Ballet Fitness with Nicky McGinty

Amazon doesn't allow half scores so I would rate it 3.5 stars if I could.Ballet Fitness is the sort of workout you would expect a ballerina or dancer does as part of their fitness/toning regime. It is all very doable for a non dancer such as myself - though a strong core is needed for the core, belly and back section (titled Fire Bird on the DVD). In this section she moves through a sequence over and over quite quickly. I suggest going at your own pace until you've built up the core strength to keep up with her.The workout is broken into 6 sections (as below). Each section is named after a ballet (as I have no interest in watching ballets I cannot attest to whether or not the moves are what you would find in the actual ballet routine) and focusses on certain areas of the body. With that said, even when you are working on one section of the body, the moves usually all involve the core and holding it in correctly. The workout run time is about 60 minutes.1. Swan Lake: Arms (Warm up ) 10 mins2. Fire Bird: Core, Belly and back 10 mins3. Nutcracker: Hips, Butt and Inner Thighs 15 mins4. Coppelia: Ankles and feet 16 mins5. Cinderella: Dance Expression 7 mins6. Sleeping Beauty: Stretch and relax 6 minsNicky works out alone in what looks like a loft or barn that's been converted. Very nice looking set. Nicky instructs the workout via voiceover which I usually dislike - and this is one of those occasions where I dislike the voice over. Her cueing is off at times so you have to keep your eyes glued to the tv - or risk having to press rewind several times. For example on one occasion when you are on all fours working one leg, I am happily working away on the one leg until she moves onto another move and I then realise she's switched to the second leg at some point without mentioning it. Frustrating! Also her breathing cues seem a bit off - you do a move lying on one side and she'll cue breathing out on the exertion but when you do the same move on the other side she tells you to breathe out but not on the exertion! Maybe it's just me. Ellen Barrett DVDs are excellent for toning (her workouts are a fusion of methods and combine strength, stretch, cardio, dance, yoga and pilates) and her cues for breathing and the next move are always spot on.The stretch and relaxation section at the end is on the short side and doesn't feel anywhere near as good as Jennifer Galardi's stretch session at the end of Ballet Body.The music is quite nice during the workout but the music that plays whenever you are on the main menu is quite depressing to me!All in all, it is a good workout particularly for toning the legs and core. It is relaxing in terms of the music but you will be worked relatively hard during the leg focussed routines. On the scale of difficulty 1 being easy and 10 being very hard I would rate this a 4 to 4.5. I work out 6-7 days a week but as I find the cueing (or lack there of) rather annoying - plus I don't want to end up with pot belly due to the strange breathing directions - I will add this DVD to my workout rotation but use it only once or twice a month.

I really don't enjoy working out, so I thought I'd keep myself interested by trying new things (bellydancing fitness DVDs, dance fitness DVDs, pilates, yoga, etc.). I previously used the Ballet Beautiful series, and although I still love it, I feel like it's more of a workout and less of a dance experience.When I started this DVD, I started with the first option: Swan Lake Arms. I was worried it would be 10 minutes of grueling arm workouts, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was more of a stretch in combination with the arm movements. Nicky moves quickly through the routine, and I enjoyed the pace because 10 minutes passed as if it was nothing! I decided to do a few more sections from the DVD, and I really felt like I was dancing, not working out. The movements were so fluid that it felt effortless. At the end of the workout, I was certainly out of breath, but I wasn't aching anywhere like I usually do after using other fitness DVDs. I was a bit worried that maybe I hadn't worked my muscles as hard as I should have.Then the next day arrived. My abdominal muscles were aching in that good, you-really-did-an-amazing-workout-yesterday sort of way.I'm really looking forward to using this routine regularly, as it makes working out easy and fun. I'd say if you enjoy dance, or if you want to find a fitness video that makes exercise fun and easy, you'll probably want to check this out. Thanks Nicky!

I have done this DVD several times now and absolutely love it! The Instructor, Nicky, is so graceful and poised I could listen to her all day, everyday! I have a real problem with overly perky or overly bossy instructors and Nicky is neither of those...she is just the right level of enthusiasm while doing a great job of explaining the moves. I love the background music and the set and I love that it feels like, even ungraceful me, can dance such a beautiful form of art all while getting more fit and toned!I have had knee surgery and this workout doesn't bother my knees at all. I have a bad wrist, but with the elbows on the floor modification I have no problems making adjustments. I am NOT a dancer and primarily run for my fitness, so this is a great addition to my cross-training. I feel like it is still giving me a great full body workout and I always have jelly arms and legs when I'm done but is still at a level that even beginners could do it.

This is an excellent DVD of Ballet Conditioning. I love the music, which includes many classical pieces from Ballet. It also has some elements of Yoga music as well. Nicky is great, in one section she refers to the exercise "Bingo Wings" for Bat Wings which is hilarious. This DVD is actually 65 minutes, and divided into 6 parts, all great. If you are looking for a conditioning class that can give you great results, this one is it. She uses the elements of Ballet (and some Yoga) to strength and elongated the limbs, and tone the abs. So if you work slowly at this routine, it will definitely give you the long lean figure you are wanting. It worked for me!! Watch out for some cueing omissions when doing some leg exercises, other than that, it is great. Hope this review is helpful to you.

as a former amateur dancer (ballet, flamenco, argentine tango) I have to say this is an EXCELLENT DVD. when short on time I just do firebird, nutcracker and legs/ankles/feet . . . and get a fine work out. what makes this better than other home DVD’s? i) her voice is relaxing to hear ii) the repetitions aren’t endless, so one doesn’t give up iii) she knows what makes a healthy good work out (a) slow movements done correctly require more work (b) after working a group of muscles, it gets stretched (c) integrates breathing properly. I actually prefer this to yoga! Hope to find more of her teaching. (and I don’t often post reviews).

I have a few exercise DVDs and I wanted to get one with a difference. I wanted to improve my posture and my core muscles as this exercise DVD promises.I found the exercises overcomplicated and boring, somewhat rigid. I understand that ballet dancers must do routines over and over and it takes much discipline but for the mainstream ordinary person this feels very strict.Most of it it's done on the floorVery little of the DVD are actual ballet moves.I got bored with the DVD and didn't feel motivated to go back to it and use it again.

I am pleased with this DVD but feel that if you have not done anything like Pilates before you will be seriously hurting after this DVD and may struggle. I did not think there was a lot of warm up straight in with quite quick arm movements and it moves along at quite a quick pace. I did ballet over 20 years ago and so was pleased when I saw this DVD as have a more aerobic one I do several times a week but wanted something to help tone me. I did struggle to do the whole DVD so something I would like to work up to. My posture has become awful from years of sitting at a computer and I remember years ago somebody saying they could tell I danced because I had such a lovely posture. I am hoping that try and improve this. I agree with other reviewers would have preferred classical music to accompany DVD but does not ruin it for me. However hate the phrase "fire in the belly" that Nicky uses.Look forward to more tomorrow even with sore muscles. Would recommend to tone up.

I bought this as I want to start practicing before I start my ballet classes. It is not a DVD to teach you ballet moves, it is more to help you stretch and tone up using some ballet moves. The instructor is toned and graceful which inspires you to keep exercising to get to that, the background setting is beautiful and the music fits really well. I like the fact she uses a chair not a barre so it feels accessible to do at home. You also need a yoga mat as some of the exercises are done on the floor. A good all round workout and you definitely feel you have worked hard when you complete it. You can also work through the full hour or you can pick out sections to do if you have less time.

This arrived today and I have managed the whole 1hr with ease. Who knew ballet workout could be so relaxing and I enjoyed every bit of it. I have actually done some of it again to work on my problem areas .This combined with a high protein diet works wonders .I do other ballet dvds as well but this one is great .Can't wait till tommorow to do it again .Better not try it again today prob won't be able to move the Mora as this DVD works areas that my others don't. Excellent delivery arrived next day very happy customer .

Beautiful relaxing music, nice flowing moves but some of these I found a little tricky to keep up with. I did look forward to doing this for a while as the music and Nicky I find relaxing to listen to, but I lost interest due to some of the moves. I will definately have to give this another go. I would definately recommend this DVD and if persisted with you will most definately see results. She does give great direction and tells you how to breathe properly.