Monday Motivation

one // two // three // four // five // six

Thank you for all of the "happy anniversaries" and "happy birthdays" for Matt and me. We both had such a great week (full of amazing food) and I cherish all of the love that my bloggy friends give. You are the best. 

You guys are gonna be proud of me. I've been going to the gym 3-4 times a week. I still want to be going 5-6 times a week, but you have to start somewhere! I've almost always had a gym membership for the past 8-10 years but it never stopped me from buy workout DVD's. I'm not a big fan of the classes offered by gyms. Maybe it's because I'm shy or because I'm skeptical about just how qualified the instructor really is. And since I really don't have the money to spend on going to a separate yoga studio I've just always bought DVD's instead. My gym now is a serious meat-head gym. It's kind of gross….guys in baggy tanks showing their nips and then standing in groups to gawk at the women on the cardio machines. Gross, right? I haven't been to a gym this bad since 24-hour fitness in Huntington Beach, but even then it wasn't this bad. Going between the house of 5-7 pm during the week means getting in my cardio and leaving asap. 

This list doesn't include p90x which I've done and hated (but in a good way) and my husband had wonderful results from. All of these except for #6 are videos that I own, have used for a period of time not just once, and really enjoy.

I've decided that I need to be doing abs and arms/legs at home before I head to the gym. That's where #2 & #4 come in. I love Jackie Warner. She's tough. Her workouts are super fast, 15-20 mins for each section, and hard enough that you will definitely be feeling it. They're a perfect supplement to a cadio-intense workout. I  haven't actually tried #6, but it's newer than the others and I trust that it's good.

There are so many yoga videos out there it's hard to wade through them and determine which ones are  best. I've bought a lot of yoga DVD's only to keep going back to #3. This isn't exactly a relaxing video. It's a fat blaster so the moves are sped up to increase heart rate. I promise you will be sweating your tush off but you still get that same "om" that you get from other yoga workouts. 

Ellen Barrett, #1 & #5 does a great blend of yoga, pilates, and weight moves and puts it into a more aerobic workout. I really enjoy all of her workouts and would recommend any of them to you, but a lot of them are very similar so these two are my favorites. 

Are you a video workout person or do you prefer classes? What are some of your favorite videos? I'd love to know because I'm always on the lookout for new ones to try.