Perfect in Ten - Stretch
by Annette Fletcher

A Video Review By Shira

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Summary

Overall Rating: (on a scale of 1 to 5 stars)

Annette Fletcher leads a series of five different stretching workouts, each 9-10 minutes in length. Each of these workouts follows a different theme.

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(Amazon's claim that the DVD is Region 1 is wrong. Amazon doesn't offer a way for sellers to indicate that their DVD's are usable in multiple regions, so they're forced to pick just one. I have personally tested this DVD and found it to enable all regions.)

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The Chart

Recommended Level	Total Novice
Formats Available	NTSC
Overall Rating
Production Quality
Content Value
Packaging
Total Video Length	53:18 minutes
Workout Time	53:06 minutes (99%)
Amount Of "Other"	12 seconds (1%)
Health Issues	Yes
Number Of Models	1
List Price	$14.98
Cost Per Minute Of Fitness, Performance, & Instruction	28 cents
Cost For "Other"	6 cents

Description

This video contains five stretching workouts taught by Annette Fletcher, each about 9-10 minutes in length. Some are designed for general well-being, while others are designed to address specific exercise needs.

The video opens with an introductory message by Annette in which she talks about the health benefits of stretching and offers some tips for doing so safely.

From here, it is possible to choose from among the following five stretching routines:

Upper Body, Back, & Hips. 11 1/2 minutes. This one provides an all-over gentle stretching routine. It begins some standing stretches, including using the head to do some neck stretches, then pressing the arms away for an upper back stretch, and circling the shoulders. Then it moves to a cross-legged sitting position and does some upper body twists and lower back stretching.
Hips and Legs. 9 1/2 minutes. This section starts with lying on the back on a yoga mat, and doing some stretches that target the upper legs. It move on to sitting in a straddle position and leaning forward from the hips, bringing the upper body down toward the floor. This is followed by some standing stretches for the calves and hips.
Sedentary Lifestyle Relief. 9 minutes. These stretches are designed to help deal with the muscles that tighten up when doing a desk job. To ease the neck and upper body from being bowed over the desk for hours at a time, there are some neck and upper chest stretches. There are some hand, wrist, and finger stretches to relieve cramping from using a computer keyboard and mouse, and some stretches designed to loosen up the lower back.
Sports Stretch. 10 1/2 minutes. These stretches are designed to support the muscles used in three different sports: playing tennis, golfing, and jogging. The stretches for tennis and golf provide some twisting positions to build flexibility in the upper body, and the stretches for joggers are based on lunges.
Intense Stretch. 12 1/2 minutes. Of the five workouts on this video, this is the only one that is paced similar to yoga. It uses some yoga poses, such as cat/cow and downward dog. There are also side lunges, standing oblique stretches, and straddle stance (plié in second position).

The design of the DVD allows skipping directly to any one of the above workouts. They follow continuously in order, so it's possible to do just a single workout for approximately 10 minutes, or to let the video keep running and do more stretching.

The production quality on this video is excellent. There is plenty of light, and the camera angles are intelligently chosen to make it easy to see the move. There is no background music, but it doesn't really need any.

You Will Probably Like This Video If

You aren't accustomed to stretching, but want to start.
You are intimidated by yoga but would like to start doing some beginner stretching.
You're looking for a solution to the aches and pains from having a desk job.
You would like ideas for stretches well suited to people who play golf, play tennis, or go jogging.
You like the idea of 5 different routines on the same video to give you variety.

You Probably Won't Care for This Video If

You're already fairly proficient in yoga.
You're looking for stretches specifically designed to complement dance.
You have no interest in doing a stretching workout.

What I Liked, What I Didn't

What I Liked

Annette Fletcher provides sensible instructions on how to stretch safely.
The workouts are low-key enough to be feasible for someone who is new to stretching.
There is enough variety in the workouts to keep the user from getting bored too quickly.
The video provides some special-purpose workouts that address common needs (desk jobs, certain popular sports) and explains how the moves in the workout will help with these situations.
Fletcher is knowledgeable enough to be trusted to give safe instructions.
The video has excellent production quality.
The video's structure makes it easy to do two or more of the segments consecutively if a longer workout is desired.

What I Didn't Like

Sometimes the pacing seems to drag a bit slowly.

In Conclusion

This video is not related specifically to belly dance, although its stretches could be beneficial for belly dancers. It is best suited to people who are not accustomed to stretching and would like to start incorporating some into their daily routines, but perhaps feel somewhat intimidated by yoga.

Disclosures

I have never met Annette Fletcher. I have reviewed many other videos by the producer, World Dance New York, who sent me a complimentary copy of this video for review purposes.

Contacting The Producer & Ordering The Video