shanmonster | Review: Bellydance for Body Shaping: Buns and Thighs. Belly dance fitness workout

Over the past couple of days, I've been doing the workouts on Bellydance for Body Shaping: Buns and Thighs. The DVD is broken into three short workouts, each of which focuses on the glutes and thighs. Neon's warmups incorporate squats, lunges, and stretches, and then she teaches a short choreography which could also be used in performance or out clubbing.

Although the movements do indeed work on the advertised muscle groups, if you are already in shape, you will not find the exercises demanding. However, if you are new to exercise or to the isolation work of Middle Eastern dance, you may find these exercises challenging.

Personal trainer Andy Roy offers safety tips during the video so novices will not injure themselves.

Neon makes use of diagrams which show the shape and direction of each of her movements. In most cases, this can clarify things to viewers who may otherwise be mystified by unfamiliar movements. However, I noticed at a couple of points that the directional arrows were pointing the wrong way, and that threw me for a loop. It didn't take me long to figure it out, though, so it's not a very big deal.

On the negative side, Neon's costume is a dark red, and her background is black. There are times during the video when it is difficult to see exactly what is going on because she fades into her background. A more brightly-coloured costume would have made her movements easier to see.

Also, considering the video appears to be aimed more toward novices, I think her demonstration of the hamstring stretch would have been better shot from the side. To someone unfamiliar with the stretch, her forward lean might not make much sense.

All in all, I would recommend the video to people on their way to getting in shape, and also to dancers looking for an opportunity to practice their moves. If you're already in great shape, you will want to find something much more demanding. I didn't break a sweat during these workouts, and my heartrate only accelerated slightly.