15-Minute Workouts for Dummies (2003)

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General		Extras
Category	Sports	Main Menu Audio
Rating
Year Of Production	2003
Running Time	63:33 (Case: 65)
RSDL / Flipper	No/No	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	1,2,3,4,5,6	Directed By	Andrea Ambandos
Studio Distributor	Visual Entertainment Group	Starring	Gay Casper
Case	Amaray-Transparent-Secure Clip
RPI	$29.95	Music	None Given

    The Dummies set of instructional DVDs mirrors much of the format and content that has made the books a runaway success story all around the world. Written in plain easy-to-understand language with no jargon, plenty of helpful hints and tips, and with a non-condescending tone taken throughout, books and DVDs have been released that aim to teach people just about any topic imaginable (I'm waiting patiently for the DVD Reviewing for Dummies title myself). Anyway, we have previously taken a look at Learning Guitar for Dummies, and even though reviewer DanielO has yet to release a chart-topping single, his glowing review of that title suggested his guitar playing had at least improved.

    Now, sitting and reviewing DVDs can be considered a bit of a health hazard. Not only are you in danger of having something thrown at you from across the room by the wife because it's your turn to take the dogs for a walk and all you want to do is watch yet another episode of some 25-year-old BBC television series, but the lack of physical effort in such viewing and maintaining the requisite reviewing position (horizontal on the couch for me) is certainly not good for the heart or the arteries (or the marriage for that matter).

    So what better way to kill two birds with the one stone than to review a DVD title based around fitness! And fitness for complete fitness novices at that - perfect. And to make it even better, it's called 15-Minute Workouts for Dummies, which means it should be all over nice and quickly so I can get back to that 25-year-old BBC series.

    There are four different 15 minute workouts in this one hour program, that looks much like an episode of Aerobics Oz Style. All are designed to tone and strengthen a different part of the body. The segments cater for your thighs, arms, abs, and lastly your buns (or buttock muscles!). The exercises are presented by an incredibly cheerful and very fit looking fitness professional with 19 years experience in teaching, Gay Casper. She runs you through some simple warm-up exercises such as stretching, lunging, and curling to get the various muscles you will be working on nice and loose. Then it's into the 15 minute workout. The pace set by Casper is remarkably quick for what purports to be a basic introductory guide for complete novices, but I guess after a couple of practice sessions your speed will improve and you should be able to keep up.

    The exercises really just consist of some simple squats, lunges, crunches, and curls. In true Dummies style, a logo will often appear on the screen, pointing out some various tips and tricks to maximise your effort and fitness or busting some of that nasty jargon that Casper keeps going on about (such as explaining what quad muscles are). There are also some alternative suggestions to make the exercises a little more demanding once you have mastered the basic stuff (such as using dumbbells), or suggestions to make them even more basic (such as leaning on a chair) if you have lower back problems.

    So how did it go? Well it's all over pretty quickly - but I must admit the exercises got the heart pumping and the legs and arms aching all over. I was completely knackered by the end of it so maybe that BBC series had better wait a while - I think I need to lie down...

Video

    While most of the people that buy a title such as this will be worrying about far more important things than artefacts and pixelization we should still examine the finer points of the transfer to make sure it performs as required.

    Rest assured the video transfer on this disc is pretty decent and will surely be suitable for the task of assisting with a fitness workout.

    The material is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.33:1 and is not 16x9 enhanced.

    The transfer is typical of a home fitness video and is about on par with a brand new good quality VHS tape. There is a slight softness to the overall image, but it is still perfectly watchable. There is some minor edge enhancement present around the instructor's body at times but it is not distracting. There are no dark scenes to trouble the shadow detail and grain is absent.

    The colours are well rendered and bright, with no bleeding evident. Skin tones are spot on.

    There are no compression artefacts present. Other artefacts are also thankfully absent. This is a fairly clean image.

    There are no subtitle tracks present.

    A one hour feature fits happily on a single layered disc and as such that is what this is. There is no layer change.

Video Ratings Summary

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Audio

    As expected a fairly basic audio selection graces this disc. We get an English Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtrack as the only option.

    Dialogue is pretty much all this is about, being a narrative instructional video. This is handled well with no obvious problems. There are also no audio sync issues.

    There is no surround or subwoofer use at all.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
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Main Menu Audio

    The Region 1 disc is identical to this one.

    15-Minute Workouts For Dummies is another in the series of Dummies instructional DVDs. This one contains four sets of 15 minute aerobic workouts that aim to tone your abs, arms, buns and thighs.

    The video and audio transfer are fine for the nature of the material.

    There are no extras.

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Audio
Extras
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Overall