Rating: 
Summary: So THIS is why people love kickboxing!
Review: This was my first kickboxing video, and I really enjoyed it. I was a bit hesitant to try it because I don't generally like aerobics videos--I find all that "take it from the top" really boring--but I'm glad I gave this workout a chance. At the start of the video, Ketih Cooke, a well-known kickboxer, provides main instructor Kathy Smith with simple explanations of each of the punches and kicks that will be used in the workout. This brief overview was helpful, but once you learn the moves, you can skip over this part.Following the instructive segment, Kathy Smith takes over. The workout begins with a warmup which lasts about 10 minutes. This provides the opportunity for you to get used to the movements, but don't be fooled by the "warmup" label--your heart rate will definitely be elevated during this section, and you will sweat! Next comes the 25-minute kickboxing workout. During this section, you will practice punches and kicks, starting slowly and then building up to a faster pace. Kathy was easy to follow, and she gradually worked up to basic punch-kick combinations which were simple to learn yet to fun to do. I did find myself getting pretty tired during this segment, but I was able to keep up by modifying the intensity slightly (eg, keeping my feet on the ground during the hops from side to side). At the end of this section, two short combinations are presented by Keith Cooke and another well-known instructor, Keli Roberts. I liked that these combinations were a bit different yet still easy to learn and that the repetitions of each were kept to a minimum. Throughout the workout, there were times when I felt like I might not be doing the moves exactly right, but I still enjoyed myself--all that punching and kicking felt GOOD! After the kickboxing workout ends, there is a 5-minute section focusing on the legs and glutes. In this segment, you practice the kicks more slowly, combining them with squats and holding on to a chair for balance. This was a nice way to reinforce what you learned during the workout, and I think that continued practice of this section will help to improve my kickboxing skills. Finally, the workout ends with a 5-minute cool down performed seated in a chair. These moves provided nice stretches for the thighs and glutes (although at one point, Kathy forgets to perform a squat stretch on the opposite side), and when they were over, I felt thoroughly stretched. I can't compare this video to Tae Bo, as I've never tried those workouts. However, I CAN say that this was a fun, high-energy video that left me feeling strong and powerful rather than exhausted. It was perfect for a kickboxing beginner like me, but it was also challenging enough to provide even non-beginners with a great workout. Kathy Smith has a nice, easygoing style and provides good overall instruction. There were a few times when I thought she failed to adequately cue a change in movement, but the workout was so easy to follow along that it wasn't hard to replicate the movements after the first repetition or two. I'm thrilled to have finally found a cardio video that is truly enjoyable, and I look forward to doing this video as part of my regular rotation.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't miss this workout!
Review: Kathy Smith's Kickboxing Workout is a fun, mostly well-cued, and easy-to-follow workout. A variety of different punches and kicks are incorporated into cardio routines that get the heart rate up and make you feel invincible! I like how Kathy starts out by discussing safety with martial arts expert Keith Cooke. One important she and Keith stress throughout the workout is go at your own pace and not worry about kicking high or punching super hard. After the 10 minute warm-up, Kathy goes into a high-energy 25-minute workout. I like how she introduces the leg work (e.g. pivots) before she introduces the punches, focusing on good form. She also doesn't go straight into kicking (she does "side folds" to prepare you for the kicks). Throughout the tape you see clips of Keith doing the kicks and punches from different angles to help have good form. As a bonus, the tape includes thigh and buns kicking drills and back and abs stability exercises.
When I first started doing the workout, I felt that she didn't cue on time and would announce a new adjustment after she started doing it. However, after doing the workout a couple of times, I knew what to expect so it wasn't as much of an issue. I find the workout highly addictive and the time flies by really quickly. The more I do the workouts, the more energy I have during the workouts and after.
Rating:
Summary: grreat workout!
Review: I am not very interested to buy Kathy Smith's videos. The designs of the cover rather cheesy.
This workout fortunately has a rave review that I decided to buy it. It really really good. And particularly I kind of like Kathy's personality which does not very well pictured from her clips and her DVD cover. She should do more of this rather than anything else.
Her DVD cover needs more touching in design. It is not very appealing at all.
And it is not for a very beginner in exercise. It left me really really drenched in sweat and breathless +++.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best kickboxing videos around
Review: I should preface this review by saying that 1) I am a Certfied Fitness Trainer and 2) I am an avid runner and quite fit. I will review this cd from this perspective.
Okay, having watched just about every kickboxing video out there, I find it refreshing that this video is smooth and consistently cardio-oriented. There is nothing more frustrating thatn popping in a video for a cardio workout and being confronted with really low-intensity or strength training exercises smack-dab in the middle of a good burn. I am equally annoyed by videos where the instructor "forgets" to do a move on both sides. This video is 36 straight minutes of cardio. The moves don't jar your joints, and Kathy is just enough of an instructor to be interesting, and yet not so "motivating" that she annoys. This is my favorite kickboxing video so far.
Rating: 
Summary: Fair workout
Review: I bought this DVD because of the great reviews it got. I found it dissapointingly easy, and just when you start getting into the sequence it was over. The workout is great for beginners. For a really great workout nothing compares to Marcel Daane's KICKFIT The Ultimate Workout, now that's a workout that makes you sweat bullets and pummel every muscle in your body! I wish it was available on Amazon.
Rating:
Summary: What a Workout!
Review: I have used this workout four times and I have to say I am very impressed with it. The first time I couldn't get through the whole thing! I am finding the combinations of kicking and boxing help me focus on my form instead of concentrating on how hard I'm working. The DVD is great because you can customize your workout so you don't have to spend an hour doing it all if you don't want to. I like the choreography because it's not confusing. (Although it does take a couple times of seeing to pick up.) I always have my towel and plenty of water close by because I'm usually drenched with sweat by the time I'm done.
Rating:
Summary: Much better than Tae Bo
Review: This is one of my favorite exercise tapes. I definitely get an excellent workout from it. I found it much easier to do than Tae Bo, which is too fast for me. What Kathy Smith is so good at is choreography, and that's what makes this tape so efficient, fun, and easy to follow.
Rating:
Summary: Kathy Smith Kickboxing Workout
Review: This DVD helps me to get in a good cardio workout when the weather's too bad to work out outside. The music isn't overpowering, and the instructor isn't annoying. If time's limited, there's an option on the DVD to pick sections of the workout to do (warm up, kicking drills, standard kickboxing workout, advanced workout, cool down stretches, etc).
Rating:
Summary: Awesome workout burns calories with easy moves!
Review: This workout is by far the BEST cardio video workout I have ever tried. The moves are easy to master--after doing the complete workout two or three times you will have it down pat. Kathy is a great motivator, the music keeps you going, and again--the moves are really easy---but you will sweat your butt off! WAY BETTER THAN TAE BO!
Rating:
Summary: greeeeat workout for beginner-intermediates
Review: The video is awesome! i just got it and was planning to sit down and watch the whole thing first before i actually tried it, but after five minutes i couldn't just watch, i had to jump into a jog bra and try the moves! i think many people agree that kathy has a great personality for an instructor-not too righteous, but motivational and helpful- and the routines are well counted. I liked everything except the abb workout at the end is not what you should buy this for, and sometimes i wish her sets were a little longer. but what i end up doing when i master any video is jumping into a set at full gear, for example starting it in double time rather than at the beginner pace like she begins every move.
other than that i love it!
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