I haven't gone from klutz to salsa dancer, but I had fun.

Fitness wise, I don’t consider myself in perfect shape. On a cardiovascular level, I consider myself in the average range. I can take a jog without huffing and puffing the entire way, which is a good thing. Though I am a member at a gym (I’m in contract horrors…I thought the rep was cute and didn’t pay much attention. I learned my lesson), I wanted to get some fitness DVDs for days when I just didn’t want to go to the gym (not that I have gone regularly for months). I have a New Year’s resolution (like many) to get into better shape. I am well aware that it is going to take a lot of work.

So the first DVD I bought was Crunch Cardio Salsa. I found it at Target for $14.99. Though I thought the price was somewhat steep (the video is only 40 minutes long and only has one workout), I decided to buy it. It looked like fun, and I have always wanted to learn how to salsa dance. I didn’t expect this take to teach me how, but it really looked like fun.

The host of this video is Giselle Roque de Escobar. According to the back of the DVD, she has 18 years of experience. Her fitness philosophy is “never underestimate what your body can do; strive for new limits.” This is an excellent philosophy for people who are getting into shape, because exercise won’t be effective if you don’t strive for new things. She is obviously of some form of Hispanic descent (I would guess Cuban, from her accent and the fact that she teaches at Crunch Miami). She does have an accent, and I know that some people find that bothersome for an instructor. I feel she is very clear and easy to understand.

There are also background dancers (or instructors…I am not sure what to call them). Most are female, and there is one male. Some are better than others, and there is even one who looks like she is wearing denim Capri pants and a belt. Sadly, I noticed that during the video.

There is only one level in this video. Nobody demonstrates (or suggests) moves for beginner, intermediate or advanced levels.

The chapters of this fitness DVD are:

1. Introduction
2. Warm up
3. Salsa Combination
4. Merengue Combination
5. Merengue Salsa Combination
7. Latin Funk Combination
8. Cool down

Obviously, not all of these dance moves are based on Salsa Dance, but they are all forms of Latin dance. Maybe it isn’t complete Cardio Salsa, but it is complete Latin dancing. There is also Latin music, which is heavily percussion (think Brasilian more than Mexican).

The video advertises this as a low impact program for all fitness levels.

No additional equipment is required for this video, which is always nice. You already pay enough for the video, so nobody wants to go and spend more money for the additional equipment.

The combinations are based on Latin dance steps, combining typical steps with basic aerobic steps (think marching, mini lunges, grapevine steps, etc.). The Latin moves are combined with these basic movies with different combinations. The format of the movie is that Giselle will start you off with a certain step. Once you repeat that step a couple of times, she will give that step a name. Be sure to remember the name that she gives it, because then she will teach you a few other steps, doing the same thing. After that, there will be a few short combinations, ending in an entire combination. You do the entire combination twice. Then there is a marching transition to the next section of the video.

The moves in this video do involve all parts of the body. The legs are constantly moving, in positions which help the glutes. Hip shaking is wonderful for the abs. There are also arm moves. This is definitely a total body workout.

Although there is a warm up and cool down section, neither is very extensive. Though this is “low impact,” I would suggest doing your own warm up before doing the video with some moderate stretching. It is not necessary though.

My experience with this video

I’m not a dancer. I am well aware that I am not a dancer, but its fun. I dance when I go to clubs. I dance in my bedroom. I enjoy dancing.

Personally, I felt that this video would have benefited from demonstrating moves for beginners. None of the moves were extremely complicated, but at the same time, one must consider that every consumer buying this video is not going to be extremely coordinated. I’m not extremely coordinated. These moves are far from easy, though they are technically low impact. There was a bit of hopping in some of the routines, but that was the most impact that there was

For my cardiovascular system, this workout wasn’t exactly a challenge. At all. Although I did get my heart rate up, it wasn’t difficult to do so. The movement was constant, but not difficult. People who are not in perfect shape can do this video on a cardio level.

The challenge of this video was in the moves themselves. While not difficult on their own, the combinations were challenging. And although the moves were all technically low impact, I felt like I was on the urge of twisting an ankle constantly while doing these moves. So although they are not high impact moves, I would not recommend this workout for anyone with knee or ankle problems. It could cause a lot of pain. Also, be sure to wear a pair of shoes with good ankle support when doing this video.

My short term memory is short, so I also had a bit of trouble remembering which move was which. And sometimes they would just zoom in on someone’s abs, so you couldn’t see the entire move. So at times I was very confused, not to the point of being annoyed, though.

The dance moves which they show you are not very useful. It would be nicer if this cardio salsa workout showed you some moves which you could do at the club, or something along those lines. Unless you have an entire dance floor to yourself, and want to risk looking stupid, these moves are strictly for home use. I wish that I had learned something that I could show off in public, but I guess that’s life.

After the workout, I could feel it in my legs and glutes, which is always a sign that I worked hard. That’s always a good feeling.

I enjoyed this workout to a certain degree, but I still prefer a workout with a little more cardio intensity. I still prefer to take a jog than to do this. Yet it’s another option, which is a good thing.

Recommendation

I do recommend this DVD, but only for certain people. For those who like to dance and who are good at dancing, but don’t want a heavy workout, this is great. For those who aren’t at a great cardio level and like to twist around, this is great. For those who need something different from their normal routine, try this. For people who like high intensity workouts, this isn’t good. For people with ankle and knee problems, don’t try it. Finally, if you are uncoordinated and don’t like feeling uncoordinated…this movie is not going to magically make you feel like a dancer. Its fun, but it takes work. I like this DVD, but it isn’t anything special and it’s not for everybody. For the price, it’s average. And I would still rather go to the gym.