Hi everyone! Just to let you know, i'm not a regular member on ciao and wont be writing any reviews ...
Hi everyone! Just to let you know, i'm not a regular member on ciao and wont be writing any reviews any more due to uni, work and progressing with modelling. Please feel free to remove me from your COT. Take Care x X x X x
Member since:10.08.2004
Reviews:26
Members who trust:47
I already have the "Pump It Up" DVD, which I absolutely love, even though it kills me nearly every time I do the workout! I am getting better though…. So anyway I wanted a DVD, I could alternate with this that would help me tone of specific areas of my body, ok ok, I need a whole new me!!! This is when I came across the Davina Mccall - Power of 3 DVD. I read quite a lot of reviews on it beforehand and they all seemed positive, in the way that the workout is really good and actually works! (makes a change)
Most of us have heard of Davina Mccall through the addictive; ok maybe not, Big Brother series. On this DVD she demonstrates her exercise regime, (which apparently helped her lose weight after her pregnancy), with the help of her personal trainers, Mark and Jackie Wren, yes they are a husband and wife team. The title 'Power of 3' basically means there are 3 routines to follow; you do them all 3 times a week and eat 3 sensible meals a day, although I can never stick to the last point!
The workout part of the DVD contains 5 sections > Warm up > Legs and bum > Upper body > Abs > Cool down
Each section includes interval training, which are short bursts of fast aerobics that are designed to keep your heart rate up so you are in your fat burning zone. The intervals last for 1 minute and are varied throughout
the DVD to suit the regime.
Each exercise is done in three sets of 8 reps, i.e 24 altogether. There are easy versions of the exercises shown too in case you can not manage the advanced ones all in one go.
For each section I have included which exercises are involved.
*Warm up* This section is relatively short, it lasts around 10 minutes. You do a few steps to raise your heart rate, nothing too strenuous. Then come leg and arm stretches. This section is highly recommended so you don't injure yourself during the various exercises.
*Legs and Bum* -Interval -Squat with front kick, squat with knee lift, front lunges, squat with elbow to opposite knee -Interval -Squat with side leg lift, squat with calf raise, side lunges, rear lunges -Interval -Squat with rear leg lift, box step -Interval This is a tough workout for the legs; you probably won't be able to do this straight away, unless you're super fit. You'll really feel your legs getting a good workout with all them squats. Each exercise also works the bum so your doing bums and legs in one go!
*Upper body* -Interval -Push ups, bicep curl, tricep overheads, lateral raises -Interval -Front raises, shoulder press, chair tricep dips, hammer curls -Interval -Upright rows, bicep and shoulder press, tricep kickbacks -Interval For this section you will need a couple of weights and a chair. This is a great workout for the arms, it's not too hard but you will feel your arms burn especially on the tricep dips, ouch!
*Abs* -Interval Basic crunches, oblique crunches, pulsed crunch, slow back, oblique reaches -Interval -Leg shoot outs, rear leg lifts, reverse crunches -Interval -Back extensions, plank -Interval This really gets your abs and is really effective! I could see an improvement on me after only a couple of weeks. Includes a bit of bum work too.
*Cool down* A serious of stretches for the whole body. Again this is highly recommended so you don't seize up after doing the exercises.
The whole DVD last for around an hour, the warm up lasts for 10 minutes and the cool down lasts 5 minutes. The rest of the sections last 15 minutes each.
The music, I've got to say, is terrible. Davina loves all the tracks but I find them boring and not really motivating. I just put my own music on in the background and do the workout. The following is the track list; Mark Sedgley - Happy Groove Armada - Chicago Groove Armada - Final Shakedown Cut La Roc - La Roc Rocs Fatboy Slim - Praise You Royksopp - So Easy Fatboy Slim - First Down Cut La Roc - Hip Hop Bibbeby Bop Odyssey - Use it Up Wear It Out Us3 - Cantaloop Chic - Good times Faithless - Hour of need Groove Armada - At the River Cut La Roc - Post Punk Progression Howie B - Who's Got The Bacon
The workout is shown in some studio but background is absolutely boring. There are screens showing moving pictures of them lava lamp type bubbles floating around…
The trainers on the other hand are really good. Jackie does the warm up, legs and bum and abs exercises. Mark does the upper body exercises. The cool down is split up between the two. Both trainers give clear explanations and Mark tells us which muscles we target as we do each exercise. Jackie is way too enthusiastic. She's always encouraging Davina with the exercises and I think she moves on to each exercise too quickly, Davina thinks she's really motivating but I think she needs to calm down a bit. There is a bit of light humour mixed in there too but each time you watch it, they just don't seem funny. But it's good to see Davina getting along well with the trainers and you can tell it's not all just an act.
Davina herself is funny and doesn't show off or anything. You can see her struggling on some of the exercises so that brings some relief to me!
The DVD is not for those who want some fun in their workout; this is a serious and tough workout, especially for beginners. The reps can get boring after a while. But it is very effective as it combines strength training with interval training I have using this DVD for over two months now and can definitely see an improvement. I look and feel more toned in just a short period of time. You don't have to do the workout all in one go, you can do the each section on different days, but you still need to warm up and cool down.
The DVD contains extras;
> Davina on Clothes - This a pointless inclusion, Davina just shows off wearing all these gorgeous looking clothes she can now fit into, grrrr
> Davina on Food. - Here she talks about what foods to eat and not to eat, like we didn't know already….
> More Davina - This just shows Davina and her crew messing around, another pointless addition!
> Davina`s 7 Day Healthy Eating Plan - a 7 day plan showing recommended meals and tips.
I think this DVD has a great strength training workout and would definitely benefit those who are looking to lose a bit of weight or just to tone up. It would suit all ages and levels of fitness as it combines both easy and advanced versions of the exercises. The DVD gets fours stars because I'm not keen on the music.
It retails for around £9.79 from Tesco and amazon.co.uk
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
the dvd format sounds really good but I can't stand Davina anymore! A very useful review, thanks :) Take care X
Groots 25.08.2005 17:47
Having just had my second child and desperate to shed the excess weight I've gained, I am looking to purchase a fitness dvd. Thanks to this brilliant review which is very informative and easy to digest I now know which one I'll be buying! Thanks Groots x
This is my new Power of 3 DVD - it's all about sensible exercises that have given me loads ... more
more energy and a figure i feel proud of.Together with the help of my personal trainers Jackie and Mark Wren, we have put together this workout to help you get f...
This is my new Power of 3 DVD - it's all about sensible exercises that have given me loads ... more
more energy and a figure I feel proud of. Together with the help of my personal trainers Jackie and Mark Wren we have put together this workout to help you ge...
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![Davina: Power of 3 [DVD] [2004]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78508078.jpg "Davina: Power of 3 [DVD] [2004]")
May 18th, 2005
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