Title: Core Fusion Barre Basics for Beginners (Acacia Exhale)
Who’s it for? Beginners to barre exercise
Format: Seven 10-minute workouts, which can be played one at a time or in succession with or without tutorials. The disc also has bonus features and a short introduction to barre workout methods. Nearly all of the workout segments begin with a brief warm-up and end with stretching, making them versatile for bite-size workouts or part of a larger set.
What’s to like? Exercisers might be surprised to learn a barre is not required to complete the workouts in this DVD.
Though each tutorial demonstrates the movements in the forthcoming segment while using a barre, the 10-minute exercise portion always substitutes a chair.
The 10 segments work the thighs, gluteals and abdominals. No arm movements were included in this DVD. The movements were slow and controlled, as in Pilates or yoga, and cues focused on breathing and form.
As someone who has been to three or four barre classes in Arkansas, I can attest that many of the movements on this disc are the same or similar. The main difference is taking the slow, static holds and small pulses of some positions and adding a third step that goes through the full range of motion on exercises like squats and leg lifts. The DVD doesn’t encourage exercisers to complete more reps or hold the position for as long as possible, as a class setting would, but if you have the motivation to challenge yourself beyond the 10-minute segment, it can be done.
I particularly liked the options to modify movements to step the intensity up or down as you build strength. That being said, as it’s for beginners, a point will come when you’ll master these exercises and plateau. Because the pace is so slow, you likely won’t work up a sweat, but this regimen could certainly bring about advances in strength and flexibility for beginners.
Distractions? Nearly everything about this workout DVD is professional, and finding something to dislike is difficult. The only thing I might criticize is that at the conclusion of each segment, the instructors attempt to say something supportive, but at times it’s indelicate. After a one-leg workout, Elsabeth Halfpapp’s voice-over says, “Enjoy your long, lean thighs,” which is fine. But after another leg-strengthening segment, her disembodied voice says, “Enjoy that high, round butt.” Ummm, sure.
Necessary gear: A yoga mat, a sturdy chair with arms, a rolled-up towel
Credentials: The DVD boasts that Halfpapp and Fred DeVito are “more than just fitness experts: they’ve been innovators and leaders in the barre technique for over 30 years” and I would tend to believe it. In the introduction, they talk about training fitness professionals for 10 years and reference changes and refinements they’ve made to the standard yoga, Pilates, and Lotte Berk Method moves to make them more effective. Bonus materials included more biographical information about the instructors and their Exhale workout spas (none in Arkansas) and the Core Fusion programs.
Price: $16.99
Rating: 4 stars
ActiveStyle, Pages 23 on 04/29/2013