That's a very good point Dancemad! I've bought some of these DVDs before and then been put off before I've started as for many of them you appear to need the equivalent of a full-sized dance studio in the house (well that's my excuse anyway!)

I think I'll try Camilla's then, can't afford both at the moment.

I bought both of Lilia's ones... again limited floorspace though (I won't be doing it in the living room where my other half would see me)

Is that at all appropriate or have I bought the wrong one for a small ish space?

I have Latina Tone and do it in a pretty small space in my bedroom, so it should be alright.

I have latina tone and can do it in my very small bedroom so you should be fine.

just done most of strictly come dancercise with karen and erin (got pushed off by my brother before the samba) for the first time and really enjoyed it. loved the jive and quickstep in particular.
but boy are the steps tricky to pick up ! i id expect that after reading reviews though. the easiest by far for me is the jive (as i said, i'm yet to try the samba). the quickstep would also be fairly easy-ish but i think for girls the idea is to be symmetrical to erin and i find that confusing.
but it's only my first go so hopefully i'll pick the steps up after a while.

The samba isn't too bad. It's a lot slower than the jive and quickstep and not so many "steps" so you should be fine.

I used the DVD consistently for about 9 months and it helped me lose 25 pounds so I have to say it's one of my favorites!

just thought i'd say that i've just done the whole of flavia and kelly's dvd and i think it's fantastic! as someone who has dancer experience i found it fairly easy to pick up the steps with a few things here and there that were tricky. the tango you do with a chair which can be a bit confusing but i think if you do it enough times you get it the quickstep is really good for your arms as they're up most of the time, but it hurts slow jive for me was too slow as i couldn't keep in time to the music, and the fast jive was much better if a lot harder work. but it is easier to stay in time with if you're more experienced the salsa was really good and i enjoyed it, i've done it three times today the tango once or twice (i don't remember lol) the QS once and the jive twice (slow once and fast twice so three i guess). have also done the warm up and cool down which are both really good.

i definitely recommend this, it's fantastic and really enjoyable!

yeh, watched that earlier but haven't dance it yet. it looks a lot slower and easier.
i've decided i'm going to focus on 1 dance each week, and i do the dvd most days. at the mo i'm doing the quickstep. watched it a couple of times, then danced twice over. freaking painful ! but i've got all the steps apart from the charlston, erin doesn't explain that one too well i don't think. but yeh really enjoying it.

Interesting, I go to beginners dance classes and I can do the very basic steps of the jive, and I've got a torn ligament in one knee. We haven't done any kicks or flicks yet. I find that a couple of dance classes a week was helping me lose a few pounds before the run up to Xmas. However, what's most challenging are the spins in waltz and quickstep because of the turning and it happening so fast and with a partner who spins you round. I really should invest in a DVD so i can build up the muscles in my legs, in case my consultant decides not to operate.

i have both of lilia's , camilla's , karen&erins and flavia& kellys - so all of thm
i love thm all but my favs are lilia's and karen and erins as they are more energetic and upbeat
although camillas is the easiet to pick up the steps i think

I have been doing Lilia's for a few days now

But the space on my floor is an L shape and I just think I could get more out of it in a bigger space. It's a shame as I like the routines but wish I had more space to do it properly.

yay ! i've mastered the charlston !!!
can do all the quickstep steps now, it's just so tiring !!
i much prefer karen & erin's to camilla's because camilla's is too easy IMO. also you don't really learn many dance steps.

I know what you mean about the spin turns! I think the waltz and quickstep can be quite hard on the knees because of all of the rise and fall. The jive steps, that Karen does, are quite different from those which I learnt as a beginner. In particular the exercise has multiple flicks on one leg. Apart from the fact that this means that there is much more impact on the knees as you bounce up and down, there is also the problem of balancing for a some time on one leg. Also for some reason, I seem to have less brain/leg coordination on my right hand side (I am left handed) and find it really difficult to get sharp kicks on that side. However I think it has improved.

You do need to be careful because you can strain knees if you're not careful doing the jive. So suggest you build up slowly on this dance. Similarly some of the moves in the salsa exercise (squats/african walk) can also put pressure on the knees if not properly done.

NB similar comments apply to the quickstep pendulum movements.

lol...I have been banned from bouncing by my physiotherapist. He's not too sure about me dancing full stop, but I'm aware of what I can and can't do and have had to veto spin turns as I'm worried about them. I still go, as I would get no exercise otherwise, cos I don't have the time or inclination to walk (which is pretty much the only exercise I can do, other than specific muscle exercises). I am hoping to find out whether I will, or may, be having knee corrective surgery next week. i'm not a rugby star and probably need to lose some weight and/or be over 60 years old, so it may not happen!!!