Anne Samoilov

Yesterday, I talked about types of workouts based on your learning style.

Today, I’ll give you a few specific programs in 3 basic categories to try in order to help you figure out your own style.

The simplest method is to just try 1 of each.  Most people learn or absorb information in 1 of the 3 following ways.  Now, there are definitely sub-categories and much more defined categories when applied to education learning for school, but these 3 are broad categories that seem to work for fitness.

Do you like to WATCH?

Here are 3 video/dvd programs you might want to choose from.

Pilates – On the Go Pilates with Maria Leone
Maria trained me to teach pilates and I love going to this video for inspiration on teaching my classes, but also getting in shape.  You will need a stretchy band – theraband.

Circuit Training – Action Hero Babe Training System
For more information about this program, please check out my review of the AHB program.  I’ve done it 2x already and will go back to it again when I want to build muscle or change up my current routine.

Yoga – On Demand
Check out your Direct TV, Cable system to try one of the free Yoga on demand workouts.  I’ve done some great short workouts through this service and highly recommend it if you don’t want to spend money just yet on a bunch of dvds.

Wanna try to LISTEN to your workout?

Lynda Lippin’s Audio Workouts
Lynda has several 30 minute audio workouts that are really easy to follow.  Back pain, Neck & Shoulder Pain…it’s all here.  Go check her out and also read my Rainy Day Pilates post for more information on her Pilates Ring & Roller Workout.

Click here to buy Pilates with Ring and Roller

Balanced Body Audio Workouts
Balanced Body provides a lot of different types of workouts and these audio instructions are really worth it.  Usually you get more than 1 workout when you order and they have programs designed for people interested in different sports like running and golf.

Do you want to READ your workout?

Check out these books, ebooks, and websites for some great workouts that you simply look at, read a description and then do!  Some have pictures, some don’t, but for the most part they are read and do.

The Female Body Breakthrough by Rachel Cosgrove
My review of this book is coming soon but the exercise program in the book is great, easy to do at home or at the gym, so if you are looking for a workout you can READ, check this one out.  There are a lot of mindset & nutrition strategies laid out in the book too!

Red Carpet Ready
Valerie Waters is my girl. I love this workout. This is the first and only ebook workout program I have ever purchased.  It’s an easy to read workout program with simple instruction and pictures that do show the start/end positions for the moves.  Highly recommend this to women looking to get in shape with a home program that requires little props/gear.

The Pilates Body by Brooke Siler
This has to be one of the best books on Pilates. There is a lot of great information on how to do pilates, the fundamentals to remember while performing exercises, and great descriptions of how to do the exercises.  I still use this book for my own workouts and love Siler’s use of imagery in some hard to get pilates moves.

The Abs Diet
I never followed this book to the T, but do still use the idea of eating the superfoods they suggest to keep your belly flat.  Also, I reviewed the exercises laid out in the book and they are straight forward, solid, core building moves.  You can get the original book and I think the author even has a For Women edition now.

Ok, now that you have some options…experiment and see which ones give you the best workout.  You might find that a combo of Reading/Listening works for you or WATCHING/READING might get your heart rate up.

If your workout leaves you feeling energetic, pumped and feeling amazing, you may have found the right one for you.

One MORE thing to Remember

Do you need weekly motivation and a gentle nudge here and there to keep yourself on the right path?  I know I do.  Writing articles for you helps me stay on target – so thank you for that.

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Everyone has a bad day here and there, but it’s how you pick yourself up and move on that counts.

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Technorati Tags: how to workout, learning styles, pilates quick workout

Something interesting happened recently.  I took a yoga class at a crowded studio here in Los Angeles.  The room was hot (not intentionally, but there were a lot of windows and it was sunny) and people were very close together.  I was a little nervous before we started that someone might actually sweat on me.  I wasn’t sure how long I could handle it.  I got a little cagey actually and almost left the class.

I rarely have a chance to take a class (instead of teaching for once), so I made myself stay.

Guess what. The class was amazing.

I felt overwhelming rejuvenation and energy as I walked out of the studio.  I started thinking about how different this in person workout was from my usual at home workouts.  I’ve tried them all, DVD, audio, personal trainers, group fitness classes, yoga, dance and ones completely alone with no dvd/audio guide.

Comparing all of these ways of getting the workout in, made me wonder which one was the best learning environment for me. Do I like to HEAR my workout, SEE my workout, or just READ MY WORKOUT! (ok…get the monkey reference now? I know…it’s a bit dilluted…hehe but hopefully you get my driift!)

I couldn’t help but ask the question, what if people chose their workouts based on their individual learning style?  Would they work harder and see results faster?

Without going into a whole discussion about learning styles – and the different ways people absorb information, I’ll explain what I know works for me.

I know that I do my best, most focused, most fat-burning workouts with a combination of audio and visual teaching.  Maybe you are the same.  I used to like DVDs, but now only tend to use them when I need a bit more focus or I’m having an “I don’t wannnaaa” day.

What’s funny is that I recently came back to DVDs while doing the Action Hero Babe Training System from Valerie Waters.  On the days I worked out with her, instead of just doing the listed exercises, I got a much intense workout and definitely felt more energized.

This all leads me to the realization that maybe I need to re-think doing DVDs or videos–especially since getting to a class is difficult with my work and Mila schedule.

Ok…so let’s try a few other workouts…

Written exercise lists that include 1 image and mostly text is what I normally follow.  After I know the exercise, have seen someone do it a few times, I’m usually confident enough to do the entire routine.  I rarely do it in complete silence, though, so I turn on the music to get going.  So, perhaps reading an exercise list is not the best workout for me…unless it’s paired with music or some sort of audio guide.

Audio instruction is interesting…unless I’m able to play audio workout on a computer and do the workout nearby, I find that I can never put my iphone/ipod in the right spot. I hate it strapped to me.  I get preoccupied with where to put the device rather than focusing on exercising.  But – I do like the audio workouts…it’s just harder for me to focus and move from exercise to exercise.

Group Classes are great because you get the general energy of everyone around you and a teacher guiding you through the movement. No distractions…just movement.  I think many people do classes because of this. It’s hard to dedicate a few moments to yourself at home when the laundry or your email or your children/husband are in the next room waiting for you…or worse yet, knocking on the door!

What about you?  Try a few “different” types of routines (time, place, public, private, group, solo, sports) and see if one stands out as making you feel more “worked out” and more energetic than the others.

You might find that some days you need a group class, but the other days you need to follow a dvd or video on the computer.  Either way – both fit the same basic visual learning style.

On the other hand, if you found that an audio workout really pushed you harder, you might want to do a few more of these in a week.  That doesn’t mean you can’t do a dvd or you can’t go to a group class.  An audio workout requires more mental visualization … which in turn might give you more challenge.  By shaking up your routine with this a few times per week, you might get to your goal that much faster.

Here are some tools to help you find your best way to workout:

Search Google for Learning Styles Quiz (I did this to see what it would say and they were all visual)

Fitness Personality Quiz

Checklist of different workout types/places

Over-analysis or Time Saver?

I know I’m a bit of a geek and like to analyze things that others might not consider, but training myself to evaluate/measure my progress has made a huge difference in the way I exercise and take care of myself.

Why spend countless hours doing activities that just annoy you or that you routinely cancel or put off?  Why not spend a few moments to figure out the best way for you to get yourself moving and doing something that actually keeps you moving and consistent?  You don’t need to take as much time as I do looking at this stuff, but you can simply try a few different ways of exercising and ask yourself the question:  How did this workout measure up?

You will set yourself up for more results in less time!

I look forward to hearing from you and seeing what you discover.

If you want help figuring out your workout learning style, email me or leave a comment below.  I’m happy to help you find your best learning style and workouts to go with it!

Technorati Tags: fitness strategies, get a workout, how to workout, learning style, time to workout, workout styles

The #1 Excuse I hear for Not Exercising is… “But Anne, I’m so busy! I have no time to workout!”

Finding extra time in your day for working out might be one of those challenges that you have given up on.  I mean, how can you eliminate or decrease the demands of your job, your children, your spouse…and your life in general?  Sure you can adjust your life here and there for a few extra minutes of breathing room.

…But what can you do to free up a significant chunk of time?
…And are you ready to use that time for a workout?

Since I have also been looking to eliminate tasks that were chewing up my own precious time, I decided to do a little self-analysis to show you how it’s done…and also reveal the outcome from all my changes.  (Plus, I’ll admit, I wanted to play with my Keynote presentation software to do that!)

Check out this video and find out how I identified my top time wasting tasks and automated or streamlined each one of them…and ended up with chunks of time that I could use doing the things that I’m really passionate about–or play around with new software!

Too Busy To Workout? from Anne Samoilov on Vimeo.

So, now you’ve seen what I did to increase the “free” time in my day…

Now, it’s your turn to create time for your workout.

Here are some likely offenders that are filling up your time but you could be doing differently….(notice how I didn’t say STOP DOING THIS!)

1. Checking Email & Responding All The Time
2. Checking/Updating Facebook, Twitter, MySpace All The Time
3. Going to the Grocery store every single day for 1 or 2 items
4. Paying bills piecemeal over the month instead of in chunks or online.
5. Watching too much tv…anyone thought of working out in front of the tv?

If you decrease each of these items by even 5 or 10 minutes, (in no time) you’ll have 30 minutes to use for working out or some other physical activity!

WANT HELP GETTING STARTED?

If you sign up for my mailing list you’ll receive a weekly message showing you a strategy or piece of advice for getting health & fitness into your life.    Find out more about the mailing list here by going to the SUBSCRIBE PAGE.

BUT WAIT,  THERE’S ANOTHER REASON TO START!

No time to go to a pilates class?  Let me come to you!  I would like to invite you to participate in my “Get Wired” Pilates Session Contest where I’m giving away 5 Free Sessions via Skype!

Stay tuned for more details about this contest!

Ok…thanks to Sheila again at Live Well 360 for inspiring me to take action on something I’ve ignored for some time now.  Yes, I completed a few different mini-challenges for myself through the holidays.  I love taking action and with the mini-goals, I felt active and gained so much strength from them.  But now it’s time to take my actions a step further and reach for some bigger goals.

I read the 4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris earlier this year (2009)…but really without taking any action.  I didn’t do any of the exercises or implement any of the author’s suggestions.  But recently I have been reading more and more of the Tim Ferris blog – and found out about the release of the updated version of his book.  Now is the time to take action.  Not just mini steps or mini challenges, but big steps and life changing goals.

Why?

This year has all about bringing balance, health and happiness back into my life.  I don’t have to tell you the dirty deets again, but needless to say this was a year of big internal changes for me.  2008 was crisis land. 2009 was bringing a sense of peace back into mine and my family’s life.

So, now as I start my journey into 2010, I’ve decided to really get on it and make some profound changes that I can share with all of you–my family, friends, clients, and cohorts.

I have picked up the New, Expanded version of the book the 4 Hour Work Week and started it over the weekend.  I encourage you to do the same.  You can also get the audio or kindle version if are a little more mobile.  Keep in mind that the book version forces me to sit still and not multi-task.

Start now, I’m going on a Low-Information Diet, Media Fast. I need it for many reasons, but now I’m going to follow Ferris’ advice.

So, here are the guidelines I’m setting for myself over the next 5 days…

1. I will only be checking email about 2 times per day in the morning and evening.
2. I will only be using the web to post new articles to my blog.
3. I will only be updating twitter/facebook 2 times per day during this 5 day period and not spending any time following up on the live/news feed from my friends.
4.  I will only be listening to the audiobook or reading the hardcover version of the  4HWW.
5.  I will listen to music but not surf for it on the web
6.  I will not watch the news or visit any other site with gossip-news.
7.  I will drink lots of different teas, enjoy music, write as much as possible…and not watch tv – easy since my inlaws are mostly watching Russian this week anyways.
8. If you see multiple tweets or facebook updates they have probably been pre-scheduled to post…so I don’t have to be tempted.
9. I will be posting a run down of my days on a private forum I’m a member of…but this will be to help me stay sane…can’t go into solitary confinement for a week.
10.  I will keep active – do my Red Carpet Ready workouts and enjoy outdoors activities and yoga!

I know it’s going to be a tough week…I’m usually very hooked into the web and I’m always getting the email notifications on my iphone. I am ready to let it all go and turn inward.  I have a few pilates classes to teach this weekend, but in general, I won’t need to contact anyone via email for a few days!

If you are reading the Four Hour Work Week, I’d love to hear from you!  Let me know if you have done, are doing, or just starting the Media Fast for the next week too!

I will be checking in with a video or audio message, so if you are also going through this book, I would really love to hear from you.  Email me!

Technorati Tags: 4HWW, Four Hour Work Week

Ok it’s started…I’m going through the various events, accomplishments, challenges, and overall quality of my life in 2009.  This year instead of just making a statement of “this happened” to myself, I decided to choose 3 lessons I learned this year and take them into 2010.

One of the biggest themes, trains of thought and concerns for me is the concept of the “value of my time”.  Sometime around September I started making decisions based on things that truly add value to my life.  For instance, driving 1 hour to teach 1 hour and then home, pay a babysitter for the 3 hours…and get paid for only 1 hour…hmm not worth it on a few levels.  Another decision I made was being aware of how much my time is worth and not feeling bad or guilty in the least for turning down work or play invites.  Also, who I spend my time with is much more important now and making this choice clear has helped relieve a lot of stress I used to feel.

What’s your time worth?

Are you spending too much time doing things that don’t add value to your life…or that you are not passionate about?  If there is no way to remove these “things” from your life, consider adding some activities that do make you happy and that you ARE passionate about.

I’m looking forward to sharing the next 2 lessons I’ll take with me into 2010.  Check back during the week for updates!