20 Minute Body - Trilogy 2

This is a review for Hitman – Trilogy 2. For more information about Brett and the 20 Minute Body program, please see my review of Primal Movements, Trilogy 1.

Main Menu –Hitman, English subtitles, Spanish subtitles

Set, Music, and Exercisers - The set is nice, light, and airy looking. There are some 20 Minute Body banners on the back wall and it’s not cluttered looking and the exercisers aren’t too close together. The music is instrumental and I can’t recall it at all which means it was neither really good nor really bad. I do remember that it helped pace the workout nicely and is slightly louder during the work segments and backs off during the rest segments. Brett works out with 4 background exercisers (all women) with each of them showing either different equipment or modifying. There is one woman who uses dumbbells, another who uses tubing, another who does the workout using body weight, and the fourth shows modifications for people needing easier or less intense options. All of the women are wearing athletic tops and bottoms and are not mugging for the camera or behaving in an obnoxious fashion.

Equipment – one set of dumbbells, tubing (if using), and a mat if working out on a hardwood floor or slick surface. Brett doesn’t indicate how much weight to use so I used 10s. Have a towel and water bottle close by as you’ll be sweating by the end of this workout.

Warm Up – The warm up is slightly different than the one that was in Trilogy 1. It’s a combination of dynamic stretches and explosive moves to get the body warmed up and limber. The moves include forward fold to plank, spider lunge w/ a twist, 8 jumping spider lunges, child’s pose, chaturanga from knees to shoulder stretch and cobra, 4 push-ups, down dog w/ foot peddle, 4 knee drops to down dog, walk back to sumo squat w/ twist, 4 X squats.

Main workout – There are 5 exercises in this workout, 3 strength moves and 2 cardio moves. The work to rest ratio for the strength moves is 45 seconds work/15 seconds of rest or transition. The work to rest ratio for the cardio moves is 30 seconds work/30 seconds rest or transition. Each time you complete the 5 exercises is a round. You do four rounds total.

This is a progressive workout in that each round the exercise gets modified slightly to make it harder. Harder could mean upping the tempo, adding in an additional element to the base move, or increasing range of motion. Below are the base exercises that make up each round.

Exercises: renegade row (strength), cheerleader kicks (cardio), overhead squat (strength), mountain climbers (cardio), rotating forearm plank (strength)

Cool down – This is the same cool down throughout the series and uses a towel to help increase the stretch. Stretches include seated twist, laying glute/low back, laying hamstring, laying figure 4, and laying twist.

Overall Impressions: This workout is another that really snuck up on me. Each round by itself was not that hard and yet when added all together it packed quite a punch. I felt like it did a great job of working the whole body, especially the core. And there was a cardio effect to boot. If you don’t progress the exercise, this workout is suitable for a high beginner. If following all the progressions, I think intermediate to low advanced exercisers will enjoy the workout. Advanced to high advanced exercisers may find the workout to their liking by using heavier weights and accelerating the pace during the cardio exercises.

Instructor Comments:
Brett is animated and demonstrative in this workout. There are some loud ‘UHs’, fist pumps, and one cartwheel that I remember (and it after the main workout finished and the DVD was about to transition to the cool down/stretch). This stuff doesn’t bother me, and some people may find it a little obnoxious or over the top. Outside of the antics, Brett offers a lot of encouragement, good form pointers, and frequently reminds the at-home exerciser to modify when needed.

Sabine Reuter

4x4 – Trilogy 2 (29:15)

Main Menu – 4x4, English subtitles, Spanish subtitles

Set, Music, and Exercisers - The set is nice, light, and airy looking. There are some 20 Minute Body banners on the back wall and it’s not cluttered looking and the exercisers aren’t too close together. The music is instrumental and I can’t recall it at all which means it was neither really good nor really bad. Brett seemed to have rapport with the DJ who was out of view as sometimes he would ask the DJ to pump up the music and it suddenly was louder. I do remember that it helped pace the workout nicely. Brett works out with 2 women background exercisers. Both women are wearing athletic tops and bottoms and neither is noticeably mugging for the camera or acting in an obnoxious fashion. One woman shows modifications suitable for someone just starting with fitness.

Equipment – a mat is working out on a hardwood floor or slick surface. Have a towel and water bottle close by.

Warm Up – The warm up is the same one from Hitman and is probably used in all Trilogy 2 workouts. It’s a combination of dynamic stretches and explosive moves to get the body warmed up and limber. The moves include forward fold to plank, spider lunge w/ a twist, 8 jumping spider lunges, child’s pose, chaturanga from knees to shoulder stretch and cobra, 4 push-ups, down dog w/ foot peddle, 4 knee drops to down dog, walk back to sumo squat w/ twist, 4 X-squats.

Main workout – There are 4 exercises in this workout. The work to rest ratio is 1 minute work/15 seconds of rest or transition. Each time you complete the 4 exercises is a round. You do four rounds total.

This is a progressive workout in that each round the exercise gets changed slightly to make it harder. The exercises and how they progress are below.

Forward jinga (alternating forward lunge) – slow count, slow count, then tempo, slow count w/ escape, then tempo, tempo w/ escape + squat thrust

Capoeira sit through – slow count sit on hip w/ arm raise, slow count kick through w/ arm raise, w/ arm raise/tempo sit through w/arm raise and balanca.

Jinga to esquiva - slow count, slow count w/ hand touch, then tempo, slow count + knee thrust, then tempo, tempo w/ hand touch + knee thrust

Capoeira sit up – sit up/roll/plank, sit up/roll/foot tap, sit up/roll/plank tuck, sit up/roll/squat thrust

Bonus – 15 seconds squat thrusts as fast as you can

Cool down – This is the same cool down throughout the series and uses a towel to help increase the stretch. Stretches include seated twist, laying glute/low back, laying hamstring, laying figure 4, and laying twist.

Overall Impressions: This workout really snuck up on me. While similar to the 4x4 workout in Trilogy 1, this one started at a more advanced level and progressed from there. As each exercise and each round progressed, the work really started to add up and my butt and thighs were on fire, I was breathing heavily and I was a sweaty mess. If you don’t progress the exercise, this workout is suitable for a high beginner. If following all the progressions, I think intermediate to low advanced exercisers will enjoy the workout. Advanced to high advanced exercisers may find the first two rounds with the slower tempo too easy for their fitness level. Even though there is a modifier, this workout is still very heavy on lunges and squats and people with sensitive knees will probably have a hard time with this workout.

Instructor Comments:
: Brett is pretty enthusiastic and amped up in this workout. There were quite a few of his signature loud “Uhs”, asking for a fist pound from the background exercisers, and cartwheels and capoeira kicks. Brett does the kicks to demonstrate how the move you’re doing is evasive in nature, and I also thought he was showing off a bit. I found his cueing was a bit late in this workout as well. The next exercise would start and Brett was just getting around to telling the viewer about the progression. I had to watch to see the progression, then rewind to the beginning of the exercise several times. I imagine if you do this workout one or two times it would not be a lingering issue. Antics and criticisms aside, I really enjoyed the workout. It was a butt and thigh killer!!!!

Sabine Reuter

This is a review for 30 Hi 30 Lo – Trilogy 2 (29:18)

Main Menu – 30 Hi 30 Lo, English subtitles, Spanish subtitles

Set, Music, and Exercisers -The set is nice, light, and airy looking. There are some 20 Minute Body banners on the back wall and it’s not cluttered looking and the exercisers aren’t too close together. The music is instrumental and I can’t recall it at all which means it was neither really good nor really bad. I do remember that it helped pace the workout nicely. Brett works out with 4 women as background exercisers. All of them are wearing athletic tops and bottoms and no one is noticeably mugging for the camera or acting in an obnoxious fashion. One woman shows lesser impact modifications.

Equipment – a mat is required if working out on a hardwood floor or slick surface. Have a towel and water bottle close by because you’re going to sweat in this workout.

Warm Up – The warm up is the same one from Hitman and is probably used in all Trilogy 2 workouts. It’s a combination of dynamic stretches and explosive moves to get the body warmed up and limber. The moves include forward fold to plank, spider lunge w/ a twist, 8 jumping spider lunges, child’s pose, chaturanga from knees to shoulder stretch and cobra, 4 push-ups, down dog w/ foot peddle, 4 knee drops to down dog, walk back to sumo squat w/ twist, 4 X squats.

Main Workout – This is a predominantly cardio workout with a bit of strength work to give it a metabolic component. As the title would suggest, this workout has 30 seconds of work followed by 30 seconds of active recovery. There are 5 exercises that make up this workout. Each time you complete the 5 exercises is a round and there are 4 rounds in this workout. Each time through the exercises you are shown options of how to progress the exercise to make it more challenging. Progressions may include increasing the speed, adding an element to the base move, increasing range of motion, or adding direction. The exercises are below.

Squat thrust
Star jumps
Walking planks
High knee run w/ tuck jump
Crab kicks

Cool down – This is the same cool down throughout the series and uses a towel to help increase the stretch. Stretches include seated twist, laying glute/low back, laying hamstring, laying figure 4, and laying twist.

Overall Impressions: Just like the 30 Hi 30 Lo workout in trilogy 1, I found this workout to be challenging and fun. I liked the 5 exercises repeating but with slight variations each round to keep it interesting. I didn’t have to think about choreography at 5:30 am! If you follow Brett and most of the backgrounders this is a solid high intermediate/low advanced workout. If you push the pace and add in additional elements to the base move, advanced exercisers will find this a very effective shorter workout. The modifier showed variations with less impact, not without impact, so those folks with knee and wrist issues may need to modify even further. That being said, I think as done by the modifier this is a low intermediate workout. If you’re okay with drill based cardio workouts, this one is a winner!

Instructor Comments:
Brett is still very enthusiastic and energetic in this workout. There are quite a few fist bumps, loud ‘UHs’, and ‘whoos’ that let the at home exerciser know Brett is into the workout. There were also a couple of cartwheels or other extravagant movements that could be distracting. Most of Brett’s talk during the workout is on working at your pace, what modifications you can do if your wrists or knees are an issue, and offering encouragement. I found him to be really motivating and encouraging and was happy to see that he was as gassed as I was at the end of the workout.

Sabine Reuter