After trying a few other of Neena and Veena's Bellydance for Fitness videos, I was hoping that this one would provide a more intense cardio workout. During the first half of the video, I was disappointed, as the cardio work consisted solely of the "genie bounce" (basically, a side step-type move with a bit of a hop). Isolation moves were performed inbetween each genie bounce series, which meant that my heart rate did not stay elevated.

In the second half of the workout, however, the intensity picks up, as there are a greater variety of moves, including some different types of hops (although you always return to the genie bounce between exercises, which can get a bit repetitive). There was a also a greater fun factor to this section, especially with the various hip exercises; the workout ends with a brief cool-down stretch. Overall, I would say that this 29-minute workout probably provided about 15 minutes of solid, medium intensity cardio work.

The DVD includes several bonus features, including the option to perform the workout with music only (no narrative), a picture gallery and trailers from Veena and Neena's other videos, a bonus performance by Marina (another dancer), and finally, a bonus flexibility workout, also by Marina. Marina packs quite a bit into this short, 10-minute segment: she starts with plies and standing stretches, moves on to dynamic yoga moves such as cobra to down dog and cat to cow, and performs a variety of floor stretches as well. Although this section was quick and none of the stretches was held for a particularly long time, I enjoyed this added little flexibility boost. Overall, I would rate this video at about 3 1/2 starts and recommend it mainly for advanced beginning exercisers.

Instructor Comments:
Neena and Veena teach via voiceover instruction; I found that their cues and their movements on screen were a bit more out of sync here than in their other videos. Overall, however, their instruction is adequate, and they both seem (to my untrained eye) to be good dancers. Marina leads the flexibility segment through voiceover instruction as well; she has a bit of a silly look on her face during this segment, but she seemed to be competent.

Beth C (aka toaster)