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Flex
Appeal: A Belly Dance Workout with Kathy Smith
by Nita Collins
June, 2004
Who is this
video intended for?
This is a bellydance workout, just as the title says, and is intended
for those who prefer to exercise at home with videos. This is not an
instructional video on how to bellydance. This is a fitness video.
In this video Kathy Smith offers a bridge between traditional hard-body
aerobic workouts and “soft” toning and stretching workouts (such as
Yoga).
My beef:
When I buy any video on any subject, I expect that I am going to see a
presentation by someone who has spent years studying the art and who is
now ready to share her expertise through mass-marketing. Kathy Smith,
who has an impressive array of fitness books and videos on the market,
has jumped on the bellydance bandwagon. Don’t misunderstand me; I have a
lot of respect for Ms. Smith as a leader in the fitness and health
industry. My beef is the lie of omission: Kathy Smith is not a
professional Middle Eastern dancer. She is not a Middle Eastern dance
instructor. She is not an expert in the field of Middle Eastern dance at
all. She is, judging by her ability to do the movements, an intermediate
student. I don’t mind the fact that she is a student – I mind the fact
that the viewer is not told that she is a student—the lack of truth in
advertising.
What I liked:
There is a lot of repetition in the material covered. Because this
is an exercise video, the goal is to get you very warm, strengthen and
tone your muscles, and raise your heart rate. The video does a good job
at this. Kathy Smith's background
dancers consist of Ansuya (a recognized professional in the field of
Middle Eastern dance) and women who I assume are Ansuya’s students. Kathy Smith
consulted with well-known Middle Eastern dance professionals Ansuya and Jillina in the making of the video. The verbal breakdowns are good, and
while the Kathy’s technique isn’t precise, for the most part it’s
correct. She’s had good instruction.
What is taught?
Segment One (20 minutes): basic technique. Movements covered
include snake arms, full body undulations (which are called camels in
this video), rib lifts & circles, shoulder accents and shoulder shimmy,
umi (small internal hip circles), large hip circles, hip drops & bumps,
hip shimmy, over 8 (called maya in this video), single-hip circles &
basic Egyptian walk. You will feel you have had a good toning session in
this segment of the video.
Segment Two
(3 minutes): Follow along with professional dancer & instructor
Ansuya as she strings all of the basic movements together into a
follow-me routine.
Segment Three
(20 minutes): Much faster paced, this segment adds arms to the basic
movements shown in segment one. Kathy puts the movements into
combinations which are added onto and repeated. You would definitely
feel warm during this aerobic portion of the video.
Segment Four
(10 minutes): Cool down and stretch using Yoga.
Segment Five
(approx. 5 minutes): Tutorial with Ansuya. In this short tutorial,
Kathy and Ansuya discuss some of the more difficult movements, and
Ansuya demonstrates them properly and with a good verbal breakdown. They
discuss shoulder shimmy, hip shimmy, hands, and maya. She also speaks a
bit about posture, and I was disappointed to hear her instruct students
to position their shoulders behind their hips in a lean-back posture.
With that exception, the tutorial is excellent.
Because Kathy
Smith is a student herself, her physical demonstrations of the movements
are not always precise. I giggled every time she demonstrated a shoulder
shimmy, and again when she instructed one to keep ones head level, while
unable to do so herself.
Kathy Smith is an
experienced aerobics instructor. She has a wealth of knowledge about
fitness, a great ability to call out the movements several beats before
they happen, and to keep the workout moving and flowing. That this is a
workout video is evident in that old familiar lingo, “give me two
more…and one more”…
Students of all levels
will enjoy this workout.
You will feel warm, you might sweat.
You’ll have fun. And, you know, practice makes perfect. Follow along
with this video for fun and check out your technique with your teacher
during regular class.
Where Can You
Purchase This Video? Mine was purchased at Wall-mart for $10.
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