“ The workout begins with yoga, goes into martial arts, and ends with a Qigong meditation."

I've been looking for a martial arts based workout on DVD for my home fitness routine. But besides the various kickboxing titles like Tae Bo, "Budokon for Beginners" was the only one I found. The good reviews prompted me to take a chance on it. I was delighted with "Budokon for Beginners," and ended up getting more than I bargained for.

The workout begins with yoga, goes into martial arts, and ends with a Qigong meditation. The overall workout is good, and I wish it were longer. But it's quite effective on its own if you're pressed for time, or even better if you combine it with another activity (like 20 minutes on a stationary bike, for example). Cameron Shayne's instruction is great - he cues well and is easy to follow. As both a yoga newbie and black-belt level martial arts practitioner, I felt comfortable with his teaching.

In the martial arts portion, he uses real techniques and stances such as the front kick and Cat stance. It's the closest I've seen to the real deal on a mainstream video workout. That's not surprising, given Mr. Shayne's background as a high-ranking black belt instructor. Indeed, it was almost like being in an actual Karate class. The bulk of the martial arts section consists of straight punches and front kicks from stances, which are among the first techniques we teach to new students at our dojo. With that in mind, as a Karate Sensei I would recommend this DVD for folks planning to begin a martial arts class, or even for current practitioners. The yoga will help build core strength and flexibility, also important for martial artists.

Speaking of yoga, "Budokon for Beginners" turned out to be a good investment in more ways than one. Besides its faithfulness to martial arts technique, it was my first exposure to yoga. I never thought I'd get into it, but this DVD led me to investigate yoga and add it to my workout regimen. As a result, I've enjoyed a number of yoga workouts by Rodney Yee, Baron Baptiste, and others. It's always nice to get turned on to a new thing that's good for you. Along those lines, I've also purchased Gaiam's "T'ai Chi Beginning Practice" and "Qigong Beginning Practice." So far I've been happy with the Gaiam line of workout DVDs and yoga equipment.

kualitas DVDRip
durasi 84 menit
rilis 2004
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