Five 10-minute Pilates toning workouts, each one with a different focus. Suzanne Bowen is the instructor.

Advanced beginning through intermediate exercisers. You need to be familiar with Pilates, as there's no time for Bowen to instruct you in the basics. An exercise band is included in the DVD; other than that, all you will need is a mat.

I confess I cheated with this workout: the purple band is a little too lightweight for me, so I did the exercises in these five workouts using the slightly heavier lime green band that came with another DVD. That's not to say that these workouts are easy — people who don't run exercise DVD review websites will probably find the purple band just right for their level of fitness. And as instructor Bowen says, you can always adjust the band's stretch to make it more challenging. There are five 10-minute, mix-and-match segments — do one, do them all or arrange them in any order you wish. Three of the routines focus on the upper body, the lower body and the abs. In addition, there's a total body routine and a flexibility routine that's a little tougher than most. Bowen claims that the band imitates the movements of the machines you find in Pilates studios. I'm not 100 percent sold on this, but the bands definitely do make the mat and standing exercises tougher. Bowen also throws in some good balance challenges, and her instruction, for the most part, flows smoothly. Sometimes it's hard to coordinate exercises with a band during a 10-minute workout, but she has created smooth transitions that make it easy. These are excellent routines... and if you think the band is a little light for you, they're cheap so you can just go out and buy a heavier one.

 

 

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