If you watched TV in the 90s and early 2000's youl'll remember going "double time" with Billy Blanks in his Tae Bo Workouts. His endless onslaught of telesales commercials stretched from regular programming to late night infomercial type product examples.
Now I see the shelves in every Goodwill or thrift store jam packed with the worn out work outs known as Tae Bo, but Billy Blanks actually had a history in Martial arts and took the industry by storm becoming a household name.
"A seven-time world karate champion, he was captain of the U.S. Karate team, and won 36 gold medals in international competition. In 1980, he was captain of the U.S. Olympic Karate team. Later, Blanks worked in the Hollywood film industry, appearing in more than 20 films, including Blood Fist (1989), Balance of Power (1996), and Kiss the Girls (1997).
In 1980, he was captain of the U.S. Olympic Karate team. Two years later, he was inducted into the Karate Hall of Fame. Blanks also excelled as a boxer in 1984, he became Massachusetts Golden Gloves champion in the light-heavyweight class, and the Tri-State Golden Gloves Champion of Champions.
“I think of karate as a way of life—a way to learn self-discipline, self-control, and things like that—instead of as a way to beat up dozens of people,” Blanks told D. C. Denison of the Boston Globe in 1986.
" - Encylopedia.com
In January of 2021, Netflix quietly released a Youtube video that was shot on set of the famous Cobra Kai Series dojo that Johnny Lawrence opened. It shows an older Blanks leading over a 45 minute full workout from stretching to his famous combinations.
Billy Blanks is wearing some really short shorts and a tank top. looking rather fit for 65+ years old. Maybe I need to 'Try Bo, the Tae Bo' myself.
Basically, Cobra Kai series has been guilty of squeezing loosely related old stars to try and bolster audience numbers for their hit show and I think it really worked. They even scored Carrie Underwood for Season 4 in addition to bringing back more original cast members from the Karate Kid movies. I'm wondering if we will see the female karate kid, that seldom gets talked about when referencing the 80's franchise.
Billy Blanks does a great job in this Netflix YouTube only release, but don't take my word for it check it out for yourself.
You can watch the entire workout for free on YouTube for entertainment or workout and let us know what you think. While the program doesn't teach you Karate, it may get you in shape before doing your next online karate lesson.
If you like content about the Karate Kid and Cobra Kai make sure you grab one of the best Karate Gi, suit up, and check out these related posts.
Tae Bo's Billy Blanks Teams Up with Cobra Kai for Netflix Karate Kid Spin Off Video
Requirements:
4 Year College Degree.
1 Year of Experience with Hang 10 Pools.
What this program includes:
About the Author:
Colton Woodard is a 7th Degree Black Belt in Kuniba Kai Karate Do and holds the title of Kyoshi as well. He loves to teach Karate, Kobudo, and Iaido and considers himself a lifetime student in pursuit of self improvement in both Martial Arts and in Character. Colton loves to visit Japan and speaks conversational Japanese and can write quite a few Kanji. He is a Karate competitor and coach and loves to exercise and make new memories with people all over the world.
Instagram
Twitter