Question for fans: What is it about Leslie and weight loss?

[Loretta S.]

Most of Leslie's workouts have a very low or no dread factor for me. Even when I don't feel like doing anything else, I can always do one of hers. My favorite is Walk & Jog.

[Sara1000]

Sometimes when I just can't get motivated to work out I will talk myself into just doing a mile with Leslie, after which I usually feel inspired to do a short strength segment or two from other instructors. Yay Leslie!!

[MomOf2Gremlins]

Originally Posted by JackieB

I love that Leslie is so upbeat and sincere. I mean, when she looks at the camera and says "good job" I really think she's talking to me! I was thinking about her saying "thankful to have these bodies and to move" and it is a reminder to me that not everyone can exercise--how my problems are very small compared to others.

Ditto!!!

Originally Posted by deltoro

My reasons:

1. It is an easy and mindless morning workout. When I wake up early to workout, I can't do Turbo Fire because I will break down and cry. Seriously! It has happened! I just can't move like that at 5am.

Yes, exactly!!!

Originally Posted by Jane P.

I think one secret it that she gets you moving, but not to the point that it drastically increases your appetite. I like challenging workouts and this is a problem I have when I do them. With Leslie, this problem doesn't occur.

This statement also hits the nail on the head for me! Anything else (except also Ellen Barrett's workouts) like Turbo Jam, kickboxing etc. always makes me much hungrier to where I end up eating more.

Originally Posted by juberann

I lost 84 pounds doing only Leslie's walks and you wanna know why that worked? because I was consistant, it was something I could DO and that didn't intimidate me. I consider that one night "meeting" Leslie on QVC (I had never heard of her) one of the luckiest nights on my life, for me, it was like winning the jackpot. I was SO overweight and discouraged, no way was I going to go to a gym and there she was on that sleepless night that I was up to catch her at 3 a.m.
Walk Away the Pounds with the weighted balls was the first time I had ever ordered an informercial product and, let me tell you, that set got ALOT of use. I was walking 3-6 miles a day and nothing, NOTHING could stop me. Yes, d*** played a role but Leslie got me moving again. I am forever grateful to her and her workouts will always be a part of my fitness life

Judy,
this is truly awesome to read this! I'm so happy for you, you came across that infomercial from Leslie and that she helped you so much!!! Congrats to your amazing weight loss!

Originally Posted by Loretta S.

Most of Leslie's workouts have a very low or no dread factor for me. Even when I don't feel like doing anything else, I can always do one of hers. My favorite is Walk & Jog.

Yep, I feel the same way! Even when I often tell myself to only do 1 mile at least (I try to do 2-3 miles every day), many times do I get really in a great mood where I just want to continue and then end up doing 2 or 3 or even more miles!

Granted, I have to say that I don't have to lose weight but rather a bit of vanity flab (which the knee lifts worked for my lower belly like nothing else would! -Nowadays I do a lot of pilates as well) but I just love Leslie and have at least 80% of all of her walks. Her behaviour seems genuine, she's encouraging, I like the music, the steps are easy, nothing complicated and one can do it in increments. If I'm pressed for time, I can manage to do at least 1 mile and do another one later. I'm sure I will continue walking with Leslie up into my high age!

[imhere2dance]

Leslie seems so sincere. You can just tell she's a kind person who wants to encourage others. Her workouts are easy to follow and you don't need a lot of space. She offers a lot more variety than people give her credit for. I'm talking about boosters here: hand weights, the walk belt, the weighted belt, resistance bands, etc. Sometimes she adds in jogging/fast walking intervals... I like that I can choose a workout because "this one doesn't have a lot of kicks" or "the pace seems a bit faster in this one." Sometimes I want to walk with Leslie alone and other times I enjoy a group workout.

I walk at least two times a day (and sometimes three). I'm maintaining my weight loss. I had actually lost most of my weight before I found Leslie. I prefer walking for cardio, so she's a perfect fit for me. Back to what I was saying about walking twice a day: I usually do one 2 mile walk and one 3 mile walk. (Once a week I do one 4 mile and one 2 mile.) I do enjoy her 1 and 5 mile workouts, but I don't seem to reach for them often. The perfect amount of exercise for me is 30-45 minutes.

For strength training, I do that 3 days a week: Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. I do short workouts that are 10-15 minutes, but I prefer working out with Tamilee Webb or Denise Austin. However, on my strength training days, I'll usually pick a Leslie walk that uses the soft hand weights. I especially enjoy Burn Body Fat & Sculpt Your Arms (2 miles), Burn Body Fat & Sculpt Your Arms (3 miles), 3 Mile Weight Loss Walk with both Leslie and Mary Kay leading, and Walk-N-Tone. (I use my one pound soft hand weights instread of the walk belt when I do Walk-N-Tone.)

I don't have a very active lifestyle. I sit a lot. I also don't enjoy being outdoors. All of my exercise is done using DVDs. So by doing the two walks a day, my weight hasn't changed. I've been at my current weight for almost two full years now!

[Lucky Star]

Very nice results, imhere2dance, and congratulations on finding what works for you! Which Tamilee and Denise routines are you using?

[imhere2dance]

Originally Posted by Lucky Star

Very nice results, imhere2dance, and congratulations on finding what works for you! Which Tamilee and Denise routines are you using?

Thank you!

I do Tamilee's I Want Those Arms! (Program 1 one day and Program 2 on another day) and Denise's Body Makeover Mix upper body segment. It's rare that I do any other workouts for my arms. I just love those three workouts too much.

I do lots of different things for my legs like lunges, squats, and Callanetics. I'm also partial to using Leslie's fitcuff.

I didn't mention abs in my first post, so I'll talk about that now. I often use Gay Gasper's Basic Ab Workout for Dummies. There are two workouts on that DVD: a 40 minute one that I do once a week and a 10 minute one that I use most other days. I also like the ab routine on 15-Minute Workouts for Dummies. But my number one favorite ab workout is Kari Anderson's Curl. That's my Monday morning ab workout. I have a hard time finding ab workouts that I like. Love Pilates, though, and I do 30 minutes of Pilates three days a week in addition to the ab workouts. I haven't found a better instructor than Ana Cabán when it comes to Pilates. I like her Cardio Pilates, Pilates Toning Ring Workout, and Quick Start Pilates for Weight Loss.

[Eibhinn]

Thanks for sharing all of your experiences with and thoughts about Leslie's workouts, everyone. Since wearing my HRM regularly I've noticed that many (most, really) cardio workouts get me into an anaerobic zone so you've all inspired me to revisit the two Leslie workouts I already have, and to do a little research about to figure out which ones I might enjoy the most (there are sooo many!). As a result, I picked up 5 Mile Fat Burning Walk while out shopping and I really like it - the changing groups of backgrounders somehow kept me from getting bored. And I did a fairly long workout and didn't find myself snacking for the rest of the day. I've always wondered why I have such a ravenous appetite, and I'm starting to think too intense workouts have been part of the reason. Now to see how regularly I can do Leslie workouts without going batty.

[Lucky Star]

Thanks for sharing your rotation, imhere2dance!