Gin Miller's Simply Interval Step Workout

Overall, this is another solid workout by step inventor Gin Miller. The workout includes seven cycles that take you through three different levels of intensity: an aerobic step portion, a 60-second high intensity interval and then a recovery phase for a diverse, fast-paced workout.

Gin's excellent cueing is so easy to follow, even beginners could do this video and the options for different levels of intensity give you plenty of choices for tweaking the workout intensity. It isn't as challenging as her previous video, Intense Moves, but it's a great choice for steppers who want a short, easy-to-follow workout.

Simply Interval is a 30-35 minute step routine that takes you through seven cycles, each of which includes an aerobic step segment, a 60-second high intensity segment and a recovery phase. The warm-up is my least favorite part of the video with a bit too much marching in place and not enough movement to feel warmed up at the end of it. But, the workout itself is solid with Gin's trademark simple choreography. The aerobic portions include the moves you'll be doing in the high intensity segments, so you have time to practice them before upping the intensity. The choreography is easy to follow (e.g., repeaters, knee ups and lunges) and, for the intensity intervals, you simply add impact and/or arm movements to raise the heart rate.

What makes this workout flexible is that, for the intensity intervals, she offers a light, medium and hard version of each exercise so you can choose how hard you want to work. For example, one interval includes lunges off the step, jumping lunges to make it harder and then traveling lunges as the hardest version. Most of the intensity moves are high impact (e.g., jumping jacks, plyo lunges, jump kicks), but a background exerciser shows lower intensity versions, making this a workout for all fitness levels.

Though I like this video, there are a few problems. There's a bit too much marching in place during some sections and some of the aerobic sections were a little too easy, causing my heart rate to drop lower than I would've liked. It's certainly not as hard as her Intense Moves video, nor is it as tough or complex as Cathe Friedrich's interval videos but, those things aside, this is still a keeper. This DVD is great for when you want a shorter, simpler workout and the intervals make the workout fly by. Gin is an excellent instructor and her down-to-earth personality overcomes many of the flaws in this video.