What Are the Best Workout Videos for Home?

What Are the Best Workout Videos for Home?
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Workout videos are a popular and convenient way to fit exercise into your daily routine. Whether you prefer a hard cardio workout, a gentle yoga routine or a fun dance-inspired video, there are exercise videos for nearly every fitness craze. Weights of various sorts, exercise balls and other props can keep help you interested. The best workout videos are engaging, fun and adaptable for various fitness levels.

Yoga and Pilates

Yoga and Pilates exercises both provide a mind-body workout that will relax you, improve strength, tone muscles and help flexibility. Abigail L. Cuffey at Woman's Day magazine recommends Shiva Rea's Daily Energy--Vinyasa Flow Yoga. This DVD allows you to mix and match short yoga routines to create your own customized yoga practice. ThinkPilates.com recommends the Pilates Workout for Dummies with Michelle Dozois or Gaiam's Beginning Mat Workout with Ana Caban. Both of these DVDs are well suited to beginners at Pilates, but may still be suitable as you advance. Stott Pilates DVDs are a good solution for the more advanced Pilates student who wants to practice at home.

Calorie Burn

If you're looking to lose weight or just make up for that extra slice of chocolate cake, a workout video with a high calorie burn may be your top priority. These challenging workouts may be best suited for someone who is already in good shape, rather than beginners. Jari Love's workouts offer hard core body sculpting, while burning 700 to 1000 calories in a 65- to 70-minute workout. Patrick Goudeau's Step Up workout burns 710 calories in an hour. Jillian Michaels, the trainer from television's "The Biggest Loser," offers a hard workout in the 30 Day Shred, packed into just 20 minutes a day.

Go Dancing

Dance videos offer a fun alternative to traditional exercise and can help you burn calories and tone. Dance options range from ballroom to ballet, Bollywood to belly dancing. Abigail L. Cuffey recommends the Dancing with the Stars workout for a fun home exercise option, while "Fitness" magazine suggests Dance Off the Inches: Sizzling Salsa. Follow your interests when looking for dance workout videos to find one that will hold your interest, even if you have two left feet. If you don't have the guts for a dance class or are just looking for something a bit more entertaining than boot camp, dance videos can be a fun change of pace.

References

Article reviewed by David Penick Last updated on: Mar 28, 2011

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