Special Interest > B Special Interest

Advantages: fun, relatively cheap and easy, gets results.
Disadvantages: air of American cheesiness

...that the instructor was called Billy Blanks and after a little research learned that he was a martial artist who had combined Tae Kwon Do (a Korean martial art) and dance moves and had unintentionally hit upon the idea of Tae Bo. I also learned that he's not as formidable as he looks, either, but encourages the people on the video and the people at home in an energetic and unpatronising way. The Tae Bo workouts are high energy, but are far from ...
...to doing constant repitions of sit-ups or some other boring exercise, but when I was doing the Tae Bo workouts, I was so distracted by perfecting my kicking and punching that I forgot I was exercising half the time! I was knackered afterwards and really felt like I'd burned off a fair few calories by the time I'd finished! The video I use is called Tae Bo Active and has a basic workout and an advanced work out. I also had a Tae Bo Advanced video ... Read review

Advantages: Keeps you fit
Disadvantages: it gets boring

...at how good it is. Billy Blank has a mixture of people doing exercises with him ranging from the really fit to the not so fit and it is managable by everyone. You are pushed to just as far as you can go and it is a great way of keeping fit. It is a mixture of kickboxing and aerobics. It sounds strange but i found it good fun and even got the kids joining in on this one!! There are a number of different moves including kicks and punches that really ... Read review

Advantages: fun, motivating, works.
Disadvantages: Takes lots of motivation to exercise alone at home.

...played and joined in with Billy Blanks while he kicks and punches his way across my TV screen. Then one time, I realised that the one I enjoyed doing most was somewhere in the middle of the tape and it took time to find it and continued rewinding would eventually destroy the tape so I thought I would buy it on DVD. I went to eBay and bought a 'buy now' copy which arrived within a couple of days and only cost me £13.59 plus a bit of postage, not ...
...There is some information about Billy Blanks and his really exciting exercise regimen on his website, I am not reviewing the man himself but one DVD so include the website address and will say no more. http://www.billyblanks.com/whatistaebo.asp?section=whatistaebo The DVD case is yellow, with a nice picture of Billy on the front, all rippling muscles in little shorts and a white vest. It states that "Tae Bo is the future of fitness," there is a ... Read review

Advantages: Tone Up! Loose Weight, Different from other exercise vids
Disadvantages: Very few available in the UK

...B.ody O.bedience. ------------------------ Billy Blanks, who? ------------------------ Billy Blanks the brains behind Tae Bo, born 1st September 1955 in Erie, Pennsylvania. Featuring in a huge amount of films, some of which are; Bloodfist, Kiss the Girls and Expect No Mercy. Billy Blanks a master in Martial arts has a Seventh degree black belt in tae kwon do with also a fourth degree black belt in kung fu. For more info on Billy Blanks and ...
...with a brief intro from Billy Blanks himself, starting with gental warm up exercises such as walking on the spot, moving your head from side to side, lifting your shoulders up and down. The pace then increases with faster movements with your arms swinging, legs bending, a few stretch’s. A good point is your never doing the same exercise for very long so it keeps your mind focused, and you’ll find yourself counting a long with every one else on ... Read review

Advantages: Its addictive keeps you fit
Disadvantages: He only does each exercise once

...work you hard. Billy is demanding, but some of us (me!) need a little forceful motivation to get us up and moving. I am usually a sweaty mess after doing TaeBo Cardio, but grinning and feeling great. If you are looking for an energetic, heart-pumping workout, this is for you. ... Read review