Ripped in 30

Thankfully, others have provided a good run down of the exercises contained in this DVD. I'll just give my general impressions and give some comparisons to 30 Day Shred.

The big difference between this and Shred is that the strength component for the most part contains three different exercises as compared to two in Shred. To me, this translated to a little less muscle fatigue when performing the exercises. Another difference is that there are more than a few body weight/ less traditional exercises such as an ab hold to bridge, or a pike push up. Sometimes they work, sometimes they seem kind of eh... What was that about? The cardio segments are fairly similar to Shred-- maybe the plyometric component was toned down a bit. I found workout three had the toughest cardio segment- the jacks in something of a squat position were brutal. I guess I did not appreciate the plank jacks/mountain climber cardio section in the second workout either. Too much time exercising in a prone position, if you ask me.

The warm ups seemed a little longer than Shred's. There were some odd moves-- especially the "military march"-- ummm, yeah they may be military-- but you'd be more likely to see that sort of march in "Triumph of the Will" than practiced at Fort Benning, Georgia.

All in all, I would say that I like the workouts OK and like Shred they pack a punch in a short amount of time. I do think they don't seem as well designed as Shred's workouts, however. Something seems off.

This dvd offers four 31-35 min workouts on one dvd. The workouts are formatted to be used for 30 days- each week utilizing a different workout. Jillian leads in a cute brick "gym" with 2 backgrounders who show beginner & advanced modifications- Jillian performs intermediate and walks around providing form tips & motivation. You will need dumbbells for these workouts.

The workouts are all formatted circuit style and each circuit includes: 3 min strength, 2 min cardio, and 1 min cardio. The 3-2-1 format gives you everything (core, cardio, & strength) in 30ish minutes. Jillian doesnt repeat any exercises from week to week- so you really wont get bored & you'll continue to confuse your muscles & challenge your heart. Love that the cardio also often works the lower body and the strength work hits the core! Each section contains a w/u & a c/d. And she goes at a good pace to use poundage heavier than they use in the w/o.

Week One: (35 min) Exercises include pushups, squat w/ OH press, static lunge & tricep kickback, fast feet, skater, hi plank, cross country, deadlift & upright row, side lunge w/ a front raise, butt kicks, reverse crunch, KB swing, etc.

Week Two: (35 min) Exercises include pendulum lunges & serving biceps, static lunge & UR row, chest press & single leg bridge, Mt climbers, plank jacks, skipping rope, plank bunny hops, V extensions, pliet & French press, balance stick & row, plank rows, punches, hi knee runs, etc.

Week Three: (31 min)Exercises include bear crawl, duck walk, hopping twists, plank pike hops, balance stick & back fly, roll back -squat- hop up, plyo squat to floor touch & hop up, static fast run (UB moving), weighted toe taps, balancing tri extensions, pike pushups, plyo lunges, etc.

Week Four: (33 min) Exercises include plank to crescent pose, static squat & OH press, static squat & row, pliet hops, jack kicks, plank walks, around the world lunges/curtsies & bi curls, burpees, pliet hop heel click or cross, double jump rope, chatarunga pushups, roll up to double crunch, etc.

I am a fan of Jillian's work- so its no surprise that I loved this workout! Really a ton of workout minutes (134 minutes to be exact) for a GREAT price (only $9.99 at Collage Video). I love that any exerciser can pick up this dvd and a set of dumbbells and be set for months worth of workouts! Im certain if you did these workouts in conjunction with the meal plan provided on the dvd- you would have fantastic results! Easy to combine workouts- just skip one w/u & 1 c/d for 60 minute sweat fest! I received this dvd to review.

If you are a Jillian fan, these four workouts are a must! Workouts 1 and 2 are reminiscent of 30 Day Shred, but Workouts 3 and 4 really kick it up a notch. I really appreciate the simple basic moves of Workout 1. I'm not big on moves that get too creative, but I felt Jillian went at a nice, controlled pace when introducing new twists on the basics so even I didn't get frustrated the first time through. Also, I like that she's incorporating some old school moves like leg extensions and bridge/table work - nice to see that come back from time to time!

As usual, the background exercisers show options for beginner and advanced. I used 5 lb weights the first time through, which was a good gauge. Now that I know what's coming, I will definitely adjust my weights accordingly. There were a few moves that I would personally drop to 3 lbs or skip weights altogether (ab move in workout 3, superman in workout 4).

Here are the breakdowns. I didn't go into detail for the warm up and ending stretch - those are typical Jillian style.

*Workout 1*

Warm up

Circuit 1:

Strength - push ups, squat w/shoulder press, crescent pose w/tricep kickbacks (repeat)

Cardio - fast feet, skaters (repeat)

Abs - plank hold, hollow man

Circuit 2:

Strength - deadlift and row, KB swings (w/db), good mornings (repeat)

Cardio - running man, twisting punches (repeat)

Abs - side plank lifts

Circuit 3:

Strength - chair pose w/rear delt flies, side lunges w/shoulder raise, front lunge w/bicep curl (repeat)

Cardio - butt kicks, single leg hops (repeat)

Abs - basic crunch, lower ab crunch (w/legs raised)

Stretch

*Workout 2*

Warm up

Circuit 1:

Strength - crescent pose w/row, pendulum lunge w/serving biceps, bridge w/chest press x2

Cardio - plank jack, mtn climbers x2

Abs - basic crunch, crunch with opposite hand reaching for toe

Circuit 2:

Strength - side slide lunge w/leg lift, sliding tables (bridge work), core push ups (alternate bringing r/l knee in) x2

Cardio - jump rope w/kick out, squat thrusts in plank position x2

Abs - v-ups, sit up and climb up right/left leg

Circuit 3:

Strength - sumos w/tricep extension, bent over rows balancing on one leg, renegade rows x2

Cardio - jab/cross in lunge position, high knees x2

Abs - sit up w/leg extension, crunch w/leg raises

Stretch

*Workout 3*

Warm up

Circuit 1:

Strength - bear crawl, low creep lunge front and back (see video clips for these two moves!), squat w/staggered row (she did not repeat this move second time through circuit, but I did!) x2

Cardio - low jacks, skiers (moguls) x2

Abs - plank twist, straight leg squat thrust

Circuit 2:

Strength - stork pose (balance on one leg) w/reverse flies, one legged squat with bicep corkscrew curl, rock n"roll squats w/crunch (standing, roll down, crunch, roll back up to standing) x2

Cardio - squat jumps, static running lunge w/front punches x2

Abs - toe tappers (raised straight leg crunch w/db), crunch alternate touching opposing hand/toe w/db (I thought this was awkward and put the weights down)

Circuit 3:

Strength - pike push ups, side oblique crunch w/tricep press, table top tricep dips x2

Cardio - jumping lunges, one legged hops (cross pattern) x2

Abs - ab hold, pike crunch

Stretch

*Workout 4*

Warm up

Circuit 1:

Strength - plank flowing into alternating crescent pose, static squat w/shoulder press, static squat w/row x2

Cardio - plie hops, jacks w/front kicks x2

Abs - downward dog holding one knee in, plank walks, repeat w/knee on other side

Circuit 2:

Strength - superman w/db shoulder press (awkward - I put the weights down, maybe use 3# next time), renegade rows w/push ups, lunges (cross, front, side, back, curtsey) w/bicep curl x2

Cardio - burpees, scissor hops x2

Abs - windshield wiper, v sit-up into a hollow man

Circuit 3:

Strength - chest fly w/bridge and one leg up, chaturanga push up, forearm push up x2

Cardio - plank moguls, double jump rope x2

Abs - don't have a name for this move: lay down flat, roll up and touch toes, roll down, raise legs and crunch up

Jillian's warm and fuzzy motivational speech

Stretch