The Firm: Cardio Sculpt Blaster

I bought this way back when it first came out. It's a thirty-minute cardio workout, alternating low- and high-impact floor aerobics, four-limb moves with light dumbbells & step routines (both with & without dumbbells). The whole workout is nicely balanced between those various cardio styles, the moves are pretty easy to learn while still being non-monotonous, and the clean, bright set enhances the uplifting aspect of the workout. I wish the musical track was a little bit louder, compared to her speaking voice, but it's not too big of a deal. As with virtually all FIRM workouts, the moves are precisely timed to the music, which is all non-vocal, and fairly motivating. While Lisa Kay is not my favorite instructor of all time, she does a good job here. She's actually pretty pleasent here (she seems kind of snobby in some other workouts), and manages to make this workout go by really fast. It's a nice workout to add on to a short weight-training workout, once you become more advanced, too. It's the easiest & shortest cardio workout that I've seen The Firm make, and I've viewed all of their workouts made from 1985-2005.

This is the cardio workout that I most often turn to when I'm low on motivation, just getting over an illness, need a lighter cardio day because I worked hard with weights the day before, or when my knees are not up for a complex routine. The step routines are performed on a 6" platform by their "beginner" exerciser, and 8" by the other exercisers/instructor. If you own a 4" step platform, then the exercises would certainly work on that, too. Personally, I prefer to do step aerobics on a 4" platform, as balance & cardio speed/endurance aren't my strong suit. It's still working my heart, no doubt, but it's easier on the knees & back than most workout DVD's, and as I've aged, this means a lot to me. A step shaped like a box is what they use here, but a Transfirmer or Reebox Step can be used instead- just turn it to the side, so you're facing the shorter edge, not the full-length side of the step. There is no abdominal work, there are no lunges, and you won't need to get on the floor at all- important if you're recovering from knee or back issues, I know. The step can be eliminated entirely, with the moves done as a floor aerobic routine instead, if you are a beginner and/or have serious joint issues. There is one segment where you'll do toe touches on a high step (14" is what they use), but you won't actually have to climb the high step at all. You can always just touch your toes out in front of you, or on a lower step, if the high step is still too much of a challenge. Your arms & legs will get a light-to-medium workout from the DVD, especially once you add dumbbells- but it won't take the place of regular weight-training. A beginner should do the workout without weights at least the first time, just to make sure you get the routine down. But if you exercise regularly, you'll quickly progress into wanting dumbbells for the arm moves, as you'll need them to get the most from the workout cardiovascularly. I've used 8lb. dumbbells, at the most, and for a cardio workout, that's about as high as I'd really even want to go (for joint safety purposes, as much as anything else). The stretch at the end feels good, runs just the right length of time after such a workout, and finishes this off well.

This workout is perfect for those just getting into (or getting back into) a workout program. I won't say it's easy on an absolute beginner who is also out-of-shape, but it's manageable & wouldn't be as intimidating as some longer, tougher workouts can be. The intermediate exerciser may prefer to combine this with another half-hour or forty-five minute workout for further results & more of a challenge, and advanced exercisers may find this workout just too simple for their liking. You can, of course, up the step height, up the dumbbell weight, and do more high-impact as opposed to low as you progress. But the choreography is basic- if you like really complex, dance-y routines, this workout may get on your nerves. My other favorite Firm cardio workouts are Super Cardio Sculpt, Fat Blaster & Super Cardio.

I have been wanting to purchase the add-on workouts from the BSS1 series for some time, and tI purchased this one along with The Firm - Body Sculpting System: Super Body Sculpt (led by Stephanie Corley).

I like Lisa Kay as an instructor. She is very upbeat, and her cueing was spot on! I am beginning exercising again after having been away from it for some time, and found this workout's pace to be perfect. It was challenging without being too strenuous. And while I don't have the Fanny Lifter, I do own the TransFirmer (the elongated two-part step featured in the BSS4 series) and found that it worked just fine.

This really is a great cardio workout that is very short in duration (around a mere 30 minutes), so the time literally flies by and the workout is over before you know it.

Updated
At first I was so disappointed by this DVD, but once I got all the steps done, this became one of my favorite DVD's to workout to. I loved it so much, that I purchased the DVD.
Give yourself time to learn the steps and it will for sure become one of your favorite workouts to go to. Short and sweet but gets the work done.

********1st Review**********
I bought this tape because I love the Firm tapes I own, the older ones.
This tape was a major disappointment for me. I did not get a sweat out of this tape but, at the same time I could not follow through with them. They go from one step to another, as if you rehearsed each step with them for six weeks before the shot the tape.
I was totally uncoordinated. They were doing one step, then another, and another, and I was still trying to figure out the first step. Doing this workout I felt like a chicken with my head cut off.
I will just stick with their streingth training tapes. Those are awesome, and they really do tone you!
For cardio, I would recommend the one hour Tae-Bo's. They are easier to follow. You work out a heavy sweat and he actually explains each step before going to another.

I didn't much like this exercise video. I should preface that by saying that the reason why I didn't like it is that I'm not the most coordinated person. I found the step moves to be complicated and annoying. I didn't get my heart rate up because I was constantly trying to figure out how to complete the moves. I have some other videos that use a step but none of them are this annoying. I was expecting a program that would allow me to use the "fanny firmer" to pinpoint certain problem areas but I didn't expect the video to be mostly used with the step. I have several The Firm videos but none this annoying. If you are good at the step, this also might not be good for you because it doesn't really seem to get the heart rate up, even if you knew all the moves. Based on this experience, I won't purchase any other programs where a step is in use.

I am a huge FIRM fan and workout for 40-45 minutes 6-7 mornings a week. All of my videos are from the FIRM series. They feature safe exercises with a efficient and effective warm-up/cool-down segments. The DVDs help me to work out in my target heart rate range. I don't love all of the FIRM videos, though. Some are too fast or too slow. I am a woman who is 5' 9" and 180 lbs. My heart rate for weight loss/weight maintenance is 120 to 135 beats per minute during the main workout time -- so I try to pick videos that work at that level. My favorite FIRM'videos are: Ultimate Fat Burning Workout, Burn & Shape and Total Body Toner.

This "Cardio Sculpt Blaster" is a little too intense for me -- it brings my heart rate up to the 135-140 range which is anaerobic for me. And the workout is only 30 minutes, so there's not enough warm-up and cool-down for my liking. I do like that it uses the Fanny Lifter, which I have and want to use. But the intensity is not right for me and my weight loss/weight maintenance goals. I still workout to this occasionally for variation from my other DVDs, though. So it's not a total loss.

Sorry firm didn't like this one