Product Description: Well-known fitness expert Jillian Michaels and CosmoGIRL! bring you the hottest new approach to getting fit and looking fab. This new program includes nutrition tips for the girl on the go, a shed-and-shred "Cardio Hip-Hop" workout that will transform any body type, and a personal Q&A with Jillian. Release Date: 12/19/2006.
Amazon.com: For young women wanting a so-fun-you-hardly-notice-it's exercise workout, CosmoGirl: Get Fit & Fab with Jillian Michaels is just the ticket. Michaels, a fitness expert with an inviting, gentle demeanor, leads this hip-hop dance workout with expert and beginner dancers, with moves even the most couch-potato-y girl can start out with. While the long routine is rather complex, and will take a few times through to really get, Michaels breaks it down into chunks. And it's easy enough to remember that the dance is "hip-hop," so if viewers lose their place for a moment, they can vamp along for a view beats by hopping or kicking in place to the inviting beat. The warm-ups offered are especially key, as there are a lot of neck, shoulder, and hip movements that shouldn't be attempted cold. Doing this a few times a week will make exercisers feel taut and hip, no small feat. There are plenty of extras to invite in teens and young women to learn about nutrition and activity issues, as well as self-esteem struggles, including an intimate discussion with Michaels and CosmoGirl editor in chief Susan Schulz. Ready? Take it from the top! --A.T. Hurley
GREAT DVD FOR TEENS This is a great dvd for teenagers. I loved how Jillian sat down and talked to a bunch of teenagers and problems that we face. I really related to what they had to say. I really enjoyed watching it and I did not want it to end.
COSMOgirl work out It is a neat idea - a little drawn out - my kids do love it though it is a little too old for them (11, 9, 8).
Good dance routine, but steep learning curve and too intense Starring Jillian Michaels of Biggest Loser fame-- and aimed towards teenagers-- "CosmoGirl! - Get Fit and Fab" is a cardio workout vid in which viewers are taught to dance in a hip hop style.
On the whole, I liked the casual, laid back, and fun atmosphere of the video; it felt less like an exercise video than a dance class. I also liked the fact that it was teaching you a genuine choreographed routine, as opposed to some videos that are really just aerobics moves with some dance moves thrown in.
In spite of its strengths, I found a few problems that knocked it down from a 5 star to a 3. First problem: learning curve. Like I said, the cardio workout teaches you a fully choreagraphed routine. It does this by going through it step by step. First, you're introduced a move in half time, then asked to practice it 2 or 3 times at actual speed. That's all well and good, but sometimes some of the more complicated dance moves are rushed through before you have a chance to really get them. As a result, there's a steep learning curve on this video. You might have to view it at least 3-4 times before getting your footing and even then it might be another 2 viewings before you can actually keep pace with anyone and have it all memorized down pat.
Another problem was the pacing and intensity of the workout. Basically, when you're taught the routine, you're not just performing each new move at least 3 times; every so often you're restarting the routine "from the top"-- and you're doing all of this without a single break. Then right after you're taught all the moves, you're immediately asked to perform the routine from start to finish for something like 4 times in a row. As if that wasn't bad enough, the pacing of it all is extremely fast. Between the lack of breaks and fast pacing, you'll be sweating profusely and gasping for air halfway through the video.
One last problem I had with this video was the "exuberance" of the dancers. Many times Michaels would have you practice a new move from the position of the one you'd just learnt. Unfortunately, whenever she'd count down sometimes some of the girls would start showboating, strutting, and vamping for the camera instead of positioning themselves. This made learning the routine confusing at times. After all, it's very hard to remember what position to start from when practicing a new move, if all the dancers aren't taking up that position to begin with because they're too busy ogling the camera.
So all in all, this video was a mixed bag for me. On one hand, it offers a genuine dance routine with the right kind of atmosphere to motivate and inspire. On the other hand, it has a steep learning curve, can be confusing at times, and a little bit too physically challenging. I wouldn't totally pass on it, though. My suggestion is to rent this video first and if you like it enough to buy it, to keep that pause button ready when things get too intense.
Maybe better for teens than someone older I love Jillian Michaels and hip hop, so I thought this would be a good combo. I haven't watched the entire dvd, but it's only because you need to learn the moves over and over, and I haven't taken the time to do that. For a teen just starting to exercise and needing a moral boost, this would be good for them. (Saving for my little girl when she gets older.)
Not for me at all! I purchased this video as part of a combo, so I wasn't really aware of it's target audience. I found out very quickly that I wasn't part of that audience. It is most definitely targeted towards young teenagers and the discussions are very narrow in focus because of the immaturity of the participants. I'm sure it is quite good for girls of that age who have yet to realize that their life can be mucher deeper than they believe.
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