Customer Reviews

Kathy Smith's Personal Trainer

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The DVD format has great potential to provide a better home workout than VHS. The music sounds better, you don't have to fast forward or rewind, and you can customize the "order" your workout. The concept behind "Personal Trainer" is that you can create your own workout routine from a menu of different exercises; cardio, sculpting, and stretching. This is a great idea that doesn't live up to its promises. For starters, the material isn't new. All of the workout segments are excerpts from older Kathy Smith videos. Kathy is a great motivator and has put out some good videos, but this DVD has a cheap "cut and paste" feel to it. It just gives you the sense that they wanted to get a DVD on the market for the sake of putting out a DVD. Kathy's "Kickboxing" DVD is a much better use of the technology. The 20 minute cardio workout (from "Cardio Fat Burner) is way too dancy for my taste, and too short to provide a good workout. The personal advice section from Kathy even suggests that you augment this workout with 20 minutes of walking. The sculpting an toning section (from "Lift Weights to Lose Weight" and "Functionally Fit/Lower Body") is more effective, but you do need a weight bench to do the routine. The yoga routine from "New Yoga Basics" is nice for a change of pace, but not worth the price of the entire DVD. The section that I'll probably keep returning to is the abs and back strenthening section. For 7 minutes, it's a good routine. The "extra" features are pretty worthless, they include Kathy's bio and catalogue of videos. If you're looking for something new, you're not going to find it here. I'd wait until Kathy puts out a DVD workout containing new material.

Normally, I'm not a fan of workout videos, but since one of my biggest complaints about them is fast forwarding or rewind to specific sections, a DVD seemed like a much better choice. Sure enough, I love this Kathy Smith DVD. I can do only the sections I want or I can follow one of Kathy's training schedules.

The warm up is okay, but it quickly becomes boring after doing it everyday. There's no challenge to it, so it sinply becomes a matter of doing it because one should. It does give a decent warm up, and really prepares one for the Cardio workout.

The Aerobics/Cardio section is more based on dance than I expected, but that thrilled me since I had been bored of the normal jumping jack routines that I expected. It took me about five days to learn the routine to the point where I can do it perfectly, but I liked mastering the moves. The section is a little short and I wished there had been a longer thirty to forty minute Cardio section, in addition, but this one still managed to give me a decent workout. After two weeks of it, however, it's becoming a little too easy.

The same can be said for the leg workout. Short, effective, and fun but a little too easy. However, in this section, Kathy does offer a few hints to make the workout more difficult.

The arm section is difficult to me, but this might be more because I have weak arms than because the workout itself is hard. It offers to distinct levels of challenge which is nice, but I've only tried the easier level.

The abs and back strengthening section is very short (clocking in at about five minutes) but it is difficult. I wish it was a little longer because I doubt that a five minute workout even if done every day would be that effective.

The yoga section is simple and relaxing. It offers a nice amount of stretching for the legs and back. I haven't done it many times, but my mother loves it since the other parts of the workout are too hard or too fast for her. I wouldn't recommend it to someone looking for a yoga workout, but it is a nice way to unwind at night.

The cool down (stretching) section is nicely done and really stretches the legs and spine well. It doesn't work the arms nearly enough, but it's forgiveable considering. I've already felt an adjustment in my flexability and I think it's because Kathy emphasizes holding stretches the correct way for a good amount of time.

Overall, I'd suggest this fun workout to people who like dance aerobics and who are at a beginner or intermediate level of fitness. Those who want a hard, long workout or those who are uncoordinated should probably look elsewhere.

. . . I looked high and low to get a fitness DVD and I washighly disappointed with this compilation of Kathy Smith's previousworks. Since I am a Kathy Smith fan I already own every workoutsegment that is on this DVD. It is nice being able to forward quickly to the segments that I want to exercise with. But the cardio segment was from her Timesaver series and is definitely not my favorite, too dancy. Too bad they couldn't come up with any new material to add.

This DVD has one of the best formats I've seen yet. Unlike some reviewers, I don't mind that the segments are a hodge-podge of other Kathy Smith videos, because I don't have any others by her. This was my introduction. I really like the mix-and-match ability you get with this DVD. It's really using the format to its fullest.

Overall, the workouts are pretty good. Kathy indeed is one of those perky, whooping women, which is grating. I'm used to Minna, Karen Voigt, Tamilee ... much more subdued instructors. Once I got past that, though, I couldn't deny that the workouts themselves are pretty effective.

The cardio ticked me off at first because it's quite dancy, and I'm not very coordinated. By the second try, though, I had most of the moves down and got a good workout in 20 minutes. The upper-body workout was pretty intense. I really like how this one lets you do higher reps with lighter weights, or do fewer reps with heavier weights. That option alone will keep me coming back to that segment. The lower-body workout is NOT 20 minutes, like the Amazon description and the catalogue on the DVD says. It's 10 minutes. Luckily, it's a very effective 10 minutes. I can feel it today from yesterday's workout. The yoga's good, too, though it stops pretty abruptly as it's pulled off another, longer video. The warm-up and cool downs are OK. I usually don't use them, though; I usually start with another tape (maybe TotalMix's Quick Fix) and cool down with Tamilee's Stretch for Beginners. But it's nice to have them as an option on the same DVD. That way, you don't HAVE to go from one workout tape to another if you don't want to.

It would have been nice to have another cardio segment on this tape. I'm sure Kathy knows that variety is key, and we're supposed to do cardio more often than the other exercises. But, all in all, this was a good introduction to Kathy Smith's cheerleader brand of instruction, and it's definitely a good workout.

I am a Kathy Smith fan and I use this video every other day. As well as cardio and weight training, there is also a yoga segment. I have her videos on VHS and now I want them on DVD. It's a great deal; 3 different workouts on one video. No it's not anything different then her video tapes but if you love Kathy Smith it won't matter. You don't need weights for lower body work and believe me you still feel it. Upper body is quick with great directions.

The DVD format is good. You can easily create your own routine for the day by selecting which workout you want, warm up, cardio, upper or lower, etc.
The cardio is very light, not long or hard enough. In addition, the "time warp" photography is really annoying when you are counting or watching their steps and all of a sudden you get a "time warp". Really throws me off balance. I had a hard time getting used to that.
The upper and lower body workouts are very good. The lower body could have been longer.
The abs workout is effective. When I can do it with ease, I'll just repeat it for a harder workout as it is only a mere 5 minutes.
Overall, a decent workout when you combine the segments.

I received this yesterday and I think it's great! I did the cardio portion of the DVD last night and MAN am I feeling the effects today! I would recommend this to anyone who wants a multiple workout DVD. It features cardio, toning, sculpting and even yoga! I also really like the portion for customizing your daily workouts. I think this is a great DVD.

I ordered this DVD as well as 'The Rules of Fat Burning' when deciding on trying out a Kathy Smith DVD - she's released a lot of content, and truth be told I was a bit overwhelmed and didn't know where to begin despite reading a lot of reviews.

When I saw this DVD and how it combines a lot of material from other workouts onto one disc, I thought, "Hey what a great idea!" and got it. Having no experience with Kathy Smith, and having only done exercise with Denise Austin and Billy Blanks who both couldn't cue to save their lives, exercising with Kathy Smith was very refreshing.

On this DVD, she has divided up the program into three sections, and recommended a training schedule to follow to achieve results. She has a cardio program, a sculpting program and a stretching program. Here's what they're built like.

CARDIO PROGRAM
- Warm up; 5mins taken from Functionally Fit: Peak Fat Burning
- Workout; 20mins taken from Cardio Fat Burner
- Cool down; 7mins taken from Cardio Fat Burner

Kathy Smith in the warmup has you doing knee lifts, demi squats, hamstring curls and short walks before stretching out the lower body. In the cardio segment from Cardio Fat Burner, she does an 'add-on' routine, where moves are taught one by one and added-on in sequence to build an overall routine which is 'taken from the top' several times. This is different to what I have been used to from Billy Blanks and Denise Austin, where the focus is on short combos, and the change is refreshing and good for a bit of variety. It is on the dancy side, and while I can do it rather hap-hazardly (the 'box' and 'scissors' moves are on the difficult side, especially at the high tempo that she is going at), I am sure that my mother would trip over herself if she attempted it, so I won't encourage her to have a go at it. The cooldown felt a bit disjointed, since one moment you're finishing off a vigorous cardio routine, and the very next frame you're sitting cross legged on the floor in a zen like state; but I guess thats what is bound to happen when you have a piece-meal DVD like this one.

SCULTPING PROGRAM
- Warm up; 5mins taken from Functionally Fit: Peak Fat Burning
- Upper Body workout; 20mins taken from Lift Weights to Lose Weight
- Lower Body workout; 10mins taken from Functionally Fit: Lower Body Firming
- Abs & Back workout; 7mins taken from Lift Weights to Lose Weight
- Cool down; 7mins taken from Cardio Fat Burner

For a bit more variety, I do wish that the warmup and cooldown segments for this sculpting section were different from the cardio section, but this is just a minor thing. The 20mins of Upper Body strength exercises are taken from the first DVD of Lift Weights to Lose weights, and uses a dual track system to allow viewers the choice between lighter weights with more repititons and heavier weights with fewer repititions. Kathy takes a moment to explain this after the warmup; I always march in place while she does this to keep my heart rate up. A bench is used in this workout for one-arm rows, chest presses, and so on and so forth. I do not have a bench, but I substitute for a chair or a stability ball and it does the job just as well. The 10mins of Lower Body strength training relies heavily on squats - but she tweaks the exercise enough to keep things interesting; how does one-legged squats sound? The 7min abs section is effective, and fantastic for someone like me who runs away screaming from long ab workouts even though it is the area of my body that I definitely need to work on.

RELAXATION PROGRAM
- 30mins taken from New Yoga Basics

I was a bit skeptical about this, and was worried that Kathy Smith might do a Denise Austin take on Yoga - what has subsequently been referred to as 'yogarobics', but was pleased to see that she actually took on the advice of a genuine yoga instructor and pieced together a very gentle practice. While I think it is no substitute to my Yoga workouts by Sara Ivanhoe and Rainbeau Mars, it is good enough to recover, rest and relax.

This DVD also gives you the ability to build your own routine, something that is used in Denise Austin's 'Personal Training System', and this programming ability is something that I very much like.

I shall keep on using this DVD until I can buy the individual DVDs of 'Lift weights to lose weight, 'Cardio Fat Burner' and the Functionally Fit workouts. Cheeky advertisement for Kathy's existing material that has me completely won over.

I am a big Kathy Smith fan--she's really encouraging and not overly perky or annoying. When I saw this DVD I thought it would be a great purchase, because I really liked the idea of having lots of exercise options on one DVD. BUT...there are some flaws.

First, there are three sections: cardio, toning, and stretch. I knew when I bought the DVD that it was a hodge podge of old video segments, and that's fine with me. However, I did expect that she would offer more than ONE cardio workout! Hello--with the endless videos Kathy Smith offers, she could have at least put two or three on there. How about some variety!!?? Not to mention that this one cardio workout is quite challenging--if there was a beginner, intermediate and advanced cardio choice, for example, I wouldn't have been so frustrated by this particular workout. It's not for beginners, so cut yourself some slack if you use it.

Second, I did not know that weights were mandatory for the upper body workout. The DVD description I read (not here) did not mention weights. So now I have to go out and buy weights if I want to do the upper body. This is fine, but I wish I had known before I bought it.

Third, on her optional workout schedule, Kathy mentions walking, either outdoors or on a treadmill. That's also fine by itself, but if I wanted to walk I'd buy a treadmill, not an exercise video! The two just don't seem to coincide together.

Despite these negative points, I still give the DVD 4 stars because it's unique and does offer more than a typical workout video.

Over the past year and a half, I have been a quirky sort of workout junkie. It was only a matter of time before Kathy Smith and I crossed paths, so to speak. *G* I admit to being somewhat disappointed by this DVD at first. I was sort of expecting something like you can find in Sharon Mann's "The Works" series. I had also read that Smith is a great fitness trainer with some challenging workouts. The cardio section, which has a lot of dance/hilo moves, was not very long (30 or so minutes, I think) and not challenging for me, but that is because I've done too much tae bo and boot camp workouts. I think it might be alright if you have been out of the loop for a while. The yoga section was okay, but again it's like the cardio section... It will do the job if you've been out of that loop for a while and it is only 30 minutes long. That leaves me with the body sculpting section. Now THAT part did make it worth my money! *G* I had a set of free weights that had gone unused for too long, and Smith made them feel happy and needed again. The body sculpting section for the upper body is 20 minutes and for the lower body is only 10 minutes, but that one IS more than what I can handle right now and I am already feeling and seeing results. These exercises are good if you have been out of the loop a while and/or if you are pressured for time and need a quick workout just to keep it all toned for the other, bigger routines. I also will add that Smith has a very high-pitched voice and her style very cheerleaderish which does annoy me from time to time depending on my mood. I'd rather not try to smile while I am doing my pushups. But I understand about the positive attitude and all. I just do that part different, focusing on the inside towards my heart. It works better for me that way.