Rating: 
Summary: Great for a beginnner....not for a novice.
Review: After doing a one hour workout, you would think that every muscle in your body would be feeling it...right? WRONG.... Your tummy gets a nice work out... and you feel nice and tall after completing the video. The stretching is great.
Personally, the routine is too slow for me and the instructor talks too much. I think that if she just went from one move to the other with out talking the workout would give a better payoff. By the time she started the next move...I was already 10 reps in. Also... it did not seem like there was enough repitition of the good moves and too many unnecessary moves.
Rating: 
Summary: If it's not hard enough. . .
Review: . . . you're not doing ir correctly, according to Joseph Pilates. I agree that the negative reviews here are unwarrented. I have had several Pilates tapes/DVDs AND I have used a certified personal trainer. I am fit and limber -- but I still sweat to this video. Perhaps the problem is not that the video is too easy, but that Kris does not stress enough that you have to be very precise with your movements (or that it's too easy for viewers to skip over that part -- particularly on the DVD version). I've never had a problem with her explainations, but maybe that's because I have had the benefit of one-on-one training. It's a great video for use between trips to the gym/studio. If you know what you're doing, you can use it as a guide and advance your movements according to your level -- even use equipment -- without being distracted by "exciting" graphics and music. But only if you're serious. If you're looking for a hand-holding video, you might want to look at something else.
Rating:
Summary: Noticeable Results after 5 Workouts!!
Review: After 5 workouts (3x precision toning, 2x precision sculpting) my abdominal wall was noticeably stronger & flatter and my butt already had a "lift" to it. I was "very" skeptical of pilates as I was a traditional cardio/weights lady, but I have been raving non-stop about this dvd b/c of how surprisingly "effective" it turned out to be for me. 2nd time doing the workouts proved to be more difficult b/c I had already become familiar enough with it to start concentrating on moves & form. Definitely recommend this to any skeptic out there trying pilates for the 1st time. Bonus for me: works on my flexibility at the same time it tones me. This is great b/c I have NEVER been flexible.
Rating: 
Summary: A good DVD, but not what I expected
Review: ALthough I like this video and find it easy to follow and challenging to do, it is not what I expected from something being marketed as "PILATES"...it does not incorporate specific core (ab) excersises which is the one thing I think it is really lacking. That being said, the strengthing sections for both upper body and lower body are good and pose a decent amount of chanllenge for me (I consider myself althletic being that I work out 5-6 times per week).
Rating:
Summary: This CANNOT be a Jennifer Kries' authorized video!!
Review: As a die hard fan of Jennifer Kries and her work, I can attest to the fact that this recent release could not NOT, and I repeat NOT possibly be an authorized release on her part! She consistently produces quality work and the video company responsible for producing her Method line has must have released this to cash in on her success as a leader in the field, to try to rival her new line (which I think was released under a new company title) ... wonder why she left the old company???Even the photo on the cover doesn't look like something she would approve of! And it's NOT a Pilates move! When I viewed the contents, I knew for sure that she couldn't have just produced this, primarily because the footage resembled her wonderful "Precision Toning" from 1996! (that's almost five years ago now)! but wasn't nearly as organized or clear or precise. And finally, to sum this all up, it views like a bad pirated version of her original tape! She could NOT have been the one to produce or release this! It is a bad joke and makes her look bad, which for Jennifer is HARD TO believe! She has a reputation for producing the highest quality work with finesse and elegance and real intelligence.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent introduction to Pilates
Review: Contrary to what other reviews state, the majority of the moves in the precision toning part of the video are Pilates moves. My only complaint is that once you have the workout down, her instructions get in the way of time that could be spent performing the moves. I don't use the sculpting portion, preferring to stick to my free weights and bands. Precision toning is a great video to learn how to perform Pilates mat work.
Rating:
Summary: No-nonsense Pilates
Review: I agree with the person who said this is like having a 1:1 trainer. Jennifer Kries is no-nonsense about her explanations and is very clear about breathing and how to hold the positions. No, there's no music, and no, she doesn't smile like a robot and talk endlessly like some exercise personalities do. That is why I find this DVD workout appealing. If you are just wanting to learn the basics of Pilates, this is a challenging workout you will want to do long after you learn the positions. Also, it's great that there are 2 workouts, the "Sculpting" and the "Toning." More advanced Pilates devotees will probably find this boring.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, well-chaptered DVD
Review: I am a big Jennifer Kries fan. I love her newer series (Pilates Method/New Method) and her book, Pilates Plus Method. I tried in the past to get into some of her older stuff- Precision Toning and Precision Sculpting- and while I thought she gave (as always) great instruction, the workouts were very long and I just couldn't see myself making the commitment on a regular basis. I just recently got this DVD and am now over the moon. It is very well chaptered. If your DVD has a programmable play feature, it's easy to split up the workouts so you don't have to do over an hour (Precision Toning) or forty minutes (Precision Sculpting). Some of my favorite combinations are: the upper body work from PS combined with the side kicks from PT; the matwork/Method Toning (minus the side kicks) from PT; and Toning Essentials from PT and the pelvic lifts/ballet segments from PS. And while figuring out the specific titles/chapters on some DVDs can be a nightmare, this is pretty straightforward: Title 1 is PT, Title 2 is PS, and the chapters for each segment are numbered on the title menu they provide. Though some may already have other Pilates workouts (even other Jennifer Kries workouts) I still recommend this tape. The side kicks segment alone is worth the money- I could not believe how much my thighs and buttocks burned the first time I did her sequence, and I'd been a Pilates "veteran" for quite some time. One final comment: when these two workouts were first released, everyone kept going on about how they were "fusion" workouts, combining Pilates, dance and yoga. Having done them, I can guarantee that they are almost completely straight up Pilates (with a little dance thrown in at the end of Precision Sculpting). Yes, we do use Child's Pose a few times, but that move has been used in "pure" Pilates practices for years. Not that this takes anything away from the workouts- I just wouldn't want someone to be disappointed by the lack of yoga on this DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, well-chaptered DVD
Review: I am a big Jennifer Kries fan. I love her newer series (Pilates Method/New Method) and her book, Pilates Plus Method. I tried in the past to get into some of her older stuff- Precision Toning and Precision Sculpting- and while I thought she gave (as always) great instruction, the workouts were very long and I just couldn't see myself making the commitment on a regular basis. I just recently got this DVD and am now over the moon. It is very well chaptered. If your DVD has a programmable play feature, it's easy to split up the workouts so you don't have to do over an hour (Precision Toning) or forty minutes (Precision Sculpting). Some of my favorite combinations are: the upper body work from PS combined with the side kicks from PT; the matwork/Method Toning (minus the side kicks) from PT; and Toning Essentials from PT and the pelvic lifts/ballet segments from PS. And while figuring out the specific titles/chapters on some DVDs can be a nightmare, this is pretty straightforward: Title 1 is PT, Title 2 is PS, and the chapters for each segment are numbered on the title menu they provide. Though some may already have other Pilates workouts (even other Jennifer Kries workouts) I still recommend this tape. The side kicks segment alone is worth the money- I could not believe how much my thighs and buttocks burned the first time I did her sequence, and I'd been a Pilates "veteran" for quite some time. One final comment: when these two workouts were first released, everyone kept going on about how they were "fusion" workouts, combining Pilates, dance and yoga. Having done them, I can guarantee that they are almost completely straight up Pilates (with a little dance thrown in at the end of Precision Sculpting). Yes, we do use Child's Pose a few times, but that move has been used in "pure" Pilates practices for years. Not that this takes anything away from the workouts- I just wouldn't want someone to be disappointed by the lack of yoga on this DVD.
Rating: 
Summary: Not worth your money
Review: I bought the Precision toning, and Precision Sculpting tapes years ago, before the Pilates craze started. I had been doing yoga for years and also Callanetics and decided to give it a try. Unfortunately the tapes just never lived up to the expectations I had. I wanted a workout that 1) wouldnt bother my back and 2) would reshape my body with a mat workout. I had done callanetics for years as a teenager and had been thrilled with the results, when I learned that this was a popular workout with celebrities I didnt think I could go wrong. If you want to get toned from Pilates you truly need to invest the money in a trainer and use a machine, these tapes are not effective enough. Ive tried several of the method tapes besides these and they were never "enough" for me. If you already excersize regularly like I do (1-2 hours a day 5 days a week) then you just wont get much results from these "light" movements. If you are a beginner and want to try something new, then these may be good for you. If you really want to get a leaner body and strengthen muscles you never knew you had, try callanetics. Ive been doing it off and on for 8 years and its never failed to give me the results I wanted.
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