Rating: 
Summary: Wonderfully uncheesy
Review: The idea of exercising in front of my television set generally embarrasses me; perhaps I associate exercise videos with dancers in the background squealing "WOOOO!" every time they lift their legs. Paula Abdul's video is wonderfully understated, very challenging, and a true pleasure to dance to. That's the key, though--you're learning a dance and then doing it; you're not repeatedly doing the grapevine and the whatever else they call various aerobic steps. I have a dance background, and I found the routine challenging at first. I just played the DVD twice in a row until I could feel a bit less disoriented and clumsy (and I'm not a clumsy person). I was glad I stuck with it, however, because her moves are really fun and her music is not the least bit annoying.I did not give the video five stars because, as another reviewer indicated, you need a very large space in order to do the routines adequately. Very few people I know have the kind of space in their living rooms they'd need to do this workout correctly. I just did things diagonally instead of right/left and front/back, but I would have rather not found myself crashing into my table here and my couch there. One final note: another reviewer found her insert box useless, but I found it very helpful to watch the moves done from the direction I was facing.
Rating: 
Summary: Funky & fun but frusterating
Review: I'm going to compare this video to Paula's other video "Get up & Dance" because I loved "Get up..." so was a little disappointed in Cardio Dance. It is in Paula's fun, funky style. However, she doesn't break it down real well. It is fast to begin with, and gets faster. It needs to start out with 1/2 the tempo it began with. And in "Get up...", she does begin slow. However, at the beginning of each segment in Cardio Dance there is a box at the bottom of the screen so you can see what she's doing the same way she's facing.
I found Cardio Dance to be a little more intimidating because the moves are sophisticated, I think, from my background in ballet and jazz. It uses a lot more space- she uses a lot of the floor both horizontally and vertically. So you need a lot of room to "travel" across the floor so you can't do it in an itty-bitty living room. Paula says that this workout is best not done on carpet as it could hurt your knees because there is a lot of lower leg twisting- salsa/mambo moves and turning- so no carpet in an itty-bitty living room either! So that was frusterating! Altogether it was fun, but I still like her other video which features "everyday people" as she calls them versus the professional dancers in Cardio Dance. There is a 15 minute lower body toning section at the end that I like which includes a lot of plies and is her cool-down as well.
Rating: 
Summary: Doesn't break down the steps
Review: If you^re already a pretty good dancer, you can definitely improve your dance moves with this video/dvd. I for one am glad Paula doesnt annoy anyone with her 1 2 3 counting all through the program like some other reviewers were expecting. I only wish the dance routine was longer because it really is fun to dance along with lil Paula (and not to mention her FINE dancers). When im clubbing I cant help but fall into a slick Paula-Move every once in a while....but very subtly....My energy level is at an all time high on the dance floor. Paula! Whens your next workout tape coming out???? Louie C
Rating: 
Summary: Super-Fun Workout!
Review: I'm 18 years old, and have tried many videos to keep in shape, including Tae Bo and Mari Winsor Pilates. However, I found that Paula Abdul's Cardio Dance was the most intense workout of the three. The moves are kind of hard to learn at first, but after a few times, you are adding your own style and flavour to the routine. It is so much fun and you don't have to listen to the slow pace in which Mari Winsor instructs you. I would reccomend this video to anyone who is bored with the same old same old, and who likes to dance.
Rating: 
Summary: Very difficult, slightly rewarding
Review: The moves in this are great, but I did this with several fairly coordinated family members and it was very difficult. I never have managed to master it. She makes a passing attempt at teaching you the moves, but a couple of times she actually completely skips teaching you the move and just does it at the speed of light and expects you to get it (the "charleston" is an example of this.) It was freggin sadistic. I'd rather have an impossibly difficult video with good moves than an unbearably easy video, however, so it gets two stars. If you pick up stuff fast and easily, this would probably be a good investment.
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