10 Minute Solution - Prenatal Pilates [DVD]

At 29 weeks into my pregnancy, I was beginning to lose interest in the gym. Was it the weird stares my bump was attracting or perhaps the fact that I felt unbelievably ungainly in my gym kit surrounded by a load of toned and pumped members. Either way, it was time to draw the curtains at home and put on a fitness DVD. Now I have never bought one of these before. I'm the person who runs outside once a week, visits the gym 3...ok 2 times a week (sporadically) and attempts to eat healthy. I honestly had no idea whether I would enjoy it or be disciplined enough to actually do it! I researched the different DVD's a little and read the reviews - all mainly positive I have to say. In the end I ordered the 10 min solutions along with Tara Lee's pregnant Yoga and a Yoga matt (which came in the most ridiculous sized box you can imagine). The 10 min DVD is brilliant. I had no idea that I would actually work up a bit of a sweat whilst doing it and the full session had my bum and legs aching a little bit the next day! (in a good way) I love it. I feel like I am doing more good for my body and my baby than I was waddling around the gym doing very little and feeling like a fish out of water. Best thing is to get your partner to do it with you for a laugh. Thank god for the pelvic floor excercises becuase I would have wet myself laughing at my boyfriend doing this DVD otherwise! In short - it's great, get it. The woman looks amazing on it and it's reassuring to see her doing it whilst pregnant. She has an American accent (I'm British) but she's really sweet and encoiuraging and after a few watches I'm still not irritated at all, in fact she makes you smile! If you dont have time to do the full sess then squeeze in a 10 minuter. I'm teaming this with an hour of Yoga in the mornings 3 times a week. Tara Lee's DVD is very relaxing and as a first time Yoga-er I can do it! Really enjoying the feeling of having more energy from doing these 2 DVD's. Also the Yoga one has really helped with my rib and back pain. Enjoy!

I bought this because it was £5 and I wanted something to complement my Erin O'Brien Fitness Fix DVD which I like for a more dynamic CV work. While this doesn't get you into a sweat it sure challenges lots of muscle groups especially your abs, legs and bum and is great for toning. Before pregnancy I liked lifting weights so I didn't find the maximum 3lb a challenge for arms but that's the way it should be (according to a physiotherapist I asked!). I tend to do all 5 sections together but will try doing shorter sections more regularly. I've only ever been to one pilates class in my life and I felt really humiliated by the instructor because I'm so inflexible. I also don't do yoga so the first few times I tried this DVD I was getting used to synching my breathing with the movements while negotiating the space in my tiny living room. She does move through everything very quickly. I find the last section the hardest because I am so inflexible but I'm tailoring it to my ability and working up to being able to do it properly. After the first couple of times it was fine and there are plenty of reminders about which muscles to engage. I feel quite energised after this workout so it's nice to balance it with more a more dynamic workout which can be a bit tiring. Fantastic value - just takes a couple of attempts to get used to it if you're a total beginner like me.*UPDATE* I now have a three month old baby! Just wanted to update that I used this DVD right up until the day my baby was born and he was almost 2 weeks late! The DVD really came into its own whilst I was on mat leave waiting for the little one to arrive. Up until then I'd only managed to do it once or twice a week but when I started to do most of the DVD (always the core exercises) every day I got such relief from back pain and general tiredness. My back stopped hurting when I did the core exercises every day for a week. Just wonderful. I've upped this to 5 stars now - such brilliant value and doesn't have you jumping about which you don't need when very heavily pregnant and TIRED!

I bought this so I could keep up some exercise while on maternity leave. I have really enjoyed using it and I have felt the effects! The exercises are easy and well demonstrated and 10 minutes is just about right for me to fit in each day. It does move quite fast, as other reviewers have said, but bear in mind it is only a 10 minute work out so needs to be of a quick pace to fit everything in! You can always press pause and rewind on your DVD player and after you've done each section a few times you know what to do anyway. The music is cheesy but I like the presenter as she keeps things positive!Two criticisms:1) During the core workout, the presenter shows full sit-ups and bridging. My women's health physio told me that these are not recommended during pregnancy, particularly in third trimester, so I've been leaving this out (nevermind the fact it's practically impossible at this stage of my pregnancy anyway).2) obviously you will need a mat or soft rug to do these exercises but what is not mentioned is you need some light dumb-bells too. I didn't realise this so ended up using tins of tomatoes the first few times - not ideal! Found some dumb-bells on amazon for a good price so not too difficult to get hold of, but would be nice if it said this in product description.