Free Home Cardio Videos

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I'm unhappy with the shape of my waist and I find it difficult to get to the gym, therefore I'm determined to start doing free cardio workout videos at home. I'm also hoping it will help me sleep a bit better.

I recognise that some of these videos (often called "aerobics") may be made with more specific audiences in mind, but in general I think they can make getting fit a lot easier. In the privacy of my own home I can do the videos in the most comfortable clothing possible (which for me is just underwear and grip socks). I can exercise without feeling self conscious about others looking at my body. I can put the fan on, have my water in a convenient place, and jump straight into my own shower afterwards.

I encourage anyone to join in on this thread and post videos that they do or thoughts about other videos that are posted. Please provide a bit of information about whether the video was fun, what level of fitness you think it might be best suited for, whether you liked the instructor, whether there were any particularly difficult exercises, or anything else that seems relevant.

Here's a little inspiration:

[youtube]SeMJOPlK-0E[/youtube]

 

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[youtube]50kH47ZztHs[/youtube]

Today I did this video, called "Low Impact 30 minute cardio workout - Beginner/intermediate". A a couple of months ago I did a different video that was much more intense and I couldn't walk for a couple of days. I would like to do that video again in future, but not being able to walk was pretty demoralising, and I will have to work up to that other video. This video was closer to my level of fitness and so that I hope I might be able to do it again tomorrow.

I didn't find the instructor very charismatic, and at times I found him a bit annoying, but as an instructor I thought he was basically good. When he started talking all this crap about a waterfall I burst out laughing. And when he got to the point where he started saying "This is your time!" I was saying "My time! My time!" along with him. So, I would say that he got me feeling good about doing the workout. I don't think you have to like the instructor personally, they just have to get you involved in doing the workout.

I love the music. I love cheesy dance music. It reminds me of when I was a kid and worked in nightclubs. During the exercise breaks I'm aimlessly dancing around like a fool pretending I'm in my own personal little club.

The thing I liked most about this video is that it really got my heart going, but there was nothing too crazy about it. I thought there was enough about the exercises that was interesting and challenging, without it being too overwhelming. I usually felt like I knew what I was doing. There was also some kickboxing movements in it which was kind of cool.

The thing I didn't like about this video is that the instructor said that you can turn the video off and have a rest if you want to, but the important thing is to finish the video after you have a rest. I don't agree with that. I think that if you're getting to the point where you're struggling so much that you're wanting to switch the video off, that you should just skip straight to the cooldown at 31:15.

I think that if you don't really know what to expect from how an exercise video might make you feel the next day, you should only do 15-20 mins of this video. And if that works well, then maybe do the entire video next time. Alternatively, I noticed that there is also a "beginner" video in this series (although it does appear to be longer):

[youtube]oFWa57a2spE[/youtube]

(I haven't done this video - I'm just posting it here for anyone who might like to check it out...)

 

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Did "Low Impact 30 minute cardio workout - Beginner/intermediate" again today, it was much more difficult today. In the breaks I found that I was not really feeling like pretending I was in a disco. I was more feeling like wanting to catch my breath. After the rounds I was struggling for a moment to recover from muscle failure. But I think this is the right intensity for me, because I could do the video two days in a row.

I realised that the second video I posted looks like it's got weights in it. So it looks like more difficult. I think the one that I'm doing is the easiest, because I realise that the instructor refers to it as "starter" cardio. I guess that comes before beginner.

For some people going to the gym is motivational, but for me I find it's not as motivational. I don't like being around other people, I feel too shy. And I also don't enjoy sharing workout spaces such as lap lanes, it adds an extra dimension of thought that is really annoying when I'm trying to focus on my own workout.

I have become feeling really uncomfortable wearing t-shirts, like my waist just won't fit in them properly. When I was growing up we had a backyard pool and I swam laps every single day. When I was in my early 20s I had a really slim waist, now it's kinda like shapeless at the waist area. Yesterday I put on an old pair of cords and they didn't fit properly, it was shocking! Even my hips look wider than they used to. If I sit down, I have the appearance of having a spherical little belly at my waist. I hate that so much!!! I really want my waist back. I want to go to my wardrobe "I feel like wearing a tshirt today", rather than "I need to disguise my shapeless waist".

 

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[youtube]0ymBtlOfT-I[/youtube]

I was kind of a little bit sore from yesterday so today I decided to do something different that would work different muscles. I did this "zumba dance workout for beginners step by step!" by "body healthy".

It was really difficult because I've never done any dance before and I'm not well coordinated in that way at all. I couldn't even understand the basic mechanics of how they were doing certain movements. They make it look so natural to move their pelvis like that, but I found it impossible to do it myself.

I don't think this is really a beginner video, it's more for someone who has taken some dance classes before. Most of the time I was just approximating their movements, and I found it difficult to keep up at all, because I found the steps and movements so complex. I did get a workout which is the main thing, but next time I try a zumba video it won't be this one. I would try this video again, but probably not until I have done some different zumba videos, or maybe a "basic Latin dance steps" video or something.

I did like the music and I liked the energy of the instructors. It's cool to see how enthusiastic the hunk in this video gets, he is completely enjoying himself and it's infectious. I really look up to the fitness level of the people who are in these videos. They are just so incredibly fit. The lady in black in the kickboxing one I did, called "Alex", is a total machine - she doesn't even appear to break a sweat in that video.

So far, in my very limited experience of aerobics, I think that I prefer the kickboxing approach to the dance approach. But I will try out more dance videos, both Latin dance, and hopefully I might find some cool retro 80's type ones. I will do both kickboxing and dance because I think it's better to do different types of movements, and not do the same type over and over again.

 

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Will I post weekly progress pictures of my waist? If anyone objects, please let me know and I will not post them. (I tried to hide them behind spoiler tags but those tags only hide text.)

I have the exact "dad-bod" shape of Leonardo DiCaprio.

This is basically where I'm at with my body. I'm not sure how exactly I came to be inhabiting a dad-bod. Throughout most of my life I was swimming laps regularly and I was fit and skinny, so I think I just assumed that I would stay that way, even though I am now over 30 and even though I wasn't regularly swimming anymore.

It's hard to believe that at one time in my life I was 48kgs. And that I am now 70kgs with a dad-bod. Not that it was healthy to be 48kgs (I am 5'10"), or that I would want to be that weight again. Actually, as I'm doing this, I'm not going to be focusing on my weight at all. I'm not going to be weighing myself. I'm just going to be focusing on my body shape. I would just like to be in better shape again.

 

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[youtube]tj9d6aBOzDo[/youtube]

"30 Mins Aerobic Dance Workout - Bipasha Basu Break free Full Routine - Full Body Workout" by "Good Health 24/7"

Had a huge day of home life today, with a lot of drama all day (yelling, swearing, moaning, crying, complaining, valium, etc), and a really intense household chore that I had to get done that took about 7 hours (pantry moth hive). The whole time I was like "I want to drink a bottle of wine!" But then I was like "No! I'm going to do aerobics tonight! That will make everything better!" I was so excited when I finally got to switch on my computer and do this video.

Most of the video was really fun, and great cardio, without pushing my muscles too hard (they are feeling a bit fatigued from previous days). The movements were quite feminised but I don't care, I'm here alone, I just want the exercise and to have fun. I could follow along pretty well with most of the movements. In the last part of the video there was a Bollywood themed dance routine and a cool down. The Bollywood theme was ridiculously difficult and I did not have a hope of following it, so I just did as well as I could. I didn't like the cooldown because I thought it was more about looking cool than actually stretching properly.

One thing I didn't like about this video was that the instructor (who I think is a celebrity, but I don't know her) was calling the movements in a voiceover. I don't like that very much, it seems fake to me. I like it way better when the instructor is calling out what they are doing while they are doing it, rather than as a voiceover recorded later. I did really like the instructor, and I would do another video with her. I found her really encouraging and I liked the "Break Free!" theme. But I think I felt a little bit like the video was a bit too much about looking cool. That doesn't mean that it wasn't a good workout - I guess it's just a minor thing that annoyed me a little bit.

There were things that were great about this video, and it was good to do once, but I probably wouldn't do it again, just because I felt like the Bollywood Dance and the Cooldown parts were both pretty much a waste of time. But it was a fun video and I'm glad I did it. I did get a great workout, I really did get my heart rate up.

My favourite video so far is the "Body Project" one that was the first video I posted in Post #2 on this thread. I realised that I really like the cheesy stuff that the instructor says in that video about "it's like a waterfall of change flowing over you that's never going to stop!", and "workout time is your time!", and I find that kind of thing really encouraging. I also find that video to be a great workout! And I like the kickboxing! But I have to do a couple of even easier ones at the moment because the Body Project one is a little bit more intense and I'm very unfit. But the main thing is to keep trying to do one of these videos a day if I can. I know I need to have rest days sometimes, but I want to do 5 days a week if I can. Or maybe 4 days on, one day off?

 

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[youtube]ZqC7k8SJwg0[/youtube]

"30 Min Total Body Workout for Weightloss - Beginners Workout – Bipasha Basu Fit & Fabulous You" by "Good Health 24/7"

This was probably the easiest one I've done so far, but I think it was the least fun. It called for dumbells and a mat which I didn't have, but by the time I realised I really needed those things it was kind of too far into the video and I felt like I might as well stick with it as well as I could. I used my copies of "Clarissa" and "Seven Novels of Robert Louis Stevenson", which I won't ever do again, because my books will end up destroyed with sweat all over them. I will definitely need to get some dumbells. I also realised that a mat is pretty essential if you don't want to destroy your floor surface.

This one was fun, but it was the least fun one that I have done. I don't know why, it just didn't feel fun. The music was kind of repetitive. It had a "Love yourself" theme which was kind of cool. But the music kept saying "love yourself" over and over again, and the instructor kept saying "love yourself". By the end she was saying "Respect yourself! Reward yourself! Love yourself!" and it was starting to feel a little bit like an aggressive command rather than a gentle reminder. Which was kind of amusing, and I started laughing. But still, it wasn't as fun as the other videos I've done. I thought that the instructors both cared about giving a good workout and good quality instruction... it just wasn't that fun for some reason.

One thing that made an extra bit of difficulty was that it was hard to see what the instructors were doing while I was on the floor, and they didn't always verbalise it very clearly. I don't mind doing stuff on the floor, but they need to really do a lot of talking about what's going on, so you can keep your head in the right position. At one time, they gave a piece of instruction about keeping your head in the right position after the movement that required that position was already over, and I thought that completely sucked, because by that time the caution was useless.

All in all, I probably wouldn't recommend this one. I would rather get a little bit more of a workout, and have it be more difficult to keep up with all the steps, and have it be a little bit more fun. It was OK, but I'm sure there are better easy ones to try. I think I will probably avoid Bipasha Basu after this, because I've done two of her videos and neither of them were all that amazing. They looked amazing, but they weren't all that awesome as fitness instruction videos.

I do feel like I have lost a tiny bit of weight over the past five days. Not a lot at all, but just a really tiny bit. But that's OK! I do feel way better. I do feel like I can handle things in my life a little bit better. And it's better than drinking myself stupid.

 

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I've been doing Yumi Lee workouts lately and I am seeing such nice results. I love CrossFit. I think it's something that I can stick to and also this 10 minute workout is something I can do in a pinch but also kicks my glorious booty. Give her a try!

[video=youtube;KYSDLzLXniE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYSDLzLXniE[/video]