Over the past 8 years I've worked
out to over a thousand video workouts!
When I began reviewing VHS was
the only format available...with the advent of DVD technology,
home video workouts have gotten better and better.
DVD chapter markers let you customize your workout...sometimes
down to the individual exercise. You can repeat favorite exercises
quickly, skip over ones you don't like just as quickly, and often
can choose from a variety of premixes...where the order of the
exercises in the original workout has been shuffled to produce
brand new workouts.
Below are a few of my favorite
DVD workouts.....
To read about these workouts
in more detail,
and find how how to modify them to suit your fitness needs and
goals, visit VideoFitnessTraining.com where you'll see hundreds of more detailed reviews,
in a format just like my Review of the
Week.
Build
Up Your Muscles with Gin Miller (2006)
Type of
Workout: strength training
Time: 4
complete workouts
49 mins - dumbbells
49 mins - arm & leg weights
49 mins - weighted balls
52 mins - tubing
Crosstraining is a fitness
term that means varying your exercise activities. Most people
think of crosstraining as alternating cardio and strength days,
and perhaps adding a stretch day here and there. but you can
also crosstrain within the same activity, and that's exactly
what Gin Miller is offering in four strength training workouts
on this DVD. If you've been only been using dumbbells for your
workouts, here's your chance to branch out and add exercises
that use wrist/ankle weights, tubing, and small weighted balls
to your strength training repertoire.
Build Up Your Muscles is an excellent way for beginners
to learn correct technique, but these workouts are not just for
beginners. Each total body workout is done standing or seated,
there are no floor exercises, so you'll work on your balance
and/or posture with every exercise. Much of the time upper and
lower body are worked simultaneously, so you'll work on your
coordination and agility too. Gin's long sets usually start with
a lower body move. Then, after gradually increasing the range
of motion of the base exercise, she often adds either an upper
body move, or a balance challenge, or an extra leg lift...or
sometimes all three! From one workout to the next the exercises
are similar, but by using different types of resistance and working
from slightly different angles, you'll be targeting the muscles
in slightly different ways.
If you're an advanced exerciser,
looking for a way to break through a plateau, or to add strength
to your endurance, Cathe's gym-style pyramid workouts should
produce results quickly. Cathe's teaching style is straightforward
and down to business, yet friendly and upbeat.
In Pyramid Upper Body
Cathe supersets two exercises each for chest, back, biceps, triceps,
and three exercises for shoulders. She then guides you up and
down the five-level pyramids, performing 12, 10, 8, 10, 12 reps
per set, increasing the weight as you decrease the reps, using
your heaviest weight at the top, then lowering the weight as
you increase the reps. If you're looking to improve your core
stability, upper body strength, flexibility, and balance, Cathe
includes an AbWorkout on the stability ball that
should certainly do the trick.
In Pyramid Lower Body
Cathe has devised a way to build strength and add muscle definition
to your lower half with two quite different, yet compatible,
workouts. The first 28 minutes of standing exercises work all
the lower body muscles simultaneously with five compound exercises
(squats, lunges, etc), organized in the same pyramid style as
used for upper body. If you have time and any leg strength left
after the pyramids, you can pull out your stability ball, lie
down and keep going for another 13 minutes of isolation exercises
that target the hams, inner thighs, glutes, and outer thighs.
Both Upper Body and Lower Body
Pyramid workouts are available on one DVD, along with seven Premixed
workouts, making this DVD a versatile, useful, and worthwhile
investment. These Pyramids are appropriate for intermediates
as well as advanced, because you can always adjust the amount
of weight that you're lifting. You also have the option of doing
partial pyramids, either the Up or Down pyramid Premixes. Some
of the stability ball exercises for abs and legs are quite advanced.
However, if you don't have a ball or can't do Cathe's version,
easier, non-ball options are shown for all the ball exercises.
An excellent choice for men too!
What
an innovative exercise concept! Over one hundred strength training
exercises...drawn upon to create workouts that can vary in length
from as few as one or two minutes to 72 minutes. First you decide
what to target: upper body, lower body or abs separately, or
all muscle groups together in a total body workout. Next you
choose your level of intensity, and how long you want your workout
to last. Now your DVD shuffle feature does the rest...choosing
the exercises and arranging them in a different sequence every
time. Other features include: a Fast Track Workout where you
can build as long a workout as you want, three or four minutes
at a time; three different 3-minute warm-ups and cooldowns, randomly
selected by your DVD player: a bonus 7-minute stretch. If you
have a 5-disc player, this is a great DVD to store in one slot,
so it's ready to add strength training exercises to any workout.
Each exercise is done for one
minute, so the sets vary from as few as 6 to as many as 20 reps.
The upper body gets 41 different exercises: 11 chest, 5 upper
back, 6 upper/lower back combos, and 4 triceps. Shoulders are
targeted in 9 sets, and also paired with 7 lower body exercises.
Biceps are targeted in 6 sets and paired with three lower body
exercises. Shoulders and biceps are paired up seven times --
three times by themselves and four times in combination with
a lower body exercise. All upper body exercises use dumbbells,
except for push-ups and the upper/lower back combos.
The lower body gets 42 different
exercises: 32 standing and 10 floor exercises. Squats, lunges
and plies are paired with shoulders and/or biceps in 14 sets.
They are done individually, with and without dumbbells in 17
sets, and paired together once (in a squat/lunge combo). No dumbbells
are used during the floor isolation exercises, and each leg is
worked separately, for a total of two minutes. Abs are worked
with a variety of styles. 23 different exercises include classic
crunches, Pilates/yoga core exercises, and challenging plank
holds.
Unfortunately, this workout
is now out of print, although you may be able to find it used.
Finding time to squeeze exercise
into your busy day can be tough, but Cindy Whitmarsh has eased
the problem with five 10-Minute Solutions to target tone and
stretch your entire body. By breaking the workout into manageable
bites, anyone should be able to squeeze at least one workout
into their daily routine. Beginners will particularly appreciate
learning basic strength-building exercises with easy-to-follow
instruction. The DVD menu offers plenty of flexibility too. If
you've got the time, you can combine from two to six segments
in any order, even repeating segments if you'd like, to create
up to a one-hour workout. Since upper and lower body are targeted
in different segments, it's also easy to schedule 20-minute strength
workouts back-to-back by doing Arms and Abs one day followed
by Thighs and Buns the next day.
Sometimes it's hard to find
a good beginner workout, but this one fits the bill well. It's
well-taught, easy to follow, and divided into short segments
of only 5 or 6 exercises so beginners aren't overwhelmed with
too much too soon. At the same time, some of the lower body and
ab exercises could be challenging for beginners, but hey, it
gives you something to work toward. Intermediates will also get
a solid workout, especially if they add weights to the lower
body exercises.
How
many ways can you work your abs? Abs Advantage teaches
you 32 ways in four unique workouts. Each ab toning routine presents
a different style of workout: Pilates, core training, classic
abs, and stability ball. Chris Freytag has designed these time-efficient
workouts to target the abs from all different angles and in various
positions: standing, seated and lying down.
Chris takes the tedium out of ab work by offering lots of variety
and plenty of encouragement. If you're adding just one of these
routines to the end of a cardio workout, you'll be done with
your fun in 8 minutes. Since each ab toning routine is paired
with a 3-minute standing warm-up and 3-minute yoga-inspired final
stretch, you can do four different styles of stand-alone workouts
in just 14-minutes. Choose the "play all" option to
do all four styles back to back and you'll never repeat an exercise
in your 40-minute ab mini-marathon! Now that's variety!
Ellen is a fabulous instructor
-- and Super Slim Down Pilates Yoga Blend is her best
video workout. She has done an excellent job of sequencing a
variety of yoga poses and Pilates mat exercises into an empowering
workout that will leave you feeling relaxed yet energized. Ellen
has designed this workout to keep you moving smoothly through
two standing yoga vinyasas, where you'll be working on balance
while strengthening your core and lower body. Next she moves
to the floor for a blend of yoga vinyasas and Pilates exercises
in kneeling, lying and seated positions. Here you'll strengthen
your upper body and core, as well stretch and strengthen your
legs and glutes, and work on your balance too. Each vinyasa (series
of exercises) is repeated multiple times on a side, which gives
you plenty of time to focus in on the muscles you're using and
make the mind-body connection that's so important in both yoga
and Pilates. The exercises may seem simple at first, but with
concentration and repetition they are effective for strengthening
and lengthening the entire body and improving balance and core
stability.
Whether you're a yoga fan who's
new to Pilates, or a Pilates fan who's new to yoga, a newcomer
to both, or a fan of both, you're sure to enjoy this blended
workout because Ellen guides you so smoothly that the time flies
by as you work harder than you realize.
Prevention's Personal Training
workout is composed of nine separate components: warm-up, cooldown,
two cardio segments, and five toning segments, which can be arranged
in any order you want for a personalized workout. You can work
out for as little as 13.5 minutes if you're target toning, or
just over an hour if you combine all nine components for a cardio
plus toning workout. If you're new to exercise and aren't sure
how to schedule your own workouts yet, one menu on the DVD also
offers five different rotations (weekly schedules) designed to
meet five different fitness goals: lose weight, get firm, improve
your health, flatten your belly, and slim your hips and thighs.
The longest toning segment
works the entire body with 10 different sets comprised of 19
different exercises (most sets are combo exercises), in just
10 minutes. The other four toning segments zero in on specific
body parts for five minutes each: legs and butt (5 exercises),
abs & back (7 exercises), arms & shoulders (6 exercises),
and chest and back (6 exercises). Each cardio segment is about
13 minutes, including a short cardio cooldown. Cardio A is mostly
low-impact, while Cardio B includes more higher-impact moves
(although lower-impact options are always shown on screen). Both
are easy to follow, with new moves introduced two at a time and
added to the previous moves to build a long combo which is TIFTed
numerous times.
Keli
Roberts has designed an effective and unique workout that uses
the Body Bar and a step to alternately work lower and upper body
in five supersets. Unusual "functional fitness" exercises
challenge your core stability and balance. Each exercise is done
twice in each superset. Long sets (20 to 56 reps) for lower body
build muscle endurance. Shorter sets (12 to 16 reps) build strength
and endurance for upper body. Alternating upper and lower body
exercises allows for a rest for each muscle group, like circuit
training. The lower body especially needs the breaks. Keli is
an engaging, relaxed instructor with an engaging Australian accent.
She projects positive energy, gives plenty of form pointers and
general fitness advice, and moves the workout along smoothly
without rushing. Get Ready, Set to Superset and
burn plenty of calories while building muscle strength and endurance.
Had a tough day? Feeling tight
and stressed out? Sara Ivanhoe has designed a gentle yoga workout
that will relax your muscles and rejuvenate your mind. Even the
Crunch set is mellowed out --- filmy white curtains cover the
brick walls and many candles are scattered around the floor.
The usual Crunch whooping enthusiasm has been curbed too -- all
you'll hear from the crew of 6 women and one man is the rhythmic
yoga breathing that accompanies each pose. Quiet, mellow music
offers the finishing touch to this easy-to-follow, easy-to-master
workout. All levels can do this yoga workout.
Sara's years of teaching experience
are obvious as she guides you through each pose. In a calm, soothing
voice she cues every breath and offers many positioning cues.
You do poses in every possible position, sitting, kneeling, standing,
lunging and lying down. Sara cues so well that it's easy to follow
along, even when you're in a position where you can't watch the
TV. Sara usually holds a pose (asana) for 6 breaths so that you
can slowly release muscle tension and relax into the pose more
with each breath. She often encourages you to "close your
eyes now, there's nothing to see on the screen. Just breathe."
Are you ready to move beyond
walking-in-place videos but feeling intimidated at the thought
of trying to follow more complicated aerobic choreography? Let
Gay Gasper, in her upbeat, friendly style, painlessly teach you
the ten basic moves used in floor aerobics and how to link these
steps together into short easy-to-follow combos. Gay's verbal
cueing is terrific, and she uses hand signals as well, to point
you in the right direction or to indicate which leg to use next,
so you'll never get lost. Gay is a fabulous instructor who makes
working out easy and fun.
In the 13-minute warm-up, Gay
introduces and practices one step at a time. She also establishes
a corresponding arm movement for each step, introduces the single/single/double
pattern, and teaches how to do a pivot turn (careful if you're
on carpet!). Now you're warmed up and ready to Feel the Heat.
For the next 28 minutes you'll learn four different combos, using
nine of the steps. Each four-step combo is practiced separately
for 3 to 4 minutes. Finally, you'll learn how to TIFT (Take It
From the Top) and put all the combos together.
Three separate workouts for
upper body, lower body and abs give this sculpting video a lot
of versatility. You can do all three tightly-choreographed segments
back to back for a total body workout in 42 minutes. Or, since
each short segment has its own warm-up and stretch, you can do
it by itself or add a segment to another workout. Like most FIRM
videos, the exercises come at you pretty fast, so you need to
have all your weights ready and your Fanny Lifter or tall step
handy. Stephanie Corley, with her relaxed and encouraging teaching
style and warm smile, does a great job of instructing, cueing,
and offering form pointers. Libby shows the beginner version
of the exercises by not using weights. This is one FIRM workout
I never get tired of because it moves along quickly and yet delivers
a comprehensive workout.
If you've learned the basic
step moves with a workout like Gin Miller's Simply Step, and
are now ready to learn how to put those moves together into combos,
Katina's laid-back Step Party will help you take that
next step...and beyond. This versatile calorie-burning workout,
offers two complete workouts with two levels of complexity in
the stepping choreography. The Beginner workout is an excellent
workout for newer steppers because you learn to link together
a variety of basic moves into simple combos at a slightly slower
music tempo of 126 bpms while still getting an energetic calorie-burning
cardio workout. When you've got the Beginner combos down, you
can progress to the Advanced workout where the music speeds up
to 128 bpms and the footwork is more complex. Both workouts include
a warm-up, three segments of stepping alternated with two segments
of functional fitness training using a 4-pound ball or one light
dumbbell, and a cooldown/stretch. Katina is an excellent cuer
with a low-keyed, relaxed delivery. In May 2007 she released
three more fun "party" workouts: Vertical Step Party,
Interval Party (floor aerobics) and Pump Party (tough strength
training!).
