 I AM THIN AND BELLY BEAUTIFUL! |
| Review Date: August 8, 2003 |
| Reviewer: , |
| I HIGHLY recomend Veena and Neena's "slim down". When I started this program it was in December of 2002. I was 60 pounds overweight and becoming deeply depressed because of it. I actually picked up Veena and Neena's "fat burning" VHS tape and having enjoyed the tape so much I bought "slim down" soon after. As soon as I started "slim down" I enjoyed it even more than "fat burning" and stuck with it. At first I started out small and did the tape once or twice a week. Febuary I started doing it at least three times a week. I lost 15 pounds before April. Starting in May I switched to a Low carb diet, cut out sugar drinks and drank LOTS of water. I kept up my workout ritual with the belly-twins and did the video four to five times a week. Between April and August I've lost about 35 pounds. A total of 50 lbs! I've gained beautiful muscle, I'm toned and I've only got a short way to go till I reach my goal weight! Veena and Neena's program has inspired me to take bellydancing classes. This DVD is a work out video (not a dance instruction video) and it will take a little time to learn the moves. Learning the moves doesn't take away from the intensity of the workout though. As soon as you familiarize yourself with the moves I promise you'll love it! If you want to learn the dance itself I suggest Veena and Neena's other DVD's and tapes "Mystic Dance" "basic dance" and "beyond basic dance". The workout videos do however use bellydance moves for the workout. I own all their programs and out of all of them "slim down" has helped me the most. |
WHAT A WORKOUT!
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| Review Date: February 24, 2003 |
| Reviewer: , |
| I totally liked this workout better than the "fat burning" tape. It's easier to keep up unlike the other one it was hard to keep going because you're out of breath in midpoint of the workout. This one is easier on the feet too. You will have fun doing this workout because you almost feel like you're dancing along with them and you won't believe how much you have sweated after this workout. You won't be disappointed! |
Excellent Workout!
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| Review Date: July 3, 2004 |
| Reviewer: S. Wurzelbacher, Cincinnati, OH USA |
| This is the best workout video/DVD I have ever done. In less than two months, the Bellydance Fitness for Beginners: Slim Down has depleted all the pudge in my waist. I have noticed a difference in my posture due to my stronger abdominal muscles, which has also increased my confidence. My friends and family are completely envious of my new change, and have also started this workout. The Slim Down gives a good cardio workout that you don't have in the Basic Moves, Hips, Buns & Thighs, and Arms & Abs. By switching movements frequently, you still get an excellent workout all over, and it is not as tedious feeling as Fat Burn. The best part about all of the Bellydance Fitness for Beginners is they do not require much floor space, and you can do them anywhere that you can take your DVD player! I do recommend trying Neena and Veena's Basic Moves before progessing to any of their other workouts, just to get a feel for the motions before they are thrown at you in a faster paced set. |
Playful Folk-Style Bellydance
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| Review Date: October 17, 2005 |
| Reviewer: Rebecca Johnson, Washington State |
If you are looking for a highly sensuous dance routine, then this is much more playful and exuberant. The music inspires spontaneous motion and you may find yourself modifying various sections and even making up your own dance routines to the inspirational music.
Neena and Veena Bidasha dance in a room of flowing fuchsia curtains. The setting is beautiful with pillows all over the floor and a calm environment. They begin with simple shoulder rolls and simultaneously warm up your calves. After elegant stretches they get playful as you loosen up your hips and then delve into shimmies galore. The shimmies in this particular workout seemed very easy to accomplish and that might be because your body will naturally get into a rhythm with this particular style of music.
Overall, the music is especially inspiring, you will feel a sense of calm and the playful flow of the movements seem to promote the cleansing of negative emotions. One of my favorite Neena and Veena workouts. You can feel your body burning those calories as you strengthen your thighs and abs.
~The Rebecca Review
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Changed my Life!
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| Review Date: April 3, 2005 |
| Reviewer: Amanda F., Canada |
| This is the best workout video I have ever purchased or rented. This is not a "learn to belly dance" DVD, it is a workout. If you want to learn the dance you have to buy their instructional series. But boy! In three months, doing the workout every day, I lost 20 pounds (the most stubborn 20 pounds that did not come off with any other exercise) and I have the firmest legs I have ever had. It was easy to stick with it because it is so much fun. It is high intensity and, of course, that's the only thing that really burns the fat. It also makes you feel beautiful and graceful, and which other fitness video can say that! |
Worked for me!
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| Review Date: January 11, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Serena Dances, Carlisle, PA |
This has to be my favorite workout dvd of all time. Please note that this is a WORKOUT and you will not be learning a choreography or a lot of technique! If you're looking for an instructional dvd this is not the one for you!
Now, with that said, this is a great workout video for a beginner/intermediate exerciser (advanced people will probably find this too easy). Another reviewer mentioned how the workout can be modified to your fitness level very easily and that is absolutely true. When I started using this I weighed 220 lbs (I'm 5'3") and for several of the segments I simply had to keep doing the "Genie" because I could not do the jumping parts. If you have bad knees or are very overweight do not feel that you have to be as bouncy doing "the genie bounce" as what the girls are, simply stepping back and forth is moving and it's getting you somewhere!! For those who have never tried bellydance before, there are a few "real" bellydance moves, some of them are more folkloric style, and some are simply aerobics moves. That said, this tape can benefit anyone wanting to take bellydance lessons because it does work the muscles that you need to perform the dance correctly.
At first I found it somewhat disconcerting to have a disembodied voice coaching me along, but the person narrating has a pleasant, soothing voice and gives pretty good cues. She is not overly perky and you don't have to hear "FEEL THE BURN!" and other tacky cliched nonsense the whole way through the session.
The movements are easy to learn, there is enough repetition to allow you to get into how to do things, but not so much that you're completely bored before moving on to the next move. The twins' outfits allow you to see what they're doing with their bodies (no big bulky pants hiding legs and feet and no blending into the background), and the background gives you that bellydance sort of feel. The camera focuses pretty much on what you need to see (bad camera angles are an issue with many bellydance style videos).
I would actually give this 4.5 stars if I could for 2 reasons. The first being that during the sections where they have you doing hip lifts the girls lean waaay back to do them. This is really not good for the back. You will get the same benefit by standing upright and using your obliques to do the lifts (rather than simply pushing off with your foot). The second issue with this video is there are a few parts where the splicing isn't done quite accurately and/or the voiceover doesn't quite match the video. There are about 3 parts where it is a little "off" and can be a bit disconcerting at first, but once you get used to doing the routine it's easy to just ignore it.
Like I said, when I started using this video I weighed 220 lbs and I have been overweight most of my life. Well what's that mean if you don't know what I weigh now? I am currently at 145. I started out using this video 2-3 days a week, because I was tired all of the time, easily winded, and I found out my doctor informed me that I was in the early stages of high blood pressure which scared me. I had always wanted to try bellydance and so I though perhaps I'd actually stick with this routine. I enjoyed it so much that I started using it 3-5 days per week within the first month. I couldn't do all of the moves at first, so I just stuck with doing "the genie" or even marching in place for anything I could not do, then I slowly started doing the more difficult moves, maybe 1 or 2 jumps here and there, a few seconds up on the toes, whatever I could do. By the end of month 4 I could do the entire tape without modifying anything (except for leaning back during hip lifts which I mentioned before is not good for you). Within about 3 months I had lost 35 lbs and hadn't made any major changes to my diet. The only thing that I changed was the portion size of my lunches on the days I worked out because I knew I'd feel icky with the bouncing around if I ate too much. With this video I made it down to 150 without any other diet modifications than the smaller lunches. Now I'm to the point where I'm making small changes in my diet to lose more weight as my BMI is still a bit too high.
I don't know that there is anything particularly special about this video, if you use any video consistently you should lose weight and firm up. However, this is the only video I found that I can really stick with. I've bought other videos to vary my routine, and some that are strictly choreography and technique, but I keep coming back to this one and still do it at least once per week. I highly recomend this to anyone who is looking for something interesting to try, especially if bellydance appeals to you at all. If you commit to using it you will see results, and those results can definitely encourage you to keep with it! |
Great aerobic workout !
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| Review Date: March 12, 2003 |
| Reviewer: RikkiMama, Sunnyvale, CA USA |
| Once again, the belly dancing twins have put together another excellent workout video, third in the DVD series. I also like this one better than the Fat Burning workout...much easier on the legs. If you want to do workouts, have fun and learn the basic moves of belly dancing, get this one and the twins' other two DVDs. These are much better than the Goddess Workout ones. |
Excellent Cardio Exercise
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| Review Date: October 30, 2003 |
| Reviewer: Jennifer Moore, Austin, TX United States |
| This cardio workout is great. I don't agree with some of the reviewers. The cueing can be bad, but that aside it's a great workout. I like the fact that Veena and Neena are average girls, and do not have unrealistic washboard abs. They make it look so graceful. They can keep a smile on their face, because they are so fit. |
LOVE IT!
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| Review Date: April 26, 2004 |
| Reviewer: Joybug82, Indiana |
| I love this DVD! It does give you a workout. I have the Twins Basic Dance Video so I knew how to do some of the moves. The moves are easy enough so that someone who has never done bellydance before can catch on. The sound is great, video quality is really good. It even has some footage of Marina dancing. She is not as good as the twins but it helps you to see dancing in action. The twins have done a great job. They are both very beautiful & elegant. |
Great workout
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| Review Date: April 27, 2003 |
| Reviewer: Dionne M. Sloan, |
| So I don't actually have the DVD version (the VHS was a birthday gift) I really really REALLY enjoy this tape. There are somedays when I just want to dance instead of heading to the gym and with the wonderful music and sensual power of belly dance now I can stay home and shimmy to my heart's content. I would actually rate this 4 and 3/4 stars because the step changes catch you by surprise for the first couple of viewing but other than that you'll catch on just fine! |
great tape to sweat to
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| Review Date: June 10, 2003 |
| Reviewer: C. Reedy, San Antonio, TX United States |
| this tape is great Veena and Neena are wonderful instructors. The tape really work the lower body very well. I have weak shoulders and my shoulder strength has improved from help from this video. the moves can also be taken to the dance floor and they are very sensual. I have had friends come over to try the tape and they foudn it fun, challenging and loved trying a different kind of aerobic routine. |
Fun and an excellent workout
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| Review Date: July 15, 2003 |
| Reviewer: Diane Brzozowski, Montpelier, VT |
| As with all of their other works, Neena and Veena deliver a fun workout that is also great for the beginning dancer. The Slim Down video does just what is says, and helps to improve stamina. A must for any bellydance collection |
Great for Beginners
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| Review Date: April 6, 2005 |
| Reviewer: C. Knutson, USA |
| I bought this DVD because I was looking for a fun way to work out. The moves were easy to follow and I made it through the whole workout without fainting or falling down! lol This is a great DVD for anyone just starting out. I purchased another DVD by another company and it was nearly useless to me at this point. In a few months I may work up to it. ;-) |
Great Beg/Intermediate Workout!
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| Review Date: July 11, 2006 |
| Reviewer: An Avid Reader, Iowa, U.S. |
| If you're a bellydance fan, esp. of Veena and Neena, buy this tape. It fills the gap beautifully between "Basic Moves" and "Fat Burning". Postpartum, I used "Basic Moves" until I felt strong and could do the moves easily. I am now enjoying "Slim Down", and hope to work up to "Fat Burning" (the second workout on the "Basic Moves" DVD). The routine works up gradually to a great aerobic workout that is perfect in intensity for someone who's not quite a raw beginner, but not up to a gruelling routine. This DVD has the best cues of any of the Veena and Neena dvds I've tried, too. The music is great, their smiles seem genuine, and the time passes very quickly. All in all, the routine is great blend of low impact aerobics and light toning, which is the perfect combination for slimming down! This is a routine you'll actually ENJOY and look forward to doing. |
Excellent For Small Spaces
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| Review Date: April 13, 2003 |
| Reviewer: , |
| If you live in a small place like I do and you want to do some serious toning this is the video for you. |
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