DVD Exercising (the right one for you)

First exercise post, how exciting. I had someone say to me this weekend that they would be too embarrassed to work out in the gym because of the way they currently look. So why not do a workout DVD! You can do it from the comfort of your home, without feeling like everyone is watching you. I do workout a DVD almost every day.

So you see all those commercials out there for those intense DVD workouts. I'm not going to knock down P90X or the Insanity Workout, but those are not great exercise DVD choices for beginners. These videos are meant for those who are already, for the most part, physically active/fit. They are trying to stay in shape by toning their bodies. Beginners will sometimes get discouraged when they can't do all the workouts on the DVD, and can easily give up on working out altogether.

When I first started loosing weight, I decided that the best plan for me was to start from the bottom and work my way up. I started out with The Biggest Loser: The Workout. Of course it was hard at the beginning, but it was manageable. They do a lot of basic boxing workouts, and I really started enjoying it. I actually own all but one biggest loser workout DVD, I think they are that great. They use real people (i.e. past contestants from the show), who struggle in the workouts along with you. I always feel motivated when doing these because if those contestants who used to weight over 400 lbs can do it, well I'm sure I can do it. I then moved onto more challenging DVD's such as anything by Jillian Micheals (she really is crazy, but she gets results). My favorite of hers is the Jillian Micheals: 30 Day Shred. She of course kicks my butt everytime, but its worth it! For some reason this woman thinks jumping jacks are a warm up, and she also really likes push ups, in many variety of forms. Both of these DVD's have a 6 week workout plan to follow, and almost all workout DVD's do have a training program to follow (which is what I did). I love these DVD's because the trainers teach you the proper way to work with weights and even breathing techniques for when you exercise.

I would start with something for beginners and work your way up to DVD's, like P90X. Try a DVD that interests you. I personally love boxing, so I try to do as many kickboxing workouts as I can. If you like yoga, there are tons of yoga/pilates DVD's out there on the market. Also Netflix does have workout DVD's that you can stream instantly to your computer or TV. I do this quite often when I get bored of my normal routine workouts!

If anyone would like a personal copy of any of my workout DVD's please feel free to leave me a message and I will send them to you. You can also contact me via facebook message or through email mccleney@gwmail.gwu.edu.