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Pilates Conditioning for Weight Loss

Pilates Conditioning for Weight Loss

List Price: $19.98
Your Price: $15.98
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The Good The Bad and The Ugly
Review: **The Good...I am very overweight. I started doing this workout because I wanted to explore some Pilate and Yoga Techinques. I really enjoyed this video. It is very slow and relaxing. Since I have had this video my energy has increased and I am more flexible.

**The Bad...THIS VIDEO IS NOT FOR ADVANCED EXERCISERS!!! It is very basic and simple.

**The UGLY...The only way you are going to lose weight with this workout, is if you stop eating. I didn't even brake a sweat.

This video is a great supplement for other videos but I wouldn't use it as my only workout.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Disappointing
Review: After really enjoying increased flexibility plus a great workout from "The Method Pilates - All in One Workout" and "Denise Austin - Pilates For Every Body", I was *sure* that I would enjoy rotating them with this new one while also burning enough calories to encourage weight loss. But this DVD is so low-key I barely ever put use it anymore. After purchasing this, I bought "A.M. And P.M. Pilates Mat Workouts" and that one is fantastic for those mornings where I'm tired or short on time, and at night I make up for it with the more intense P.M. workout.

So... it sounds as though people wanting purist Pilates will find this DVD welcome. But for those wanting "Conditioning for Weight Loss"... it didn't live up to that claim in my opinion.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Slow Paced Pilates
Review: Being more used to a fast paced Pilates sequence, I was a bit disappointed with this video. This video covered a lot of the common sequences that I'm familiar with but at a much slower pace. The instructions were very clear and there were three different modifications depending on your level which I thought was great. If you're new to Pilates, I'd highly recommend it.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Slow Paced Pilates
Review: Being more used to a fast paced Pilates sequence, I was a bit disappointed with this video. This video covered a lot of the common sequences that I'm familiar with but at a much slower pace. The instructions were very clear and there were three different modifications depending on your level which I thought was great. If you're new to Pilates, I'd highly recommend it.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Good Low Intensity Work Out
Review: For people who are looking for a low impact workout, this is the one for you. As for weight loss, well, I don't think I've used it long enough to see results. I just started using it last week. But I do feel the muscles working whenever I would do the poses. It has modifications so you don't have to do the full forms right away. It's not as intense as the Winsor Pilates program and is very relaxing. Every movement is explained thoroughly. I'm not a pilates expert so I can't say I know that this program is authentic. However, I do know that I feel more fit and relaxed every time I do this workout.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: phenomenal video
Review: I am new to pilates and really enjoyed this video. Suzanne Deason is a wonderful instructor and I was able to follow right along from the start! I am an athlete and normally run and swim on a daily basis. I found this video to be a wonderful addition to my other workouts and really helps keep me toned and flexible. The music is great and the scenery will blow you away. I find myself more relaxed after every time I do this video!!! You will enjoy it!!




Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Disappointed
Review: I am somewhat disappointed in this DVD. I take a Pilates class and this program doesn't do many of the exercises my instructor does. She also doesn't explain what the exercises are for as well as not reminding you to breathe. She does say inhale-exhale, but I need someone to just say "breathe". I think this would be a good beginning workout for someone who hasn't taken a class. She does the same exercises for each level and just modifies the positions to make them harder as you get stronger. While this aspect is good, it can also be boring after a few times. I would have liked to have more workouts available for the price I paid.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Good Learner, Intermediate and Full Posture demonstrations
Review: I bought this DVD after having used the Living Arts Basic Matwork DVD for about 2 months. I purchased Brooke Siler's The Pilates Body book at the same time.

The instructor's (Deason) approach to Pilates instruction seems to grow from a Yoga practice. The DVD starts with a 10 minute body-awareness session centering on breathing and movement during the breath. This is good for the overweight and provides a good foundation for the principles the workout is based on.

The workout sessions offer 4 workout POV's (beginner, moderate, or full and combined). I can keep up with the moderate but can't keep up with Deason, the full practice model, for the entire session. This is where the fourth view is useful, a longer shot where you can view all postures simultaneously (with some inserted close-ups that keep the camera position from becoming stale). PFW also does more reps of each exercise so this session is longer to perform.

Also, some postures have a 'Pilates tutor' section available. In movements where this feature is available a small figure doing 'The Teaser' appears in the lower right corner of the screen. The graphic signals the availability of a section on the disk that explains the posture for those who are new to Pilates. If you are a beginner to Pilates, please view these sections. PLEASE, don't follow the Full practice forms until you've been doing Piltes for a couple of weeks. You could hurt yourself. Better to start slow and stay with it than push to hard and and be sidelined by injury or burn out.

By now, you're thinking, 'So why did this guy only give the DVD a 3?' The style of PFW is more Yoga-centric, which is good for some but doesn't really hold my interest. I prefer the more standard instructor-led style of Ana Caban. Also, and I learned this after completing the Siler book, some of the exercices used in the DVD are modifications of actual Pilates mat workout practice. So if authenticity of technique is what you crave, this really isn't the right DVD.

Not to say that this isn't a good workout. It is. If you do the exercises as instructed you will feel it the next day. This is as it should be. So much of the Pilates work is isometric, you can always make the workout harder as you get stronger.

I would have given this work a 3.5 if I could.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: okay for relaxation but....
Review: I bought this dvd primarily for its long running time - figured it would be a good value and would be a tougher workout than some of the shorter dvds. there is a lot of good instruction but much of the time is wasted on "mind-body" connection type stuff that some people might like, but does little for conditioning. also, even the "advanced" instructor (there are three levels presented) did not present particularly challenging moves and wasted a lot of time getting into the next position. if you continue the reps while the instructor is explaining the next position, it would be an okay workout, but would definitely not lead to any cardio benefits. the scenery is very nice but the three instructors aren't particularly attractive, one of whom seemed a bit chubby - which is not very motivating!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great overall toning
Review: I bought this videao knowing little to nothing about Pilates. The video has 3 levels so you can do the level that suits you best. The narration of the exercises and breathing is helpful. I use this video on a regular basis and my whole body alway feels great when I am done. Keep in mind this is video is for toning and is not a cardio workout. The only downfall is it takes a good 45 minutes to do the workout. Sometimes when I'm pressed for time, I wish I had a shorter version. I may look into the other videos by the same company.


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