Video of the Day

The following review is for the Basic segment only (there is an advanced section but I didn't do that one today); I will come back and reivew the Advanced one at another time.

Yoga Booty Ballet Basic is a fun workout in which you'll target your entire body with a variety of different exercise styles; like the title suggests, however, the emphasis is on the lower body, particularly the "booty" area. Instructors Gillian Marloth and Teigh McDonough are very enthusiastic, constantly smiling and frequently encouraging you to "get funky" or simply grunting "uh-huh!" They take turns leading each segment, sometimes with a class of participants, sometimes just the two of them on their own, in various outdoor settings.

The workout begins with a 5-minute warm-up that includes dancey-type moves as well as stretches; the warm-up is led by Teigh with Gillian and 3 others in the background. Next comes a 7-minute ballet segment, filmed by a pretty pond area with Gillian and Teigh alone. Gillian leads here, doing front, side, and back leg lifts and concentrating on the glutes all the while; there are also some 1-legged squats between the moves. I liked this better than other ballet workouts I've tried, mainly because you don't use a chair for balance and because you're focusing more intently on the "booty" area.

Teigh leads Gillian and the lone male participant, Andy, for the following segment. Although she describes it as cardio work, it might be better thought of as aerobic weight training, as you are moving quickly enough to get your heart rate up while using light weights. The exercises in this section include plies, squats, and various arm moves such as bicep curls, shoulder presses, and triceps french press for a total of 9 1/2 minutes. The following segment, yoga, was my least favorite, which is surprising since I enjoy yoga and practice it regularly. I think part of the reason I didn't like this section because I found Gillian's voiceover cueing to be poor. Also, the yoga is vinyasa-style, which means you keep repeating a series of linked postures (sweat like crazy), and after the weight work, I found this very tiring. The full class is back for this segment, which is 8 minutes long.

Teigh again takes the lead over Gillian and Andy for ashort (6 minutes) but intense section focused on abdominals. They use a "squishy ball" held between the legs to add extra resistance, but I'm sure a pillow, small kids ball or a Pilates fitness circle would be an adequate substitute. The moves are tradional crunches, but the use of the prop makes the work more difficult. To end the workout, Teigh leads the full class in some simple stretches, beginning on the floor and then moving to a standing position. The stretch segment is 4 1/2 minutes long, bringing the entire workout in at 40 minutes. Although the overall workout is relatively short, you will feel thoroughly worked out by the end, and both my buns and abs always feel it the next day. I would have prefered the segments to be arranged a bit differently--e.g., I would not have had the yoga come right after the strength/cardio portion--but overall, I really enjoyed this video. Highly recommended to anyone looking for a fun workout with a "booty" focus.