Body Pump

There are some pretty good breakdowns of this tape already, so I'll just add a few comments. Overall, I think this is a VERY fun tape. I generally use it about one a week on a free day for endurance. I don't really consider it a weight training video. The pace is very fast, and I get a good cardio effect. But overall, I don't think the low-weight/high-rep approach really builds muscle for me. I have tried using it as a total-body weight workout and seen few results. I have also tried incorporating a pyramid system, but it moves too fast. I don't think I would use it as a straight cardio because it does have weight work, but once a week I have an anything goes day, and it has fit in very well there.

Ok gang..... I carefully reviewed the tape last night, just so I could give you as much info on BodyPUMP as possible. And where I could, I even noted the SONG that is playing during each Track.

THIS....is what you're in for! :o)

The workout itself is 45 minutes long. It is broken into 8 tracks (including warm-up and cool-down). Each track is a different song. There is an full length instructional segment at the end of the workout, so fast forward 45 minutes to watch that segment first, then rewind to the beginning. This will give you a SAFE and FUN workout. Even from the first musical notes, you KNOW this is going to be a GREAT workout!

Leading is Dr. Jackie Mills. She is accompanied by other famous and renowned fitness leaders: Michael McSweeney, Steve Renata, Cathy Spence, Emma Barry, S Manuel. 3 guys, 3 gals. The guys are HOT. :o)

TRACK 1: It's a 5 minute warm up to "We're all alone". This is NOT your standard warmup! You will not be doing weak little low impact moves here, you do all the same moves found in the rest of the workout, only with less intensity.

TRACK 2: SQUATS & LUNGES to "Shine"! Squats: 8 fast, 8 slow, 16 fast, 8 slow, 16 fast, then 2 truly evil hover and PULSE squats!, widen stance for plie style squts, then 1 super slooooow squat, back to 16 fast, then 1 hover, 1 hover pulse!! Lunges: (NO WEIGHTS!) Only 8 per side

SHAKE & RELEASE with stretches

TRACK 3: CHEST.......Go for the PUMP to "Look Who's talkin' Now" Chest Presses (done on a bench, step platform, or floor) Alternating speeds and tempo, you are pushed for the BURN Then it's down on the floor for 16 pushups

SHAKE & RELEASE with stretches

TRACK 4: BACK...."Love to Love" keeps you MOVIN'! You start with shoulder rolls with the bar, then go to quarter deadlifts with bent over rows (knees and squeeze), then 3 rows and 1 deadlift, then a series of dead lifts with a shoulder roll at the top, and back to "knees and squeeze" combos. They keep moving you through the different combos so you are in perpetual motion!

SHAKE & RELEASE with stretches

TRACK 5: TRICEPS AND BICEPS (on bench, step platform or floor)*You may want to adjust the weight on your bar. "Everybody!" Rock your body right!! What a BEAT!!! Begin on the bench alternating tricep extentions and tricep presses, changing speed and tempo. Stand and get ready to work those biceps!! This is one very long series and you are definitely going to FEEL them!! :o)

SHAKE & RELEASE with stretches

TRACK 6: SHOULDERS...New Moves!! You'll get something a little different in this one! Shape your shoulders to "When the Goin' gets Tough" You start off with classic over the head presses with the bar, alternating speed and tempo. Then you pick up either plates (or as I did, dumbbells) and do some new moves to work the delts. Very cool! :o)

SHAKE & RELEASE with stretches

TRACK 7: ABS...... excellent stabilization work and a decent ab workout, BUT you've really got to FOCUS on all your muscles (or as Jackie says, Muscles SWITCHED ON!!) in order to get the most out these moves.

TRACK 8: COOLDOWN & STRETCH Boy does this ever feel GOOOOOOOOOOOOD! LOL!! I loved every single minute of this workout!!

Love this video! Absolutely awesome. I have hated strength training since way back and this is the only strength tape I've ever had that I look forward to doing. The main reason is the music-loud and rockin'! Reps aren't counted and sometimes the odd cue is missed, but who cares? This is just so much fun. But it's not just a party-in-a-tape; this is some hard work too! Tough shoulder, bicep, tricep and chest work especially. The legs are deceiving too-all you do is squats so you think no big deal, but by the time you're done with all of them you're in quiver mode. Abs could have been longer. Great tape. Great tunes!

Body Pump is to weight training what Hi-Lo Heaven is to floor aerobics. Incredibly fun, awesome music, and a total addiction! This is not like working out at all -- it's just pure fun. The music makes all the difference, I believe. You work out to songs with a great, motivating sound. Each song is one "mini-workout." For example, you do biceps/triceps to one song, shoulders to another, etc. It's a tough workout, but the instructor and music motivate you to do it -- and do it with a big smile. Some people have commented that Jackie isn't the best at cueing, and that's true. But you'll find that the lack (in spots) of cueing isn't really a big deal, and also, after you do it a few times, you know the pattern. Another thing I should mention is the video quality -- I've read on the forum where some people got a video with less-than-good quality. However, mine is just fine. I bought mine separately from the barbell set, so maybe there's a difference in how you buy it (just guessing). This tape cost $29.95, but it's worth every penny. I've had it for several months now, and I will never get tired of this fantastic workout. The only part I don't like about it, is that the Body Pump people have said they're not going to make any more! Grade A++++.

I appreciate what strength training does for my body; I like seeing improvements in muscle tone and size and I know it's good for me but strength training has never been fun for me - until now. I love this workout! OK, to be exact, I "discovered" BodyPump on the May and Oct '99 Cathe roadtrips and loved the workout both times but I never though I'd find a tape that came close to that energy and excitement.

Does the tape replicate that "live class with Cathe" experience? No, but no tape could. Are there any negatives? Yes, the tape quality is not very good and Jackie Mills' cueing could be better. Other than that, this tape rocks, it jams and I love it (yup, even the Backstreet Boys although I didn't know that song was theirs until a discussion the forum!). I suppose there could be more dips (or any lunges) in the leg session but I don't like dips and lunges so the incredible number of squats that you do is OK by me. I can sure feel them in my glutes the next day.

The form of all the participants is excellent - the tape comes out of the box cued to the end of the tape where they've wisely placed the form pointers. After a warmup you work legs (squats), chest, back, triceps, biceps, shoulder and abs and end with a stretch. The work for the glutes and back is very good - I can feel it the next day. The upper body work is fantastic - I go to failure on the chest, triceps and biceps every time. The abs section is short but the variation of where to place your hand on the crunches works very well.

The 40 or so minutes just fly by. The energy of this tape is wonderful, and Renee, I'm right with you - when Jackie asks me to go with them, I do - singing all the way!

Despite the negatives (bad video quality, not the greatest cueing, the Backstreet Boys) I really enjoy this tape. It's got great energy. The leg work is too skimpy (the PowerFlex leg work is much more challenging) but I do get to failure with the upper body work. (I've never finished the pushups that come after the chest presses and I wuss out on the bicep curls as well.)Now we just have to get them to make BodyPump 2!

I really have nothing new to add to the other reviews, because I agree with everything that has already been mentioned. There are a few negatives--the tape quality, the audio is a little unclear at times (but that really won't be a problem because you're not going to need to deal with complex cardio choreography here), and the quality of the tape and the barbell leaves a bit to be desired. ***One thing to watch out for--the little tab on the video was NOT punched out, so the tape could have easily been recorded over if I hadn't checked it!*** But, it's DEFINITELY worth the $30 my husband paid for it (and I'm really enjoying my Valentine's Day present)! Body Pump AND roses--what more could a girl ask for (a box of chocolates would have made the day complete)! :-) It isn't as tough as a live Body Pump class, especially in the leg department (the squat/lunge segment is rather short), but it hits the upper body pretty well. I did find some of the shoulder exercises a little awkward when the class was using barbell plates, but I used dumbbells and it felt much better. IMO, Body Pump is a decent endurance workout, but more than that it's FUN, FUN, FUN, and the music ROCKS!!! If you're not in the mood to work out, pop this one in the VCR and you'll get motivated really quickly!

I love this video! I have well over 100 videos and do mostly Firm and Cathe for strength, but I have to say that the time flew by faster than with any other video I have ever done. Why? Because of the music. This video is an example of the power of the musical beat and how it can make you feel stronger and more energetic than you ever dreamed possible. It is a muscle endurance workout which varies the rhythms of each exercise; 2 beats positive, 2 beats negative, 3 and 1, 1 and 1, etc.. The weight-training exercises are so well-synchronized to the amazing music in this video that it feels like a totally different activity. Very enjoyable and fun! Also, it really works the legs, biceps, triceps, shoulders and back very well. The abs section was the only section that I felt was too easy and not as varied and imaginative as the rest of the video. I enjoyed the stretches at the end of the video. I would do this video on a day when I do not want to work heavy or when I just want to do a really fun video for the total body. I might include it on a cardio day too. On a practical note: I did not use the bar that came with this video. I used my Firm barbell with the Body Pump plates and sometimes used my Body Bar, depending on the exercise. Doing this was much easier than stopping to change plates, which, by the way, would be frustrating because the clips are not user-friendly (they actually hurt my fingers). You could use the end-locks that come with the Firm barbell, but the Firm barbell and Body Bar are really much more comfortable to hold since they are padded while the Body Pump bar is just thin metal. I also must add that I followed the advice on the Forum and bought Body Pump at Sam's Club for $29.95. While I really do love the video, I would not pay $79.95 for it.

I was one of those consumers who found the Bodypump barball and accompanying free video at Sam's wholesale club for $29.95. I think the operative words would be "you get what you pay for", as I had to take the videotape back twice because of defectiveness and the barbell back once because it was crooked and one of the cushioning pads on the end was missing. All that aside, Bodypump was a good workout. As Mandy Lee mentioned, the set is very similar to those in the Reebok videos. I felt that the set was too dark, however, and the red background with the Bodypump logo made it difficult to see the instructors in the back, who were also clad in red. The sound was horrible, and the music drowned out the instructor. I can say nothing negative about form. The cast used excellent form in the workout and there is a superb instructional vignette at the end of the workout which is great for beginners and advanced alike, as it thoroughly goes over proper body alignment, etc. The one irritating thing, however, was that the camera would sometimes pan to head shots of Jackie Mills when she was demonstrating proper lower body form. Also, sometimes she failed to cue when to do single reps, or double reps, etc. But, these are minor complaints. Overall, the workout is fun, safe, and upbeat, although for me , the music took some getting used to as I've become so accustomed to the Firm's music style. But, the music tracks are superb and motivating as well. I only wish the video had been longer, and that they'd incorporated more lower body moves and stronger ab work. I found the cast singing along with the music a bit annoying, but found myself doing the same thing after a while. The tunes in this workout will really stick in your head! You will definitely feel this workout, especially in your upper body. I recommend it to anyone looking for a strength-only workout using the barbell that's different from the Firm.

I ordered the BodyPump barbell through the Step CO. and the video came free. Although the barbell is workable, it's hard to change the plates. And when you try to do biceps work with it, the plated rotate which was bothersome. But...the video is excellent!!! It is one of my favorite video's now. It really brings the energy of an aerobic class into a weight training workout. The music is very energetic and upbeat. The squats really give me a good workout. Yes, just doing squats! The upper body work is very effective too. This is a high rep/ low weight(or depending on how strong you are, you can use a heavier weight)workout. You can use any barbell or bodybar. No dumbbells are used for this workout. They use a step for chest work and triceps work. I am advanced and each section brings my muscles to failure. Since the workout has already be wonderfully broken down, I will just give my personal feelings about the workout.

Time flies when I do this video. I love each section! My favorite is the triceps/Biceps section which has great upbeat music that really makes me push myself. I think the music is especially well picked and also it seems like it's much more in stereo than CIA or Cathe video's. For example, if I do the BodyPump video and a 30 minute CIA, I always have to turn the CIA volume up after I did the BodyPump video.

The instructor is fabulous! She looks so much like Kari Anderson and has a great New Zealand accent. She gives good form tips and you can always watch the end of the video where they show more teaching tips on each exercise. All the background exercisers are having a blast and in very good shape. They are all BodyPump instructors. The set is more like the Reebok sets with fans going and bright lights but it's much brighter set. The ab work is mostly slow crunches and they do lower ab work too. No oblique work or floor back work. The cooldown has some good all over body stretches.

I like it when all the instructors just sing along with the music!

I wish the Step CO. would sell the video separate from the barbell. What I do is load the whole BodyPump barbell with all the plates(it's over 40lbs) and use it only for lower body. I don't take the plates off. Then I use the Firm Barbell for upper body. It's worth getting the BodyPump barbell though just to get the free video!! That's the real treasure!