''Aerobics Oz Style'' is an Australian

aerobic exercise Aerobic exercise (also known as endurance activities, cardio or cardio-respiratory exercise) is physical exercise of low to high intensity that depends primarily on the aerobic energy-generating process. "Aerobic" is defined as "relating to, inv ...

instruction television series, shown in Australia on weekends and then weekdays on

Network Ten Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of five ...

at then and distributed to many other countries. It was cancelled by Network Ten at the end of 2005. ''AOS'' continues to be broadcast on Australian television via

Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

Channel 183 - on the

Foxtel Foxtel is an Australian pay television company—operating in cable television, direct broadcast satellite television, and IPTV streaming services. It was formed in April 2018, superseding an earlier company from 1995. The service was establi ...

Digital,

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and

Austar Austar was an Australian telecommunications company. Its main business activity was subscription television but it has also been involved with internet access and mobile phones. It was founded in 1995 under the name Community Entertainment Telev ...

platforms - which broadcasts ''Aerobics Oz Style'' every day at 6.30am AEST and also 2.00pm AEST. In Europe Aerobics Oz Style is broadcast daily (weekends included) on

Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It ...

1 or Sky Sports 2 at 6:00 (GMT) and it is repeated daily on Sky Sports 3 or Sky Sports 4 at 11:30 and 16:30. In 2011 Sky Sports started to broadcast additional airings of the show. The program is now aired in the small hours of the morning, as early as, 00:30 (GMT).

TV series background

Aerobics Oz Style, was created and produced by

Harry Michaels Harry Michaels, ( OAM), is an Australian entrepreneur, active in both the soccer and television industries as an actor, director and producer, he is of Greek Cypriot descent. Career Television career Harry Michaels shot to fame in the late 1970s ...

and began in 1982 and ran continuously through until 2005, with over 4,500 episodes produced, by production company Zero1Zero (now Silk Studios). The format remained consistent throughout its run. Each show was 30 minutes divided into four segments, one of warmup exercises, two main exercise segments, and a stretch/cool-down segment. One instructor leads the exercises, with four demonstrators following to the side and behind. Later shows were shot outdoors at scenic locations around

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, in earlier shows an indoor studio was used.

Format

Each show had an exercise theme. The mainstays since inception included high and low-impact, legs, abdominals
body toning
Other later themes included kick-boxing, low impact with a mixture of Latin dancing and pilates. Older styles included light hand weights and dynabands. Fashions in exercise-wear moved with the times too,

leotard A leotard () is a unisex skin-tight one-piece garment that covers the torso from the crotch to the shoulder. The garment was made famous by the French acrobatic performer Jules Léotard (1838–1870). There are sleeveless, short-sleeved, and lo ...

s over bicycle

shorts Shorts are a garment worn over the human pelvis, pelvic area, circling the waist and splitting to cover the upper part of the legs, sometimes extending down to the knees but not covering the entire length of the leg. They are called "shorts" b ...

in the early days giving way to

halter top Halterneck is a style of women's clothing strap that runs from the front of the garment around the back of the neck, generally leaving the upper back uncovered. The name comes from livestock halters. The word "halter" derives from the Germanic wor ...

s and tight shorts. The instructors and demonstrators on the show were a mixture of men and women. The show was intended for any age or gender. Many children watched the series inadvertently as they had switched on their televisions too early for the popular children's series

Cheez TV ''Cheez TV'' was an Australian children's cartoon show, hosted by Ryan Lappin and Jade Gatt, that aired on weekday mornings on Network Ten. It began broadcasting on 17 July 1995 and it ended on 31 December 2004 with the presenters leaving. Aft ...

which came after.

Tie-in Merchandise

A set of ''Aerobics Oz Style'' exercise videos are sold in a longer format than the shows broadcast, and include some exercise styles not otherwise featured, such as

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. These videos included music that remained unique and separate from the television show.

Theme music

Australian band

TISM TISM (an acronym of This Is Serious Mum) are a seven-piece anonymous alternative rock band, formed in Melbourne, Australia on 30 December 1982 by vocalist/drummer Humphrey B. Flaubert, bassist/vocalist Jock Cheese and keyboardist/vocalist Eu ...

parodied ''Aerobics Oz Style'' in their 1998 music video for "

Whatareya? "Whatareya?" is a song by Australian alternative rock band, TISM, released in July 1998 as the third single from their fourth studio album ''www.tism.wanker.com''. "Whatareya?" peaked at number 66 on the ARIA Charts. Reception Junkee said, "No son ...

", in which all members start off following the instructor before drinking (and throwing) beer cans and jumping over couches. In 1998 U NO HU, a UK songwriting and music production duo, consisting of Gary Williams and Philip Barber were brought onboard and commissioned to write a mixture of more than three hundred instrumental dance tracks and chill-out tracks specifically for the television broadcasts and later exercise videos. The new, uplifting, music featured on over 1,500 later shows increased viewer ratings by twenty percent – on the BSkyB network – adding to the already established popularity of the program.

Talent

* June Jones — (1983-2005) — instructor and demonstrator, a founding member of the show * Wendi Carroll — (1990-2005) — instructor and demonstrator * Taryn Noble (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Polovin) — (1998-2005) — instructor and demonstrator * Helen Tardent — (2000-2005) — instructor for the

pilates Pilates (; ) is a type of mind-body exercise developed in the early 20th century by German physical trainer Joseph Pilates, after whom it was named. Pilates called his method "Contrology". It is practiced worldwide, especially in countries suc ...

shows, joined the series with the introduction of those shows. Tardent was previously a professional dancer at the London

Royal Academy of Dance "Health and happiness" , predecessor = , successor = , formation = 1920 , extinction = , type = NGO , status = Registered charity , purpose = Examination board – dance education and training , headquarters = 36 Battersea SquareSW11 3 ...

and now owns and operates a Pilates studio in Double Bay, Sydney * Kate McCracken — (2002-2005) — demonstrator and dancer * Erinjayne Gard — (2000-2005) — demonstrator * Jodie Low — (1996-2002) — demonstrator, winner of the 1996 Miss Fitness Australia title * Amanda Breen — instructor and demonstrator - rumoured to take over Trainer role on Biggest Loser Australia, Now Director - People & Culture at Les Mills Asia Pacific

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official website
Australian non-fiction television series Aerobic exercise Network 10 original programming 1982 Australian television series debuts 2005 Australian television series endings 2012 Australian television series debuts 1990s Australian television series