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17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great introduction to The FIRM, December 22, 2004
This review is from: The Firm: Total Sculpt Plus Abs (DVD)
Total Sculpt plus Abs is part of the Body Sculpting System 2 and uses all of the "required" equipment to the fullest. You'll need pairs 3, 5, and 8 pound dumbbells, the Fanny Lifter (or equivalent), and the Sculpting Stick (or equivalent). I acquired this DVD when I purchased the full BSS2 set with the Fanny Lifter and Sculpting Stick, however it also comes with the BSS2 4-pack and with a BSS2 set that includes only the stick. (Confused yet?) I will admit a certain soft spot for this workout--it was the very first Firm workout I ever did. Jen Carmen got me on the road to a level of fitness I never thought I'd be able to attain. This workout is thorough. If you're a beginner or even just new to this kind of exercise, you're going to feel not only worked out, but worked over. I was seriously sore for a day or so the first few times I did this tape. Equal attention is paid to all the major muscle groups--shoulders, triceps, biceps, back, abs, inner/outer thighs, and glutes all get worked in this video. The cardio segments are short and fun with moderately challenging choreography. If you're someone who has "two left feet," I highly recommend previewing this one a time or two before you attempt it. The four-limb segment towards the end is probably the most challenging--it's what tripped me up the most the first five or six times I did this workout. The Sculpting Stick gets put to innovative use during the abs section of this workout. Jen uses it to add resistance to the brief but effective segment of reverse crunches. The shin crunches are fun too. As someone who absolutely loathed any kind of ab work before finding these videos, the ab section in this workout was a pleasant surprise. Having to use the equipment kind of distracted me from my hatred of situps! As I've become more fit, I keep going back to this video if I want a long sculpting workout that isn't going to leave me reaching for the ibuprofen the following morning. If I want to make it more challenging, I'll add a dumbbell to my other shoulder rather than use the stick for balance and/or heavy up on a few exercises. This workout really can grow with you to an extent, but the short sets and short ab section drop it back to 4 stars for me. This workout is a total winner for high beginner/low intermediate exerciser. If you're an advanced fitness buff that's looking to get your butt kicked, you should probably look elsewhere.
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Shorter sculpting sets with room to grow, December 18, 2003
This review is from: The Firm: Total Sculpt Plus Abs (DVD)
I did this workout the day after Maximum Cardio Burn. This workout also has the same "fun factor"- Jennifer Carmen is enthusiastic, cues well, and is very encouraging. The music is very fast-paced, and that motivated me through some of the tougher sets. As I mentioned in my review of MCB, I don't have the Sculpting Stick, and here I also didn't feel like I needed it. I found some of the moves that it was used for ineffective. I was able to sub weights for just about everything, including the pushups on the stick- I just don't understand how that wouldn't compress people's wrists. It certainly wouldn't do any harm on the combination chest press and pullover, but as you progress you're going to need heavier weights anyway. The "lat pulldown" it was used for did nothing for me, even using weights that were heavier than the stick. I don't believe that exercise is useful unless it's attached to a pulley- you don't work your lats here, you work your shoulders. I was disappointed when I emerged at the end of the workout and didn't feel like my back had worked at all. Next time I'll sub some heavy lat rows. So why the four stars? Because the rest of the workout is great, and as with almost all of the Firm workouts, everything can be made harder with the use of heavier weights. Jenn thoroughly works over the biceps, triceps, thighs (inner and outer), glutes, hamstrings and abs in this workout. Also, I like the variation they're using on the leg presses in this workout. Instead of using two heavy weights, you use one very heavy weight and then hold a dowel in your other hand. I really did feel like I was getting deeper into the targeted muscle groups for the leg presses as well as the squats, lunges and plies. The aerobic sets are short here, and they're intended to be used more for recovery from your heavy weights than to significantly elevate your heart rate. Pick up Maximum Cardio Burn to cross train with for cardio.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Love this workout!, August 9, 2003
This review is from: The Firm: Total Sculpt Plus Abs (DVD)
I bought this DVD as part of the original FIRM Body Sculpting System 2 with the Sculpting Stick. This one with Jen is really fun. The music is so awesome! The weight work is fun and challenging and the stick offers a lot of variety to the work. It targets every muscle of the body with fun and effective moves that beat boredom! Short cardio bursts are added to really burn calories! The ab set was fun, too. Meow! You warm up with the stick, and then get right into weight work like lunges and dips, all set to some realy awesome music. Short breaks of cardio keep the blood pounding, some on the box and some off. The ab work uses the stick in unique ways that will challenge your core and your stability. Of the three new FIRMS, this one is my favorite. The music score is the best. There is also a set of dips on the box that will REALLY firm your fanny! Kitka
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