Sluggish
For somebody who likes typical pilates style that dvd may be good. Slow moves, deep breaths. Slow motion, it becomes boring in first 5 minutes. I prefer vivacious workouts like 10 minutes solution pilates, that's it! But this dvd I gave to charity shop...

Very good; well worth it
I'm reasonably fit, but my wife is less fit, having only recently started exercising. Both of us are able to follow Darcey's programme well enough, although some exercises do take some practice before they come naturally.

The main programme is very good and will leave you feeling refreshed. With warm-up and warm-down it takes about an hour-and-a-half, but the time flies by thanks to the relaxing music, Darcey's pleasant manner and because the exercises and stretches are relaxing when performed with concentration at the pace demonstrated.

Frequently I don't have time for an hour or more of exercise during the day. The mini-programme is perfect on these occasions. It doesn't take long to learn the warm-up, mini-prog and warm-down. These can be performed in 30 mins if you're away from home or otherwise without the DVD.

I would agree with a couple of the criticisms made previously. It can be hard to keep time if the exercise doesn't allow the screen to be kept in view. Having someone to call the timing would help, but if no one is available you can still exercise at your own pace until you hear Darcey start the next exercise: possibly not ideal, but 100% better than not doing any exercise at all. The warm-down also seemed a little short, although I doubt you'd feel stiff the next day after these exercises anyway.

Clearly one DVD won't cover everything there is to know about Pilates (get a book, instructor or start lessons), but there's enough here to make it worthwhile whether you just follow Darcey's programme or, like me, add it to an existing routine.

Not impressed
I'm not impressed with this pilates dvd at all and will, after writing this review, be shopping for another. Ms Bussell comes across very well, the music is fine, what I have a problem with is the exercises and the way Ms Bussell hurries through them. She's obviously an extremely supple person so by the time she's demonstrated 10 neck stretches I will have done 3 (slowly, as a non-supple person should). I don't believe she's demonstrated nearly enough correct key postures either, as she only did a few, yet whenever I've attended pilates classes a LOT more time is given over to ensuring the class is doing the excercises correctly. I really think Ms Bussell has jumped on the bandwagon and not given enough thought to who the dvd is aimed at.

Love it
I am a beginner to Pilates and because of a lower back/hip problem, I had to ease off yoga and find an alternative and this has certainly worked for me. I've been practising this dvd for 2 months now and have noticed a marked difference in my torso - it is toned and stronger. The pace is slow but effective. I like the way you can work at Darcey's pace and never break out in a sweat! The music is calming and really quietens the mind. Having the exercises in sections is a good idea as you can focus on areas you want to if you're pushed for time. The style is not gimmicky and I like Darcey's style and instruction.

Bliss!
As someone who has dabbled with various exercise DVDs and videos over the years and never stuck with them, I can't express enough how refreshingly different this one is. No thumping music or graphics, no flashy sets and most importantly an instructor who doesn't feel the need to talk or shout in a 'motivational' fashion all the way through it. Darcey is elegant and calm and explains everything simply and concisely.

I was a complete beginner to Pilates when I bought this DVD, and a few reviewers have expressed the opinion that it is not suitable for beginners and indeed may lead to injury, but provided you watch closely how Darcey does things and watch the key points section, you should be okay. Of course, you should exercise your own judgement as to whether you think a particular exercise is suitable for you or not. For example, I have a long standing cartilage problem in my right knee, so I sit out the 'sphinx into a roll-up' exercise, because I know that sitting right back on my knees like that would do more harm than good.

The full workout itself is effective, but not overly difficult. There are some quite challenging exercises, particularly in the abdominal section, but they are do-able and well worth persevering with. What I love most about the programme is the way that it is interspersed with some truly wonderful stretches which feel absolutely blissful, especially when they come after some of the more challenging exercises. I wholeheartedly agree with Darcey when she says that she could do these stretches all day. They really do feel amazing. I always come away from a workout feeling energised, both physically and mentally.

The music is calming and soothing and gives a meditative quality to the workout, which I am sure contributes to the feeling of mental clarity you are left with at the end.

The only slight problem I have with the DVD, and the reason I could only give it four stars, is that I found it quite difficult to follow her timing. Now, I'm not terribly musical and perhaps the timing is quite obvious to most people when following the soundtrack, but I find that I have to keep watching the screen to keep to the same timing as her. If I don't I invariably end up either going too fast, or worse, too slow and not fitting in the right number of reps each time. But this is a small point and certainly doesn't interfere too much with my enjoyment of the programme.

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