Leslie Sansone: Ultimate 5 Day Walk Plan

This is not one of my favorites but I do enjoy it. Exercise made easy. Almost too easy. I have several of Leslie's DVD's and this is very mild compared to some of her others. Leslie has a younger and perky group to walk with and new moves like the mambo, grapevine, shifts, heels, and new arm movements. The new moves are such a breath of fresh air. So nice to mix things up and "get light on those feet" as Leslie likes to say. All of these along with Leslie's four basic steps. It is very customizable and I love that. Makes it easy to squeeze in a workout no matter how much time you can spare during the day. You can do 1 mile all the way to 10 miles if you want and add in several toning sessions. The toning sessions are meek, only lasting 3 to 4 minutes, but I think this DVD is geared more towards beginners. This DVD is similar to interval training. After every mile the pace drops down and allows you heart rate to level off and then amps it up a little before the mile ends. Really not great for breaking a sweat and pumping up that heart rate but it keeps you moving and gives you a decent low impact workout. I do take advantage of the little breaks though. Grab a little water and check on the kids. I also love the fact that Leslie has basically planned out a weeks worth of workouts for you. You don't even have to think about it. Pop it in the player and pick the day. Monday: 3 Miles plus Ab Session Tuesday: 4 Miles plus Arm Session Wednesday: 1 Miles plus Leg Session Thursday: 2 Miles plus Chest and Back Session Friday: 5 Miles plus Full Body Stretch. But like I mentioned before it is also completely customizable. Each mile is color coded (easy to tell due to the casts wardrobe) and has different moves that it seems to focus on a tad more or steps that are even present in other miles. So if you like doing mambo you can do the purple mile, if you like doing half jacks and shifts then you can add the blue mile, and add the yellow mile if you like heels. Then you have 3 miles and you can add any tone session you want... if you want a tone session at all. It is a great DVD to get that body moving and burn some calories. And for less than $10 you can't ask for anything more.

I've gone through each of the miles on this DVD at least once now, and I must say I'm really pleased with the workouts. All the classic walk moves (side steps, kicks, knee lifts, kick backs) are included, but she throws in a bit of variety too. Nothing too crazy, but it makes the workouts a little more interesting. The DVD includes 5 different miles, identified by color. The red, blue, green, purple, and yellow miles. Leslie and her walk partners are all wearing the coordinating color for the mile they're on. There is also a warm up and a cool down segment. It also includes strength and toning sessions for abs, arms, legs, chest & back, as well as a stretching segment. Typically the strength and toning sessions in Leslie's workouts are brief, and this DVD is no exception. The focus is more on the walking, with some light strength training thrown in. In the DVD menu you can create your own workout from the options listed above, or there are 5 pre-made workouts for each day of the week to choose from if you don't want to come up with your own combination. It is important to note that each mile is it's own individual workout, so when you combine miles into one workout, there's a bit of a transition from mile to mile. This did not bother me though. The miles start out more brisk than a warm-up and don't get all the way down to a true cool down, so you still keep a good pace no matter what. Plus, if you're not super fit (like me!) then it can be nice to get a bit of a slower pace while you transition from mile to mile. Leslie was cheery and talkative like normal! I always find her personality to be fun and genuine. It's why I always gravitate toward her workouts over others. Leslie's walking buddies in this DVD are cheery and fun young women. The might just be really good actors, but they did seem to genuinely be enjoying themselves during the workout segments. You know how the exuberance can seem forced in a lot of workouts? I didn't feel that here. I would definitely recommend this DVD to anyone who enjoys walking, needs a low impact workout, or wants a workout they can customize. I love that I can pop it in and do one mile if I'm pressed for time, or do 5 and some strength training if my schedule is open.

i admit: i hate exercising but love the energy i feel after i do so. Simply put, i get bored exercising and just dont have the motivation to do so. I'd say i am a seasoned DVD fitness exerciser as I have a good collection of quality vids from Cathe, Christi Taylor, firm to Dasha Libin's Kettlekickboxing. I consider myself intermediate as i am returning to watching my weight and regularly doing fitness vids. Now put in the picture: Leslie Sansone just walk 5 day plan. wooohoo. i really look forward working out. This video just makes me smile. Love Leslie here as she is motivating and just pleasant to be with. Yea so what if she talks alot? it makes time go faster. Her companions in all the segments are fun to watch too and also make me smile. I have owned older vhs Leslie and this is different. You just dont walk here and pump your arms. You do side steps, kicks, etc along with arm movements. You can go as fast as their pace or even faster and i find my HR still going up and i do break a sweat. I think this vid has helped me tone my legs more (i am never the skinny leg gal type and have thick short muscular legs) and helped me cardio-wise. Dislikes: music could be better. there are some annoying shrilly dance music, but eventually you kind of block it off after a while. format: each mile is one color. blue mile = 1 mile. green mile = 1 mile etc. Toward the halfway end of the mile, Leslie will pick up the pace a bit more. be careful if you have an old DVD player: when i pressed on the monday (or any of the daily workout days) workout, it would only let me do one colored mile, instead of the monday miles (which is 2 or 3 miles). I can only do the create your own workout where you programwhich color mile(s) you want to do. i still like this b/c i can chose what i want to do....so really not a complaint. just a heads up for those who own older dvd plyrs. there is also a mini-weight training part but quite beginner level so i dont do it. In summary: awesome video. my to-go vid as intermed. exerciser b/c you can go faster than Leslie's pace (which is already fast in 2nd half of the mile). Video is FUN and Leslie's chatting and her companions just make the video pleasant and thereby making the workout go faster. in 15 min, you have done a mile.....now that's better than doing absolutely NOTHING. if you have owned older leslie vid, try this one: it is more than just walking in place. A++++ vid.

I have worked out with Leslie for quite some time, and I have had nearly all her dvd's. I love the walking concept because its quick, low impact and does not really "feel" like exercise which is how I am able to psych myself into doing it regularly. I am in my early 30's as well, and I LOVE The bright white, vibrant fresh sets. I could not stand the old studio with the black walls, ugg. I only use the fresh set workouts now, the others are just too depressing. However I like the fact that there are new faces, and new music....who wants the same old thing all the time? There are some new moves but still mostly the classic Leslie we all know and love. I LOVE the fact that its customizable and there is a lot of variety here to change it up (which is good for those of use who workout on most days, lets face it, variety is KEY). There are 5 individual miles which you can do 1, 2, or all five, plus there are 5 short toning sessions. Overall a great mix. I get bored with the "2 up and 2 back" bit, and usually do squats/lunges or something during this time anyway so I like some toning mixed in. I think anyone who wants a nice low impact, effective workout would like this. Plus ladies who have been working out forever with Leslie will love it as well. Leslie is a real woman, who is aging like everyone else; maintaining her own fitness and motivating others to be positive and healthful which I think is great. She's positive, and bubbly without being fake which is rare these days. One of my all time favorite workouts is the Start! Walking, American heart association walks since Leslie is by herself. I enjoy Leslie and will probably walk with her forever!

Well, I have only done two day's worth of this dvd, but it is a great one. This one, like the 5-Really Big Miles, adds a lot of new combinations. Grape vine with kick backs, shift with punches, jump rope, jog, and the knee lifts with big arm movements (kicks my butt) and more. There really isn't any "down time" in the segments. Generally when I have a 3 or more mile walk with Leslie I have to have water, but with these, I just don't have time to drink it if I want to keep up. You can customize the workouts or use the pre-selected format for Monday-Friday. So far I have just used the daily mixes, no customizing. This is a higher impact workout than some of her other dvds. If you have bad knees (which I do) some of these moves can be a little trying. She does the grapevine kick-back combos for extended periods as well as the double knee lifts with huge arm movements & the jump rope segment in one of the miles will be tough on you. Each mile finishes strong - she really picks up the pace and keeps you moving & that heart rate up. Transitions to new mile segments are the only semi-down time since you switch back to a slower pace for a bit. I think the intensity level are higher, because if you have been doing WATP for a long time you will notice Leslie is probably at her thinnest. I have found this to be an awesome dvd, challenging and refreshing with the new moves. It really adds some variety if you have been doing her workouts for a long time. The ONLY reason I did not give it 5 stars is because each workout day is supposed to add post walk focused workout routine for abs, arms, legs etc. So, Monday's plan includes an ab workout afterward, but the routine is only a few minutes long, definitely not enough to see results. I was very disappointed. Tonight was arm workout and it literally consisted of two different types of bicep curls and one tricep exercise repeated twice. All in all, I am really happy with this dvd (also try the 5 Really Big Miles, the 3miles on the Burn Body Fat is good as well)

I have probably 70 fitness dvd's. Maybe even more than that. A few dvd's were impulsive purchases from informercials, and others were videos that I viewed on another well known website where you can preview dvd's before purchasing. What I have learned is that every type of exercise is not for every person. I think any exercise that a person does consistently with the right type of eating habits can produce results but for me, if I can't get into the exercise then it's just a waste of money. I really really underestimated this dvd because I have owned Leslie Sansone walking dvd before and I just couldn't get into it. What I really like about this walking plan is that it really is geared towards someone who is between that beginner and intermediate level of exercising. For me, it's not about how long a person has been exercising more than it is about physical abilities. I've been exercising for years off and on but struggle to advance to the workouts that involve a lot of complicated steps and weird positions that I wouldn't do any other time of the day except when working out. I needed something that was realistic to my day-to-day types of movements, yet challenging enough for me to not get bored and still burn some calories. Leslie Sansone has really stepped her game up in this dvd; literally. I like the fact that it is broken up into 5 days which means I don't have to wake up trying to determine what am I going to do today. Sometimes I spend so much time trying to figure out which workout I want to do that I don't end up doing anything so this helps out significantly in that area. Also, it was good for me to get back into exercising after a long break without having to start at extreme beginner level exercise dvd programs. It's just what I needed and I like that I can premix and tailor the walks based on my own preferences. I also like that she adds toning exercises to each days' workout. The toning exercises aren't that long, but it beats a blank. Overall, it has been a really long time that I have purchased a fitness dvd that challenges me, is fun, doesn't have the dread factor, and is well choreographed. If you are like me where you haven't worked out in a while and you want to get back to it but not start out with exercises that are too basic, or too complicated, you still want to sweat and burn calories, and walk away feeling challenged but not overwhelmed, then this is for you.....

I get bored very easily with workout videos and I hate doing the same thing over and over. But I also don't want to invest a lot of money in buying several different videos. What's great about this video is that you can create several different workout combos from this. It's set up as a 5-day walk plan - ex. Monday is a 3 Mile Walk w/ Ab Session, Tues is 4 Mile Walk with arm session, etc., but you can create your own as well. I like to do 4-5 Miles and then add at least 2 toning sessions. Some days when I don't have much time, I'll do a quick mile and 1 toning session. The miles are all different - the Green and Yellow ones seem easier, the Blue one is more challenging w/ the jump rope and jumping jack type exercises added. Also, with the walking and toning sessions, I love that I'm getting an all over body workout. My husband has said how tone my body is now and that my arms have that "ripped" look. I was so excited when I was able to fit into a size 5/6 jeans! Since I've started using the Leslie Sansone videos 6 months ago, I have lost 33 pounds. (This of course is in combo with monitoring what I eat on myfitnesspal.com) To review: The plus on getting this video: - Good for beginners to intermediates - Offers a lot of combo workout routines - Includes toning exercises (hand weights, abs, legs, arms, stretches) - Uses 12 minute miles which keeps you on a good pace - Music is not too bad - Leslie explains everything very well My criticisms: - I wish the toning sessions were longer. They are only 3 - 4 minutes. - On 3 of the miles, she uses a punch sequence and on 2 of them - the punch count isn't even. For example - you punch 10 times w/ a right arm and then 12 times on the other. I always add more to keep it even. Overall, I would give this video an A-. It's my favorite out of all of the Leslie Sansone videos I have. I would definitely recommend adding this one to your collection! Happy walking!

In my opinion, this is the best DVD by Leslie so far! I have several of her DVD's and this one is different in many respects and suits my needs perfectly. I don't have to think about what to do to workout. There are 5 days of organized walking with one short workout targeting abs, arms, legs, back and chest and stretch daily. No thinking involved - I just put the DVD in and do the program! However, this is where this DVD is different from the others: There is a separate choice menu where you CAN select different miles and different target workouts. Leslie gives an introduction in the beginning that you must listen to, as she gives instructions on how to do the selecting. The process is easy as far as I am concerned, and I am technologically challenged. The workout I did today lasted 50 minutes and in addition to the walking, was tailor-made to target specific areas I desired to exercise. No matter what I choose, there is an automatic warm-up segment and a cool-down segment, with my selection(s) sandwiched in between. The chosen segments will run automatically from one to the other, so I don't have to grab the remote and select the next one I want to do. This is the first time that I have seen this type of option in an exercise DVD, and I own quite a few. This one works well for me. It is brand new, just released in the last month. New studio background, new exercise participants and new music. Since it's new, I hesitated to purchase it ("Would this be a re-run of other DVD's?"), and, as stated previously, I do have many Leslie Sansone DVD's. But I am happy to say I am pleased that I made the purchase.