using mirrored cueing, and I particularly liked the the weight/rep totals appear on screen BEFORE the exercises begin.

Beth C (aka toaster)

09/26/2007