Tae Bo Live Advanced Volume 6
Billy BlanksYear Released: 2000
Categories: Boxing/Kickboxing/Martial Arts
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I have and enjoy almost all of the Advanced Live series, and Volume Six is no exception. This is a cardio-rockin' one hour of hard workin' sweatfest! There's lots of shuffles, jumping jacks, kicks and just overall FUN! There are a nice mix of front and back kicks, side kicks and a standing ab section at the end. There is NO floorwork in this Taebo workout.
I wore my Timex Heart Rate monitor and it said I'd burned 741 calories at the end of the hour. Not too shabby, I'd say!
Instructor Comments:
I love Billy. More than any other instructor, I feel he truly cares.
This video follows the format of all his "lives". I didn't find it to be as brutal as the others I've done (mentioned above), but it got the job done. The music was decent, the moves were pretty standard with one or two new ones mixed in and at the end before he cools down he takes a few minutes to slowly go over kicks and punches which I found really cool although I think it would've been more helpful to do that at the beginning, it's still a good feature. He also does standing abs in this one. It's definitely a keeper for days when I don't want to kill myself, but I want to sweat and know I've gotten a decent workout.
Instructor Comments:
I have to say, Billy was at his very best in this workout. I've never seen him interract that much with his students. He walks around encouraging all of them and makes them feel so good about themselves. Especially at one point, there's a boy in a wheelchair and Billy actually went to him and helped him move his legs because, I'm assuming the kid was paralyzed and I could just feel so much warmth eminating from Billy throughout. He goes to one of the men in his class and practically climbs on top of him trying to break his stance, and of course, he pivots Shelly around in a complete circle while she's in a locked kick stance. I've seen and done quite a few of his videos thus far; Ultimate Boot Camp, Ab Bootcamp, Total Fat Blaster, Live 4 and 7, Get Ripped Advanced; and I have to say that Billy has never "inspired" me so much as in this workout.
I'm afraid I'm going to be a lone voice of dissent among the rave reviews of this video. While it was okay, I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as TBLA4, the only other Live video I currently own. There were a number of reasons for this. The biggest I think was the choice of stretching moves in the warm up and cooldown. They were all splits-based, if that makes any sense. For me, who has the natural flexibility of a board, they were very uncomfortable, and downright painful at times. That said, I thought the warm up and cooldowns were probably the best and most complete of any of the Tae Bo that I've done. It was just the fact that the stretches were very uncomfortable for me personally that turned me off. I also liked the consistent intensity of the aerobic section but would have preferred that it last longer. In TBLA4, although the intensity varies a lot, when we did the standing toning my heart rate still went up quite a bit, since the emphasis was on the legs. It just didn't do that for me with the standing ab work. I am an admitted intensity junkie! :-) Another thing that bugged me personally was the way that Billy again pointed out the guy in the wheelchair and went on about how we have nothing to complain about. While I understood the point he was trying to make, it still rubbed me the wrong way that he was singling this guy out. On the plus side, this was a very complete workout under an hour with good music. Most people will probably enjoy it. If he did this workout without the splits-type stretches, it would still be in a place of honor in my video cabinet for my time crunched days. :-)
Instructor Comments:
Billy is his usual, upbeat and fun self. Very motivating!
This is the most COMPLETE tae bo advanced workout of all. This workout has the most complete workout of all the tae bo workout I've done. Billy also workout each side evenly and hard. This workout has some new moves too, and a good varitey of kicks and punches. Their is no floorwork but billy does some standing abs work that is pretty tough. I also like the fact that Billy goes around and points out all the mothers in the class. It's very motivating to see the great shape they are in. Billy ends the workout with some instruction on punching and kicking and with a nice cool down. This is my favorite taebo workout of all of the live tapes. Usually, the more sequels of a series the worst it gets. But this one is now my favorite. It's a great workout that's fun to do. It really works the muscles hard, and I was really sweating at the end of this workout. This tape is a must for any tae bo fan, even if you disliked the other live tapes.
Instructor Comments:
Billy has really tried to improve the few flaws in taebo. He really cares about his students and wants you to get the most enjoyable workout possible.
Of all the Tae Bo tapes, I feel that AL#6 delivers the complete package. The warmup is his longest warmup to date and it's an excellent warmup.
The soundtrack in this tape is excellent. Billy Blanks definitely knows how to choose music that will keep your motivation level and fun factor high! Each song blends into the other perfectly. There is a deja vu with this tape. I see bits and pieces of all his live tapes in this tape, which for some, might be repetitious. I personally loved it. Like AL#4 his kicks are slower, but the intensity level is definitely there. In fact, I feel that it is definitely more intense than AL#4. There is only one set of double roundhouse kicks. Like AL#4, this tape is doable, and thus you feel such a great sense of accomplishment at the end of this tape.
Billy works both sides equally. Billy Blanks has worked really hard to solve the uneven problems that were evident in the studio tapes. Another issue that he has worked hard on solving, is the "safety" issue. He is so thorough with form in this tape.
There are two new moves in this tape and they both come towards the end of the workout. Instead of a squat and front kick, he does a squat and side kick. The other new combo is, shuffling side to side/with a quick 1,2,3 punch. He breaks down a couple of times and gets really dancy, which is always a lot of fun. The guy definitely has rhythm.
The focus in this tape is ABS. Yes! I was really hoping for an AB workout after AL#5 and I got my wish. His ab work is done standing up and believe me, he is really working and focusing on your abs.
Billy does something different towards the end of the tape. He really focuses on your punches and kicks. He asks that the music be turned down and he then begins to drill you. I really liked it. I felt that he was teaching you how to really punch and kick for self defense.
Like the warm-up, the cool-down is Billy's most complete cooldown. It's also a very excellent cooldown.
I feel that Billy is continuing to deliver tapes that is a little better than his last tape, which for people on auto is a plus.
It's becoming harder and harder to say which advance tape is my favorite. Each new tape is always a little better than the last. Here is the break down on the time.
Warmup and stretching-7:00 minutes
Cardio-25 minutes
Cardio plus a
Instructor Comments:
Billy Blanks is such a down to earth type
person and he is a very motivating
instructor. His personality has blossomed
since his original studio video set. His
smile is contagious. It's obvious that he not
only loves producing these workouts, but he
truly believes in his work
02/05/2000
What a disappointment. That is all I can say. Let me warn those of you that are ready to pop this tape in and get a "TaeBo" type workout. DON'T! You spend 70% of the workout on the floor doing buns and abs and when you are up, the music and the moves don't jive and the moves are ineffective and well - silly. If you see this video, you'll know what I mean. It's just not the usual Billy Blanks and I will tuck it away somewhere never to do it again. (unless i just need to do buns).
Instructor Comments:
Billy was his usual self in this video; but I was a little annoyed with his moves. They were silly and haphazard. He had no real form in this one; but for those of us who know Billy, Billy is Billy. Loud, inspirational, encouraging......
Billy keeps getting better and better with each Tae Bo advanced workout! This video is so much fun and tough! It is in the new Tae Bo set with all sorts of different people in his class. All the regulars are there. Debbie, Jasmine, Julienne, Michelle and many many more people working hard. The warmup is fantastic. With upper cuts, jumping jacks and the standing and floor stretches really get you ready for the workout. The workout itself is very fast pace with very few stops. Billy starts off with lot's of different punch variations. Like corner to corner jabs and then you go at double time. Some other moves are hooks, knee-ups at half time and then double time, one arm speed bag that turns into a double arm speedbag and a knee up and a punch. Billy goes around turning everyone's hips. There are tons of kicks too! Front fast kicks, front knee up with a side kick, grapevine with a kick, double knee raise and a round house kick and a punch. Also there is 2 knee ups and 2 front kicks and 4 jumping jacks and also a front and back kick combination. He goes to the guy in the wheel chair and has him try and lift up his legs. He then talks about how we shouldn't have anything to cry about. Billy also does this shake the hips move which was funny. He always puts some funny move in the Tae Bo workout to break things up and have fun. There is excellent standing ab work. Billy goes around showing all the Mother's in the class and how many kids they have and how great their abs look. Very inspiring! Billy says,"Stand up and do abs!" He also has you do an isometric ab hold and he is so funny because he actually climbs up this one guy to try and test to see if he can keep his abs contracted. Then its back to more punches and 3 hops forward and upper cuts back. He also introduces a new squat with a round house kick. I could really feel this! Then he has you do some stationary roundhouse kicks and you really have to use your oblique abs to hold the leg up. He lifts Shelly(his daughter) up in the air and she screams! She is really in control. At the end of the workout, Billy has the music turned down just a bit and shows you how to punch and kick to really defend yourself. He shows you how to breath during each move. It's for self defense. You have to give it your all because its at the end of the workout so you are tired. Billy has you do a 1,2 and 3 count punch and also kicks. He teaches you how to punch and kick an imaginary attacker. He even does a turn kick at the end! The very end stretch is the best in all the Tae Bo tapes so far. It's very thorough standing and floor stretches and he even holds them a nice time(30seconds!). This is an awesome advanced Tae Bo workout that will challenge you and make you sweat bullets! On a personal note, I have never seen results with any other tape like I have with Tae bo. I wear my heartrate monitor and I am in my target heart rate over 48 minutes and I burn up to 450 calories per workout. No wonder I see results! The music in this workout is, "Outlaw", "Dancing in Heaven", "You Make Me Feel(Mighty Real)", "Disco Inferno", "C'mon & Ride It", "Your A Superstar". The music is fantastic and really keeps you motivated and drives you to kick harder and punch with all your might.
His is so entertaining to exercise with! He gives good form tips on kicks and other Tae Bo moves. He shows what "not" to do. he also tells you to punch across your body to work your abs. No wonder my abs never looked better doing Tae Bo! He has an excellent on camera dispostion and you really feel like you are right there in the class. He has the camera kick his hand!
01/21/2000
