Fitness On A Budget

Here are links to some of the products mentioned in the video:

http://www.mytrainerbob.com/

http://www.jillianmichaels.com/

http://www.gaiam.com/

http://www.lifelineusa.com/

What are your favorite low-cost, at-home fitness ideas? Please share by commenting below.

Warning To Resolution Exercisers

If you just started exercising at the beginning of January...Congratulations and I hope you are still going strong. Don't let the angry mob of "regulars" at the gym, that now scowl when they have to wait 5 minutes on a treadmill, discourage you. They have to remember they had to start as a "newbie" at some point as well.

If you have already started slacking, get back to work! Today!!!

Here is my warning: 


If you are new to exercise or just getting back into the swing of things, you may have been working out like a maniac the last 20 days in order to quickly make up for the 10, 20 or 30 years neglecting yourself. We all want a quick fix, right? IT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN! And, chances are you could be setting yourself up for repetitive or over stress injuries. If you get injured it is going to further delay your return to better health and it will take you even longer to get into those "skinny jeans."

Your body needs to to recover from strength training, repetitive pounding on the road or treadmill or whatever activity your are doing. It is important to have a rest day and to do varying activities for fun and fitness.

I personally like to add in some yoga sessions during the week to offset the more high intensity exercise on the other days. In addition to classic yoga, modified yoga that combines more movement with the classic poses is a great way gives the joints a break without taking the day off completely. Here are two of my favorites:


Yoga For The Warrior has two workouts. There is a 60 minute yoga session that Bob has modified to still get the sweat rolling. There is also a 15 minute yoga abs workout. I don't know if I would call that one yoga, but it is a great ab workout, especially when you are short on time. In both workouts, modified or beginner versions are seen along with more advanced movements.





Jillian Michaels' Yoga Meltdown has two 35 minute modified yoga sessions. Start with level 1 and work your way up to level 2. I like these when I don't have a full hour to do Yoga For The Warrior. This one also has a bit more dynamic movement. Like Bob Harper's video, beginner and advanced options are given. These come in handy for those of us that are less flexible.



These are 2 great options for low impact workouts at home. Now get off the computer and go do some exercise!!!

If you have done these workouts or you have favorites of your own, please share by commenting below.

Extreme Shed & Shred Review

First things first...THIS IS NOT FOR ABSOLUTE BEGINNERS!!!

If you have been vegging out on the couch for the last 10 years and you have finally decided it is time to start moving, this is not the video to start with. Jillian Michaels has plenty of other videos that are for beginners, but not this one.

The format of this video is different than other Jillian workouts I have done (and I have done several). The menu allows you to choose the "Level 1" or "Level 2" workout, or if you dare you can choose to do the combined "Level 1 & Level 2" workout. You get the same warm-up and cool-down regardless of which option you choose. If you choose to do just one level you will get a 45 minute workout including the warm-up and cool-down. If you choose to do the combined workout it takes about an hour and 15 minutes. I really liked this feature!

The video offers beginner and advanced modifications for most of the exercises as usual with her workouts. The beginner modifications are usually done without the use of hand weights and without as much impact on the joints. The advanced versions require some weight and lots of plyometrics (jumping). So, if you are well on your way to needing a knee replacement...stick to the beginner modifications!

I do like the "fusion" of different types of exercise included in the workouts. You get a little yoga, some martial arts, kickboxing, cardio intervals, balance and strength training all in one place. Each circuit is made of 4-5 exercises that are repeated twice.

I recommend that you do each level independently before doing the combined workout, even if you are in good shape, just to get use to the different exercises that you may not have seen before. Whether doing level 1, level 2, or the combined workout, this video gets me sweating hard...and that's a good thing!!! If you are tired of the treadmill or standing around in the weight section of your gym, this is a good workout to change things up, so when you are ready, give it a try!