Customer Reviews

Balance Ball: Core Cross Train

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am a personal trainer & love these 3 20-minute workouts (upper body/lower body/abs & core). Great functional training that requires only a stability ball & minimal space. Very effective exercises led by a pleasant instructor. No more excuses about not having enough time :)

as always, her workouts are great, challenging, and they are different from your regular workout dvd. They are filmed outside in a beautiful location, Tanja is refreshing and fun, and very motivating.
Three workouts, you can do them separately or all.
The ball made me sweat, you would never believe how heavy on your arms a ball filled with air can be!
I own all of Tanja's dvds and I can recommend them all.

My wife and I both love Tanja's workouts on the Balance Ball. In addition to this DVD we also own the Total Body Toning on the Balance Ball and they are the core (excuse the pun) of our weekly workouts.

The music in both DVDs is very nice to listen to, not just drum machine beats and synthesizers. The outdoor settings are gorgeous.

Tanja is very fun and personable while she explains each move and encourages you throughout the workout. And they truly are FULL BODY workouts that tone you and give you full cardio burn as well.

And the wide variety of exercises on both DVDs means you work a wide variety of muscles and won't get bored out doing one set of exercises over and over. We will definitely be purchasing her third and any future DVD.

Highly recommend!

Tanja has the ability to make the viewer feel part of the process. Her segments are well sequenced and fun. One of the few DVD's with instruction and a trainer that talks directly to viewer while doing the routines. Most DVD's offer a presenter of technique with a voice over and no instruction or information as to what you are to do, why you are to do it, or the benefit of doing it, and most of all what the contraindications are. Tanja's DVD's are well rounded. If a beginner, use a smaller ball for ball in the hands routines then progress to regular ball; if not sure, stop the DVD and try the move until it is comfortable before continuing with Tanja. Do the repetitions at your own pace. Go at your own pace until you are comfortable. Tanja's enthusiasm for teaching is contagious. Being a fitness instructor with a Master's in psychology she would also remind you, if an exercise doesn't feel appropriate for your body due to medical conditions avoid doing it. Do what you can. Progress not perfection. I love Tanja's work and use the DVD's that are most suited for me.

I've seen reviews on other balance ball workouts where people give low ratings because they are struggling with/hate the ball (not so much the workout.) I'm glad to see that is not the case with this one.

I consider myself at an intermediate level of fitness. I have a few balance ball workouts and this one was quite good. Workout has 3, 20 minute segments for upper body, lower body, and abs. I worked up a moderate sweat and felt I got an ok workout. Instructor is low-key and comfortable with not talking constantly throughout. Two backup "dancers" were non-annoying --- as others noted, instructor refers you to beginner modifications if needed but only a few were modified moves (same move but not going as low or high is not very visible) but I don't use the modifications so it is not a problem for me.

I tend to prefer indoor rather than outdoor routines --- I find the scenery more of a distraction than anything else and this one made me think "dry, hot" the whole time but that is a minor con. Probably would have liked music with a beat or something but little/no music is better than bad music.

Probably best for beginner/intermediates. A few moves were tough but the majority were not very difficult. Not really cardio for me but as far as balance ball workouts go, this was good.

This is a perfect de-stressor; low impact, slow pace, great results. A very calm way to start or end your day while strengthening and toning.

Some of the exercises in this workout are very good, but some are hard to follow. Tanja sometimes does not give clear direction, so unless you are facing the tv it is hard to follow her, and while she is counting she does not tell you when to release. There is also not much focus on posture, so if that is a concern I would not recommend this workout. The workout is also not 60 minutes, as described, each section is a little over 15 minutes with an extra stretching section in the menu, which was also disappointing to me. For the upper body workout section I am not sure how she was doing some of the moves, such as lifting the ball behind her, because it was painful to do so. I am rather physically fit, but I think her ball must be on the smaller side so use caution if you have a larger one.
Overall, I would probably not buy this tape again even though some of the workout is good.

I'm new to using a Balance Ball for exercise so I was looking for a video that didn't have a rushed feeling and with an instructor that wasn't aggravating to watch over and over and who explained things very clearly so I knew just what I was supposed to do. This one fit the bill in every way. Plus, at least for me, it was a solid workout and I was feeling it for days after. I'd definitely recommend this to any newbie at Balance Ball workouts.

Tanja's videos are the BEST ones out there, she is motivating and fun and the workouts are VERY challenging, I can't get enough. I have told everyone I know and those that have tried are sore the next day but love the energy she carries throughout the workout so it is worth your time and effort!!! EVERY MINUTE!

I got this DVD just for the ab/core workout part. It works. You will burn!