Exhale: Core Fusion Body Sculpt
Starring: Fred DeVito, Elisabeth HalfpappDirector: James Wvinner
Studio: Acacia
MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Format: Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
Running Time: 50 minutes
DVD Release: December 2nd 2008
Buy DVD:
DVD Review
"Lose the jiggle without the gym" --Marie Claire
A quarter of a million people have transformed their bodies at the exclusive Exhale Spa--now you can get these same results at home.
Build a strong core, develop washboard abs, improve posture, and create a tighter, firmer physique with Core Fusion Body Sculpt. This total-body program employs exercises that tone and sculpt your deepest, hard-to-reach muscles so it?s more efficient and effective than traditional strength training. You?ll use your own body weight as resistance and small hand weights to really challenge and build your muscles.
Segmented into five focused workouts of just 10 minutes each, these exercises target the whole body, from arms and shoulders to glutes, hips, thighs, and abs. The unique Core Fusion system will strengthen your body, quiet your mind, and improve your overall well-being while redefining your physique from head to toe.
Core Fusion creators Fred DeVito and Elisabeth Halfpapp have over 50 years? combined experience teaching Pilates, yoga, dance, and Tai Chi, disciplines that inform the Body Sculpt workout. They are founding team members of Exhale, a leading mind/body spa with locations around the country.
User Reviews
Wonderful work out! - Rating: 5/5
I have had lots of work out videos but this one is incredible good. They do make it look easy but one works to get into a good sweat. Nice tempo, good explanations, great voices to listen to for one hour, extra bonus for the core. I am in pretty good shape but I always have a big burn during the excercises and sometimes I need a breathing break. I absolutely love it.
An excellent workout - Rating: 4/5
This workout was great. I completed it about 15 minutes ago and I can definitely feel it right now. The workout is broken into 5 10-minute segments which is a format that I love as it means you can break it down for a shorter workout and even if you do the whole thing is doesn't feel like an eternity because of the changing segments. The general idea is to do strengthening exercises followed by stretches to lengthen the muscles.
Overview of the segments:
Arms: this was probably my least favorite segment. I prefer the arms segment on 10 minute solutions pilates perfect body. It was about 6-7 minutes of arms work and then 3-4 of stretching the arms. It felt rushed and the cueing seemed a little off. Also, I just didn't find it very hard. For this segment you need light handweights.
Thighs: this segment was excellent. They claim you need a chair to do these excercises however if you have reasonably strong thighs and good balance it's not necessary. These exercises make you feel your thighs, mine started shaking like crazy at one point and are really effective.
Glutes: I think this was the hardest segment on the DVD. I really like that they had a segment devoted especially to glutes, a lot of video through them in with thighs and I don't think they work very hard. In this segment you're glutes will work hard, and a chair is an absolute necessity. I had to take several breaks during it but am looking forward to working up to the full segment.
Abs: I'm glad this segment was short because although it was good work for the abs it was a bit boring. You put your feet up on the wall and hold yourself in a sit-up position (don't think this sounds hard? neither did I but try doing it for about 8 minutes) and then do variations from there. Not my favorite ab workout but effective, I definitely felt my abs straining.
Stretch: I really like it when DVDs have a specific long segment devoted to stretching. That said, this was not my favorite stretching segment. I wish the stretches had been held a little less long and there had been more different stretches. It ended and I still felt the need to do some other stretches to really feel stretched out. But the stretches they did were good, and there's something to be said for holding them for so long and really makin your body relax into the stretch.
Overall, I definitely recommend purchasing this video. It's a really effective workout and I certainly liked all the segments enough to continue doing them even if they weren't my favorite. Also I really liked that they had two instructors, a man and a woman, and showed simpler variations of many of the moves, including when it was best to rest if you needed it. One con I haven't mentioned yet (and this is a personal preference thing) is that the instruction is voice-over which is not my favorite and I sometimes felt like the cueing was not right on. Final thought: For $15 worth it!
Finally, something different! - Rating: 5/5
I just started using this DVD a few weeks ago and it is fantastic! It has helped me take inches off my thighs and butt that I couldn't lose before. It's composed of five10-minute sections: arms & shoulders, thighs, butt, abs, and stretch. The exercises use small movements with lots of reps - your muscles stay in a working zone through most of the 10 minutes, so you really feel a deep burn by the end. The two instructors are wonderful at encouraging you to keep moving through the burning sensation. Having two of them is great since throughout the workout, they are always demonstrating beginner and advanced modifications.
The arms and shoulders section requires some light hand weights (5lbs was too much for me. It seems to be inspired by classical strength training moves, but given a bit of a twist. The thighs and the butt segments use a chair as a barre for some ballet-inspired exercises - these sections are difficult, but really produce results. The ab workout is also challenging. My only issue was that it requires you to brace your feet on a wall, which in my apartment, does not allow me to watch the TV. Though using a voiceover prevents wasted time in this DVD, there are times where the cuing is lacking. They often make subtle changes to their movements and don't mention it on the voiceover. This means you sometimes need to sacrifice your position to make sure you're still keeping up with them.
This program provides something a little different from most workout DVDs of this type. It seems to be a very effective and challenging mix of training styles. Best of all, it leaves you feeling relaxed and energized, not strained (well, you'll be sore the next day...). I definitely recommend giving this one a try!
So amazing - Rating: 5/5
I love lotte berk and dance inspired toners and I feel like this is the tops. It's super affordable which isn't as true for Callanetics or Squeeze (especially a year or so ago when I bought them) and it creates a beautiful well toned but still a little soft kind of body. I love that it's seperated so I can do it all or spot concentration and I love that there's an extra sixth workout in the extra features. This DVD is the gift that keeps on giving. I have not achieved the packaging picture (but I believe that with this it's achievable) but I love this. Even before the results just the feeling of doing the workouts is amazing and for me it's addictive. If there's a such thing as a workout DVD soulmate this is it for me. I'm done. I've found The One.
My Personal "Holy Grail" of Excercise! - Rating: 5/5
I have never written a review of a DVD before, but I couldn't help myself after only my 2nd day of doing Core Fusion.
I have tried so many things over the years regarding exercise -- killed myself in the gym lifting weights for years and spending hours on the Precor, but never got to my goal.
I was into yoga for a brief time but it became difficult for me to be able to work the classes into my schedule in relation to the gym schedule. Regardless of this, I always found yoga classes to be the most rewarding mentally and physically. This is what made me choose Core Fusion; I knew it'd be based on exercise principles that I have connected with in the past.
The last few weeks I begun doing pilates via on demand on cable; came to Amazon to find the most popular pilates dvd -- and lo and behold I discovered Core Fusion. The more I read about the philosophy behind exhale and Core Fusion, the more I realize that this is the perfect type of exercise for someone like me. As another reviewer stated, this is a "thinking person's" workout. I personally already feel my spine and back becoming stronger and my posture so much better. I also feel motivated; if you respond better to positive reinforcement than negative, you will also enjoy this DVD a great deal. It is soothing yet gives you a deep burn in your muscles.
I got the other 2 in the set, but have yet to try them. Core Fusion will truly help you establish the elusive mind/body connection and in turn, you will become stronger physically and mentally. I love it!!!
