A Fitness Collectible

And finally, after a long time, an update.

Because last weekend I found the Holy Grail--well, one of them at least--of the fitness world...

I found it in the grocery store, of all places, for the dirt cheap price of PhP190 (a little less than 5 dollars?)!

Reading it brought back memories of working out along to Jane's video, and reminded me that sometimes the simplest exercises really are the best and most effective. I love the fact that Jane provides a suggested playlist of music to do the exercises to.  She recommends doing the workout three times a week, and emphasizes the fact that the workout be done to music. Her suggestions are definitely retro, but it drives home the fact that music can sometimes make or break a workout. I am in total agreement on this. Music is essential. In fact, I have some DVDs that are great workouts, but I find them difficult to do, just because the music is so...for lack of a better word, meh.

I did the abs and buttocks section the night I got the book (after walking two miles). All I have to say is that there's a reason that Jane looks so good on the cover. The exercises are classic, straightforward, and effective. (I would not do the bouncing/pulsing/ballistic stretches however, although these types of stretches are still found in some dance classes...)

My sister says the unweighted arm exercises are similar to the kinds of exercises that "Teeny-Tiny" exercise diva, Tracy Anderson (Gwyneth Paltrow is a devotee) is doing now. Tracy advocates the use of no, or light weights for the arms to sculpt without bulking up. Check out this video online and see for yourself whether there's a resemblance. They look like dance moves to me (I admit I've never tried a Tracy Anderson workout before, and some of this looks rather strange to me), but look closely and you'll see some moves that would make Jane proud (plus, the music rocks.)

Just goes to show, good exercises never die.
They just come back with better music.

10K update: I ran the 10-K at the Condura Marathon on February 26. It was a tough route, but overall, I had a great experience, and took 14 minutes off my 10K time at the same event in 2010.