=    Quite Impressed

Reviewer: The Rebecca Review

This workout is a full-body workout with an emphasis on posture and core strength. You will be rolling up and down and learning to breathe deeply. No shoes needed and you can do this routine almost anywhere.

”Pilates On the Go” offers a full-body workout and includes every imaginable Pilates exercise. There were many new moves I had not seen in other videos, including the “swan dive” which was quite amusing. Imagine yourself as the base of a rocking horse. Yes.

IDEA master trainer Maria Leone has been teaching Pilates since 1989 and first encountered the exercises while studying dance at New York University. She has been certified to teach “The Method” and owns Bodyline Fitness Studio in Beverly Hills.

I love the way Maria Leone teaches because she is not interested in a fancy routine, just the basics. Her pleasant voice is calming and she places an emphasis on stretching and uses pace effectively to warm the body.

She also has the exercises set up in a logical and effective progression. You never feel uncomfortable moving from one exercise to the next. It is a slow floor dance to fitness. You are mostly on your back, side or stomach. There are a few exercises done while standing.  

Ultimate Pilates

The Exercises Include: A warm-up, Pilates Hundred, Roll-Up, Roll-Up with Band, Rowing, Bow and Arrow, Rollover, Leg Circles, Rolling, Single Leg Stretch, Modified Double Leg Stretch, Scissors, Criss-Cross, Spine Stretch, Open Leg Rocker, Modified Corkscrew, Saw with Band, Saw, Basic Swan, Leg Lifts, Intermediate Swan, Swan Dive, Modified Double Leg Stretch, Double Leg Kick, Spine Twist, Side Kick Series, Teaser, Preparations, Swimming, Plank, Leg Pull Front, Reverse Plank, Leg Pull Back, Side Lift, Seal, Push-Ups and Upper Body exercises with resistance tubing (or you can use weights and a resistance band).

What I really appreciated was the “modified” exercises. When an exercise is new to you, you won’t want to dive into the exercise immediately and Maria shows you the modified exercise and then asks you to repeat it if you are new to the exercise or continues with the regular exercise. There is no time lapse. You do the modified version and the regular version if you are doing this routine on a regular basis. So, no waiting. The modified version becomes a warm-up for the next exercise. If you are new to the exercise, you just do it twice while she continues with the advanced exercise.

The Benefits of Pilates are very encouraging:

Improves your Posture
Strengthens your Back
Strengthens your Stomach
Increases your Flexibility
Tones your Entire Body
Sharpens Your Mind
Gives you Confidence – the exercises are not too difficult to master and “no fancy footwork.”
Encourages a healing of the mind, body, spirit
Improves your Life because it calms the mind

This exercise routine is normally purchased in a set and as far as I can tell from the site I went to, they do not sell the resistance tubing or Dyna-Band separately. The entire set is around fifty-five dollars. So, if you can improvise with items you already have, that seems to be a frugal way to go.

Items you will need to have if you only buy the DVD or Video:

A mat or you can just use a towel on a carpet
Resistance Tubing or you can use a Dyna-Band/Resistance Band effectively in places and alternate with a set of three-pound weights.
A Dyna-Band or you can use any “Resistance Bands.”

If you have tried just about every other way to lose weight, give Pilates a try. I have been quite impressed with the results from these exercises. I started doing Pilates in college and in a summer I remember changing my body. Unfortunately life got in the way of exercise and I have recently gone back to these exercises because I remembered how fast they worked.

Honestly, I have tried everything from diet to walking to yoga and nothing works as well as Pilates. The bonus of this workout is the almost immediate results you start to see. That keeps you highly motivated. You can literally sculpt your body. While I’m still far from perfect, Pilates is working and I finally feel I will one day reach my goals.

If you are discouraged with other workouts and want to see fast results, try this routine. You may also love the Winsor Pilates workouts or anything by Karen Voight or The Method videos. What is nice about workout videos/DVDs is that once you have some of the fitness equipment, you can use it with many other workouts. So, buying the equipment is really an investment and when one instructor starts a trend, the rest seem to follow.

What you will notice with Maria Leone is her leadership qualities. Her exercises have unique twists that are indications of originality. Originality prevents boredom. These are simple exercises, but never boring. I look forward to more workouts by this talented instructor.

Pilates Miniball

Exercise in Athens Greece - Intermediate to Advanced, August 3, 2006 Reviewer: The Rebecca Review Juliana Afram's Pilates Miniball workout is a smooth satisfying routine with challenging exercises infused with an aesthetic creativity. You don't have to have a ball to do this workout, but it helps with three or four exercises. You could use a folded pillow, which worked fairly well for me. The side lateral twist exercise definitely needs a pillow or ball in order to complete the more advanced sections. The only problem with this one exercise was that you have to rewind to switch sides. Somehow in the editing, this was overlooked. It only took a second to rewind but I hope this will be fixed, or has been for future DVDs. The exercise routine includes: Intro Introduction Warm Up Cardio Workout Outro The artistic flowing quality of many of the exercises makes them physically challenging, while they also heal you spiritually. The most difficult exercise on this DVD is the roll over where you literally lay on your back and then take your feet up over your head so you are folded in half. You can work your way into this...I still rock my way over because I'm working on the control needed to ease my way over. On other exercises, you may have already mastered the basics, so they become places where you are satisfied with your sense of control. The roll up should be familiar to everyone who has tried Pilates and the half roll up is a nice way to ease into the exercise. One some exercises she shows a variety of modifications. There is a fun helicopter move that increases hip mobility. What I loved most about this routine was the focus on loosening your shoulders. A variety of exercises and a cervical nod help to loosen the entire upper body, leaving you refreshed. If you work on a computer all day, then this is perfect for an early evening exercise session. The smooth and jazzy soundtrack leads you into relaxation all while encouraging full participation as you increase shoulder mobility. This workout is time for you. Turn off the lights, light a candle and relax on your Pilates mat. Most of this workout will have you either laying on your back or stomach with only a few standing postures (Pilates push up goes from plank to standing). Of all the Pilates routines I've tried over the years, this one left me feeling relaxed, very satisfied spiritually and completely nourished from head to toe. Juliana Afram's positive energy is healing and her exercises are creative and invigorating. The beach atmosphere and jazzy soundtrack promotes a positive energy flow that leads you into a new dimension of fitness. ~The Rebecca Review

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