I used to compete in ballroom dancing, but then I had my daughter and I've gotten very out of shape. I also recently moved 1100 miles away from home. I got a job here teaching ballroom, but I need to loose a lot of weight so that when the time comes I can teach higher level classes. I don't get a chance to ballroom enough to loose weight, and it's hard for me to find exercise routines that I really like. I just tried Shimmy tonight, and let me say that I love it! If you like to dance, especially any kind of latin dancing or rythm dancing.... I would say that you should try "Shimmy." It's a fun work out, and it really works all the "dancer" spots! I feel motivated and I'm very happy to have found a new workout that I can have fun with! I hope everyone else enjoys it as much as I do!

I am quite disappointed with Shimmy. As a total beginner the show gives little explanation about the moves. Example: There will be a certain step, but the camera doesn't show the feet.!! Or the camera cuts away too often. Also the moves are not broken down enough for a beginner. The right-left reversal is quite hard to follow. I looked forward to watching Shimmy but I guess I will just watch Gilad (my favorite) instead.

I tried this show but was so disappointed with it. It does not feel like a workout at all!! I can't believe this is on but the Caribbean Workout was cancelled! I am lost now. Gilad will have to do.

I have been belly dancing for two years and really enjoy the gentle workout provided by Shimmy. I love the show. There is one area for improvement - the music selection. I would appreciate more authentic music during the last part of the show when the movements are combined to a dance. The background music is not very inspiring when trying to dance instead of going through the movements.

I really do not like this show. It doesn't feel like it's a workout. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE bring back Caribbean Workout!!! ...and do some new routines. Or, I would suggest getting rid of at least one of the Shimmy shows or Cardio Blast. Whatever you have to do, but please bring back CW!

A faithful CW and Gilad follower!

I completely agree - this show is completely unhelpful for beginners. The camera angles and quick cuts between the different backdrops prevent you from really seeing how the footwork and hip/leg movements are actually made. This show is great for pre-pubescent boys looking for PG-13 entertainment but not for women actually looking to learn how to perform these dance moves.

Others have nailed it on the head!!! This is more of just a glamour shot show. There may be some toning in there somewhre...but the instuctions are poor and the cameras do not help show a move in order to even try to get it accomplished. Bring back Caribbean Workout and more shows like it!!

My biggest problem with this show is this: there is no differentiation between basic beginner moves and really advanced moves.
"This is how you shimmy." Great basic, beginner move.
"Now shimmy with an infinity shape." Very advanced move that takes years to perfect.

Please bring back Caribbean Workout or shows like Gillad and Sharon Mann....both are great. This show is a yawn.Thanks!

I love Shimmy! Yes, I agree that isn't much of a workout for those of us who are intermediate/advanced but it is a great show to do when you just don't feel like working out or want something fun to do. I think the filming is beautiful and I really enjoy doing it.

I've been a professional belly dancer/instructor for over 22 years. Shimmy seems to be targeting those that already know all the moves. That is fine for me. There are thousands of beginner tapes and programs available to learn the moves, but if I want a work out to let off some steam, this show is it.

I love Yoga, but as a beginner, I would never try to follow the workouts in Namaste Yoga without having formal instruction first. However, I think that show is awesome for people that already know the moves and just want a workout.

This does give you a work out if you are using correct form and engaging your abdominals properly. Then just shimmy during all the commercial breaks. It is an awesome break when I cannot bicycle, am taking a rest from weight lifting, and my work schedule doesn't allow for going to a studio or a gym.

Please keep up the great programming!

Shimmy On!

I love your show Shimmy. I am a big girl that always wanted to try to learn belly dancing but was to ashamed to try and take classes. Your show Shimmy is great. I like the way the narrator describes the moves as the dancers do the steps. Also watching the dancers put the moves into an actual dance lets you see that you are really learning to belly dance. It is fun, especially for beginners. It really does loosen up your hips and work your lower half. I have watched every show since the first one premiered and I am getting better at it. I can do a slight Camel/ Ripple walk. It is not very good but it is fun to watch myself in the mirror. Also, my boyfriend likes the moves I show him after every show. Keep making more shows and I will keep watching. Also, you might want to think about putting them on ON Demand. It will make it easier for people to learn the moves. Repetition is the key. I just wanted to make sure you knew what a great show you created. Even my mom, who has a bad hip, watched and tried some moves.

I really love Shimmy. I've been ripped off by some pretty bad belly videos in the few short months I've been dancing. The program is easy, yet a great workout and visually stunning. Please keep it on the air. When will the dvd's be available?

Nevermind, I found them on www.shimmy.tv. They didn't come up in a search of the discovery show though. Site doesn't seem very user friendly. :P

I love Shimmy! I am a beginner and I think I am picking things up well. I hadn't ever seen belly dancing performed before this show. It got me interested and I've also purchased a couple of beginner's videos which break down the moves in more detail. I really like going back and forth between the show and my videos. I have seen every episode and I really hope that there will be a second season. I especially like the way that the anouncer (Kim) constantly reminds you to reset your posture. I think all of the dancers are great but I especially like Adalat. You can really see her ballet training because she makes everything so graceful and fluid. I really like Manon for the precision of her isolations. No one can match her layered shimmys! She just makes them look effortless. Gillian's Maya hips and Egyptian figure eights really stand out. Simone always seems to do something extra with her hips and she's very bouncy with her movements - I appreciate her energy. If the goal of this season was to interest people who had never been exposed to belly dancing and to inspire people to try it, I think it succeeded. I have been able to learn almost all the moves except some of the more advanced layered combinations and I'm working on those. The shifts in locale don't bother me - I'm focused on the moves and actually I think it adds something to the show. Those of you who work on the show, Kim and the dancers, keep up the good work. Any word on a second season?

Shimmy does not compare to Caribbean Workout. It's not supposed to - they are two totally different programs with different approaches to working out - and it is a workout for many of us. It just seems that a lot of the posters are mentioning CW quite often for this to be a Shimmy thread.

I just found this faboulous show. I first studied belly dancing in the 80's and to be able to practice in my home is wonderful. Not all teachers follow up with their students nor are they affordable. I have only seen a few episodes but for those that need some extra instruction, there are good DVDs or videos. With Belly dancing, you are exercising muscles and making movements that are seldom involved in other exercises. I have found that this greatly improves your core stability and repetition is extremely important.

I agree with the comment that this should not be the place to lament CW not being on the air.

Please please keep this great program on the air!!!!

Congratulations FIT TV for SHIMMY ! It really takes a vision to bet in something new!
It took me a few months to get interested in trying BD ! Untill now, I have only watched it to see real women. The changes of scenery are contemporary and tasteful. The explanations are very good and encouraging. Just stopped by the website to check the schedule and start doing BD with Shimmy today! I really wish this first effort brings new inniciatives to FIT TV. I am pretty sure some more " out of the box " workouts will follow!
I agree with "mydarlingapril, cynarra,
brandy2, and newbiebd !
Please keep Shimmy on the air so that more people have the opportunity to overcome pre established ideas; keeping our body and minds fit ! Thank you !

As an extremely overweight person, I would like to remind some of the people who are saying that Shimmy "Isn't a workout" that we all have different levels of fitness and ability, and if it's not up your alley, there are other shows to watch!

I have enjoyed watching and dancing with this show, and prefer it to the local classes where the women seem to use it as a way to strip down, show their hairy armpits and who knows what else. After experiencing "That" form of belly dancing, the glamourous show that gives moves, then puts them together is amazing.

My only real complaint with it is that some of the moves do seem a bit complicated, and they aren't shown well enough on camera. For instance, the grapevine. Not horribly difficult, but the camera didn't focus on their feet long enough to get the whole move down. Through the wonderful use of DVR, I was able to piece it together enough to do what I think they're doing. However, when they started throwing in doing it on the ball of the foot with the hip swivel - well... they really didn't explain it at all. For this show to truly be fabulous, they need to spend a bit more time explaining things without needing to watch the series in order (what exactly is the home pose?), and focus on the moves and not worry so much about the cutaway scenes.

Thank you for putting something wonderful and different on to workout to!

I love Shimmy. I've been doing it for several weeks now and have lost 15 lbs (with a sensible diet.) I have so much fun "shimmying," I look forward to it every day (which is nuts because I always hated exercise), but this has me hooked. There's a few steps I haven't gotten yet (as I am not the most coordinated person) but I keep trying and if I can't get it for that episode I just put in a step I already know how to do just to keep the energy going. I love repeat episodes because it helps reinforce the steps. I do agree that sometimes they don't show or describe the foot movements well enough but alas it is only a 30 minute program. I'd like to see a couple of the first episodes thinking that made they may explain a few basics better. I really like the sets and the costumes and dancers are so pretty to watch. I like it too because a lot of the workout shows on FitTV are too strenuous--I have tendon and foot issues and high impact and me don't go together. I like Gilad but I can only do his warm ups so Shimmy is the perfect show for me. I'd love to see a DVD set of Shimmy for sale at the online Discovery Store!!!! Thanks for reading!