Crunch: Killer Legs

As the other reviewers said, this is 30-minute leg workout of reasonable quality. Level is roughly intermediate; that is, this tape wouldn't be suitable either for sedentary beginners or real- ly advanced people, but it would be fine for just about everyone else.

Killer Legs has a short warmup, a cooldown, and four toning sec- tions. The first two sections feature fast, choreographed stand- ing leg work (e.g., dip down in front, down in back, to the side, squat, etc.). The third section is chair work, and the fourth is on the floor.

The reason I wrote this review is that the tape has some unusual advantages and disadvantages. While I'm not sure I'm going to keep it, it may be very useful to others.

The biggest general disadvantage is the presentation. The set, with its jarring colors, is perhaps the most disconcerting I've ever seen. Let me put it this way: If Cthulhu, the Lovecraftian creature from the depths, were going to do an exercise video, this is the set it would use.

Tyla Reich, the instructor, is also somewhat annoying. She's overly perky and has a voice like Carol Channing. Like many Crunch instructors, she doesn't appear to be so much a physical education teacher as an actress who plays one on tape.

The final annoyance is the inset between sections that says, "Cookies, chocolate and chips are the enemy." While most of us would be better off eating less junk food, not everyone gets in- spired by seeing food as the enemy.

On the other hand, many of these problems disappear when you ac- tually put the tape in your VCR and start working out. Be- cause there's such a wide variety of exercises, and so much of the video is lightly choreographed routines, it proceeds unusual- ly quickly and enjoyably for a strength tape. Also, I got Killer Legs from a trade, but I understand it's available from places like Target very inexpensively.

Bottom line, though, is that I'm probably going to trade this tape. Why? Well, because I'm large and don't have very good bal- ance, I go easy on myself with the fast standing work. I don't move very deeply in these sections, and don't give myself much of a burn. By the time I'm advanced enough to be comfortable doing these exercises with really good form, I'll probably be advanced enough for a much more effective tape.

Do you like fast standing work? Get Killer Legs. When you actual- ly do the tape, the other disadvantages won't really matter very much.

I am new to strength training, and this is the first leg work video I've ever tried. I like it! I'm not sure which results each exercise gives, but my legs sure do feel like jello when I'm done. There are 3 main sections, and the time flies since each section is not that long. The whole tape is only 30 minutes. One interesting characteristic of this tape is that all of the women look like they are in their underware. I guess they wanted to emphasize their legs, but some of the leotards are very hi-cut. This distracted me from the workout at first, but it helped me laugh a little while I was doing it. Overall, I like this video and will continue to do it about twice a week. I got it on a clearance rack at Best Buy for $2.99!

This leg workout (all standing except for a short segment at the end) works every part of your legs. But as far as being "killer" as the title would imply, I have to disagree. It's a beginner/intermediate level, although beginners might not be able to complete it the first few times, or might have trouble with the choreography.
What makes this different from other toning tapes is that it is choreographed. It's rather fun, actually, but as an advanced exerciser, I just don't get enough out of it to want to spend any more time with it. Advanced people probably won't like it, but for beginners and intermediates, it's definitely worth trying out. I've seen it in stores for $6.99 or so, and I think it's worth that for the right level of exerciser.