Creating the Silver Lining: My Fitness Frenemies: Workout DVDs for the Advanced

A fitness frenemy: someone who you dread seeing, despise while in their "presence," and occasionally cuss at - yet whole-heartedly credit for your strength, stamina & health.

Take Jillian Michaels for example - she was one of my first workout DVD purchases, and I stalk her social accounts for any mention of a new DVD. Then, I spend a few times a week cussing Jillian to hell and wishing I had never "met" her. But I'm hooked, and I'll never give her up, no matter how much I hate her when I'm on my 18th burpee, and I'm contemplating throwing the kettlebell at our very nice TV.

But Jill {we're close like that} isn't my only Fitness Frenemy—I have an arsenal of personal trainers yelling at me in my living room. Weight Watchers taught me how to eat, my running-coach-BFF taught me how to run {and how to hate Shaun T}, and Jillian, Bob, Jackie, Chalene, Tony, Jeanette & SO many more taught me how to get strong, long & lean. I'm not selfish—I'll share my trainers, and I'll even let them spend time in your living room {given that you purchase them on Amazon, at Target, or through my go-to BeachBody coach...}.

Running
While I still follow Hal Higdon's schedules when training for a distance run - I like to keep things fresh, fast & exciting when hitting the tread on a regular basis. Enter my absolute favorite running workout - HIIT's, aka, high intensity interval training. Here are a few of my go-to HIITs that keep my mind occupied and my feet flying.

HIIT-tastic {A gradual 2-minute increase}
Anything and everything by pbfingers {My favs are the 30 Minute Treadmill Workout, and the 30 Minute Intense Incline Treadmill Workout}
"Yellow Notepad 4 Mile HIIT" {As I ~~dreadfully~~ fondly refer to it as. I've made it through this to the T once, but I've attempted it many times!}
Bess Be Fit - 30 minute HIIT {A back and forth killer that f l i e s!}

Yoga
"You're almost always a beginner in yoga." Skinnygirl® Bethenny Frankel said it best—you are always evolving with yoga, always learning, always getting a workout. No matter how many times you do the same yoga routine, it can still leave you with a penguin waddle the next day. The key to yoga is to engage, BREATHE, and never give up. I will crow, I will wheel, and dammit, I will headstand one day.

Bob Harper: Yoga for the Warrior {Yes, it's an hour. But I promise you it will become your favorite hour of the entire week.}
Jeanette Jenkins: The Hollywood Trainer's Power Yoga {Disclaimer: I have never done the full DVD in one sitting, because, ain't nobody got time for that. And also, I like to be able to walk. But, I will pair the 40 minute power yoga with the vinyasa or abs and call it one hell of a workout!}
Yoga Inferno with Jillian Michaels {This is the second in Jillian's yoga series and steps it up a notch!}
PiYo with Chalene Johnson {This is the Donny & Marie of workouts - it's a little bit pilates, and a little bit yoga. Confused? Don't be—check out my full review and breakdown {and love} of PiYo on the blog!}

Cardio
Although I'd love to complete every BeachBody program in full, I'm pretty sure it's impossible. But, it's not impossible to at least get a taste of every program, thanks to BeachBody On Demand! {Again, I swear I'm not a coach or rep, even though I sound like a programmed BB robot. I'm just that big of a devotee!} That's where I find some of my favorite go-to non-running cardio workouts. {Psst - it's FREE for a 30-day trial & then a tiny fee per quarter afterwards. W A Y worth it for the variety of programs offered.}

Turbo Fire: Fire 45 with Chalene Johnson {Kickbox meets dance meets Chalene? One of the most f u n workouts I've ever done! Pretty much all Turbo Fire workouts...}
P90x3 MMX with Tony Horton {Hella good & fast kickboxing workout. *SPRAWL!*}
Insanity : Pure Cardio with Shaun T {ONLY if you're actually insane - which, apparently I am.}

And some non-BeachBody workouts:
Kickbox Fast fix with Jillian Michaels {These are quick 20-minute workouts that each target a different area of the body. I like to pair up two of the workouts, or for a full-body blast I do all three for an hour total!}
Kettlebell Cardio Shred with Bob Harper {Think bootcamp with Bob...with a kettlebell. Sweat, burn, cuss.}

Strength
You know how instuctors always say, "you won't bulk up by lifting weights"? Pssshhh. I was such a nay-sayer of this—I did not want manly arms. But, like I've done with the rest of my fitness journey - I put my arms into the hands of my fitness besties {fitnesties?}. And guess what!? My arms {legs, abs, bum} are longer, leaner & more toned than eva. And, how did I never realize how much you S W E A T and burn while lifting? #convert

BeachBa be3 : Beach Bombshell with the Tone It Up girls {Who doesn't love Kat & Karena?!}
Hammer & Chisel: T otal Body Chisel {Also available on BeachBody On Demand!}
Kettlebell: Sculpted Body with Bob Harper {Again with the kettles, again with the pain & sweat that feels oh so good}

And, some of my favorite strength workouts come from Pins on my workout board!

Workout Sets
Nothing says dedication like committing to a 30, 60 or 90 day program. My advice? Partner up with a fitness friend & hold each other accountable with check-ins! Yes, even I, the at-home-workout-devotee, get tired of working out alone. But when you have a check-in buddy you feel like you're doing {bitching, sweating, agonizing in pain through} the workout with someone.

Body Revolution by Jillian Michaels {This is one of my favorite, hardest & most evolving Jillian workouts yet. Week 1 & 2 are a little easy for the Advanced, so I jumped in at weeks 5 & 6. But, weeks 11 & 12, yeaaaa, I may or may not have done those workouts once, before resorting back to weeks 9 & 10. They're that tough!}
P90x3 with Tony Horton {Look, who has an hour+ a day to workout? Maybe once a month? Maybe. Good thing Tony figured out you can get it done in 30 minutes. And get it done he does. Yogax3 and Pilatesx3 are two of my fav yoga-esque workouts!}

While I wait for the next BeachBody program release, I'll be dabbling more in Hammer & Chisel, Turbo Fire & Cize!. Heck, maybe I'll even fully commit to taking one of them on for 30, 60 or 90 days in the New Year. While also stalking for the next Jillian Michaels program that she drops.

Always evolve, always keep pushing, and never, ever give up.