Chalene Johnson's PiYo Base Kit, DVD Workout with Exercise Videos + Fitness Tools and Nutrition Guide, Home Gym Bodyweight Workouts Program, Meals Plans and Tape Measure Included, 3 DVDs

I have wanted to try PiYo for a long time but the price was more than I really wanted to pay. So here is a honest review. Let's talk pro's and cons: Pro's: I feel like I get a good workout without feeling like I am dying Workouts are 20-40 minutes long, easy to fit in a busy schedule. The video is upbeat and fun to workout to. Chelene gives excellent instructions for the times you can't look at your tv. The video has three levels of the workouts shown at all times. Easy, Medium, and Advanced, I am in the easy/medium stage but know I won't "outgrow" the videos as I progress because I can follow the more advanced moves. A good workout without high impact cardio that kills my joints. -I'm not old, but my joints hurt from dancing for several years so I hate cardio. I already feel more flexible. Con's: Ads for Shackology. I feel like it is over done. I already paid $$ for the dvd, don't make me listen to you try to sell me more stuff. I wish Beachbody would offer streaming etc. instead of only selling the dvd. They do offer a live streaming service but it is a monthly fee and I just want to buy my set, stream it and not pay a monthly subscription. But I get that they can make more money by offering the streaming as a subscription instead of a one time purchase. It just sucks. Overall - I highly recommend this workout. Worth the money! If you LOVE cardio, this probably isn't the series for you, but if you are like me and hate cardio than buy this now! This is a great workout for men and women. My husband was impressed with the upper body workout and even did it with me. I have tried multiple workouts and this is the first one I actually enjoy doing and look forward to doing every day. I was not paid for this review, and I do not sell Beachbody products, I just really like the product.

Got it on time. I love her and her workouts!!

I began Piyo new to exercise and kept to the 6 day a week schedule. I am someone with three chronic health conditions, one of which is fibromyalgia, so I wanted to slowly ease myself into the program. I did this by lengthening the two month program to a three month program so that new (and harder) routines were introduced later. I have a rather restricted, medically based diet due to other medical issues, so I wasn’t able to fully follow the diet plan. Pros: -Low Impact but with a sweat: I really liked how low impact the whole program is (except for certain elements of Drench and almost all of Strength Intervals). I work up a healthy sweat in almost all of the workouts and find my heart rate raised as well. I have a previous knee injury and was concerned about it, but the modifier offered plenty of options. I have mostly avoided Strength Intervals. -Verbal reminders and instructions: Chalene is good about reminding you to keep trying and to modify when necessary or when you’ve already hit your max, though for me, once I’ve hit my max no amount of modifying can help me do anything as I’m truly wiped out! She also gives good instructions to keep good posture and how to appropriately position your body during each move. She’s perky and fairly repetitive though, so depending on your own personality, it can get grating. -Later videos build on routines from earlier videos: Chalene is good at teaching the names of the moves and easing you into them during the first few videos. I was 99% new to yoga/pilates moves and their names names (I did know downward dog) and 100% new to doing any of them. -Fewer people in the videos: I’ve seen some clips of other Beachbody offerings, and I like that Piyo has fewer people in the videos. There’s Chalene, the modifier, plus two others (one of which is doing the extreme version). It helps me see what’s going on, as well as other ways to do the moves. -Portability: All I need is a yoga mat or towel, and depending on which video, sneakers. I’m going out of town in a few weeks and as the room as a DVD player, all I need to do is steal my friend’s yoga mat. Cons: -Selling Shakology: Every workout you’re reminded that diet and nutrition is an important part of any workout program (and we all can agree that it is), but you’re also given a Shakology video prior to and after the workout, in addition to Shakology plugs during the video. Shakology is not within my price range and I found another option for a quarter of the price. Chalene also acts shocked (in one video) that several people there are wearing TurboWear (Beachbody line of clothing). -Video Length Listing: everything is wrong on the calendar that comes with it! Lengths are not as listed. And the Define: Lower is only 18 minutes, with no warm up (Unless you do the warm up from Define: Upper or simply do it right after doing Define: Upper). -Verbal…stuff: I almost stopped using Piyo after one of the earlier videos when Chalene says (something to the effect of) “Isn’t it great that we’re learning how to take care of our bodies.” I found it condescending. She can also be pretty darn perky and chatty which sometimes got to me, but I turned down the volume and it fixed it for me. This is purely a personal opinion and I know others who find her quite encouraging. -Price: is it worth it? You do get 8 videos (I’m not counting Align). For me it was, as it got me into a habit of working out prior to work. For others, maybe not. Conclusion: If you’re newer to working out, this might be a great addition to your routine, and I do recommend it. It is low impact and full of stretching and strength moves. For those of you who are already fit and used to exercising, this might provide an atypical challenge if you follow the guys in the videos. As for me, I definitely feel stronger and look leaner, but I haven’t lost a significant amount of weight. However, my goal wasn’t weight focused (though I do need to lose 10) but rather to create a workout habit and not get injured doing so. I know that I’ll go back to several of the videos (Core, Sculpt, even Sweat and Buns) and make them part of my workout routine on a regular basis.

I absolutely love PiYo! My results, I have lost 15lbs and 4 inches off my waist. I am more flexible, feel stronger, look leaner, and have more confidence than ever. A quick background, at the time I purchased PiYo I was 44 years old and had been a runner (had a marathon and a few half marathons under my belt). I began having knee pain and was really struggling with tight IT bands. I started a new job that was very time intensive (leaving the house at 6:00am and not getting home until 6:00pm or later) and let my running fall to the wayside. I gained weight (a solid 10-12 lbs), couldn't fit into most of my clothes, wasn't sleeping well, and was truly not myself. During one of my sleepless nights I saw the infomercial for PiYo and purchased the product through Amazon. I started the program and then found some excuses to quit after about a week. It wasn't until I connected with a Beachbody Coach that I really got the motivation to stick with it. Seriously, the coach is free and they have great private challenge groups that connect on Facebook pages that are PRIVATE so you can get support and motivation from others who share your challenges/struggles. Use the coach! My coach never pushed products on me and was truly there as a support system. The first 2 weeks were a bit challenging for me as I felt very uncoordinated in following the moves and I had no upper body strength as a runner. I would just collapse during the push-ups and thought I would never be able to make it through all of the burpees. But results came quickly, I really watched my nutrition and made some positive changes in my habits along the way (meal planning for the week, packing my lunch and snacks for work, and joining a Beachbody challenge group with my coach). The results I got were with the first 60 day round. PiYo became part of my morning routine, I get up at 4:30am on weekdays to do PiYo and can't imagine skipping this part of my day. I ended up purchasing the slides and adding some of the upgraded videos to my collection. After 90 days of PiYo I thought I would try another BeachBody program to change things up. My coach encouraged me to try Insanity Max 30 for our next challenge group, and after 2 weeks of really committing to Insanity Max 30 I just couldn't get into it, I love Shaun T, but I went back to PiYo. The first day back on PiYo I was so sore the next day. This program really works your muscles and without the impact of jumping all over the place. After you learn the proper form and how to focus on the specific muscle groups your muscles will be screaming during these workouts. Sculpt kicks my butt every time, my legs go numb and I am beat! LOVE it! Don't let anyone tell you that you don't get cardio from this program, when I finish a round of PiYo I am dripping in sweat and there are plenty of times I am breathing hard and my heart is pounding from the movement through these poses. I travel for work and the DVD's come with me, I open my laptop in my hotel room and do PiYo on the road. I have even done it on a cruise ship out on the sun deck every morning before everyone else was up and moving about. You don't need any equipment and it doesn't take much space to do the workout so it is completely portable, a real bonus for me as I hate to miss a single PiYo workout.

I really, really wanted to like this - I love pilates and yoga and thought this would kick it up a notch, which it does. Overall, Charlene is a good coach, but sometimes is a little too cheerleader-y - not a dealbreaker. My two biggest complaints are 1-it will kill your wrists, and I don't care how much she says your wrists will get stronger, I didn't feel it (and sometimes you stay in a position holding yourself up while she explains the move, so it really puts the pressure on, esp. if you are leaning on one wrist only) and 2-THE MUSIC! Most of the Beachbody DVDs I have allow you to turn the music off but this one does not, and the music is unbelievably irritating - it has words in it and is loud, so you hear the words while Charlene is talking, and it's like listening to two people yammering at once. I've gotten so irritated just from that I've turned it off mid-workout. I have used Beachbody workouts on mute while listening to my own music, but because you are doing the workout on the floor and are usually looking down, you have to have the volume on. Workouts are actually really good, but the irritation factor was too much.

This workout isn't for everyone, but definitely right for me. I was already skinny and not really looking to lose weight or get ripped when I bought these, just looking to feel more healthy and active. With my job I basically sit behind a computer all day every day and don't get much time or desire to hit the gym after work. I started doing Piyo in the morning before work and I've actually been able to stick with it every day for 5 weeks now. I'm really liking it so far, here's why: 1. The workout schedule starts out easy and builds up to more challenging workouts over time. For those of us who don't stay active all the time, getting back into a workout routine can be hard. If you haven't worked out in a while, you can get so sore after working out the first time that you just give up because of how much it hurts the next day. While Piyo still will make you sore at the beginning, it doesn't leave you feeling destroyed and you actually feel like doing it again the next day and the next day, which I found really great. If you're already working out regularly though, you would probably want to skip the first couple of weeks from the schedule. 2. The instructor is very encouraging and motivating. I read mixed reviews and I think it really just depends on what kind of motivation works for you. If you prefer military-style, discipline-focused and "tough love" kind of encouragement, then you would find Piyo to be baby-ing and annoying. But if you're like me and you prefer more of a gentle encouragement and a cheerful attitude, then you will like Chalene. She's very positive and is great at pushing you to work harder without sounding like a drill sargeant. 3. The warm ups and the cool downs. At the beginning of each workout there is a warm up section, which I really appreciate. I do Piyo in the morning, so it's good to give your body a chance to wake up before making it work hard. I don't like workouts that make you jump right in without warming up your body first. Then you have to make extra time for that in addition to the workout. Piyo is complete with warm up and cool down. The cool down is nice too because you get to work on your flexibility and you can modify things any way you want. I've gotten my ability to do splits back just by replacing one of the runners lunge stretches in the cool down with a split stretch. 4. Tailored for someone not very experienced in working out. Chalene explains a lot of moves I never understood before and helps you get to the next level. In the past I've been told that my wrists shouldn't hurt when doing push-ups or else I'm doing it wrong. Chalene from the very beginning tells you that it's normal for your wrists to hurt if you're not used to doing push-ups. And she was right, after a while they stopped hurting. I even find it easier to open up jars and bottles now! So if you're new to working out, Piyo is a great introduction to fitness. If you already workout out regularly and know your stuff though, you might find all that talk boring. 5. The modifiers. In each workout there are 3 people next to Chalene: one does the same thing, one does an easier version and another one a harder version. So you can work your way up from an easier to a harder version on the same move. I just follow Chalene for the most part, in the beginning I had to follow the modifier for a couple of the moves and now I'm starting to try the advanced version for another two moves. So I feel like you can really grow, even though they're technically the same moves, you can always make it harder for yourself. So for the most part, I'm really liking these videos. I might start adding on or mixing it with running or lifting weights as I start building up my strength and stamina. It's definitely not meant to be an only workout long term, but it's a really great starting point and also probably world be good to mix with other types of workouts in the future. Now, couple of things I don't really like: 1. The advertising, as mentioned by other reviewers. I don't mind them as much, because they're not poor quality like night time infomercials, they're well made advertisements. I could definitely do without them though. 2. Works the lower body more than the upper body. There is a whole lot of leg work and not so much focus on the arms or chest. Even though there are push-ups in all the workouts, I feel like my legs burn disproportionately more than my arms. I think after completing the 60 days I'm going to try to balance it out with some weight lifting for my arms. Other than that I'm pretty happy with the product. I haven't followed the eating plan. I'm guessing it might help with losing weight if you follow it, but I can't attest to it. I did lose a couple of pounds, although that wasn't my priority getting into this workout. I still eat my burgers and fries when I feel like it, but I feel much more healthy and fit after starting Piyo. Especially doing it in the morning makes me feel more ready for my day afterwards. As for DVD quality, I haven't had any problems with skipping or scratching. I use my Play Station to play them and haven't had any issues with playback.

As a busy mom of both a teenager and a very active two year old, I have been looking for a workout that is quick and affective. I have struggled to find the time to exercise with my busy days, working full time and taking care of my kids, which has caused me to have a most difficult time losing the baby weight from my second child. I walk on a regular basis and used to work out almost everyday before I had the baby. So, I decided it was time to get back into the swing of things. One of my co workers mentioned the Beach Body program so I decided to check it out. Since I enjoy the lower impact and body strengthening of yoga, I decided to try this PiYo workout program. I love it!!! Within the first week I had already dropped three pounds, and now that I am almost done with the first month, I have lost a total of 5 pounds, plus my clothes fit better and I have gotten tons of compliments from my husband, and my friends. This program really does work!. The set is great, it comes with the video, a calendar, as well as an eating guide. I already eat a relatively healthy diet, but the guide helped me better understand what I should be eating more of, as well as what I should be eating less of too! The workouts are very affective, and mostly run between 20 and 30 minutes, which is great for me in the mornings. Another plus is that there are no weights and it really is a lower impact. My knees are not that great, but I do not have a problem at all. She is easy to follow and keeps me motivated throughout the workouts. Plus, I don't need alot of space to do the exercises either. Overall I was very pleased with the workouts and would highly recommend this to anyone!!!

Ok this review is two parts… The five stars is because I integrated “PIYO” into my training regimen over half a decade ago and will stick with it til I die! This set of routines cover everything I need to keep me healthy and happy, and it mixes well with my weight lifting and cardio regimen I do at my military training center. Sadly, this new set I bought to replace my old set had issues with certain discs I.e. the “Sculpt” disc, it was full of scratches and constantly skipped or froze, so much so, that it was almost impossible to get thru a routine in double the time it normally takes… PIYO, for me has been a very fun and productive workout that is very worthwhile and is something most people would get something beneficial from—the discs just need to be functional.

Perfetto per allenarsi in casa d'inverno

Ich finde es toll, wie im ersten Teil alle Übungen im Detail beschrieben werden. So kann auch ein Anfänger nichts falsch machen. Die Übungen sind toll und auch wirklich gut nachzumachen. Nur als Info, weil es vielleicht manche wissen wollen: es ist alles auf englisch (was mich aber ehrlich gesagt nicht stört)

Un DVD de la team beachbody, un bon mix entre yoga, pilate et fitness. Contient 3 DVD en langue anglaise mais pour les francophones pas de problème de compréhension. Le premier DVD explique les exercices pour bien se positionner, les deux autres proposent des workout de 30 à 45 minutes, et en bonus un turbofire de 20 minutes. Les filles vous aller sentir vos cuisses et vos fesses travailler. Au programme: des pompes, des squats, des fentes, des étirements. Il faut être un peu en forme pour suivre mais sont proposés deux niveaux de difficulté.

I love the fact that this requires no running or jumping. Some moves are challenging at first, but with practice I can feel myself getting better and stronger. This is a great workout for all fitness levels, as modifications are shown for all moves. At the end of the workout you won't find yourself out of breath or totally exhausted, but will feel your muscles have been worked and will notice results. Absolutely love this series.

When you already overweight you can’t get to the floor never mind get up! It’s difficult to stabilise yourself! It’s just too advanced for me . But it’ll probably work well if your not to big to begin with! But it wasn’t for me!