Day 10 of our get-fit-in-your-living-room challenge and editor Anna Magee is still testing out the latest fitness DVDs so you don’t have to buy a dud. Today, Natalie Cassidy’s new The Perfect Ten
I admit, I had low expectations of this DVD. Having come out on December 30th, it’s not doing as well as Davina’s or Vicky Pattison’s on the Amazon list. Plus, former Eastenders star Natalie Cassidy has a history of yo-yoing. How effective could it be?
In the intro, Natalie admits her former weight loss a few years ago after she left Eastenders was unsustainable and she put it back on again.
‘I used to struggle to stick to workout routines until I realised it was about lifestyle change – this new workout is about achievable, life-changing routines that help you get fit and stay fit,’ she explains.
In this DVD Cassidy has created something that’s both safe and effective; designed to help people progress through the levels. Not only is there a tonne of content on it, there are options to progress from total newbie to super-duper advanced.
Presented by Natalie and her trainer Nikki O’Donnell, who has a hot body by the way, there are four 20-minute workouts which range from levels one for beginners through to four for the super-advanced.
Confession: I set out to do them all but was bone-knackered by the end of workout two (I watched the other two so I could describe them, does that count?).
All the workouts are based on interval training so there’s plenty of high impact jogs and jumps interchanged with strengthening exercises. Throughout all the routines all you need are a set of dumbbells.
The instruction is spot on with Nikki constantly giving direction on how to do moves such as squats and triceps curls for maximum safety and effectiveness and Natalie provides easier options for beginners or those with injuries (though in workouts 3 and 4 you don’t et any easy options).
Loved the music – there was Vanilla Ice’s Ice Ice Baby (remember that!?) and even The Eye of The Tiger in workout two. By workout three and four, the music must be running to 160-180 bpm because everything is fast-paced and superbly powerful – challenging for any level with lots of plyometric jumps and heavy squats, kicks and boxing moves to really pump in the calorie burn. I was sweating hard by the end of workout two. Each workout has its own warm up and cool down and the DVD also has three bonus workouts for upper body, lower body and abs.
Out of all the DVDs this is the one I most don’t want to part with as you can keep moving up the levels to always feel challenged.
Natalie Cassidy The Perfect Ten £13 (from Amazon)
PROS: Great value as volume of content means you won’t get bored quickly. Excellent instructions for safety and working right muscles. Good options for beginners or injured as well as intermediate and advanced (workouts 2-4). Heaps of lower body work and jumping will torch calories in a short time.
CONS: She doesn’t do any moves to the Eastenders theme. Just kidding, I seriously can’t think of any.
Healthista rating: 5/5
Note: In the interests of independent reviewing, Healthista has purchased all the DVDs in these write-ups – they’re not press freebies
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Note: Healthista has purchased all the DVDs in this review – they’re not press gifts
Read other reviews in the Healthista 12 days of Christmas Get-fit-in-your-living room DVD challenge:
Day 9: Josie Gibson’s 21 Day Fat Burn
Day 8: Tracy Anderson’s The Method for Beginners
Day 7: Roxy’s Yoga Conditioning Total Body Workout from Roxy Shahidi
Day 6: Vicky’s 7-Day Slim from Vicky Pattison
Day 5: The Circuit Training Fat-Burning Workout from Joey Bull
Day 4: Fit in 15 with Davina McCall
Day 3 Celebrity Trainer Ramona Braganza’s 3-2-1 Training Method
Day 2: Nell McAndrew’s Peak Energy Recharged (£7.49 Amazon)
DAY 1: 15 minute fast fitness – Fat Burning with former Gladiators Jenny Pacey and Wayne Gordon
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