Tae Bo: Fitness Craze or Effective Workout :: Exercise Health Papers

Tae Bo Fitness Craze or Effective Workout? Whats all the fuss about? Tae Bo, a form of high contact aerobics that combines the moves of Tae KwonDo, karate, boxing, ballet, and hip_hop dancing is the newest craze in gymsand homes across the country. Tae Bo, which stands for Total AwarenessExcellent Body Obedience, was developed by Billy Blanks in the late 1980s. Blanks, a seven_time world karate champion and b drop belt in six martialarts, developed Tae Bo in the basement of his home. Atfter encouragementfrom family and friends, The Blanks World knowledge Center in Sherman Oaks,CA was opened, introducing Tae Bo to local townspeople and limited Hollywoodcelebrities. By word of mouth, Tae Bo gradually gained popularity, its famepeaking with the release of the video package in portentous of 1998. The four tape video package includes an instructional video, basic usage, advanced workout, and an eight_minute workout. The videos arecommonly featured on a late night infomercial where the package can bepurchased for three payments of $19.95. The infomercial, featuringtestimonials from successful users, and a motivational speech from Blankshimself, has sold over one million copies since 1998. If youve got the ordain__Tae Bos the way promises the announcer, for thousands of users thisseems to be the truth. Troy Obrero , a well educated personal trainer in San Francisco, CA givesTae Bo his approval Tae Bo is an excellent cardiovascular workout with verygood distractions. Obrero targets lack of variety as the reason for failureof many workout regimens, he claims that Tae Bo provides the necessarynovelty and challenge to keep users hooked. Very few people bear done thetype of movements done in Tae Bo on a regular basis, continues Obrero, thisleads to its extreme effectiveness in toning and defining the entire body. Blanks encourages his clients to work on their bodies from the innerout he claims results are imminent from the very first Tae Bo workout, ascompleting it m akes you feel great about yourself. Overall Blanks says hisTae Bo workouts can improve balance, coordination, flexibility, and will toneand define muscles. The workout regimen is exhaustively aerobic andtherefore yields phenomenal cardiovascular benefits. Finally, perhaps themost appealing aspect of a Tae Bo workout is its proven calorie burningeffectiveness. An hour long Tae Bo workout will burn 500 to 800 calories,compared with the 300 to 400 calories burned with a more stodgyaerobics class. Testimonials The world wide web is full of glowing recommendations from faithful TaeBo users. Although the workout seems to be most popular with women in their