Ballet Beautiful Ballet Workout DVD - Body Blast. Mary Helen Bowers Barre Dance Inspired Fitness DVD

I'd heard about Mary Helen Bowers helping Natalie Portman get in shape for Black Swan, and I saw an interview she did on tv and I thought she seemed intelligent and personable, which are all important things for a fitness instructor. She also seemed calm! I am so over the super hyper people in fitness videos that act like they are coked up or something. I am more of a meditative, yoga enthusiast so I prefer a calming workout. Unfortunately, a slow and calming workout isn't going to burn fat super fast... So there's Ballet Beautiful, which looks calm out the outside but is KILLER on the inside.Have you ever watched a swan? On the water it seems to glide along effortlessly, calmly, elegantly. Have you ever seen a swan's feet paddling under water? They are kicking furiously with all their might, but you can't see them because they are under the water, under the body of the swan. All we see is the beauty, but if we tried to do it ourselves we would realize that its extremely difficult.I like to watch a workout dvd before I try to do it, so I know what to expect. I'm terribly clumsy so I need to know how much of my furniture I need to move. When I first watched this DVD, especially the swan arms series, I thought I'd just wasted my money. It looked too easy! Mary Helen Bowers is so graceful that she makes each movement look effortless. When I actually did the exercises the next day I realized that I was sooo wrong! During each series you do a ton of reps of each movement to build stamina and to sculpt faster. After the first time I used it I was SO sore afterwards. I couldn't even complete some of the sets, and I am someone who works out 7 days a week. I definitely have some issues with stamina though so I am looking forward to being able to do more after I've mastered the exercises on this dvd. I love a challenge and a lot of the pilates and yoga dvds I've used are too easy.I do want to mention that an exercise beginner could definitely do this dvd. But if this is you, don't expect too much of yourself and push yourself too hard. Don't get discouraged if you can't complete the set. I have had this dvd for a while now and I find it difficult to complete sets, if I am able to complete them at all. I have been practicing yoga and pilates daily for 10 years now. Work within your comfort level and take breaks. You can see MHB taking breaks too and getting visibly tired! She's been doing ballet her whole life and she admits that this is HER go-to workout. So that's saying something about the efficacy and challenge right there. With exercise, you get back what you put in!The exercises themselves are very similar to pilates, but are ballet-like in movement. Its really enjoyable to watch and to do. After the first time I could definitely feel the work I did in muscles I don't normally use in my other workouts.One of my favorite things about the dvd was that it wasn't cheesy and MHB doesn't act like a cheerleader the whole time. The sets are clean and all the focus is on the exercise. There isn't a whole lot of ridiculous dancing around or yelling into the camera. There's no cheesy music either thank goodness. Its very calming and relaxing and all the focus is on the exercise. Its just what I was looking for and everything I'd hoped it would be. I love that you can turn off MHB's narration if you want to and just do the exercises while listening to classical music. So nice after a long day and all you want to do is work out and get inside your own head and not have to listen to other voices.

Full disclosure, I am a Bar Method junkie. I can't live without it. Like it or not, everything else I try will inevitably be compared to BM. I randomly ran across a few short clips of the Ballet Beautiful workouts somewhere on the internet and liked what I saw, so I bought them thinking I could switch off here and there with my beloved BM DVD's. That's exactly what I've been doing. Here's my thoughts:Pros:*Mary Helen Bowers is a wonderful instructor. So pleasant to listen to and not annoying in any way, shape or form (as some instructors can be). Just motivating and genuinely interested in giving you an effective workout. I love her! Plus her bod is fab...I mean come on.*These exercises are EFFECTIVE. They hurt like h-e-double toothpicks, but in such a good way that you refuse to quit. The swan arm sequence in particular is killer. If you've ever tried Tracy Anderson (I have, and yuck), this is the opposite of Tracy's unorganized, flailing, flop of an attempt to work your arms (just my opinion, sorry).*This is a very doable, no-nonsense workout. I have no (NO!) ballet background and I had no trouble doing any of the moves. There are no complicated sequences or steps to learn.*I love the simple format. Every exercise is done in four (or is it five? Darn, I can't remember) sets of 8 counts. I'm sure some would find that boring after a while, but I love the simplicity. It allows me to completely focus on the area I'm working and I always know exactly how many more reps I have to do.*I love the piano music in the background. I'm a piano player so this is right up my alley.Ok, now the cons:*Minimal stretching. There is stretching, but it's so quick! I'm comparing to BM here, but I like a good, deep stretch between sections, and BM wins in this area hands down. I find myself pausing Ballet Beautiful A LOT to get a good stretch in between sections. That's annoying.*Sometimes the camera angle is less than helpful and MHB doesn't give a ton of instruction. The moves are simple, yes, but sometimes I wonder if I'm holding my leg in the right angle and I can't tell by the camera angle and MHB doesn't tell us. Subtle angle changes can make a big difference, so I want to know exactly what angle I'm supposed to be moving in.Overall, I love this DVD (and her Total Body Workout) and will continue to incorporate it into my weekly routine. I'm not giving up BM (ever!) but it's nice to have this as a supplement. Oh, and my original review griped about this DVD not having a "play all" option. Oops...that's what the "custom" option allows you to do. I should have spent more time exploring the options before I complained. My apologies!