Living Proof

It looks like the days of exercising with Charlene in the great outdoors are gone. This hour-long step workout is shot indoors in a plain room as her other recent videos have been. I really miss the outdoor scenery, but this is a great workout anyway. Charlene, at age 54, still offers the high intensity she always has, and her step choreography, while still rather basic, is a lot more varied and interesting than in her early step videos. This is not one I would do every day or every week, because it is a little repetitive. But it’s perfect, and fun, on days when you want high intensity without having to think too much. Grade A.

This is a refreshing new workout from Charlene! She really seems to be working on keeping her newer workouts interesting and fresh with new steps being introduced. She has several new moves on this tape but teaches them so well that it's pretty hard to get lost. I have always enjoyed Charlene's style of step and floor aerobics, eg. intense but more simple moves that change alot instead of a long dance routine done over and over.

This tape is as intense as ever with some very fast-footwork moves and several moves with propulsion to really drive the heartrate up. The first time I did this workout I did it on a 4" step to learn the moves etc and I got a great workout! A 6" step is the perfect height for me to get a great workout but not be stumbling around. I am good at picking up steps etc and have been working out at home for years but I find when you have to do those quick jumps over the step without touching it or jumping up onto the step I catch the edge of the step too easily with an 8". There are lots of moves like that in this tape. Charlene and Linda use a 10" step which I think is insane. Not only is it insane that they can actually do this workout on such a high step and not pass out from exhaustion but while I was previewing this tape I watched them and they seem to struggle with the height in a few places. Charlene actually looks unsteady when she has to jump up quickly (I've never seen her wobble like that before) and Linda catches her feet a couple of times on the quick jump-overs and could have easily bitten the dust!! I hope that no one would do this tape and think 10" is an average height to use. They should have a little disclaimer saying it is only for VERY tall or VERY advanced people. If I tried to use a step that high I my husband would probably find me out cold on the living room floor with a concussion!

Some of the new moves are a rock & dip step and a split-knee repeater. She also uses the "intense" repeater (which I love) and a fun lunge routine.
All in all a great and fun workout. A must-have for all Charlene fans.