topic Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness? in Wellness

Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

qualitygal — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 14:06:59 GMT

If you are please comment on which ones, beginner or beyond, any results, that sort of thing. Recommendations?? Thanks.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

nomless — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 14:21:57 GMT

I have amd use well over a hundred workout dvds. Both cardio and strenght training. Impossible to give you recs without knowing what yoir lookimg for. I recommend you check out Collagevideos.com where you can view video clips and read reviews. Favrite trainers are Tony Horton (P90X and others), Jillian, Chalene Johnson (Chalean Extreme), Coffey Meyer, Paul Katami, Bob Harper, and on and on. Start by looking at Collage. I might be able to offer suggestions if you can narrow tou search. At Collage, you can searcn by type..perhaps start by look at most popular dvds.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

BassetMomma — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 14:37:07 GMT

I started working out at home back when Jane Fonda had a workout record. At this point, I have way too many dvds. I order from Collage also. You can watch the dvds, read reviews, etc. It's hard to know what to recommend without knowing what your goals are, how hard you want to work, limitations etc. Leslie Sansone does walking-style aerobics. Fun, burns a few calories, not strenuous. I will warn she is quite chatty. Kelly Coffey-Meyer makes a lot of 30 minute workouts that are more intermediate to advanced. Toning, cardio, boxing - lots of different ones.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

PamelaSue72 — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 14:40:25 GMT

Jillian's No More Trouble Zones. I thought I was going to die when I first started her workouts. She's really good.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

qualitygal — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 14:58:25 GMT

Sorry, I should have narrowed that down. I have checked the web page and found some that I can shoot for. I have to get moving. 67 to be this year, and cautious of my back, I think I know what to get after checking that web page. Ages ago, did Jane Fonda's and some others. Then I got away from it. Repetitious after many years of use, so I think I'm on to something now. Read reviews and the walking ones make the most sense for me now. I'll go slowly into it and build back up. Thanks ladies!

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

run4life — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 15:12:55 GMT

Collage is a great site. If a dvd isnt a good fit for you they accept returns. If youre looking for a walking lower impact workout take a look at Jessica Smiths new walking dvd and her new barre dvd she also has a balance dvd. . I usually do higher impact or kickbox dvds but on days Im not up fo it I do these. Shes a great and likeable instructor and it doesnt require a lot of space. Good luck. Runs

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

nomless — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 15:29:33 GMT

OP, feel free to also check out the exercise thread. Several post there who do all komds of workouts. It's a friendly group, and we encourage each other through the ups and downs. Walkimg sounds like a good way to start. Ther's lots to coose from. Let us know what you get! The book Younger Next Year is also a great motivator.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

sidsmom — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 15:29:40 GMT

Yes, Collage is a wonderful site! I would recommend The Firm Classic Series. Weights w/ aerobics...low impact, high intensity. Beautiful sets. Non-descript music. Circa 1985, so the leotards & leg warmers are a hoot. They promoted "guarantee results in 10 workouts"...yep...can't go wrong with a basic routine like this.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

capatosta — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 15:34:08 GMT

I am 67 years old and have had to leave out the really heavy duty work outs now. However, I love Leslie Sansone walking tapes. Its not JUST walking....she does arms, belly, etc, and it has really helped me to tone up and get stronger after knee replacements. You can also look on U-tube to try them out I heard. Good luck. Start out slowly and you will build up fast.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

funwun — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 15:41:08 GMT

Wow, I used to get the Collage catalogs in the mail back in the day...that's a great resource as others have posted! I've been using workout DVDs since college (almost 20 years ago and they were tapes back then lol). I happen to like the Leslie Sansone walking DVDs, anything by Denise Austin, Jackie Warner and Jillian Michaels are great too. I also like the Physique 57 trilogy and anything that is pilates or yoga based. It's great to have a variety! Workout DVDs are wonderful and if it's in your budget and fits into your living space, I recommend a stationary bike, treadmill or elliptical....you can use them while watching your favorite shows (this is one of my not-so-guilty pleasures lol). Good luck))))

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

VaBelle35 — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 15:50:11 GMT

I am a big fan of Leslie Sansone. I never exercised before I bought her first workout set on QVC. Now I have over 30 of them.

As said above, it's not walking! I like it because I am not coordinated. I can't dance (watch me do Zumba and you will see )

Here is a compilation of my reviews:

5 Mega Miles (2013) I have over 30 Leslie Sansone DVDs and am a big fan of her style of exercise. While all of them will give you a great workout (it's what you put into it that counts), it's the little things that make some of the workouts more enjoyable than others.

Music - No popular tunes in this one, just a basic (could get on your nerves) techno background beat.

Fun Factor - This DVD is more serious than most. Not the various amounts o joking around, laughing, and having fun that are at the core of some of her other DVDs. More focus on the moves than the friendships.

Stretchy Band - This DVD comes with a good quality, heavy stretchy band.

Total Exercise Time - 1hour, 25 min.

No Stretching at the end of this DVD. One of the reasons I am a big fan of Leslie Sansone is her warm ups, cool downs and stretching segments. If you want a good stretch after this workout (and you will want a good stretch), have another DVD ready to queue up to fill that void.

The Warm Up (5 min): This workout has the regular warm up moves that you expect from these workouts.

Mile 1 (15 min): This is called the Classic Mile, and it should probably be called the "new" classics mile as it does have 1 minutes of optional gentle jogging at the 12 minute mark.

Mile 2 (15 min): This mile uses the stretchy band and focuses on the upper body only. It is uneventful otherwise.

Mile 3 (13 min): This mile has 3 optional boosted walking segments that last approximately 2 minutes each. There are 2 new (to me) moves in this mile, a "Skater" which is a side-to-side move but you put your leg in the back and a new punching move (adapted from her kickboxing DVD) where you are shifting side to side and punching forward. Nothing that's hard to follow, just a new one to keep it interesting.

Mile 4 (13 min): This mile uses the stretchy band and works the lower body with some lunges and squats (not too many) and some upper body/arm exercises. There is an optional gentle job for about 30 seconds a the 6 minute mark).

Mile 5 (15 min): This mile focuses on abs from the basic, classic cardio moves that she does with kicks and knee lifts. Otherwise uneventful.

Cool Down (5 min): Basic cool down, with a minimum upper body stretch and no lower body stretching at all.

5 Really Big Miles Walk Slim Series

As a veteran of 25+ Leslie Sansone DVDs, this one really kicks it up a notch and mile 4 is killer. This DVD is 75 minutes. You can choose to do all 5 miles plus the warm up and cool down or just do individual miles. I don’t see a mute option where you get the music only and no talking like you do on some of her other newer DVDs. Great music, songs we all know, which makes it nice to listen to.

5 Min Warm Up

There are 10 people with her, basically a review of all her standard moves.

Mile 1 – 15 min.

All traditional moves with the addition of the shift, basically shifting your weight from side to side. You see this move a lot in future miles.

Mile 2 – 14 min

There are 2 people with her, you use the stretchy band with this mile (which is included inside the DVD case). They also wear gloves, like weight lifting gloves, which I recommend when you are using the stretchy a lot (as you do in this video) as it starts to wear on your hands. Same traditional steps with the cha-cha or fast feet as she calls it. You do 5 minutes of the band, 5 minutes of cardio and then 5 more minutes of the band. You do a combination move of a knee life with the band in this one.

Mile 3 – 12.5 min – fastest mile, no band, 5 people are with her. Some of the new moves in this one are from the Punch Up Your Walk DVD, we do more of the shift in combination with light jogging. There is a 1 mile jog at the end of the mile.

Mile 4 – 15.5 min

OMG this mile kicked my booster. There are 3 people with her, you do intervals, 2 jogging intervals and some band work. A new move here is lunge dips with the band. Takes a bit of practice to get coordinated but definitely a power move.

Mile 5 – 15 min

There are 15 people with her, no band work. First 10 minutes are high impact and then the last 5 minutes drops to cool down mode.

Cool Down – 10 min

The official cool down is 10 minutes. She has 17 people with her. Lots of talking here.

Stretch – 5 min

Just Leslie by herself, going through a nice 5 minute stretch routine.

4 Really “BIG” Miles Walk Slim Fast & Firm Series

I found this one to be a bit disappointing. I consider this a fast 3 mile workout instead of a 4 mile workout only because mile 4 is a slower pace using the stretchy band. It’s 56 minutes long.

Mile 1 is a 15 minute mile that’s fast, with all the usual moves.

Mile 2 is faster at 12 minutes and Mary leads for a lot of it, which is a nice change. And she’s got a microphone this time so you can actually hear her.

Mile 3 has three jogging (“boosted walking”) segments. Unlike the 4 Fast Miles dvd with the 5 jogging segments, these jogging segments are not quite 2 minutes and it is more of a mild jog back and forth and in place with a small amount of the kicks. It is less intense than the 4 Fast Miles so it is much more do-able for those who haven’t done the 4 Fast Miles.

Mile 4 is slow with the stretchy band. For this segment, I use the 4 lbs weighted balls to keep the intensity up.

The stretching segment is probably the best of any of the tapes she’s ever produced. It’s longer, much longer stretches with yoga-inspired moves.

5 Mile Walk At Home Advanced

The DVD is broken up into 5 separate walks. You can choose to do all 5 or you can pick and choose one or more yourself. They also have it set up so that you can choose to do a portion of it with pre-set groupings of a few of the miles. If you go to the menu, it will give you the choices. It’s 55 minutes total.

I like the set up of this DVD a lot.

I don't consider it a hard workout. I do the 4 Mile Express workout (and now the 4 Mile Slim Walk workout) and this is not as hard as those are by any stretch.

They are all low impact. There is one Mile on here where they do a two interval training segments ("boosted walking") which is 90 seconds of jogging each segment, but you can just do the low impact with Mary Kay if you don't want to try the jogging.

Each mile is a different length of time. Some are 10 minutes, some are 12, and some are 15. It just depends on how fast the mile is.

The Mile 1 is with the 2 lb hand weights that come with the DVD. I bought the DVD from Leslie's website but didn't buy the hand weights. You can get these hand weights anywhere (Target, Walmart, Marshall’s, etc.). I actually use the 2 lb weighted balls from her original series and it works just fine.

The Mile 3 uses her old Walk Belt. I use the stretchy band for this and adapt it to the exercises she's doing and it's just fine. You can also just use nothing and move your arms.

The Mile 5 uses the stretchy band and again you can just use nothing on this as well if you don't have one.

This is a good solid program and easy to do in terms of movements. The routines are her basic routines and moves that she's always done, just mixed around and refreshed with different speeds.

I like it a lot.

To vary it or to make it more intense, I will use the 4 lb weighted balls on Mile 1, 3 lb weighted balls on Mile 3 and the 2 lb weighted balls on Mile 5.

Walk Slim

The complete set is $40 and comes with 3 DVDs and the stretchy band to do the firming workout.

There are a one and two mile DVD, a three mile DVD, a four mile DVD and then one firming DVD (4 DVD's total).

The 4 Fast Miles is challenging, but it's not for beginners, it's for intermediate and advanced people. It's 50 minutes and there are five 90 second jogging segments with a 2 minutes water break after the 3^rd segment. She has 2 people doing the "low impact" version if you don’t want to job or only want to jog for a couple of segments. She is getting more and more into interval training with jogging segments on her DVDs.

I love her stuff and glad she is getting back to basics and stopping all those gadgets and just doing good, solid, high and low impact aerobics again.

The 3 Fast Miles has no interval training/jogging on it. But it is really fast. I was a little more winded with this one just because you're going at a pretty high intensity for a longer period of time.

This one is a little disjointed to watch. She's sort of all over the place mentally and forgets to cue you for changes in time, gives the wrong cue, gets more goofy than usual toward the end, and then has Mary Kay lead for a while, (with no microphone!?!) so you're just sort of following along.

Also, the audio is not in sync with the video, but my tv is pretty far away and I don't actually watch the tv constantly, so it's not that annoying, but it can be.

1 & 2 Fast Mile DVDs

I finally got around to the 1 & 2 Mile DVD today.

They are not separate and distinct workouts. If you go to menu and click on "chapters" you will see "warm up," "mile 1," "mile 2," and "cool down." So theoretically you could stop after mile one and go to the cool down, however I could not see anything on the screen that says you've completed one mile when I was doing it and I purposely scrolled back to check.

You can do the entire 2 miles as low impact, or you can follow 2 of the walkers to do some or all of the jogging segments. There are 3 jogging segments on this DVD. I think 2 are in the mile 1 (closer to the beginning) and the third one is at the beginning of mile 2.

The time on this 1 & 2 mile combined workout is 35 minutes.

Punch Up Your Walk

I really like the intensity of the 2^nd and 3^rd mile with this one because I am an advanced walker and really like to get my heart rate up and I like using the weighted gloves (which I think are also nice for using with her other dvds). I am not a fan of the dvds where Leslie is by herself, I find them boring and lacking energy, but this one is not too bad but it does lack the energy that having a group of walkers brings to the dvd.

The warm up is not really a warm up but more of an introduction to the program for people who have never done her dvds before. I think it is an insufficient warm up and is very slow and boring.

The first mile is slow and has her regular basic moves from previous dvds and is geared toward beginners but the second mile picks up and incorporates the new boxing-type moves which are easy to pick up, you just have to think about it for a second because it’s a new move. The third mile incorporates the new “boosted walking” (mild/light jogging) that she has started to incorporate in her dvds the last couple of years. It is not the intense intervals of the 4 Mile Walk Slim, just a mild jog for about 45 seconds (may be less). She uses the tap out/lunging in mile 3 as well. I don’t lunge because I’m afraid I will hurt my knees but I do the tap out at high intensity and it’s fine.

She’s not very good with cues to stop a move or begin an upper body move as you get into the third and fourth miles so you have to watch the tv. I don’t always look at the tv, I sometimes close my eyes or face to the side. A few times I was about to die doing a hand movement and looked up to see she had stopped. So keep that in mind.

The cool down is really insufficient as is the stretch. I had to pause it and walk around a bit and then do more stretching that I remember from other dvds.

So while I have a lot of criticisms and feel that this program is a little lacking in some areas, I think it’s a solid workout and will add it to my rotation.

3 Mile Calorie Blast (with Walk Belt)

I like this one better than the Punch Up Your Walk only because the production is a little smoother, the warm up and cool down are better and more appropriate. The Walk Belt is a little flimsy, I’m afraid I’m going to break it but the walk itself is a good one.

No boosted walking/jogging in this one. The last mile seems like it will go on forever, it’s a little repetitious and boring. You use the walk belt mostly in mile 2, sporadically. I added the weight belt from the other kit, using them as ankle weights. I used a pony tail holder to keep the excess belt in place. They work well as ankle weights. I tried to use it as the weight belt but it kept interfering with the walk belt.

There is a 5 minute Walk Bonus at the end (approx 500 steps for your step counter). I think this is a good thing for when I need a warm up for doing weight training. You can also use it as a warm up to this and then go into the regular 3 mile walk.

Walk it Off, Tone it Up (5 Mile w/Stretchy Bands)

This is my favorite so far only because it is the one that really gives me a good cardio workout and gets my heart rate up to where I like it. I used the weight gloves and the weight belt with this one in addition to the stretchy bands. I like the music on this one. I think the music on this series is some of her better stuff. It’s not annoying like the techno stuff she’s used in the last few dvds.

She gives the basics during the 5 Minute warm up. Mile 1 is regular stuff. This dvd adds combo moves where you do two moves together. In mile 1 it’s knee lifts with side steps in a combination instead of just knee lifts and then side steps after that. So you do 4 knee lifts and 4 side steps in combination.

Mile 2 starts with 5 min of the stretchy bands and then a very fast mile. This mile includes some boosted walking/jogging and the combination move of jogging and shifting side to side. This dvd also makes some fast changes without a lot of notice. You have to pay attention and not daydream ;o)

Mile 3 starts with 5 min of the stretchy bands and then a fast mile. She adds the mambo move in this mile.

Mile 4 starts with 5 min of stretchy bands and then a slower mile. She adds the walk and kick combo in this mile.

Mile 5 has no stretchy band. There is very little cool down, maybe 2 minutes and then a short stretch.

This dvd has a 5 minute Total Body Slim Down at the end which is a lot of squats, some bicep and tricep stuff with the stretchy band and then a lot of lunges. It’s tough but it has a good payoff.

Walk Your Way Thin w/Pedometer (3 Mile)

I finally had a chance to do this dvd. It's a nice one. More level than the others. The miles are 15 and 14 minutes so you stay pretty steady. It's great for beginners as there are no high impact moves like jogging or combination moves.

The pedometer that comes with it is cheap plastic junk. Mine doesn't actually work, but I'm not going to bother taking it back since I don't need it.

Walk Off Even More Weight (with Weight Belt)

This seems like the perfect one to get if you are just starting out or only want to buy one of them. It's basic, classic moves and you make make this low intensity, without the belt, or high intensity, with the belt. You can do just one mile and work up to all 4 and having 2 separate 2 mile walks will keep you from getting bored quickly. The weight belt alone is worth the $20 ($18 if you use the coupon on her website). You can use this with other dvds as well as wear around the house while cleaning for an extra boost.

There is a 5 minutes Bonus workout on this one, too. All classic moves. I like this for the warmup better than the warmup she gives you, so I did this first before I started.

There are 2 separate 2 mile walks on this one and you can do them back to back (just skip the cooldown and stretch on the first one) or just do 1 or 2 miles ( or eve 3).

The first walk is the Classic Walk. All the classic, basic moves, no fancy stuff, no new stuff, no quick changes. There is a 5 minutes warmup and then 10 minutes for the first mile. You put the belt on after the warmup on this one. Mile 2 is 12 minutes with a 2 minute cool down and 1 minute of stretch (approximately).

As with the other, not enough warm up, not enough cool down, and not enough stretch for me, but it's a good workout and it does get the heart rate up there if you want it high.

The second 2 mile walk is the Fast Walk. You put the belt on right away in the warm up because theoretically you would be doing this as the 3rd mile. The second mile has a very light jogging segment, lasts about a minute.

I like the weight belt, I like the intensity, it's just a little boring compared to some of her newer stuff from 2007, 2008, etc.

But it's a good solid workout.

The 5 Mile Fat Burning Walk

The 5 Mile Fat Burning Walk (this is different from the “5 Mile” dvd and is 73 minutes and she has a group of walkers with her in this one, too.

The Big Burn

The Big Burn is 2 Miles of Intervals, meaning you do the 90 seconds of jogging in every segment. It's 33 minutes total and includes a good warm up and a good cool down. This one has a group of walkers with her, too.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

customer 5 — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 16:00:26 GMT

I suggest you go to Videofitness.com there is very useful infomation there. Also watch some videos over at Collagevideo.com and Totalfitnessdvds.com. It makes it so much easier to view portions of the videos before buying anything.

I think that when you are time crunched doing a video is easier than getting in the car and driving to the gym.

Good Luck!

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

glmama — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 17:28:04 GMT

Hi quality-Although I now belong to a gym, I have worked out off and on over the years at home with DVDs. I am trying to get back into using my DVDs on the days when I really don't want to leave the house to work out. There's a fantAstic site called collagevideo dot com where you can watch clips of any DVD they carry. They have a great rating system, too. I've purchased a bunch of DVDs from then over the years. Free Shipping on orders over $25, too.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

vac — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 18:04:52 GMT

I use You Tube videos -- free and you can change up the workout as often as you like. I'm doing a cardio dance workout by Denise Austin right now and just trying to build some endurance. I've been out of the exercise habit for too long but trying to get on track now.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

willdob3 — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 18:33:33 GMT

I haven't used them in a while but I will most likely be adding my workout DVDs back into the mix soon. I've only got a few but they are good ones that have different levels so you can do them no matter what your fitness level is. I think that is important when shopping for exercise DVDs so you don't outgow them too soon.

I've got a great DVD set by The Firm that was purchased from QVC many years ago. I think it was a TSV. I recall being very excited about getting it. I've also got Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred.

While she is extreme in ways I don't care for in other areas, I'll always have a special place in my heart for Susan Powter's interval training video. It was the first one I actually stuck with long enough to see results. She had encouraging words at all the right places!

I used this video when I finally decided to workout regularly once & for all. I wanted to join the gym and start weight training but did not want to waste my money like I had in the past you actually have to go to get results so I made the gym my reward once I was doing the SP video 5 days per week regularly.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

sidsmom — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 19:34:23 GMT

willdob3: I was fortunate to have Susan Powter right here in Dallas. Went to her classes daily. Weird...yes. Crazy...yes. But MAN, she was a motivator! Once she got in front of a class, it was like someone turned on a switch...she lit up. I was in 100% with the Stop the Insanity phase...and I was in the best shape of my life. I know she's a Cultural Punchline today, but I can't express how much she changed my life. She was a springboard for my fitness & vegan diet I still practice today.

Now back to regularly scheduled programming!

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

qualitygal — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 21:11:10 GMT

Wow thank you guys! I'll reread these, but I found Leslie Sansone's today

1. Walk Slim

2. Walk to the hits: Party Songs

3. Belly Blasting Walk

4. Ultimate 5 day walk plan

I tried to put them in some order of what I think will be best for me. I'll find out. But I have to get moving for darn sure.

Thanks again, and I'll come back and reread and go for the advice.

PS, I had Susan Powter's way back when (in the day they say now).

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

glmama — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 22:44:54 GMT

On 3/7/2014 sidsmom said:
willdob3: I was fortunate to have Susan Powter right here in Dallas. Went to her classes daily. Weird...yes. Crazy...yes. But MAN, she was a motivator! Once she got in front of a class, it was like someone turned on a switch...she lit up. I was in 100% with the Stop the Insanity phase...and I was in the best shape of my life. I know she's a Cultural Punchline today, but I can't express how much she changed my life. She was a springboard for my fitness & vegan diet I still practice today.

Now back to regularly scheduled programming!

This is so interesting to read, sid. I was just thinking about Susan Powter the other day. If you google her she still has a website and is still in great shape. And talks about "Eating, Moving, and Breathing".

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

Suzeecat — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 23:04:21 GMT

I also recommend Collage Video where you can read tons of reviews and do searches for different types of workouts.

I do DVD workouts all the time at home but haven't bought any new ones in a while. My all time go-to favorites are The Firm workouts - they're fun yet tough. I also have several Jari Love, who concentrates mostly on weight workouts (may have diversified since I bought them). I have some old Barry's Boot Camp that I got on clearance from HSN that are great, too. I have some Winsor Pilates but haven't done them in a long time, yet I hate to give them up. Also, a few Women's Health workouts.

I think a lot of people think of workout DVDs as being too easy, but they're thinking of Sweatin' to the Oldies and Denise Austin type workouts, which are great for beginners. But there are some seriously tough workouts out there, too. Beach Body has the P90X and Insanity series that even I'm afraid of! But really, anybody can do any workout if you modify. Listen to your body but don't quit too soon. In fact, never quit, just walk in place if you have to take a break and catch your breath.

Re: Is anyone here using DVD's for at home fitness?

Dorothy11 — Sat, 08 Mar 2014 02:07:55 GMT

Love Leslie Sansome. Recently found Foundation Training and this is a very different and amazing approach for anyone with back pain or posture issues. Very slow and controlled, but fast results. Completely cured my chronic (mild) lower back pain.