Power Zone: Mind, Body, Soul (2003) Review

Denise Austin's Mind Body Soul is a 40-minute workout which nicely blends different exercise styles.It is filmed on an outdoors-y looking set, and Denise works out with two background exercisers.The first section, Mind, begins with a 5-minute warm-up which concentrates on breathing and spine stretches and then moves into an additional 5-minutes of standing yoga postures.The poses (warrior II, side angle, triangle) flow nicely and include some more challenging balances such as warrior III and dancer.Denise gives good reminders to focus on your breathing, although she overuses trite phrases such as "your spine is your life line."

The middle segment, Body, consists of Pilates movements performed mostly in a standing position.In the first 10 minutes, you will replicate Pilates matwork moves such as single leg stretch, criss-cross, double leg stretch, spine stretch, and saw, all while standing erect.However, you will also perform some challenging plank work from a push-up position on the floor.The following 10 minutes require the assistance of a wall.Initially, the wall is used for support during 1-legged moves such as leg kicks, leg circles, rear kicks, and heel beats.Next, the wall is used for some strength moves, including a wall squat, a triceps isometric exercise, and wall push-ups.Throughout this section, Denise repeatedly reminds you to "zip up" your abdominal area so that you really feel the work in your midsection.

The final section of this video, Soul, was a 10-minute dance-type stretch.The exercises performed included mambos, lunges, and additional warrior poses, but the moves seemed to serve as more of a cool-down function rather than cardio or toning.This was my least favorite section of the video; it may have worked better if the Mind and Soul segments had been reversed.Overall, however, I found this to be an enjoyable workout for light toning and general stretching.Denise's personality is a bit more subdued than usual here, and because the workout moves slowly, I found her much easier to follow than in her aerobic workouts.

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Hit the Spot - Pilates (2005) Review

If you only have 10-minutes to workout or you want to add a Pilates routine after walking or a cardio session, this Denise Austin DVD gives you 7 10-minute target workouts or you can select specific workouts and play them all at once. You can also choose to exercise for 30 minutes, either focusing on the Abs and Waist Line or Lower Body. There is also a 15-minute Pilates Challenge.

The intermediate pace makes this an invigorating workout routine and Denise's "double the workout in half the time" exercise are unique and creative. While this is mostly Pilates, there are a few Yoga poses. Denise Austin also takes familiar exercises and combines them or increases the challenge.

I am finding this DVD to be most useful as a customizable routine. This allows for more variety and that makes exercising more fun. The new Denise Austin DVDs are encouraging, vibrant and very enjoyable. The outdoor settings are healing and the exercises are creative.

~The Rebecca Review

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Product Description:
In Hit The Spot Pilates, the new Denise Austin Pilates DVD, consumers have the benefit of a customizable Pilates workout that targets specific areas such as hips, thighs, buttocks, abs and waistline -all with a Pilates twist! This DVD includes two segments -Abs and Waist Line and Lower Body: Hips, Thighs and Buttocks. The Abs and Waist Line consist of three 10-minute workouts, each more difficult than the other.All three segments concentrates on the techniques that will help you define your abs and waist while improving your posture. The Lower Body -Hips, Thighs and Buttocks includes one 10-minute hips workout, one 10-minute thighs workout and one 10-minute buttocks workout.These workouts will allow you to continue to strengthen your core muscles while slimming and trimming the bottom half. The DVD also includes a 15-minute "Pilates "Challenge" segment with standing Pilates that zero in on the entire body!

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