Best strength workouts for a rank beginner (good form pointers)

[Karen Beckwith]

http://smile.amazon.com/Shaping-Weig...ng+for+dummies

I've given this to a couple of friends and they said it was excellent. I've never done it myself. Now that I think about it, I think I learned weight training many years ago from Kathy Smith - Winning workout which is on this DVD:

http://smile.amazon.com/Classic-Kath...+smith+winning

[beyond.omega]

Originally Posted by bubbles76

Kathy Smith's Super Slimdown Circuit aka Secrets to a Great Upper and Lower Body. Excellent form pointers. In fact, I think I used this when I was a rank beginner

In addition, Kathy Smith's Project You is excellent. Well designed program and great form tips as would be expected from Kathy Smith.

[PrairieGem]

I love KCM's Start Here, but don't think the weight section is good for a total newbie. Some of the moves are very strange, and she doesn't give form pointers or tell you what muscles you're working. (The cardio portion, OTOH, is wonderful!)

If your DD is otherwise pretty fit, I think the best form instruction in my collection comes from Cindy Whitmarsh in her Ten Days to a Better Body DVD. The workouts are solid intermediate, though, and they're circuits (cardio alternating with weights). But the weight moves are basic, classic, thorough, and very, very well cued. Cindy tells you what muscles you're working and explains both good and bad form.

I also think most classic Firm workouts do a nice job here, although they tend to be long and some of the sets might scare her off! (Five bazillion different leg presses.) I really wish there was a strength-only workout just like Cindy's 10 Days: Here are 30 basic moves to hit every part of your body, and here's how to do them.

[jenn38]

I would say Cathe gives the best form pointers. She has some clips on YouTube for STS where is she demonstating form for certain exercises. And her Power Hour workout has good form pointers in it.

[sheepla]

Originally Posted by Karen Beckwith

http://smile.amazon.com/Shaping-Weig...ng+for+dummies

I've given this to a couple of friends and they said it was excellent.

I was going to suggest this one as well.

[Sandrine]

Hey, Susan,
You've got some great ideas, here. Two more that come to mind are Tracie Long's Maximum Body Shaping (the Tri-trainer one--I can never remember if it's M. B. Sculpting or Shaping) and (believe it or not) an old Jane Fonda called Workout with Weights (I think). That was my very first sculpting video and it's got *great* instruction on form. It also includes an advanced w/o, as well as the beginner one.

[Eibhinn]

Not a lot comes to mind - even a lot of ostensibly "beginner" workouts like Start Here strike me as not being straightforward enough or having enough instruction.

An oldie that I think does have enough specific instruction is Minna Lessig's Emergency Workout. Even though I had learned weight training form during junior high and high school gym classes and in a body building club in school, I still found her instruction in that one very helpful. Minna Lessig was always fantastic in terms of offering good instruction for beginners. I suspect One Minute Workout and the one with the dumb name including Boy Short Bottoms might be good as well. I wouldn't recommend her Balanced Blend for a beginner.

There are a couple others in my collection that might be good but I'd have to retry them before I'd feel comfortable recommending them. Perhaps I'll do so in the next few days and report back. But I'd highly recommend Emergency Workout - the strength training workout is comprehensive and only around 30 minutes and has good instruction, and there is a also a half hour long simple cardio workout that she can just ignore if that's not necessary.

[BunnyHop]

Jari Love's original Get Ripped does have good form instruction/tutorials elsewhere on the disc, so even if she doesn't go through it all every time the move comes up, the information is there for those who need it.

[Susan H]

Step By Step Strength Training with Petra Kolber is very basic.

[Paine]

Margaret Richard "Good 'N Strong"