Coach Coz and the Kid Crew

You gotta love a children's video that starts out with a spirited cover of Dire Straits' obscure hit “Twistin' By The Pool” (instead of recycling tired old public domain melodies with new--yet still tired--lyrics), and goes on to include “Car Wash,” “Shout,” and other gems in the shake-yer-booty department. Coach Coz is funny, goofy, and self-deprecating (every time he says something corny, thought balloons spring from the kids' heads saying things like “get real!”), but his goal is serious: to inspire a generation of young couch potatoes--and their sedentary parents--to make exercise a part of their everyday lives. Does it work? Well, it didn't take long before my 7-year-old and 4-year-old were both on their feet (and sometimes on the floor) working up a sweat doing the twist, the snake, the sprinkler, and the worm (and, truth be told, if I hadn't been nursing a 102-degree fever, I would have joined them). Funny, inspirational, and sure to get kids off all ages movin' to the groove, this is highly recommended. Editor's Choice. Aud: K, E, P. (C. Block)