Needed something different?

I was all ready to go in and put in a new P90X Plus workout.  But, after Plyo legs, then the Total Body X+, and yesterday I did Interval Plus, I was just beat.  I swear my butt is gonna fall off and my legs just don't want to do anymore squats, lunges or anything similar to that!    So, I looked through my collection for something to catch my eye and spark an interest.  That's when I found it!  I was going to do Hip Hop Abs, Fat Burning Cardio- and of course since I have been pushing it this week, Level 2!

I really thought, that will be a great change.  I've been hanging with Tony with P90X + lately, and he is tearing up my body.  I've been doing a lot of Chalene and Turbo Jam this past month, and I could bear the thought of Debbie and her Slim Series tonight!  So, Shaun T and Hip Hop Abs sounded great and like some fun!

My thoughts on HHA, Level 2 Fat Burning Cardio.

It's definitely not as intense as Turbo Jam!  So, if you want a lighter day, I say go for some HHA.  What I like about HHA is Shaun shows you a move, you do it for so many counts, then he shows you the next move and you do that for so many counts.  Once you learn 2 moves, he starts from the beginning and makes it a series.  At the end, he does a third move for a few counts, then repeats the series.  After you learn a handful of moves, he really makes it fun by starting at the beginning and going through them quickly.  They whole sequence is fairly easy to follow because he really shows you each move and builds up the the full blow sequence.  So, for those that find Turbo Jam hard to follow the coordination, I think HHA is a great place to start!  

The workout is about 45 minutes I think.  I thought at first, I could use more.  Like it was moving a little to slow and I wasn't sweating enough.  But, I watched all the people on the floor and they were all dripping, so I figured it was me not really doing this workout enough to get the full benefit.  I really tried to hold the Tilt, Tuck, Tighten move, but do realized it would take doing the workout more to really master the moves.

But the end of the whole workout, I was dripping wet!  So, I know I got a full blown cardio workout!  It also reminded me of interval training.  You start each sequence off slow and build up to doing the whole thing at a good tempo.  Then you move on to a new sequence at a slow speed and build up.

Sitting here typing, its been an hour or so since I worked out.  I definitely feel it in my abs, so it does work your core.  I also noticed that once I got into it and "used" my arms and legs more, verses just swinging them around, that made the whole workout more intense and more full body!  

I like how Hip Hop Abs, Ultimate Results is really kind of dancy.  I wish it was more of a dance video.  I was expecting to do more Hip Hop dance.  Like you would find on the streets.  (Do they really dance hip hop on the streets, they do in the movies?)   I do know Shaun has some other workouts out, Rockin Body being one of them, that sounds to me a lot more dancy!  I haven't tried these yet and think that I will need to add them to my collection once day!    

I do have the weighted gloves that come with the Ultimate Results package.  I think adding those would have also really gave me more burn in the arms.  

My only recommendation, if you are new to the workout- in the beginning where is says "Do you want the music louder" say No.  If you say yes, the music louder (which I like) but it really makes Shaun T hard to hear.  Therefore, hard to know what is coming up next.  I think after you do it a few times, then hit the Yes button and really start hopping!

I would recommend this to anyone just starting out and looking for something a little lighter and a little less choreographed then say Turbo Jam.  I think it would make a good rotation of TJ and HHA.  It would keep adding variety.  Both focus on that tuck position to work the abs, so once you do one, learning the other won't be to hard.