The DVD Files - Dance It Off with Vicky Binns

I've posted before about my love of fitness DVDs on the blog.  I think they're brilliant for when you don't want to go out on a dark, cold night for a run or haven't got time to travel to the gym and they're great value too. 

Now don't get me wrong,  I haven't fallen out with my Zumba DVDs.  They are still getting some love and I think there will always be a place for them in my weekly workouts.  However I didn't realise until last week how cheaply you could pick up used ones from Amazon.  So I bought 4.  Oops!

What I thought I would do is give you a little review of each of my new ones once I've given it a go, in case anyone out there is looking to buy workout DVDs now we're into the colder, darker evenings and first up is Vicky Binns who plays (played? I don't actually watch it) Molly in Coronation Street.  I tried this tonight and quite enjoyed it.

The "Street Heat" warm up started easily enough  but with quite a few squats, I was glowing before the 10 minutes were up.  I liked the fact that they introduced one of the dance moves that we'd use later on as it's quite quick and could be difficult to follow.

Next up is "Urban Burn."  Although this cardio section is dance based, the moves are quite simple and repeated a lot.  I found the trainer gave good instruction and even though I found it worked up a sweat, I was able to complete the whole section.

"Power Groove" is a mixture of dance moves, jogging and squatting and I found this the most difficult section as I was already getting tired.  I couldn't keep up with all the squats and jacks but I really enjoyed the boxing moves. 

Lastly, "Core Crunch" section is full of press ups, abs exercises and leg lifts.  I found it tough but doable and I liked the fact that I wasn't doing crunches as I really don't like them and I still feel that I got in a good workout. 

Pros

• A manageable workout which mixes cardio and toning moves.
• Vicky, and the trainer Rachel, aren't as annoying as some people *cough Natalie Cassidy* can be on these things.
• I like the mix of moves and the fact that it's dance based.
• It's available on Amazon from £2.48 (plus P and P).
• Although it's dance based, the moves are not overly difficult and are easy to pick up.

Cons

• The cool down is rubbish and you will need to do lots of your own stretching or be extra sore the next day.
• This looks dead cheap and is quite obviously filmed in a nightclub/bar.  This doesn't affect how good a workout it is though.
• The music is crap and may get boring quickly.  A lot of these cheaper DVDs (i.e. not Minisry of Sound ones that have the budget to pay for good music) are like this and it annoys me.

Overall I though this was OK and would probably give it a 6/10.  I particularly like the boxing moves in the "Power Groove" section and the warm up is tougher than most that I do.  It's not going to become my go-to DVD but will fit into some form of rotation and get some use.

I hope that was helpful to some of you!  I'm well and truly into my fitness routine now and I found myself a little bit of thinspiration today.  This is how I looked back in 2007 when I was in Fiji...

Click on it to make it bigger and you'll get an idea of what I'm trying to get back to.  Why, oh why did I not appreciate how I looked back then?! So frustrating!

This picture is now my desktop background at home and at work so I have a constant reminder of why I'm working hard and saying no to cake.  And on that note I must go and find some fruit for my pud.

What's your thinspiration?