The Cranky Book Reviewer (CBR) is branching out to workout videos, it seems.
So, I got me a new dvd with which to kick my butt.
Ok, really, I want to tighten up the Mommy Tummy.
This video, which advertises "Lose 20 lbs in 30 days!" and "20-minute workouts" is brutal, on many levels.
One: Jillian Michaels is brutal. She's not likeable, she's not motivating, and honestly, I don't think she looks that great (aside from her shoulders, which are amazingly incredible and huge and awesome) (I like her shoulders). She's abrasive, and pulls the standard aerobics-instructor "let me yell at my participants instead of doing the workout myself" thing that I hate.
Two: Level One isn't really that bad. I did it three times and decided that I wasn't really being challenged... she calls herself "TV's toughest trainer" for this? So I moved on to Level Two, and...
Three: Dear God, she's a madwoman. Level Two has put me through my paces 4 times now, and yikes. After 20 intense minutes of effort (about 28 minutes, total), I look like I've been pummelled. Red-faced, dripping, panting, shaky... awesome. I expect that I'll have to bite the bullet and attempt Level Three this week.
gulp
I agree with her philosophy: work harder for less time, but know that this video would be too much for 75% of the population. There's a lot of high-impact aerobic work, an unbalanced amount of focus on the front delts, and a too-short warm-up and cool-down for me to recommend this video.
I took my measurements on the first day (none of your business) and will take them again on Day 30, and I'm sure there will be a crazily significant change. Two weeks in, I've missed 5 workouts (wow, that sounds worse than I thought) - it's recommended to do a session every day, but my shoulders are already acting up from carrying small children, past injuries that are flaring up and also with having a 3-month-old that doesn't sleep at night...well, you get the picture. Anyhoo, my arms look more toned already, my jeans fit better, and the mommy tummy is much less saggy and baggy.
But I still don't like Jillian.
