Customer Reviews

The Firm - Cross Trainers: Firm Strength [VHS]

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This video is NOT for a beginner, let me just say that now. I myself am a "early" intermediate, meaning that I'm past the beginning stage but am not too adept yet to be considered a full fledged intermediate.

This workout combines lots of weight training with a some aerobic intervals. Some of the aerobic intervals might be too confusing for those who aren't very good at dance type moves, such as myself. Be prepared to constantly change what you're doing; it's best to have all of your things on hand such as your weights and step so that you won't have to scramble... This tape focuses slightly more on the arms and then the legs and then the abs. I wasn't too pleased with the abs section; I didn't quite feel that I had fully worked my abs out to their full potential. The stretches are also too fast; try not to play catch up by losing your form. Simply pause the tape and hold the stretch out longer. I was often tempted to either do the stretches so fast that I lost my form or to skip them all together because I was behind. So just pause the tape and do it longer. For those with a limited space, be forwarned that you should have at least a 5feet clearance all around you, left right, forward and back ward. I say this because I live in a small space and found myself bumping into furniture, etc., and sometimes sacrificing my form so that I WOULDN'T hit the furniture, etc (!) So make sure you have some room. For those living in an apartment, there are jumps and marches so be careful, depending on what floor you live on and who's living beneath you.

This is currently my favorite Firm tape. It's 60 minutes long, plus some extra time to make up for the too-fast stretch segments so I don't do it everyday. I wouldn't actually recommend doing this every day since it's weight training and could overwork your muscles.

I love The Firm workout series, but this one is my favorite for five years now. The atmosphere, while a bit dark, is still upbeat, the instructor is cheerful but never too peppy or annoying and the class is great...a nice mix of body types all in good physical shape. Oh yeah, and the workout works.

The mix of aerobic and tonig exercises makes this tape difficult, but the time goes by quickly. The routine ensures that every part of the body is taxed and I ALWAYS have sore inner thighs the day after completing this workout. This tape is definately not for beginners, but the steps are easy and the intensity of the workout largely depends on how heavy of weights are used, making this a tape that suits the needs of nearly everone. Definately a must have for the home exerciser.

I keep this tape in my current rotations because it's good. You get an upper and lower body workout that's complete. You feel you have worked everything as much as you should and that's the most important thing to me. As with all FIRM tapes the pace is quick so have all your equipment ready and easy to reach. When I first got the tape I was smart enough to review it first and I recommend that so you can mentally be prepared for what is going to happen. I guarantee if you are not familiar with the FIRM style and you don't preview the tape you will quit before it's done.

The tape box I got has a wonderful section on the back that details every piece of equipment you will need as well as a break down of the time spent on each segment. The tape is about an hour including the warm up and cool down.

It's definitely got a dated look but it still works. That's one of the good things about these older FIRM tapes in that they don't have gimmicky exercises... they stick to the tried and true. You will do lunges, bicep curls, squats etc. All very effective. A special note about the equipment. Included in this tape is the step up exercise for your buns/upper thigh area. When I first started out I didn't have the "official" step from the the FIRM which is 14 inches high. I used a step I got from a local linen store that's used to step onto high bedframes. It was 12 inches high and in the beginning I didn't use any weights. Now I have moved up to using the 14 inch step with 10 lbs weights it hasn't been quite a year so you can progress. If you have an aerobic bench step you can use that as well. Don't let not having the official step get in the way. The point is to lift your foot up so many inches off the ground and you should approach this experimenting with your own level.

This will produce results if you do the exercises as shown. Goof off, do some but not others and you won't see any results.

This workout is one of my favorite Firms, why did I wait so long to buy it. I really like the sequence of the workout, it alternates between upper and lower body focusing on one upper body muscle group at a time until it is fatigued then you do a lower body exercise. You will see all the traditional exercises, lunges, dips, leg presses, squats, inner thigh floorwork for the lower body. Some of the lower body sets are short so you can really heavy up on the weights if you choose. Upper body is thorough as well, bicep curls, one arm and double arm lat rows, tricep kickbacks, french presses, lying tricep extensions, pushups, upright rows, military presses, front and side deltoid raises, the sets for triceps and shoulders are particulary killer. There is one interesting back exercise called a T-Bar rows where you use a barbell loaded heavy at one end, using a towel at the opposite end and you pull the barbell up using the towel. Of course if you do not have a barbell, you can use dumbells easily in place of it. There are some short cardio segments in this workout, 2 of them use lighter dumbells. Plus there is some challenging ab work towards the end. You will need a tall box or step stool, plus assorted dumbells, ankle weights are used in a few segments but you can do the exercises without them.

Pam Cauthen leads this video, she is very toned and in great shape. I didn't really like her outfit but that's just a minor thing in an otherwise terrific workout. The library setting didn't bother me a bit, and I thought the music was nice, more of a jazzy soundtrack. If you like the Firm definitely add this one to your collection.

I have been doing Firm videos since last year (had to take a break for 6 moths for illness) and This one is my favorite. It is lead by Pam and alternates between upper and lower body and strength training and cardio. Easy to learn the moves but a tough and effective workout.

However, it is not for everyone. If u don't like hard and fast work or don't want to invest in a set of weights (at least 3, 5, & 8lbs) than this is not the video for u. It takes real work but if u commit to it (& add firm cardio to alternate with) the results will be fast and amazing.

This tape is the best workout the FIRM ever made. All the muscle groups get worked, though there is a whole lot of upper body emphasis. I love the jazzy music. Pam is an excellent instructor. Her cuing is right on. The only bad thing about this workout is the editing. But once youve done this workout a few times it wont bother you that much. This tape is a little dated but youll never find as fun a workout as this tape!

Okay, so basically the only reason I didn't give this five stars is because I thought the instructor, Pam, moved between exercises very quickly. And really this was only a problem for me, I think, because this is the first "older" firm tape I have used and I'm not quite used to the flow yet.

Overall though this is a really good workout. I have used older videos (ingeneral, not FIRM) where the exercises are un-safe and dated, but the ones in FRIM Strength are the exception. I have been a dancer all my life and "thought" that my legs were very strong. But this workout had them burning (in a good way) like nothing before! If you try this tape, I can almost gurantee it will become a favorite!

After seeing the commercial for the new Firm workout for the hundreth time, I decided to pull out some of my older Firm tapes. This Cross-Trainers tape is incredible. I made it through the workout, but was sweating buckets by the end. I had forgotten what a great all-over workout this was. The ab section is especially effective. The instructor is great - wonderful cues. All this reminded me that I still like the older Firm tapes the best. They're just good ole straight-forward workouts without all the fancy choreography that you see in the newer workouts. The Firm tapes are still where you want to go if you're working out at home, but check out the older tapes for simple, but intense, routines.

All I can say is wow - this workout really lives up to the standards I have developed for Firm workouts. Like other Firm workouts, the exercises are straight-forward and require relatively low coordination (which is good for someone like me who loves to work out but can never seem to follow an aerobic tape because of confusing choreography). However, the instructor does move from one workout sequence to the next rather quickly so you need to have your step and weights nearby - but after viewing the workout a few times and becoming familiar with the routine following her instructions should be no problem. This workout is intense both on the upper and lower body and utilizes many of the same moves as other Firm workouts such as squats with weights, leg presses off the step, and the same general arm exercises with the addition of a few barbell exercises. Overall, as an intermediate to advanced exerciser I found this workout to be challenging and interesting enough to keep in my normal rotation. My one major complaint is that the instructor seems a little bland - some people may prefer the fact that she is not perky - but when I am working my butt off I prefer someone a bit more upbeat.

I enjoy this video, because unlike many videos on the market each individual muscle is worked. I also enjoy the brief aerobic intervals that help boost the metabolism and help to overcome plateaus.