Selene Yeager's Perfectly Fit: 8 Weeks to a Sleek and Sexy Body

Rating:
Summary: Gardening?
Review: After getting this book as a hand me down gift and going online to find other fitness books, I have come across this one and feel I should give it the review it deserves. I was amazed that the author could put a title saying you can be sleek and sexy after 8 weeks. Ok I know it's a commercial ploy to reel us plump suckers in but Yeager includes GARDENING in her fitness recommendations as "the ultimate workout for women who hate to exercise." The exercises are simple enough but come on. That's a lot of vigorous weeding. Could anyone stoop to a lower come on to patronize us slower matabolized folks? I guess only a coupon for fat free donuts may help sell more books. Try Pilates Workbook: Illustrated Step-by-Step Guide to Matwork Techniques
by Michael King
for a good way to ease into a nice exercise program.

Rating:
Summary: Unique
Review: After looking at the numerous reviews for this book, I find it interesting that readers either love or hate this book. Several people have pointed out that no one can get fit in 8 weeks just by doing these exercises--well, duh! Almost all exercise books, diet books, etc. share the same fallacy. What I really liked about this book was the variety of unique exercises. After doing isolation exercises with dumbells for several months, I needed to change my routine. This book contains whole body routines using combination moves I have never seen anywhere else. I liked the fact that the exercises are performed slowly and mindfully, and the medicine ball is just plain fun! If you are tired of the same old biceps curls, kickbacks, etc., try this book, and make it one part of your total fitness program.

Rating:
Summary: It works!
Review: After not exercising for 8 yrs., I ordered the book .... I love it! It's fast, easy, and I've lost, along with a no-fat and portion controlled diet 6 lbs. in 7 weeks and went down 2 jeans sizes! I intend to keep it up. The weights were ...and with the book, certainly a bargain for a better body.

Rating:
Summary: Selene Yeager's Perfectly Fit
Review: Finally, a book that is easy to follow and motivated me enough to start doing the exercises and programs as soon as I read it. I started what I thought was strength training about a year ago, with very minimal results. I learned what I was doing wrong, and I learned which exercises will work best for my desired result and problem areas. In five weeks, I have lost an inch in my waist and a half inch in my hips. My clothes fit so much better, so quickly, without dieting. The pictures help to show how to do the moves and the descriptions are easy to follow. The between You & Me sections offered some great tips to bring on even more success. I've never been able to stay with a program for this long. I usually get bored. The four sets of exercise plans to go through the weeks with you keep things interesting. The different cardio chapters offered a nice variety of things to help you move and burn calories. The scale chapter was written for me, since I was one of those people who weighed themselves everyday. I went from that to every other day to now only twice a week. As I'm seeing results it's getting easier to forget the scale and focus more on how I feel and how my clothes fit. I have never felt this strong or healthy before. I recommend this to anyone who is trying to get in shape and feel better about themself.

Rating:
Summary: Love it.
Review: I love this book! Not only does Selene cater to all exercise levels with a great variety of moves and complete workouts, but she really gives alot of motivation in her writing.
Exercise descriptions are complete and understandable with photos of each movement. She gives fun exercise ideas throughout, encourages a fit attitude and she's honest about all the unnecessary hype in the exercise world. She's really gone all out on this one!

Rating:
Summary: Good for beginners, but a little disappointing
Review: I was taken aback when I read some of the negative reviews here, as on first glance in the bookstore this seemed like a pretty good book. Now that I've more thoroughly reviewed it, however, I think I understand.

What I liked about the book initially was the promise of combination moves (or integrative moves) and exercises using medicine and balance balls. I was introduced to all of these by Gin Miller in her series of articles in "Cooking Light". (I strongly suggest going to the Cooking Light website and previewing the Good Moves archives - or picking up the latest edition- for some really innovative ideas.) I was looking for other exercises in these categories to add to my repertoire, and I was hopeful this would provide some.

Unfortunately, I thought many of the combination moves were boring and dull. I didn't find many of them to be anything special. I also didn't see very many innovative ways to use the medicine ball, and there weren't that many exercises with the balance ball. That was disappointing. I also found the information she presented "lite"; she touched on some interesting topics, but I thought she could have explored most of them in more depth.

OK- so maybe this book was geared toward people who haven't exercised in a while or ever. Fair enough, but then the subtitle "8 Weeks to a Sleek and Sexy Body" is either misleading or an overstatement. "Sexier", "sleeker" perhaps- but if you're just starting out, chances are you need more than 8 weeks to get to that point. Although I was never, say, 40 pounds overweight, 8 weeks into my exercise program I wasn't exactly sleek and sexy- and yes, I did strength train.

This is a decent enough book for the beginning exerciser, but don't expect miracles. 12-16 weeks is a more realistic time period to expect to see significant results (and she does offer a 16-week plan). However, if you have a significant amount of weight to lose, you have to be in this or any other program for the long haul.

Rating:
Summary: lost 3 inches
Review: My cousin and I are on a continuous battle to lose weight and tone up. We each look for the latest excercise books and give them a fair go of it before making conclusions. This one did not pass our tone test after 3 months. We basically do what each expert says to do then evaluate each other with a thumbs up or down. We gave this one a thumbs down. But we split the cost of the book so not everything is lost.

Rating:
Summary: Love it.
Review: This book provides me with exactly what I was looking for in a strength training program. I can do it from home without spending a lot of money on equipment, it's enjoyable, and unlike most of the at-home workouts I've seen, it's challenging.

I'm an avid runner, and I tend to be focused on cardiovascular fitness, while neglecting strength training. I hate going to the gym, and it's hard to juggle weight training with all my running and my kids, who are still very small. But this program fits easily into my schedule, and it does not interfere with my marathon training. In fact, I believe that the strength I have gained has helped my running performance, as I seem to have more stamina on hills.

In addition, I have lost body fat, due to the gain in lean muscle mass. And my arms are looking more shapely, which is so much nicer than the toothpick "runner's arms" I've been sporting for a while. And I thought my poochy tummy was here to stay, because no matter how many miles I run, it would not come off. I'm happy to say that my belly is firming up very nicely!

This book takes a unique, fun approach to strength training and has something for everyone, no matter what their fitness goals. I highly recommend it.