Unless you are probably a professional dancer. !! or I'm too thick to take in all the steps.

They dont explain the step and practice in bits - they go through all the steps for the whole routine and somehow expect you to remember them and do them at fast speed. I was really looking forward to having a go but its a complete waste of time.

Don't give up! I found it difficult to follow first time, but found it easier each time I reran it. Am doing two dances (wouldn't suggest more to start with if you are inexperienced) and am on my 5th run through now and getting the hang of it.

Having said that, I have done a bit of dancing which helped. They do put in steps like spot turns without really explaining how to do them, and so I can understand some of your frustration.

Ive never danced before and picked it up really easy, i thought it was good.

Keep persevering - as with any more complex exercise DVD it takes a while to get the hang of the routines, but it's SO much more fun when you get into it. Certainly not a waste of time, just takes a bit more application than a normal aerobics vid. Do what you can, and WATCH whatever you're struggling with, eventually you'll get it all down. I had the same problems with Lilia's last year but it was worth the effort.

[quote=ceecee1;20562243]Unless you are probably a professional dancer. !! or I'm too thick to take in all the steps.


Have you tried Lilia's latin dvd (came out last year) The structure and explanations are nice and clear and cover the style of the latin dances.

I totally agree. I had the same problem with the DWTS DVD that I bought last year and just put it away and never did it again. I promised myself that I would just keep practicing with the Strictly one though.

I have dance experience, but in jazz and ballet, so I don't know all of the latin and ballroom steps that they refer to. It's a real challenge, but hopefully worth it.

crikey your putting me off, i'll get lilia's i think

I don't mean to put anyone off. I think it's a good DVD and done a lot better than other dance DVDs I've tried.

well you are the first person to say that?

Would agree with you here Vivacious Lady about it being better to have done some dancing beforehand. I found much the same as you (see my review on the SCD Dancercise thread).........and I found it ok because I have dance lessons.

I DO think its hard at first if you haven't - I think you need to be aware of the basic steps of the formal dances first to do it well.

Its fab i think even though im a proffesional. But all you do is keep at it have fun and you will be able to do it anyone can.
its fantastic

I have to say that as a non-dancer (in the sense that I only ever dance in clubs and have never had lessons) I haven't found this dvd too bad at all. My favourites are the jive, salsa and quickstep - the cha cha is still infuriatingly difficult for some reason and although I can manage a lot of the steps, putting them together to the music is a whole other story!

My sister and I did it quite a bit over the hols and we found that if we watched the intro section to the dance and then went over it together bit by bit, we could make a reasonable stab at the 'routine.' But rather than trying to keep up we would pause it when we found something tricky and go over it a few times before carrying on. I think it has been mentioned in the other thread but I do think the dances Karen takes you through (jive and salsa) are slightly easier to follow. She seems to have a clearer way of explaining things and goes over steps before moving on.

The jive and quickstep in particular have had us sweating buckets! At the same time as feeling we're getting a great cardio workout, there's a real sense of satisfaction when you can nail a step. I know it's only a workout dvd but it's really cool to learn actual dance steps whilst getting fitter. I'd much prefer to exercise this way than attempt something with weights etc.

Basically lots of fun. I'd reccommend it to dancers and non-dancers alike!

what is lilias dvd ike? is it better?

Does the OP not think a better title to this thread would be
"I don't rate the Dancersize Dvd " or something .

The title at present suggests in a way that we boycott it

I hated Lilia's first dvd (her personality didn't shine through at all, the jive routine was especially dull in my opinion, and the camera angles were really annoying) but I really like the Dancersize one, even though I found it just as hard first time through. I just think Karen's personality came through much more than Lilia's (Erin is a bit wooden) and I prefer the routines by a long way, and I prefer the music.

I think it all comes down to personal choice and taste though. Why not borrow all of them from the library and try them out for a week or two before deciding which to buy?

I love the jive routine in the Karen/Erin one though, it's just so much fun.

I have to agree with everything you say here - I bought Lilia's first one, watched it through a couple of times but it didn't inspire me to get up and do it - her instruction was awful and almost non existant during the routines themselves (although it must be hard to transfer from dance instructor to doing an exercise video) therefore I've never done it and bypass it whenever I do one of my exercise DVD's. However the Karen/Erin one really made me want to get up and join in even though I was watching it in my nightie and full of cold! I think the routines are fun and them being set to familiar tunes from the show certainly helps (ie the Jive is to 'I'm still standing" - Jill and Darren's jive).

Good suggestion about borrowing the DVD's from the Library first - saves wasting money on buying something you might never do

Just tried the quickstep, very hard!! I don't think it's impossible to achieve, I just wish that the camera didn't swing to a side view on the complicated steps as I completely lose what they're doing - it seems that on the simpler steps the camera angle stays full on. Also don't know whether we're meant to mirror what they're doing or do it backwards, especially in hold dances such as the quickstep. But it's a lot of fun, even if I can't get the hang of it quite yet!

agree with you ST

I love the DVD. Very enjoyable and I picked up the routines up very easily.

Now, I am not a pro dancer so I think you should all stop moaning and get on with it.

Nobody is moaning. We're just responding to the OP and trying to make constructive comments as to how to use the DVD. If someone is finding the DVD difficult to follow then it really doesn't help just to say that it is easy.

I have some sympathy since I'm really not very good at picking up dance steps. I'm not stupid (have two degrees). Also it's easy to think you are doing the steps correctly when you're not (as I discovered part way through a routine) - not that I think that matters much.

Having said that, I think the thread title should just state the OP's opinion that the DVD is difficult to follow (i.e. as per Inner Self's comment), rather than tell people not to buy it, since it really does come down to opinion and natural dance aptitude.

I couldn't agree more. I object to people telling other people what not to do with their money based on their opinion.

I'm not saying you're thick, not at all and I'm sorry if I implied that. You obviously aren't, but neither am I and just wanted to offer that I found it quite easy to follow and therefore think it's unfair for the OP to imply we shouldn't buy it because of her experiences with it.

No problem at all. I didn't take it personally. I am getting a bit slower as I get older and it takes more time for things to sink in! Actually that's one of the things I like about it, in that it exercises the mind as well as the body. And most of all it is fun!

So what is the overall opinion, being someone who doesn't take dancing lessons, do you think I will be able to pick it up??

You may get a lot of it first or second time round if you have a natural aptitude. Otherwise you may need to persevere a bit longer, but in my opinion it is worth doing. For me it isn't just about exercise. I tend to be a bit stiff shouldered and so dances like the cha cha and salsa are good for me since they get me moving my shoulders and arms in a more fluid way.

Having said that, I've never done standard aerobics (because I would find them boring) and so can't give a good comparison.

More complex moves than in most aerobics things, so you may take longer to pick things up/feel comforatble, but on the up side, it also makes them (IMO anyway!) much more interesting to do so it feels less like exercise and more like fun.

Someone suggested elsewhere to try and get copies out from a library which seems a good idea to me, or have a look on eBay for cheap copies or if you or anyone you know rents from Amazon I think they're available... well worth having a go IMO anyway