 "Photo: Bryan Koci / Staff Photographer")
It is common knowledge to students that going to the Aztec Recreation Center during the day is sure to cause a headache. The lines for equipment are almost as long as Salad Sensations during the lunch rush. Students who have fitness on the mind with no time to wait around for a stint on the elliptical machine should consider the less expensive and more convenient alternative — fitness videos.
Workout videos have been around for years. They target every age group with videos such as “Sweatin’ to the Oldies” with Richard Simmons to Carmen Electra’s “Aerobic Striptease.” One of the benefits for purchasers is being able to do full cardio in the comfort of one’s home with no social stigmas or pressures attached.
The ARC has a monthly average of 15,000 active members, according to its Web site. With the fitness video, none of those 15,000 will see whether or not the person working out next to them has trendy workout clothes or if they are the champion of repetitions. Another pro of home fitness videos is the reduced likelihood of spreading germs and illnesses. In general, people who have weights at home will be the only ones using them, which can have the added health benefits of avoiding sickness.
Fitness videos advertised on television promise spectacular results, but they also pack a punch to the wallet. The following videos can all be found in stores or online for less than the cost of a monthly gym membership or ARC’s monthly fee of $18 for SDSU students.
“One-On-One Training with Jackie”
This fitness video provides easy instructions. Each move is focused on for about a minute, which allows time for muscles to warm up. Then the video goes on to the next exercise. There are three core segments: upper body, lower body and core / abs. Each segment runs for 20 minutes, and can all be combined for a gut-busting, fat-burning, hour-long routine.
Participants may want to have weights on hand because they are needed for some of the moves and are also used to heighten the intensity of other weightless moves.
“Dance with Julianne: Cardio Ballroom”
This video is designed with the idea that working out can be fun. Those who choose this routine are involved in easy-to-follow steps that use the elements of dance to help viewers shimmy their way to skinny. The video is user-friendly for everyone from beginner to pro. Julianne Hough guides in a charming way, all while boosting the confidence of those with two left feet.
“10 Minutes Solution: Blast Off Belly Fat”
This quick workout was designed for those who have a full load on their plate. Ten minutes long, watchers are moving within seconds of the video starting. Even those with the busiest schedules are able to find the time to squeeze in a 10-minute, quick workout. This video is designed to specifically target the area most people in America have problems with: their gut.
“Men’s Health: 15 Minute Workout”
This video diverges away from all the fitness videos with girls in bikinis to focus on men’s fitness. The workout is 15 minutes long, leaving men with little excuse not to fit it in a few times a week. Broken down into four parts, this video uses equipment that is user friendly as well as easy to store. This is the perfect quick workout for those looking to slim their love handles or others intending to maintain their hard-earned six-pack in a short time bracket.
“Tom Holland’s Total Body Workout (2004)”
This workout video is unique because it consists of 19 chapters, each focusing on a different area of the body. While the video is only 43 minutes, it is able to effectively utilize 19 different exercise routines in the form of a circuit training workout — meaning no breaks. It has high intensity and is designed to have viewers working hard for the entire video in order to get the best cardio workout the DVD can offer. For those who don’t wish to do all the workouts, they can select the ones they are most interested in on the main menu.
Working out and getting fit no longer means waiting in long lines or suffering embarrassment when one’s tummy rolls move more than they do at the gym. Now, with the array of fitness DVDs available, the right workout could just be one remote click away.
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