Tae Bo Cardio Routines Make Fitness Fun

Billy Blanks is a well-known fitness guru who has blended the physical arts of kick-boxing and Tae Kwon Do into a powerful aerobics routine set to high-spirited music. It is called Billy Blanks Tae Bo. Because of the unique movements, the rhythmic musical accompaniment and the motivational input from Billy as the instructor, Tae Bo cardio has become one of the most popular fitness movements to ever hit the market.

Tae Bo routines are recommended widely by fitness experts because of the unique ability that the Tae Bo workout has of keeping people excited and motivated to continue their fitness workouts. In addition, experts also recommend the Tae Bo fitness approach because it is an excellent way to burn calories, helping people work off the excess units at about double the rate of a typical aerobic routine.

Tae Bo cardio exercise workouts are both convenient and flexible for the student because there are a number of Tae Bo workout videos and DVDs on the market. Most Tae Bo fitness sets include at least four different routines. This helps people stay motivated and eliminates boredom since they can vary their exercise sessions by using different workouts.

Tae Bo fitness routines have a world-wide following of millions of avid fans. Some have gone so far as to say that Billy Blanks started a fitness revolution when he brought Tae Bo workouts to the masses though his fitness infomercial. One of the things that keeps people addicted to the Tae Bo fitness workouts is the charisma and the energy of Billy Blanks himself. While demonstrating the perfect moves that can be achieved through physical prowess, he somehow manages to make even the most out-of-shape person feel that he is rooting for them and that he believes they can improve their physical condition.

Indeed, part of the secret to the Tae Bo fitness phenomenon is that the routines are more than simply about moving the body and building physical strength. Billy Blanks somehow manages to also effortlessly incorporate components of mental and spiritual training right alongside of the physical training he imparts. Many Tae Bo fans have commented that one of the reasons they enjoyed success with Tae Bo was because, for the first time, they believed they could achieve new levels of physical improvement. Across the board, people credit Billy's upbeat attitude with inspiring them in this way.

With his background as a World Martial Arts Champion, not just once, but as a seven-time champ, Billy has the know-how to create an effective workout routine that also motivates people to stretch to new fitness heights. People find his Tae Bo fitness routines refreshing because his approach does not include fad diets, expensive and complicated machines or any tricky gimmicks. It all boils down to you and your trainer, Billy Blanks, bound by the desire to improve your fitness on both internal and external levels.

Tae Bo cardio routines help you to focus on how the body functions on an aerobic level and reveals the secret that many fitness experts have long ignored: that the mind and spirit controls the body and not the other way around. Armed with this understanding and combined with effective, fun and motivating movements, Billy Blanks has shown people a new way to approach fitness that is working for millions of people.

Tae Bo Classes Make Fitness Fun

Billy Blanks is the world-class championship athlete who is behind the high-energy, no excuses Tae Bo workouts that the world has come to know through his Tae Bo classes that he teaches. Billy drew upon his expertise in the world of martial arts and combined movements from that discipline with kicks and punches from kickboxing, then set the routines to dance music. The result was a fun and challenging set of workout routines that became a global fitness craze.

Billy started teaching live classes not long after he discovered how to put kick boxing punches and kicks and Tae Kwon Do movements to upbeat dance music. Even though Billy originally set out to refine his own workouts to make them more interesting, fun, and motivating, it was not long before this world-class athlete knew he needed to share this new Tae Bo cardio workout with others.

When Billy started to put together the moves and grooves that would become the basis of the Tae Bo classes and Tae Bo videos, he was already an accomplished world-class athlete. He had won the World Karate Championship not once, but seven times. He had already earned his black belt, seventh-degree, in Tae Kwon Do, and had black belts in five other martial arts disciplines. In 1982 he was inducted into the Karate Hall of Fame, after serving as captain of the US Olympic Karate team in the 1980 Olympics. In addition, while he was the captain of the US Karate team, they came away with 36 gold medals from international competitions.

Perhaps the Billy Blanks Tae Bo classes would never have even come about if it weren't for the fact that, as an eleven year old boy, he was enrolled in his very first martial arts class. He almost dropped out of the class, not because of misbehavior, but because a hip problem impaired his ability to do the required movements. But with time and effort and the patience of his instructors, he soon discovered that the activity actually helped to correct the hip and joint anomaly that vexed him.

Over the years since Billy first brought his classes to the public, he has gained a large following of fans who have put the Tae Bo fitness routines to work for them. One of the things that continues to draw new fans, and keep his current fans following him, is the dedication and drive that is so evident in everything he does, especially in the Tae Bo workouts that he teaches, both in live classes and through videos.

While watching Billy Blanks lead one of his classes, it is clear that this man brings his heart and soul to the instruction. Billy leads the classes not only through his high energy demonstrations, but also with a contagious enthusiasm and with an attitude that can't help but motivate and inspire his students.

Billy has said that it is the combination of the martial arts moves put to upbeat, energetic music that helps keep people moving throughout the vigorous workouts and helps to keep them motivated. Billy's Tae Bo classes have propelled countless people to new levels of fitness while having a fun and positive experience. According to Billy, that is an important element of getting fit. He insists, "You have to have fun."

Tae Bo Videos Offer Unique Workout Routines

In the middle of the 1990's, Billy Blanks enthralled the fitness world with a very fresh approach to aerobic workouts in a set of energetic Tae Bo videos. The first time the world at large was introduced to the Tae Bo workouts was through an infomercial which featured Billy showing off his routines that combined karate, kick-boxing and dance. The fitness infomercial was very effective and before long people around the globe were becoming addicted to the Tae Bo way of working out.

But, the videos were not the first time that the Tae Bo workout had been experienced by people. Before the videos were produced, Billy Blanks had been teaching people in his Los Angeles area fitness studio for a number of years. His Tae Bo workouts were so effective that he gained a great deal of attention from celebrities and athletes, two groups that are always looking for faster and better ways of increasing their fitness levels.

Tae Bo videos feature the routines that Billy Blanks first began developing in the basement of his home almost 30 years ago. As a World Champion in Martial Arts seven times, and as a Golden Gloves champion, Billy was not planning to rock the world with a new fitness craze. His intention was simply to create a routine that would help to keep him in shape and motivated.

One of the aspects about the videos that is sometimes overlooked is that they focus on incorporating a person's internal energy and mental focus as part of the workout. This brought a different element into the Tae Bo exercise routines. Most people were not used to this concept, but many reported it to be one of the best parts of the fitness approach that Billy Blanks created.

Perhaps one reason for the inclusion of the mental, spiritual, and energy aspects is because so much of the movement is based on martial arts. Certainly the ancient Eastern arts of Karate and Tae Kwon Do, which Billy Blanks draws upon, also have a focus on a person's hidden energies. What has not been acknowledge much in the Western world is how these unseen aspects effects fitness. Combining the mental and spiritual with the physical pursuit seems to have resonated with those who are fans of Billy Blanks and his Tae Bo workouts.

In addition, the videos feature Billy Blanks as the instructor and motivator, guiding and leading people through the movements in the routines. And, Billy comes across as a motivational speaker and inspirational coach, as much as he does instructor, helping to continue the blending of mind and body in his workouts.

It is generally agreed that the workouts as shown in Tae Bo videos are for people with at least an intermediate fitness level. The overall routines are quite strenuous and are meant to push limits. However, Billy is also careful to warn against doing more than you are able to do and demonstrates how to modify the movements for those who are beginners or who have injuries.

Tae Bo Workout Combines Martial Arts with Dance Beats

Turning the clock back to the mid seventies, karate champion Billy Blanks stumbled upon a powerful combination of martial arts and kick boxing moves that he started to put together with dance music. With seven world karate championships already under his belt, this Golden Gloves champ was simply trying to find a way to make his fitness training more enjoyable and effective. When the elements of his favorite moves were energized by the upbeat music, he realized he had discovered a powerful formula which later became the foundation of the Tae Bo workout.

Billy Blanks also coined the term TaeBo which is an acronym for Total Awareness Excellent Body Obedience. With it being set to high-energy music, the workout is considered to be a high impact aerobic fitness routine. However, during the Tae Bo video, Blanks also demonstrates how people at lower fitness levels can modify the movements to fit their abilities. Because of this, it is an exercise approach that people of many different fitness levels are able to use and which can serve people as they go from beginner to intermediate to advanced physical conditioning.

In the various Tae Bo DVDs and video routines that are available, the student learns a variety of movements that come from different disciplines. Through a Tae Bo workout, people will be challenged with doing movements that might be found in martial arts, boxing and dance classes. In addition, Billy brings an intense level of enthusiasm and he encourages his students throughout the vigorous routines.

A typical workout starts out with a brief period of warm up movements and then it quickly moves into the main part of the routine. The class proceeds into a series of punches, jabs, steps, and kicks which have been choreographed with the music to lead the participant through a series of combinations set to an eight-count. While the routine borrows from some types of self defense classes, it is not in any way considered to be a self-protection course and should not be practiced for that purpose.

A Tae Bo workout is an excellent way to get an effective cardiovascular training session. In addition, Tae Bo exercise sessions can help improve balance, enhance coordination, and increase flexibility at the same time. It is also very effective at toning and defining muscles, especially the large muscle groups in the thighs and buttocks. With careful attention to proper form, Tae Bo workouts can also be very efficacious in strengthening and sculpting the abdominal muscles.

Many people report that they consider their Tae Bo routine to be responsible for more success with weight loss than they have even experienced with any other type of fitness routine. During a Tae Bo exercise session, people are able to burn between 500 and 800 calories in one hour. This is almost double the calorie burning of a typical aerobics class that will burn 300 to 400 calories during a hour-long workout.

When first beginning with Tae Bo workout exercises, they should be done at a comfortable rate for the student. One of the most common mistakes people make with any workout is that they try to do too much, too fast. This can lead to excessive stress on tissues and joints which can cause soreness and injury. While it is easy to get caught up in the routine because of the music and the exuberance that Billy Blanks displays, it is best to start slowly.

Ultimate TaeBo Challenge

It used to be that on Sunday afternoons in the Los Angeles area, fans of Billy Blanks and his workout routines had a chance to gather for a special type of workout. Billy called this event Ultimate TaeBo and it was designed as a way to help people find out just how far they could push themselves, while he challenged and motivated them to push just a little farther. Billy used his energetic style and his motivational prowess to help people break both mental and physical fitness barriers.

For years, only people who could attend this live weekly class were able to experience the extra motivation and the stretching of their limits that Ultimate TaeBo offered. But, as word grew about this special fitness class, Billy Blanks, the innovator who introduced this fitness craze to the market, recorded the event and it is about to be released on DVD, just in time for the holiday gift giving season.

While this is not a workout program that you would want to give to a beginner, if you have someone on your gift list who is a fan of Billy Blanks videos, then Ulitimate TaeBo might be the perfect gift to kick off their new year fitness goals. Or, if you have hit a plateau and need new challenges, then this DVD might be the thing you need to kick yourself up to a new level of fitness.

Billy Blanks is world renowned as a great fitness coach and motivator, and for his fitness infomercial. His workout routines in the TaeBo series of workout videos have encouraged and pushed people to accomplish things they never thought they could do. Billy brings all of his enthusiasm and high energy to this new Ultimate workout, reminding people to dig deeper and push farther, and break down the mental barriers to fitness achievement.

In Billy's new Ultimate TaeBo DVD, he continues to keep people moving with upbeat music that is both funky and easy to workout to, as it keeps the body moving. The music that he has chosen also helps to bring dance rhythms and movements to the workout, which keeps it engaging and interesting, all the while making the movement feel natural. Unlike many advanced fitness workout videos on the market, this one does not use amplifier bars, exercise bands or any other extraneous equipment. It is all about you, your body and your mind being led by a master fitness motivator and being moved by the music.

People should be aware that the most daunting aspect of the Ultimate TaeBo DVD is the length of the workout. For those who are used to Billy's other workout videos and the Blanks fitnesstools, they are used to workouts that last anywhere from 25 minutes to a full hour. But this routine pushes on for a full 90 minutes and Billy tells his fitness audience to pull in their faith and push out their fear to make it though the entire workout.

While a 90 minute workout under the Billy Blanks legendary energy might seem like too much to even attempt, reviewers are saying it can be done. What keeps the Ultimate TaeBo DVD from being overwhelming is the way that it is paced. People are not working full-out during the entire session. Even though Billy has you kicking, punching and moving throughout, he is pacing you both physically and mentally for the long haul.

People who have been through the Ultimate TaeBo workout report that they often feel a sense of euphoria that sometimes lasts for days. With it, they also get a boost in confidence that translates into other parts of their lives and helps them to achieve success in other areas as well. It should be noted that this Ultimate fitness routine is not intended to be used for daily workout sessions, but should be used weekly or monthly to test fitness progress.