We've blended Pilates with hand weights in one extraordinary workout. It's like a shortcut to your leanest, firmest body ever. Pilates is one of the best workouts to make your body leaner and is known for creating sleek abs and firm buns. Body sculpting with weights creates unparalleled muscle tone and definition - for sexy arms and the kind of legs that turn heads. Now you can get the best of Pilates and the best of sculpting in one easyto- follow workout, that's under an hour. Tracy and Michelle have skillfully combined the most effective elements of Pilates and sculpting into a one-ofa- kind workout designed to tone and tighten your entire body. Pilates Sculpt will make the most of your workout time and deliver RESULTS! The Instructors
MICHELLE DOZOIS is co-owner of Breakthru Fitness, a personal training and Pilates conditioning studio in Pasedena, California. She is a former World Aerobic champion and has appeared in over 15 fitness videos. TRACY YORK is an internationally known fitness professional who trains other instructors worldwide. Tracy has starred in over 20 best-selling fitness videos. Please consult your physician before beginning this or any exercise program.
5.0 out of 5 stars Pilates Meets Traditional Gym Moves for an Effective Workout, August 9, 2004
By blueyed puella (CT, USA)
Workout Description: about 40 minutes of toning (10 standing traditional weight work, 30 traditional weight and Pilates floor work-fairly evenly split among upper body, lower body, and abs) with 9 minute warm-up and with brief stretches after each toning section for a total of 55 minutes
Workout Level: intermediate
Instructors: Michelle Dozois (Certified instructor; former National and World Aerobic Champion; co-owner of Breaththru Fitness, a personal training and Pilates studio) & Tracy York (Certified instructor and star of over 20 exercise videos). Michelle and Tracy obviously have a good rapport and are serious about exercising, although they do chatter a bit here and sometimes interrupt the other. The two alternate leading segments. Michelle is particularly good at imagery, and Tracy is particularly good at describing form in non-imagery terms. Michelle is more graceful while Tracy is more athletic. Both sides of the body are worked evenly (except for Michelle's leg raise portion, which leaves out one set-you can remedy this quickly before moving on), and the two instructors intend for you to mirror their movements.
Class: Michelle & Tracy only. The instructor in the background for each segment will demonstrate modifications, if any.
Music / Set: The instrumental music is beat-driven and synthesizer-derived. The interior set has richly-colored walls and curtains and is meant to look like a room in a house, with a chair, some side tables, and some potted house plants. The floor has carpet on it.
Equipment Needed: sneakers for standing portion (rest of workout done barefoot); 1-2 pair(s) of dumbbells (your choice of weight), mat
Caveats: Familiarity with basic weight-training techniques is a must. Familiarity with Pilates is recommended. Michelle and Tracy do not give enough pointers for this to be a good instructional video in either discipline. Pay attention to your form. In particular, make sure your knee never goes past your toes when performing any squat, lunge, or plie.
Additional Comments: You do not need a lot of space for this workout. You should be able to lie down with your arms and legs extended; when you're standing, you should be able to take one big step forward and back and two medium-sized steps to each side. Of the three Breakthru Pilates programs, this is the least focused on Pilates and is the best in terms of production. Of the three, I personally think this is the most effective and interesting routine. However, I use all three almost equally. (I like to throw a "Breakthru Pilates Week" in my rotation.) The DVD lets you choose chapters; I use this feature to skip the Breakthru Pilates intro and the workout intro, but you could use it to do just the abs segment, for example. There are no extras.
