Review: Jillian Michaels Kickbox Fastfix

Kickbox Fastfix is the most recent exercise DVD release from Jillian Michaels. I have previously reviewed her Killer Buns & Thighs DVD and was hoping this one would measure up to the quality and efficiency I've come to expect from her workouts. Sadly, this workout does not measure up as one of her better efforts. Although it can be modified and worked with to make a really great workout, the basic materials provided in the DVD do not on their own create that great of a workout.


The DVD consists of three different workouts and a tutorial on the different kickboxing moves. The first workout focuses on the upper body, the second on the lower, and the third is supposed to target the core. Each workout is only twenty minutes long and consists of four circuits of different cardio and kickboxing moves. There is a short cooldown at the end of each workout, and the warmup is incorporated as the first circuit of the workout.


The first time I did the DVD, I did all three workouts together and felt pretty good by the end of it. Although each individual workout will definitely get your heart rate up and get you working, it just seems like twenty minutes is not quite enough to really get a workout in. However, I can see how this DVD would be great for a day when you are really pressed for time, because I you'll still feel that you at least got something in, and the twenty minutes will definitely get you sweating.


A major complaint shared by many about this DVD is that she does not alternate sides of your body when repeating the different circuits. I agree that this is a major detriment to the workouts. When I do the DVD, I alternate to a different side on my own in order to work out my body evenly, but this can be confusing and slow down the flow of the workout. Also, even with the tutorial some of the moves are progressed through very quickly so it will take a little bit of time to catch on. I feel that she does a pretty good job of explaining each move quickly before jumping into it. But you will definitely need a minute or two to catch on to the flow of the workouts and kickboxing style.


A problem I experience with a few of the moves, particularly in workout two which is focused on the lower body, is that my carpeted floors don't really allow me to do some of the spinning around that she demonstrates in the DVD. This is definitely something to consider as I found myself having to modify the move because I was unable to get any momentum going because of the carpet in my apartment. 


Overall I think this is a pretty good cardio workout if you're willing to modify a few things and make them your own. It is definitely not Jillian's best DVD and not the first one I would recommend to someone who was asking. However it still gets your heart rate going in a short amount of time, and if you are a Jillian Michaels fan you'll definitely still get something out of it.


Just for reference, I'll give you how many calories I burned per workout.
I'm about 5'3" and I weight about 115 pounds.
Workout 1 - 190 calories burned in 20 min
Workout 2 - 188 calories burned in 20 min
Workout 3 - 180 calories burned in 20 min

An image from the tutorial at the beginning of the DVD.

This image is from workout one, this is the only workout that uses weights on the DVD.