Website design By BotEap.comThis is a review of three different exercise programs created by fitness and motivation dynamo, Chalene Johnson. Turbo Jam, Turbo Kick, and Turbo Fire have the same basic structure and format, but differ in intensity levels and where you can participate in exercise programs.

Website design By BotEap.comJam, Kick, Fire – What’s the difference?

Website design By BotEap.comThere are two main factors that separate Turbo Jam, Turbo Kick and Turbo Fire: the intensity levels and the format in which you can participate.

Website design By BotEap.comTurbo Jam and Turbo Fire are home exercise programs available through the Beachbody website and cost between $60 and $240 (plus shipping). Turbo Kick, on the other hand, is a group fitness class held at various gyms across the US.

Website design By BotEap.comWhen it comes to intensity levels, the order goes like this: Turbo Jam – lowest intensity, Turbo Kick – moderate to high intensity, Turbo Fire – high to very high intensity. Anyone beginning an exercise regimen should always start at the lowest intensity and gradually add intensity as proper form and technique are fully mastered.

Website design By BotEap.comTurbo Jam has a “Learn and Burn” session where Chalene breaks down the 11 basic “elite moves” to help you master proper form and technique; this is not available in the Turbo Fire home exercise program or group class setting (Turbo Kick). With this in mind, if you are interested in trying this exercise format, my advice would be to give Turbo Jam a try before moving on to Turbo Kick or Turbo Fire. When you master proper form and technique in any exercise format, he burns the maximum number of calories and works the muscles the movement was designed to target. Without proper form and technique, he’s not only cheating himself on the calories burned, but he’s also risking injury.

Website design By BotEap.comLastly, Turbo Fire is further differentiated from Turbo Jam and Turbo Kick by the added element of high-intensity interval training (also known as HIIT workouts). HIIT workouts are what make Turbo Fire so much more intense than Turbo Kick (think of doing a Turbo exercise 11+ times with a one-minute rest period between each exercise, which equates to a 30-minute HIIT workout). ).

Website design By BotEap.comNot sure you can handle a HIIT workout? Don’t worry, Turbo Fire starts you off with a 15-minute HIIT workout where the exercises last just 30 seconds. ANYONE can go all out for 30 seconds!

Website design By BotEap.comJam, Kick and Fire: How are they alike?

Website design By BotEap.comNow that you know how they’re different, let’s discuss how they’re alike. Turbo Jam, Turbo Kick, and Turbo Fire all have the same basic structure and format. As described on the TurboKick.Com website, the basic structure and format of each program is:

Website design By BotEap.com“…a combination of intense kickboxing moves as well as dance moves, all perfectly choreographed to high energy and motivating music. It’s the ultimate cardio challenge that is a unique combination of intense interval strength/resistance training and a relaxing cooling”. . [Each program] no prior kickboxing experience or equipment required.”

Website design By BotEap.comEach program begins with the exact same “special” warm-up and then continues with a section on punching, kicking, punching and kicking, turbo drills, recovery, finish, and cool down. Each section begins by introducing the first layer for a full phrase (32 counts), then adds another layer for another full phrase (32 counts), and then combines the two layers for another full phrase. Additional layers can be added for a total of 8 layers in a 32 count phrase, but usually the number of layers remains at 4 or 5.

Website design By BotEap.comMy personal experience with Turbo Jam, Turbo Kick and Turbo Fire

Website design By BotEap.comBesides the fact that I am a certified Turbo Kick instructor, I have always loved the structure and format of Turbo Jam, Turbo Kick, and Turbo Fire. The music is the driving element and the movements are perfectly choreographed to the music. Because Turbo Kick is an ongoing group fitness class, the music is always kept up to date and the choreography changes with each new “round.” A new round of Turbo Kick is often introduced every 5-8 weeks. For this reason, Turbo Kick is probably my favorite of the three Turbos.

Website design By BotEap.comThe only downside to Turbo Jam and Turbo Fire is that the workouts are done on repetition, which means they get old (and possibly stale from a fitness standpoint) after a while. When something gets old, it’s not exciting; and once exercise isn’t perceived as exciting, you risk abandoning the exercise regimen altogether. Fortunately, Turbo Fire comes with up to 16 workouts on 15 DVDs, so it will take a while for you to get bored of the routines.

Website design By BotEap.comAs for burning calories, all three Turbos will help you burn some serious calories! I have a Bodybugg (which calculates calorie burn with about 95% accuracy) and an hour of Turbo Kick or Turbo Fire will burn over 800 calories. Keep in mind, though, that I don’t just engage in cardio; I also regularly do HIIT and strength training 3-4 times a week so my body is primed to burn the most calories in the least amount of time. Before, my exercise regimen included cardio, HIIT, and strength training; an hour of Turbo Jam, Kick, or Fire can have burned anywhere from 450 to 650 calories depending on how much effort I put into the workout.

Website design By BotEap.comYou may recall some of the Turbo infomercials claiming that study participants had burned up to 1000 calories in an hour; keep in mind that the people who burned that many calories were mostly men who weighed around 200 pounds and were already fit. Depending on your gender, height, activity level, complexion, and body composition (muscle to fat ratio); the number of calories you burn in any given workout will vary.

Website design By BotEap.comAll in all, Turbo Jam, Kick and Fire is an energetic and FUN workout! You should definitely try one (if not all) at least once! My bet is that once you do, you won’t stop!