Zumba Fitness Exhilarate Body Shaping System DVD (Multi, Small)

I love this Zumba set. It includes 6 workouts in 5 DVDs. Here's the breakout of each DVD: 1) The first is the step by step. It is 55 min long and it shows very clearly and slowly at first the basic steps. You can even change the angle to watch from behind and follow like in a class if you prefer. I prefer to get straight to the action so I only watched it once. 2)The second DVD is the Activate which lasts for 40 minutes and I love it. It's very fun and it will make you sweat but doesn't make you suffer much. I love the 40 minute duration when I don't have that much time, the only shortcoming is that because of it you have to do cool downs on your own since there are none on this DVD. 3) Exhilarate is a 60 minute DVD, this is more tiring than the previous but it's still fun. This one is guided by Beto Perez and a very able lady. 4)Zumba Toning is a 30 minute work out mainly for the arms. The 1 pound sticks that came with the pack are too light for me so I use 5 pound weights instead although it's sometimes difficult to follow the routine. I love this one because I like to exercise my arms and you really get a tough work out in 30 minutes. 5)Mix is in the same DVD as toning and this one I love, it's 60 min of routines with music from around the world. It's really interesting and fun. All of the other DVDs can be seen with the voice instructions or without them. This one is only available without the voice unless you want to view it with the breakout of the moves which makes it a much longer routine since they explain slowly the basic movements of each rhythm before going back to the main program. 6) Rush workout is an action packed 20 minute workout. It's really good if you're short on time. I take it with me on vacation and it helps keep me active. In summary this is a great set, has enough variety to keep you interested and you really get a good workout. I practice other sports and I mix them with the Zumba and I can feel it making a difference on my body. I highly recommend it.

I have always wanted to try Zumba, but was hesitant thinking it was just another gimmick weight loss product. Boy was I wrong. I kept seeing and hearing people talk about it non-stop, so I broke down and ordered the latest installment. Come to find out, it is a very fun and challenging workout. It does take time to learn the steps and intricate rhythms, so for beginners and non-dance people, I would recommend staying with the Learn It option until you are really comfortable. I can see where someone might get discouraged because they can't pick up on the moves quickly, but just stick with it and eventually your body will move the way it needs to. If it doesn't - then just keep moving and do the best you can. Step-By-Step DVD - is actually fun and gets you sweating the first time through - the instructors are really good in the instructional DVD and I wish Tanya and Gina were featured in all of the DVD's. Activate - this is by far my favorite because the steps are challenging but once you get them you can rock the video pretty hard. It's 40 minutes too, which is less than the rest and doable for me as I am a new mom and finding an hour to spare is scarce these days. Rush - the more you put in the more you get out. It's only 20 minutes, but if you put everything you've got into it, it will kick your butt. Exhilarate - not my favorite. The dubbing of the instructors is annoying and as much as I love Beto, the creator, he is hard to follow at times. This was by far my least favorite of all the workouts. Zumba Toning and Sentao - surprisingly, I enjoyed both of these segments - you can split them and only do one at a time, which is nice, as they are 30 minutes each. I really felt challenged in both workouts, however, the toning sticks are a bit of a joke - unless you can't lift a soup can, get some real weights and the toning workout will be worth your while. Sentao - with the chair - took me some time mainly because of space issues and the fact that I have high boy chairs - not designed for this workout. I had to improvise a lot, which was no big deal because a lot of the moves you can do without the chair. Mix and Party - again, these are really fun, but I am too much a beginner to really benefit from these right now. I'm sure once I get more advanced with the moves these will be fun. All in all, great workout series. I lost 4.5 inches in the first week - cannot argue with that (and that was without diet changes).

I like to work out every day, and since I am extremely limited on time, I try to fit in a 30 minute in-home workout each morning before my shower. Of the 30+ DVD workouts I have accumulated (step aerobics, kickboxing, dance workouts, etc), the Zumba Exhilarate DVDs are definitely my favorite. Why? Because they are insanely fun, while still being a very effective workout. Here are some thoughts on the individual DVDs: "Step By Step" breaks down a lot of the moves used in the other DVDs. It takes about an hour, and you barely break a sweat during it, but doing it two times has definitely made the choreography in the other DVDs less challenging. "Activate", "Exhilarate", and "Mixed" are the 45-60min dance workouts, and I listed them in order of increasing difficulty (particularly, difficulty in choreography). I like that the workouts have different `levels', and that I have something to work towards as I get better at the moves in the first two. "Rushed" is a 20-minute dance workout. The moves are relatively simple to follow, but very intense. It's the perfect workout when you're crunched for time. "Toning" is a 30 minute workout, mainly for your arms. It's the least fun of all the workouts in this set, but is still very good as far strengthening exercises go. Pros: The dance workouts are very fun, the music is fantastic, and the workout is very effective. It's also a great core workout, especially if you keep your abs tight. And finally, most of the moves require very little space. I live in a tiny apartment, and I do the workout in a very cramped area. There are a few moves that I must modify a little to do in the space I have, but they are few and far between. However, though I love the Zumba workouts, I do have a few complaints about the set itself. Cons: The 1lb. toning sticks included are for the Toning workout, and if you are even a little in shape, the 1lb weights are far too light. They advertise that 2.5 lb. Zumba toning sticks are sold through the website, but I bought some 2 and 3lb weights at my local Walmart that work just as well. However, this annoyed me a little because I paid for a set that includes the 1lb sticks and they are useless to me. My other main complaint is that the first four DVDs come in a cute, but flimsy cardboard sheath that holds the DVDs pretty tightly. That's why I give this important advice: If you invest in this set, make sure your next investment is for CD cases! I learned this the hard way. It's kind of a pain to get the DVDs out of their holder, and once, in my struggle, my Activate DVD came out of the holder and crashed to the ground. Now the last two songs on that DVD don't play correctly. Bottom line - as long as you buy some handweights and CD cases with this purchase, you will soon be in very good shape, and you'll have a lot of fun doing it.

I've had this set for a week and I love it. The step-by-step video is easy to follow and informative. The rest of the videos are fairly easy to follow with the verbal cues (I'm not to the point where I can take the verbal cues off yet). They do take the camera off the feet once in awhile, but I've noticed it's during repeated moves and not when there is a change up. Others have mentioned that it's too dark. The only time it's really dark is again during repeated moves and I'm normally not concentrating on the video that much at that time but rather more on my movements. I even enjoy the Concert DVD, although that one is a little harder to follow since they take the camera to the audience sometimes during change ups. 60 minutes flies by when doing these videos. The instructors seem to enjoy themselves and have fun with it which helps me keep motivated and interested. I've done all the videos and can say that I will continue to keep up with this workout. After a week I'm already seeing a change in my body, at least 2 inches gone from my waist and more toning of my muscles. If you find you have trouble keeping up, start with the step by step video for a day or two. It's slow but you still sweat and get a workout from it. Next move to the Activate DVD and use the verbal cues. The program guide gives sample workouts, providing guidance as to which videos to use for certain routines including a newbie guide to the DVDs. I didn't follow this as I wanted to try all the work outs, I did start with the step-by-step but moved to the other DVDs right away. Sometimes I get lost and have to pause for a second and catch up. If you look at the people in the back of some of the videos it happens to them too! Some moves are really high impact, lots of jumping and twisting of the knees. You can modify by not jumping as much and still get a work out. I'd recommend these DVDs to anyone looking for a workout with results that doesn't feel like a workout.

I received this a few days ago, and I have really enjoyed this product! There are some reviews that say this is hard to follow, the lighting is bad, etc. for the videos. I have found that the sets are just suited for me - young 20's. I can relate to it! It really feel...

I picked this up to cycle in with my usual workout, which consists of following a Jillian Michaels-designed schedule and routine. What I like about it is it doesn't leave you completely worn out and beat up like most other workouts, and I actually find I feel more alert and refreshed after I've done it. It's also comparatively low impact, relying more on fast footwork and associated arm movements than jumping around, which means people who might not be able to handle things like jumping jacks could find this a good bridge. You will DEFINITELY want to go through the DVDs in the order they're listed on the packaging. Even though they aren't numbered, there's a clear progression in expected skill, and by the third DVD they aren't explaining ANYTHING so much as just shouting out moves. The downside is if you're not a dancer, even with the instructions it can be hard to follow what's going on. After the instructional DVD and first basic workout, the instructors simply do not lead you through the more complicated movements in a way that's friendly for first-timers, and more annoyingly, all of the dancers onscreen tend to be doing their own variations (and level of effort) of the movements, which is confusing enough if you're trying to nail the basic movements. At times, especially with the flashy camera and light work, it definitely seems like they're more concerned with putting on a show than educating. While it's clear all the women are talented dancers, I actually wish the men had been up front more often simply because they tend to involve less stylistic flourishing in their dance, so it's easier to follow them if you're starting out. If you watch the Q&A DVD, in a response to a question about how to move your hips like they do in the video, one of the instructors simply says to "open your mind"... and although I know she means to stop overthinking things, it does you no good if you are legitimately clueless and uncoordinated to begin with. In the instructional DVD, she provides a tip to move your knees in a certain way to achieve a movement that otherwise looks to be entirely hips-based, so there ARE ways they could explain more of the mechanics behind the moves... they just often don't think to, which I believe is probably a result of, well, being dancers. To them, this is all second nature, and I don't think it occurs to them to say more of the helpful things that would help a non-dancer get to where they are more quickly... especially since they rarely provide any helpful direction to make sure you're using the sort of form that would allow you to get the most out of things. The included Zumba sticks are so light that for me, at least, they're basically worthless. I have paperback books that weigh more than these things, and I got such a complete lack of resistance that I wound up using my handweights instead. I guess if you were significantly overweight to the point where you need to start very slow and gentle (and if you do, I mean no disrespect, that's just not where I personally am) you might find them a way to ease yourself into more resistance, but in my case, they're worse than useless. Zumba is, ultimately, a fun and positive experience, but although I'm pouring sweat after a workout, I don't feel the sort of satisfying gentle ache in my muscles I tend to associate with actually pushing myself and working hard. Though I put the same amount of effort into the Zumba routines as I do my basic workout, the weight loss results are definitely NOT the same, and Zumba sadly falls short for me. If you like the structure of a workout that involves a more focused and methodical approach to different muscle sets, you may find Zumba a bit too chaotic. I feel like the approach may be, for my tastes, a bit TOO much on having fun, and not enough on pushing and challenging yourself. Of course, that's just personal preference, and if you enjoy fast-paced cardio rather than workout sets, Zumba is worth looking into. What doesn't work for one person may work better for another. But for me, Zumba is something to be used in ADDITION to my everyday workout routine rather than a complete replacement.

I'm a fairly recent Zumba convert, having only bought the previous DVD set a few months ago. I had been using the DVD's 4-5 times a week and had become pretty familiar with the routines so was very excited to see this new set being released (so excited I had it shipped to the UK so I didn't have to wait for the European release date!). For those familiar with the earlier DVD's, these new ones may take a little getting used to - new sets, voiceovers, lots of new instructors and occasional over-enthusiastic lighting/editing could be off-putting to begin with but I would really recommend persevering as the set provides a great workout, suitable for beginners (Step by Step and Activate) right through to experienced dancers. There is an emphasis on making the experience more like a party this time round, hence the greater number of dancers, costumes and quirky camera angles, but it retains it's teaching-roots and you are never left feeling that you are standing at a disco where everyone but you knows the routine. Yes, a couple of times the lighting and camera crews do appear to conspire against you, and you can barely see what's going on for a few seconds but these issues are few and far between and it still far surpasses most dancing DVD's in terms of clarity of teaching. You can "Feel It' (no instructions, just music), or "Learn It", where the instructors provide voiceover cues which remind you what moves are coming next and help you perfect your technique with style pointers. The music is varied but generally excellent, with something for everyone, and the instructors are personable and encouraging. The set teaches new moves, so existing Zumba fans can extend their repertoire of steps while newcomers will have plenty to work on. Discs range from 20 mins (Rush) to 60 mins (Exhilarate) and frequently provide a good cardio workout in addition to the sheer fun and pleasure of dancing. Also, the new sticks are extra-noisy, adding to the shake-your-maracas effect! I have already become a Zumba-bore, recommending it to everyone, and this new set is no exception. If you want a high energy, insanely fun dance-based workout that's more addictive than any other form of exercise (IMHO!) then look no further than Zumba :-)

I'm not Shawn Grigson, I'm his wife and he bought me this set, so I thought I'd save him the embarrassment by being open about this right from the start. This is NOT written by Shawn Grigson. Hehe. Anyway, I am loving this Zumba set. I did the set prior to this one (2009?) for about a year, it was easy for me to stick to because it was so much fun. This time around I have to send out a HUGE thank you to whoever came up with the 'Just Feel It' idea. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! I think that alone has increased the longevity of this series for me by at least tenfold. It doesn't matter how charismatic or cute an instructor may be, after listening to the same quips, the same jokes, the same cute/corny comments over and over and over for a year gets really, really old. The 'Just Feel It' option loses that element entirely and I've been using it from the get go. Except for the very beginning brief intros, I've barely heard anyone's voice and it's been wonderful just having the moves and the music. I love it!! So far I've only done the Activate and Rush disks regularly. They just seem to fit into my routine and I haven't felt the desire to move on yet. I've read some complaints about Activate not being challenging enough and maybe it's because I've recently had a baby but I've found it to be a great workout. The moves are fun (especially the belly dancing type moves!), the two guys are adorable and Tanya makes me smile. Maybe my opinion would be different if I had the verbal cuing going but if so that's why 'Just Feel It' is so great! Rush is wonderful also, if I don't have time or if I'm feeling like procrastinating, I just put that disk in and it's a quick workout that is very energizing and I feel better as a result because at least I did *something* that day. I'll update when I've done more disks but even if I don't like them as much as the two I'm currently using, I don't think my score would change all that much. I've never found a workout system that I've been able to stick to for as long as I have with Zumba. It's just pure fun.