Billy Blanks Tae Bo

When it's time for class to start, the music gets cranked up and people start getting ready for an energizing and invigorating workout thanks to the Billy Blanks Tae Bo routines.

When Billy Blanks gets in front of a room full of eager students, they can feel his energy and passion and are swept along to better fitness as they follow his movements through the class. As a world-renowned fitness instructor and martial arts champion, Billy knows how to motivate people to get fit and feel good.

The Tae Bo workout sessions include a grueling series of punches, squats, kicks and other movements that are done to the rhythm of high-energy music. And, in these workouts, it is not just the music that is high-energy.

Billy Blanks himself seems to have boundless energy as he leads people though the challenging workouts, demonstrating the moves with vigor and shouting out encouragement to the class.

There is no doubt that the Billy Blanks Tae Bo routines are not designed for the timid or weak, either in body or in spirit. But, even people who are not in great shape and who are overweight are able to follow the Tae Bo exercises to get themselves in shape. Billy takes special care during his instruction to show people how to modify the movements for beginners and he often cautions against trying to do too much, too soon.

The Tae Bo fitness routines have been called a combination of karate and kick boxing, set to upbeat music. Billy first started experimenting with combining movements from these different disciplines in the basement of his home almost two decades ago and eventually brought his innovative routines to California.

With the strong interest in fitness in California, Billy found an instant audience of avid followers and soon was also teaching his approach to fitness to celebrities such as Lisa Rinna, Wayne Gretzky, and Paula Abdul.

It wasn't long before this sparked a new fitness craze and the Billy's Tae Bo fitness infomercial was launched. This introduced the Tae Bo video workouts to a much wider audience and soon Billy Blanks became a household name. Even more importantly to Blanks, his Tae Bo exercise videos were soon changing peoples lives.

The fact that Billy's Tae Bo workouts and videos ever came to fruition, borders on the miraculous. Billy started out in life in a situation that most people would consider a disadvantage. Born into a poor, black family, he was the fourth child of 15.

He had hip problems, struggled to learn because of dyslexia, and was almost kicked out of the first martial arts class at the tender age of 11. Undaunted, Billy used a mirror to learn how to correct his motions for his impairment in order to do the required moves and before long he had won a number of karate titles.

Some people get the sense from the Tae Bo workouts that Billy himself is on a mission. And, they are not far from wrong on that count. Billy has been quoted as saying that he believes that Tae Bo is the only exercise workout that can give a person everything they want. In addition to the physical aspects of his workout, Billy also interjects comments and motivations that are meant to bring the mind and the spirit into the fitness quest.

Acknowledging the huge following of avid fans of the Billy Blanks Tae Bo programs, it is obvious that his energy and enthusiasm has touched people and has motivated and inspired them. Even after almost a decade on the market, the Tae Bo video sets continue to be listed among the best selling fitness videos of online retailers and whenever he releases new workout routines, they are also an instant hit.

Just recently Billy released his newest routine called Ultimate Tae Bo, which is a 90 minute test of mental and physical endurance.

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.

A Tae Bo workout as demonstrated in the various Tae Bo video and DVD routines is an interesting melding of movements derived from the disciplines of karate, Tae Kwon Do, kick-boxing, boxing and dance. The routines are challenging and the energetic music and the enthusiastic instruction from Billy helps to keep people moving and motivated throughout.

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 one first undertakes to do a Tae Bo workout session, it is best to go at a slow and comfortable pace. A common mistake people make when starting on a new fitness regimen is attempting to go full-out on the first day. This can cause injuries and will often deter a person from trying the workout again.

Even though it is easy to get overly eager at first, because of the upbeat music and the passion that Billy shows for his workouts, it is best to start off slowly and increase your pace and intensity as your fitness level improves.

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.

Interestingly, the Tae Bo videos are based on routines that Billy Blanks first developed in his basement workout room about 30 years ago. Already a top athlete and a seven-time World Karate Champion, Billy did not set out to shake up the fitness world with a new type of workout. In fact, his sole intention was to develop a workout routine that would keep him motivated as he continued his own fitness endeavors.

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 acknowledged 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 is an innovation that was the brain-child of Billy Blanks, a World Champion martial artist, who became world-renowned because of his innovative fitness workouts. Billy used his experience in various martial arts to develop a new approach to aerobic workouts.

He combined elements of kick-boxing with movements from Tae Kwon Do and set the whole routine to heart-pounding music that keeps people moving. Because of this unique approach, and the motivating style that Billy brings to the workouts, Tae Bo cardio exercises have a huge following of fit fans.

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.

The Tae Bo cardio workouts help people to focus on the aerobic level functions of the body. It also helps to shed light on an aspect of fitness that some experts have ignored: the connection of the mind and spirit with the body and the importance of bringing these aspects together harmoniously.

Billy brings this understanding into his fitness instruction and shows people how this approach can be most beneficial. Clearly, it is an approach that is working for huge numbers of Tae Bo fans.

Almost a decade ago, Billy Blanks introduced Tae Bo, a new approach to fitness. His video set became one of the most popular exercise programs ever and took Billy to the level of fitness guru across the globe.

His more recent offering promises to take people even farther in their fitness and health quest and is called the Billy Blanks Boot Camp Elite. This boot camp approach is made up of three mission-style programs and they are intended to propel fitness to the next level.

The Boot Camp Elite program begins with Mission One: Getting Started. This is a 43 minute workout in which Billy guides you through a preparation of mind, soul and body. He does this with a combination of coaching, encouragement and motivation in order to assist you in gaining mental and emotional control, which he insists will facilitate the physical goals that people are wanting to achieve.

Mission One also teaches you how to most effectively rid your body of unwanted fat by utilizing a variety of engaging and exhilarating cardiovascular movements, such as punches, kicks and twists.

In addition, Billy introduces the use of resistance bands that will help to provide optimal shaping and toning during the workouts. These bands are included with the boot camp package and the handles of the bands also include a versatile one-pound weight which can be easily removed.

Next is Mission Two of the Billy Blanks Boot Camp Elite which carries the designation of Maximum Power. In this mission, the fitnesstools given to the student will provide them with an internal power-boost to help them break past previous barriers. With the extra mental power, Mission Two will help them soar to a new level of fitness that they may have previously thought unattainable.

The Maximum Power portion of the Boot Camp Elite plan is encapsulated in a 53 minute Tae Bo advanced workout. It is designed to help a person attain their maximum power. This is done by means of various strengthening routines that once again employ the weighted resistance bands.

It focuses on working the biceps, triceps, and the shoulders with body twists and punches interspersed into the workout to produce the best results. Additionally, the workout goes on to involve the lower body, with kicks and other lower body movements to assure that the entire body is being sculpted into a lean package.

The next part takes on the most stubborn of problems. Mission Three is called Rock Solid Abs and it promises to help transform the flabby spare tire into a sculpted set of trim and strong abdominal muscles. With these specialized Tae Bo exercises, Billy claims that the flat and toned tummy you have always wanted can become a reality.

Mission Three of the Boot Camp Elite is presented in an invigorating 28 minute Tae Bo video that is packed with a series of non-stop abdominal exercises that are designed to give you a midsection that is ripped and rock solid.

Belly fat will melt away as your six-pack begins to take shape. Billy helps you accomplish this with a combination of floor exercises, standing cardiovascular ab moves and more movements assisted by the use of the resistance bands.

Overall, it is fair to say that the Billy Blanks Boot Camp Elite program is not just a re-working of the old Tae Bo basic program. It puts people to the test to challenge themselves like never before in transforming themselves into the person they hope they can be, but by starting from the inside and working toward the external.

Along with the mental conditioning, the program promises to take toning and strengthening muscles to a new level and to deliver fast weight loss as well.