I've been feeling a bit underwhelmed by my workouts lately and I've been looking for a change. I love the jogging and the weight lifting but at some point a girl needs a little more variety in her life. My problem is that I have multiple limitations at the moment, the most pressing is that I don't have a lot of extra fundage with the wedding just around the corner. I thought about taking a fitness class at work but not only are they expensive, most of them only meet once a week which really isn't enough for me. I could see myself learning my new exercise of choice and then forgetting everything in the 6 day reprieve before the next class. Joining a gym is currently out of the question because of my money situation so I decided I'd buy some new workout DVDs.
I'm always a bit hesitant to buy DVDs because there is a 50/50 chance that they'll actually be any good. I really want to work on fat burning and muscle toning so I thought I might try a Tae Bo type workout. I was reading reviews online and came across some really good reviews for a handful of kickboxing DVDs. The problem that they all seemed to have in common was that they weren't good for beginners, which I clearly am. I was about to abandon the idea of kickboxing when I had an idea. Why not see what's available on Netflix. Worst case scenario I try a workout and it's either terrible and I don't do it again; it's good but too hard for a beginner or it's good and at a level that I can manage.
I hopped online and pulled up the instant view section of Netflix and while there isn't a huge selection available for streaming there is a fairly decent variety of exercises. I opted to try 10 Minute Solution: Kickboxing Boot Camp. I like the way the program is set up. In each of the 10 Minute Solution DVDs there are 5, 10 minute workouts. In the kickboxing DVD each 10 minute section focuses on one area of the body. It's nice because you can either do smaller chunks of the DVD or all of it for a total body kickboxing experience.
The intensity level was fantastic. I haven't worked that hard in a very long time. I'm sorry if this is gross but I was literally dripping sweat. I didn't even sweat that much when I was jogging this summer in the crazy ridiculous heat. The instructor started at a quick pace yet she managed to break down the moves in such a way that even I, someone who is clumsy and uncoordinated, could follow along with relative ease. I found I spent a great deal of time laughing at myself last night while I was doing the lower body section because I was having a hard time following along but when I did it again today I was able to do most of the moves. Last night I tried the first three sections and just watched the fourth. Today I did the first four and watched the fifth. The fourth section was definitely the most physically intense of the bunch, at least of the ones that I've done. I watched the abs section and that is going to have to wait a while. I am simply not at the appropriate level of fitness to do those exercises without risking injury to my lower back.
I think the best part of the whole experience is how much fun I had doing it. I couldn't believe how quickly I got the the cool-down section of each routine. I knew I was working hard and I was definitely ready for a little break but the time just flew by. In fact, I think that I was having so much fun today that I over did it. I probably should have stuck with the first three sections and skipped the fourth. My deltoids are screaming at me. However, as one John Mellencamp said, 'it hurts so good.' I haven't been sore from a workout in a long time and it's actually nice to know that I did something that really challenged my body. I hope to be able to test some of the other 10 Minute Solutions over the next few weeks. It'll be nice to add some variety without having to spend any additional money.
OK, I need to make lunch and head to bed so I can get up and hit the treadmill tomorrow. Have a fantastic week!
Sounds like a smart idea - using Netflix for work-out videos. I feel the same way about fitness classes or gym memberships - so expensive. I used to do Tae Bo. I wish they had ten-minute Tae Bo or something, because I remember the videos seemed long. I thought they were good though. I can remember when jogging got boring and monotonous.
ReplyDeleteI'm still sore from moving this weekend. Jenny can vouched that a lot of stairs and heavy lifting took place. I feel like I have a shin-splint in one leg. My forearms are sore. I found odd bruises from where furniture or boxes rammed into my body. It wasn't the typical work out, but I'm confident calories were burned.
I hope the hurt continues to be "good." :-)