JB Berns
This video is fun! OK, why did I get a rebounding video? Well, I've
had this mini-tramp-er-"rebounder" behind my headboard for about 4 years
now (I bought it after seeing "The Nutty Professor". They just looked
like they were having so much fun!)and wanted to start using it, but I'm
not the type of person who can just make up routines on her own. I chose
this one because it sounded the most interesting or the rebounding
videos in Collage video's catalog, although I was a bit leery because
all of the covers of the rebounding tapes looked cheesy. Well, this
video isn't cheesy-looking. It's produced by Greg Twombly, so that gives
you CIA and Cathe fans a feel of what the set looks like. Anyway, he
starts marching on the floor, does a few stretches (I thought we
could've warmed up a little longer before he started the stretching, but
oh, well). He does a set of pushups with your hands on the rebounder.
Then he continues the warmup on the rebounder with a series of jumps,
and toe taps. If you were one of those kids who loved to jump on your
matress but were always told to get off by your mother (like me), you
can indulge to your heart's content. Then he does about 30 minutes of a
combination which he progressively adds moves to, including straddle
hops, knee-ups, jumping jacks. I felt this part was a little boring just
because I'm the type who likes to move from one combo to the next, not
keep adding onto a combo, but your heart rate will definitely be up
there. I consider myself intermediate/advanced and I was above my target
heart rate quite a bit. By the end of this segment, your heart rate will
definitely be up there, when he puts all of the moves together and does
the full combo. Then, it's onto the toughest part of the workout which
includes interval training where you do a series of jogs followed by
sprints, picking your knees up as fast as you can for 16 seconds. This
was TOUGH!!!! Then, he moves onto "strength" training, although I don't
think any of these moves will increase your strength unless you've been
lying in a bed for about a year. He tells you to jump up as high as you
can, then jump doing a 180 degree turn, then jump and bring your knees
as high as you can. You do a series of each of these moves. Then he does
abwork. He claims that he's gonna help you get that "six pack". Now, I
did feel the abwork the next day, but I doubt I'll get a six pack from
it. You first do a series of seated bounces on the rebounder. I didn't
find these very effective because I have a cheapo rebounder and it
doesn't give as much spring as their's, but perhaps I would've had
better results with the rebounders, but they are pretty expensive. Then,
he does crunches and crunches with the legs in a "V" position. Before
the strength session, you get the good (bad?) news, that this is
actually the "beginner" tape, and there will be more tapes coming out in
the future. I just say this is potentially "bad" news, because I though
JB was trying to kill me with those sprints in the 2nd section, and now
I find out that this is a beginner tape--yikes! Next, you do a cool down
which is similar to the warmup. I really liked this workout. It was fun
and different and challenging, and for those of you who are worried
about your joints, this is the perfect workout. It was less stressful
than even low-impact aerobics. I just wish he would've done the cooldown
after the sprint section because I feel like I'm stopping to suddenly to
go from that section to the strength portion, and when he does cool down
after the strength part, I feel it's not needed, because the bouncing
gets my heartrate back up. All in all a good video. If you're interested
in rebounding, this is the tape to get. I can't wait for the
intermediate and advanced tapes. I give this one an "A"
Instructor comments: I like him. He's no-nonsense. Not too perky or
chipper, yet he doesn't intimidate.
Genelle
4-9-00
I'm still scratching my head over this one.
I read some promising articles about Urban Rebounding in national magazines
over a year ago. Then I read raves about this video on Cathe Friedrich's
forum. Someone on Collage's forum excitedly asked when the NEXT Urban
Rebounding video was coming out. So, of course! I just had to buy this
video! I'm always on a quest for intense, low-impact workouts, and I hoped
this would be the Holy Grail.
Well. So much for all that. This is the first workout video I could not
even complete. I stopped the VCR after 15 minutes or so. I couldn't warm up
to JB Berns, either, though I can't put my finger on why. I did enjoy the
cast members -- there is one dark-haired blonde exerciser to JB Berns' left
(near the front) who has a radiant, natural smile and looks like she's having
fun. She really sold this workout to me.
Unfortunately, I did not have nearly as much fun as she appeared to be
having. There did not seem to be enough room for me to FULLY execute the
moves without giving anxious looks to see if I was going to bounce off the
mini-trampoline onto the floor. This compromised my ability to have fun and
to really get into the moves. And because I compromised my moves to
accomodate my anxiety, I couldn't get much of a fun workout.
Keep in mind that I've used my mini-trampoline on very high impact videos
(e.g., Charlene Prickett's Rev It Up: Sequel) and still have managed to have
fun. Not so, here.
In all fairness, I might not have the right rebounder for this workout. Mine
is the sort you find in rummage sales or K-mart blue-light specials for $45.
The springs squeaked loudly as I jumped and jumped and jumped. (My husband
later told me that my Urban Rebounding experience sounded like a lovemaking
session gone awry on a bad mattress.) The Urban Rebounding video used a $200
- $300 rebounder that was larger and of much better quality. So it's
possible that the type of rebounder used may make a difference for you during
this workout.
The music is okay. Nothing stands out about it. The production quality is
CIA'ish/ Body Bar'ish. Not the best ......... A mini-trampoline doesn't
lend itself to much creativity, but JB Berns does a good job exploring every
avenue, here. He also gives good instruction and does some interesting ab
work at the end, bouncing off the rebounder in a sitting position.
I just couldn't get that far.
Michelle Easton
November 11, 2000
This is the original UR from 1999. It clocks in at about 50 minutes total. I think that this is the best of all the UR workouts that I have tried. The set is attractive, the exercisers in nice-looking black and white track pants with crop tops. JB is in red. The music is club style. One of the male exercisers looks like “Spike” from “Buffy,The Vampire Slayer”!
UR is intermediate level. There is a lot of “TIFTing” (taking the routine from the top). He’ll intro a move and then do the whole routine agin. This could be tedious if you don’t like that sort of thing.
Here is a breakdown:
WARM-UP (8:00 minutes)
Floor moves and stretch (3:30)
Rebounder warm-up (4:30)
WORKOUT (30:00)
basic bounce
straddle
lateral knee raise
jumping jacks
twists/double twists
180 degree turns (not me!)
military press
forward jump
upright row
forward knee ab crunch
SPORT SPECIFIC MOVES (5:00)
four jog/sprints
vertical jumps
180 degree spins (not me, no way!)
power jump/knee tucks
COOL-DOWN (7:00)
rebounder, then floor
ABS (5:00)
bounces seated on rebounder (I can’t figure out how to do these!)
assorted crunches
Instructor comments:
JB is more serious here than in later workouts. He cues and instructs very well.
Alta
2/28/04