Country Heat Review… Does it Work?

 

We will see. Country Heat is the new cardio dance program with portion control nutrition released by Beachbody. I am not a dancer and it takes A LOT to get me to dance so I was very reluctant to try this. I personally enjoy throwing around weights (enter my Tim “The Toolman” Taylor grunt from Home Improvement for those that remember that show!) But, I think Country Heat is going to be HUGE as this program makes fitness more accessible to those that do not enjoy exercise as much or those that possess a lower fitness level (there are modifier moves) or those that even want to get in shape while having a lot of fun. And, for most Country Heat workouts you only have to learn 2 moves for each sequence vs. entire dance routines like CIZE or other programs. Technically, the test group results for Country Heat were BETTER than the 21 Day Fix (program includes weights), which was game-changing for so many people with their health and fitness. That IS impressive. Now, I have read some comments that prompted this review. I have read that Country Heat workouts are too easy and that you can’t get results with this program. The other extreme that I have heard is that Country Heat workouts are as hard as Insanity Max:30. So, time to set the record straight with unbiased data!

 

Again, given that I am a science guy,  I will leverage heart rate analysis for each workout to draw conclusions and comparisons including the data in my perspective. This approach is similar to my popular reviews for P90X3, Insanity Max:30, Hammer & Chisel, 22 Minute Hard Corps and Body Beast. I have a Polar H7 Bluetooth enabled heart rate monitor (chest strap) synced to my iPhone using the free Polar Beat Mobile App and Polar Flow (used “group exercise” setting as default). Warmup and cooldown time is included in the heart rate analysis. The warmups are non-existent and cooldowns very short in the 2-3 minute range so it is recommended to add additional time to stretch if needed. Nutrition is CRITICAL for getting the results you want in this program and the targets are aligned with the portion control container system based on your stats and goals (see guide for calculation). Supplements were minimized here to only use what I feel I need for best results with Country Heat including the Beachbody PERFORMANCE STACK of ENERGIZE pre-workout, RECOVER post-workout plus Shakeology snack. I hope you enjoy my Country Heat Review!!

 

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The Workouts

Country Swing
Giddy Up
Down and Dirty
Bring The Heat
Dance Conditioning
Night Crawl Line Dance
Trail Ride
Dance Mash-Up (bonus from ordering from your Coach!)
Wild Goose Chase (extra Deluxe workouts)
Saddle Up Line Dance (extra Deluxe workouts)
Cardio Round Up (extra Deluxe workouts)

 

 

The Data Analysis Summary

Again, I am not a dancer or even enjoy dancing, but after reviewing all 11 workouts from Country Heat I am impressed by the opportunity here to achieve a great workout while having some fun. Yes, I had some fun (it was more fun since nobody was watching!) For many of the workouts, the time went by very fast as I did not find myself staring at the countdown clock or dreading the workout. I was pleasantly surprised by the extent of the calorie burns and heart rates for Country Heat. As my wife Julia says, anyone can do this program and get a good workout from the dance beginner (me) to someone that took dance classes growing up (Julia). We expect those that took dance classes growing up will be very good at the moves and especially love the Country Heat program! More below on potential differences in heart rate analysis between men/women, beginner/expert (using the same heart rate monitor to reduce variables). But, the question remains, how does Country Heat stack up against some of the other top workout programs…

 

The table below demonstrates the VERY detailed results from comprehensive heart rate analysis for all 11 workouts for Country Heat including the bonus workout Dance Mash-Up and deluxe workouts Wild Goose Chase, Cardio Round Up and Saddle Up Line Dance (click to expand for easier reading).  The data includes calories burned, average heart rate, max heart rate, time in each of 5 workout zones plus the percentage of time in max zones 4 and 5. Normalized calories are also shown (calories/workout time). The data is sorted with the highest calorie burn workouts at the top ranked toward lowest calorie burn at the bottom (not surprising, very short line dance routines). The graph also summarizes the workouts with regard to heart rate analysis (calories burned, average heart rate).

 

 

 

 

I feel really good about the data set and the regression analysis below indicates a very strong correlation to the data set for normalized calories and heart rates, which is a good sign. Although not shown in graphical format, max heart rates vs. average heart rates for all 11 workouts also provides a decent fit at y = 0.9987x + 23.17 (R2 = 0.71604).

 

 

 

I found a significant calorie burn with some of these workouts up to 300 calories in less than 30 minutes. Bring The Heat was a rocker compared to most. Not surprising, I generally found that my heart rate is in the lower workout zones for Country Heat compared to the more intense Beachbody programs, however, average/max heart rates are impressive given the basis for this program. It appears that the heart rate challenge for Country Heat is more steady-state like a jog (although more fun than jogging) vs. High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT, like Insanity), but you keep moving throughout the entire workout (no absolute breaks, just active recovery). A few of the workouts alternate between high and low tempo music that essentially simulates HIIT. But, generally I would expect less “afterburn” of calories for Country Heat relative to HIIT or resistance (Bring The Heat data shows ~4 min recovery time to baseline heart rate vs. 10-20 min usually for me for weighted workouts).

 

 

 

Interestingly enough, Julia is observing calorie burns similar to the popular 21 Day Fix Extreme, although there are only a couple cardio routines with 21DFX. Below is a table comparing the AVERAGE key metrics for heart rate analysis for all workouts for each program and you can see that Country Heat has a higher percentage of workout in Zones 4/5 (elevated zones) as well as average heart rate and normalized calories (calories/workout time). This is not surprising since Country Heat has more cardio than 21 Day Fix Extreme, as mentioned. The higher max heart rate for 21 DFX is also not surprising given the tendency to hit those higher rates with resistance workouts, from my experience. In the bottom row of the table I removed the two, very short line dances since the low calories for those workouts dramatically lowers average calories. With that, as expected, average calories burned for Country Heat workouts increases to 228 calories, which is actually higher than 21 Day Fix Extreme (remember, this is just an average and some of the 21DFX workouts have higher calories burned). What is more impressive is that average workout length for 21 Day Fix Extreme is 30.43 min vs. approx. 26.70 min for Country Heat (with line dances removed in the average). My mind is blown given the challenge of some of the 21 Day Fix Extreme workouts. Julia says she would pick Country Heat over Plyo Fix Extreme any day for cardio:) Of course 21DFX has weights for strength build unlike Country Heat.

 

 

We also observed some interesting results on potential differences between men and women from a cardio perspective in these workouts (my experience and others on the Team has indicated men burn more calories for a typical workout, but never studied the theory closer until now). The heart rate analysis data for both Julia and I, using the SAME monitor, is summarized below for all 11 Country Heat workouts for each of us (Mike data in BOLD). When looking for trends, I also confirmed the regression fit of our data sets. You can see the R2 values and regression equations in the table below as well. I opted not to go into much more statistical analysis here to keep it simple (like T test, p-value, etc.), but the results in both tables show some inconsistency in relative differences in heart rate data between us. Some workouts I seem to be getting a better burn, others Julia does. It is clear to me that some of the more challenging workouts in terms of difficulty of the dance moves, like the Deluxe bonuses Wild Goose Chase and Cardio Round Up, show Julia with higher heart rates and calorie burns. This is not surprising as she is much better at dance that me with more “flare” (although admittedly she says far from expert). I was likely modifying more and less “flare” during the moves, ha. Like anything else in life, you can make it as challenging as you would like depending on effort. The Regression data really only indicates that the calories burned fit is strong where R2 is 0.87231. Bottom line, I don’t see anything here that says that either a man or woman burns more calories or provides higher heart rates. Perhaps that is the case with resistance workouts as observed in the past (perhaps since in that case I was lifting heavier). Regardless, you get out what you put in, regardless of your sex!

 

 

 

I am already thinking that Country Heat will be a great program to hybrid for extra cardio for resistance-based programs. This is NOT a Country line dancing program, but rather it is a cardio dance routine set to Country Music (mostly popular cross-over music, not Country twang).

 

Finally, check out the comparison below to some key performance indicators relative to other top Beachbody programs P90X3, Insanity Max:30, Hammer & Chisel, 22 Minute Hard Corps and Body Beast (click to expand for easier reading). Numbers shown are averages of all 16 Insanity Max:30 workouts, all 20 P90X3 workouts, all 19 Hammer and Chisel, all 13 22 Minute Hard Corps workouts and all 15 Body Beast workouts relative to all 11 Country Heat workouts. Workout times generally average in the 30 minute range for the other programs while Body Beast is obviously longer with 30-40 minutes for most workouts…

 

 

I would not say that there are many surprises here as we are comparing a more introductory dance program to several more intense, resistance-based workouts. Country Heat demonstrates the lowest percentage of the workout in Zones 4/5, lowest average heart rate, lowest average max heart rate, lowest calories burned and lowest normalized calories burned. I am a little surprised that the average heart rate for Country Heat is approaching Body Beast and P90X3. However, Body Beast promotes a lot of rest periods between lifts, generally speaking, and P90X3 has less cardio with Yoga/Pilates/Stretch routines that bring down the average values. **Note: If you remove the 2, short line dances from the calories burned average for Country Heat, you get 222 calories, which is slightly less than 22 Minute Hard Corps** Overall though, Country Heat does a good job of providing elevated heart rates and calorie burn, while of course having fun in the process. So…

 

DOES COUNTRY HEAT WORK?

Yes!

As advertised.

(I do recommend closely monitoring your results and following the portion control nutrition plan, which is critical. It is best to consult with your Team Beachbody Coach for support!)

 

Favorite Workouts: Bring The Heat, Down and Dirty, Dance Mash-Up, Trail Ride

Least Favorite Workouts: Wild Goose Chase, Dance Conditioning

Hardest Workouts (for me): Wild Goose Chase, Bring The Heat, Cardio Round Up, Night Crawl Line Dance

Easiest Workouts (for me): Saddle Up Line Dance, Dance Mash-Up, Giddy Up

 

 

The Reviews

Country Swing

Workout Description: Go a little wild with songs like “Young & Crazy” while you crank up the calorie burn with moves like the Grease Step and 2-Timing Hop.

Heart Rate Analysis Results:

 

Comments:

I secretly enjoyed Country Swing today. It was actually a very good workout and once I got over seeing myself dance in the wall-sized mirrors I was good to go. I would have never done this program if I did not review it, so I am glad I am giving this a shot since I actually enjoyed it and had a great workout. You can see from my heart rate analysis that I was mostly in a moderate workout zone 3 “moderate” at 70-80% target heart rate max with average and max heart rates of 132 and 158 bpm, respectively, and total calorie burn of 280 calories in around 32 minutes. This is one of the longer Country Heat workouts. The heart rate data is not bad at all and it was easy-to-follow and fun. I am not a huge country music fan, but it was more of a dance program to country music. Not a ton of country moves per say. There are 22 moves total at 8 reps x 8 count each. Two moves are combined in sequence before moving on to the next sequence of two moves.  Anyway, let’s just say I was pleasantly surprised and look forward to trying the other workouts. The Gospel sequence had my heart rate fairly elevated. 280 calories for me seems on par with Cardio Fix type workout from 21 Day Fix. I hear there are some tougher workouts so we will see what happens. 

 

 

 

Giddy Up

Workout Description: Stomp your feet as you speed up your heart rate. Moves like Scuff Squats and Saddle Jumps work your legs and glutes, but songs like “Fake ID” help you forget you’re burning major calories!

Heart Rate Analysis Results:

 

Comments:

I found this workout generally easier than Country Swing, although several of the moves were more challenging for me (e.g., Wonky Feet, my legs don’t do that, lol). Anyway, it was a good cardio workout and fun. The thing about Country Heat is that you are moving the entire time, which helps maintain heart rate. You can see that my heart rate was in the lower zones again (“light”), which is not surprising, but a good burn for 29 minutes at average HR 127 bpm with max 145 bpm. 235 calories burned. Not bad! I do get a good sweat going with these workouts.

 

 

 

Down and Dirty

Workout Description: Get down to the songs “Sideways” and “Footloose” and feel the fire in every muscle, while steps like Rocking Horse and Mule Kicks send your metabolism soaring.

Heart Rate Analysis Results:

 

Comments:

Another good workout and, again, I had some fun even though I DO NOT enjoy dancing. Music was pretty good too. Modifiers available to reduce impact. You can see from heart rate analysis I had another burn in the mid-200 calories range for only 25 minutes workout with average heart rate of 134 beats per minute and max heart rate of 167 bpm. 167 bpm is significant for these workouts. Calorie burn in the 200-300 range appears to be typical for Country Heat. Workout zone was mostly “light” and “moderate” in the 60-80% range. Again, steady state is a lower heart rate zone for me mostly similar to a run of equal workout length (except Country Heat is more fun:) The sequence with “Footloose” was one of my favorites and the Gospel – Charleston sequence had the heart pumping at that max 167 bpm range!

 

 

 

Bring The Heat

Workout Description: Autumn mixes up the tempo to blast your entire body with high-energy moves set to “I Like It, I Love It” and other hot songs that get your heart pumping, so you get fit fast.

Heart Rate Analysis Results:

 

Comments:

Bring the Heat from Country Heat was the hardest Heat workout yet. Generally in Country Heat the music alternates between high and low tempo, and in this workout there was a lot of high tempo (higher than other workouts) so you are moving faster. This is a workout that appears to do a good job trying to simulate “intervals” for effectiveness. My favorite move of the Country Heat program is in Bring the Heat, “Shake it Off”. Totally looks country, but doesn’t feel country, if you know what I mean, and fun to perform. A lot of legs in this one today and you can see I had my highest calorie burn thus far at 300 calories in a shorter period of time of 27 minutes. My max heart rate got up to 177 bpm and average at 151 bpm with most of workout in zone 4 “hard” at 80-90% target heart rate max. Impressive for a dance routine. Very surprising. No, it is not Max:30 intense, but it is a GREAT workout and fun. I also monitored the heart rate recovery over time after the workout finished up and I was recovered in about 4 minutes. This compares to 10-20 minutes for resistance weighted workouts from my experience. And, therefore, also less of an “afterburn” and more like a run. Anyway, cool stuff!

 

 

 

Dance Conditioning

Workout Description: Follow Autumn’s most effective toning and conditioning moves that use your own body weight to build muscle and sculpt your sexiest body yet.

Heart Rate Analysis Results:

 

Comments:

Dance Conditioning is an interesting workout. Never had a workout like this before, with a fusion between dance and fitness. There are more stretch, core, pulse and iso- moves in this one (some on the floor so get your mat ready!). It is a shorter workout at 24 minutes and the low impact/energy core work reduces the calorie burn, average heart rate and primary workout zone compared to the other Country Heat workouts. However, the core work is NOT easy and really challenges you. Many of the popular moves from the other workouts show up in this one followed by the core/iso- movements for the second half of the workout. I liked the Bowling and Plie. Legs were challenge in this one and there are even pushups (gasp!). You can see I dropped heart rate signal in the workout momentarily actually corresponding to the floor work where the monitor was contacting the floor (superman series). 138 calories burned total in the workout with average and max heart rates at 107 and 147 bpm, respectively. As such, most of Dance Conditioning was in workout zone 1 “very light” at 50-60% target heart rate max. With all that said, I still found this to be one of the tougher workouts!

 

 

 

Night Crawl Line Dance

Workout Description: Line Dance routine set to a new song from Country Star Jodee Messina created for Country Heat!

Heart Rate Analysis Results:

 

Comments:

Okay, so line dancing is NOT my thing. lol. But, it was kinda fun once I got the routine down (mostly). I do recommend using the “breakdown” option on this one before doing the actual routine to learn the moves and sequence. There are 8 distinct moves in the line dance at 8-count each. There are several iterations of the line dance during the actual song in the workout. Obviously the heart rate data and calorie burn is minimal here with only a few minutes of one song of the line dance and fairly basic moves (not easy for me though). Autumn also teaches how to transition to the 4 walls in a room, which is apparently common when doing line dancing in a club. Who knew? Probably everyone, but me. Ha!

 

 

 

 

Trail Ride

Workout Description: Blitz the fat in no time flat! There’s no cooling your heels when you’re doing the Summertime Stomp to tunes like “Bar Hoppin” and “Be My Baby Tonight.”

Heart Rate Analysis Results:

 

Comments:

Autumn “revs up” the country in this one with more high temp movements, although there are still modifiers as needed. This is one of my favorite workouts and I had memories of college when Cotton Eyed Joe was queued up! The workout is only around 25 minutes, and most of the workout is in Zone 3 “moderate” at 70-80% target heart rate max. 218 calories is one of the lower burns, but there are a lot of variations with the hips and low impact slides. Average and max heart rates are fairly impressive given the workout. One of my favorite moves in this workout is Summertime Stomp. Heart rate was most elevated in the Cotton Eyed Joe sequence with 2-Timing Hop & Slide Baby as well as Rocking Guitar/Spider!

 

 

 

Dance Mash-Up

Workout Description: You’ll want to be front and center, because Autumn is cranking up her favorite songs and top fat-blasting moves from Country Heat for the ultimate “best of” workout.

Heart Rate Analysis Results:

 

Comments:

Dance Mash-Up is the free bonus workout for ordering from your Team Beachbody Coach! This one is probably the most fun of all the Country Heat workouts I have tried and I will likely come back to this one in the future for hybrid schedules for extra cardio impact. The workout is less than 20 minutes and incorporates some of Autumn’s favorite songs and dance moves from the other workouts. It was good to hear “Footloose” again since that song is high tempo and you get a good elevation to heart rate. I liked the Watermelon Stomp – Flapper combination as well as Shake It Off – Trail Ride. You can see I burned 178 calories with average and max heart rates of 135 and 155 bpm, respectively. Workout zone was primarily Zone 3 “Moderate” at 70-80% target heart rate max. You can see from the heart rate tracking as a function of time that the workout alternated high and low tempo moves as indicated by spikes in heart rate measured. Fun workout, I highly recommend Dance Mash-Up!

 

Wild Goose Chase

Workout Description: Kick your metabolism into overdrive with this pulse-pounding dance routine set to songs like “Save a Horse (Ride A Cowboy)” and step up the fat burn.

Heart Rate Analysis Results:

 

Comments:

I should have know better from the name, Wild Goose Chase… This is a great routine from the extra DELUXE Country Heat series, but my least favorite workout since it has a bit more choreography than the others. I recommend watching the routine breakdown first, especially for those dance-challenged like me! Regardless, I have found in Country Heat that as long as you keep moving you will get a great workout. Some of the tougher moves for me were Pancake Flip and Hot Abs. I have trouble when I need to move my upper and lower body differently at the same time, ha (like chewing gum and walking for some people). Anyway. Ironically my favorite move was called, Wild Goose Chase (running backward-frontward). The heart rate analysis indicates a solid workout though at 195 calories burned in 27 minutes with average heart rate 119 bpm and max heart rate 137 bpm. Most of the workout was in Zone 2 “Light” at 60-70% target heart rate max. I do recommend this workout as a complement to the Country Heat base workouts. If you enjoy dancing, this one is for you!

 

Saddle Up Line Dance

Workout Description: “Cowboy Up!” Autumn’s going to teach you her original choreography in this line dance that you can take straight to the dance floor.

Heart Rate Analysis Results:

 

Comments:

I really like this line dance and recommend again to watch the routine breakdown first to practice. I found the 8 x 8-count moves to be more basic and doable for me. You perform the dance 3 times in a row and then Autumn shows you again how to switch to all 4 walls in the room, which is common at dance clubs (I guess). I learned them pretty quick, although I won’t say that I looked as good as Autumn and crew. But, I enjoyed Saddle Up! Of course being a line dance for one song the calorie burn and heart rates are lower than a full workout but not bad. Similar to Night Crawl Line Dance. Saddle Up was a nice surprise bonus in the extra Deluxe Country Heat set. Check it out!

 

Cardio Round Up

Workout Description: You’ll have to dig a little deeper into moves like Body Roll and Savannah Stomp as Autumn works every muscle to tighten and tone your entire body.

Heart Rate Analysis Results:

 

Comments:

Seriously. Body Roll? Watching me trying to do body roll is entertainment no doubt. I can’t do a body roll, but I can lift heavy weights:) Actually, this workout was pretty good. I liked the sequence with Grapevine 2 squats and Charlestomp. Roadrunner is a great move that shows up in the Saddle Up Line Dance as well. The Shift is also a good variation. There are also some lunges in Cardio Round Up. The calorie burn and heart rate data is fairly representative of Country Heat workouts with a burn in the 200 calorie range and heart rates elevated, but in lower zones. Overall, great workout and program in general! The deluxe workouts are recommended to get even more challenges and I find them more choreography-intensive. Turn it up to burn it off!!

 

 

 

*****

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Country Heat Review

Country Heat Review

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