Favorite Barlates workouts

[Colleen]

In another thread, Bubbles mentioned that Barlates will be the weekly special at Total Fitness starting on 3/17/24 and asked me which workouts were my favorites. Sounds like a good idea for a new thread.

Part 1 - my favorite newer Barlates workouts:

Due to a couple of foot injuries with a long holiday road trip in between, I’ve done very few of the workouts that are more recent than the Calm Barre series. There are also some workouts from earlier in 2023 that I haven’t done yet. I don’t have a rebounder and I work out on a big non-slip mat so I don’t have the rebounder or slider workouts. I’ve tried to pick out some favorite series here, but I’ve done more that are also good. If you have questions about a specific series that I haven’t listed here, just ask.

- Endurance 40 - This is a great series for me because I can do the moves in her functional training workouts but I struggle with longer work intervals if the cardio factor is high. I was so happy that I could do all of these workouts without taking any breaks! There is also an Endurance 30 series that I really like, but if I could have only one I’d choose 40.

- On Point - This series of strength workouts is more versatile than it first appears because it’s easy to shorten the workouts. They have logical separation points and it’s easy to find them because the rounds are numbered on the screen.

- Tighter Assets - I posted a review in the other thread about this series.

- Ankle Weight Total Body - Challenging total body strength workouts with a mix of standing and mat exercises.

- Total Mat - Excellent total body mat workouts.

- Calm Barre - “Calm” means that these workouts move at a deliberate pace and don’t have a high cardio factor. It does not mean “easy.”

- You’ve Got 10 - 10’ parts workouts that use minimal equipment. Has more upper body work than most of her other barre/fusion-based 10’ workout series.

I’ll also mention the Mobility series, which would probably be a favorite if the workouts were short (total body in 20-25’). I practice yoga daily and I do Classical Stretch at least a few times a week so it’s hard for me to fit in longer mobility workouts, but I really like these.

[Colleen]

Part 2 - My favorite older Barlates workouts

I stared doing Barlates in 2021. I’ve done many of the workouts that Linda produced from 2018-2020 but not so many of the ones that are older than that. There are a lot of workouts to choose from, so I’m listing my must-have series and then some others that I especially like. I’ve done others that are also good, so if you have specific questions just ask.

- Functional Barre Sculpt set - Very challenging barre fusion workouts (Overload Training), strength workouts that focus on a specific prop (Precision Training), and another series with a variety of workouts (Functional Training).

- Mix and Match set - Upper, Lower, and Abs series with short workouts that you can combine in various ways. Some are all mat, some all standing, and some a mix of both. Lots of variety.

- Feel Good - Bodyweight workouts with cardio, strength, and stretch elements. If you’re looking for this type of workout but want shorter ones, look at Fusion Flow, Dynamic Flow, or the 3-disc Fusion Flow set.

- Double Burn - Variety of workout types: weights, barre, functional training, mat workout, flow.

- Traditional Barre - Barre-style workouts, mostly standing (freestanding or at the barre). There are some pulses and isometrics but also a lot of large range of motion exercises.

- Traditional Mat - There are a couple of total body workouts, and the rest are parts (abs, glutes, etc.). Especially great for lower body mat work.

- Target 15 and Target 10 - Short strength workouts (15’ and 10’, respectively) that you can mix and match. Target 15 has a few total body workouts. The rest of Target 15 and all of Target 10 are parts workouts. There is also a Target 20 series which I like so far (I’ve done about half of the workouts).

Some more series that I especially like:
- Fusion Flow set (Fusion Flow, Dynamic Flow, Energy Flow)
- Quiet Quarantine
- Low High
- HIIT Series (the one with Arms and Abs, Barre, Combinations, Mat)
- Upper Body Burn
- Total 20 (I have 6/8 of this series)
- Interval Barre Fusion set.

“Beginner” workouts: These are not really beginner - more like other workouts listed as “intermediate” at Total Fitness. I started Barlates with the beginner-level workouts (most of the workouts that I was doing at the time were at that level) and a few of her other DVDs mixed in with my other workouts. You can get Loop/Pilates/Intervals as a 3-disc set, and there is also Beginners Mat, Lazy Days, and Gentle Home Workout series. I still use these and wouldn’t want to be without them.

Compilations: Linda made compilations of previously released workouts in 2021-2022 when she wasn’t producing new workouts. I wasn’t set up to work out with streaming or downloads at the time, so the compilation DVDs were a great way for me to try different types of workouts and to gradually progress to the harder ones. Each compilation typically has a range of workout lengths and intensities. There is also one with only beginner workouts. Best of Fat Burn and Best of Body Sculpt are good places to start, and there are others you can choose based on your interests (I especially like Best of Mat and Best of Ball).

[summer breeze]

Wow, what a great post!

Not Bubbles but thanks so much for sharing your favorites and a brief description/review.

[bubbles76]

Oh Colleen, not good lol! The sale is next week, and I was supposed to be spending my money on the Cathe preorder I appreciate the effort you put in your post. From your list I have Mix and Match and Traditional Mat and like them very much. Did not care much for Double Burn but did keep Triple Burn. I have my eyes on the Beginner Series and the Fusion Flow sets. Although not on your list, I'm also interested in 1000 Rep Challenge, Total Mat, and Gentle Home workouts. Going back and forth on Feel Good.

[ebianco]

Hi everyone,

Colleen I loved reading about all your favorites!

Newer Linda workouts that I've done and really enjoyed:

-Endurance 30: I've done two of them so far (Upper Focus and Dynamic Burn) and I really liked them. They were Tonique-style, especially Dynamic Burn, but much more doable with the 30 second intervals. I can't comment on Endurance 40 having not tried those yet.

-Tighter Assets: I've done about 10 of the 20 in this set and really liked them! I know the creativity factor was a hit or miss for some but I loved how different they were. I wasn't really using them as a full system, just to throw in here and there for variety.

-Calm Barre: I think I've done 3 out of the 4 workouts in this series and loved them all. As Colleen said these aren't really easy, just slower pace. I love the variety of equipment used, really kept any boredom at bay.

-Holiday Fit series: I've done about 3 of the 14 and really liked them all! I was surprised that my heart rate got pretty elevated on the cardio portion, and liked the classic Barlates toning for the second half. And like Calm Barre she uses tons of equipment in these. I definitely plan to continue chipping away at these!

-Firm 15 series (for purchase): I've done about half the workouts on this DVD and I have really enjoyed all of them! I thought they had a very similar style to the Tighter Assets series.

Linda has so many workouts and it can be a bit overwhelming. Admittedly I do have a lot of her older DVDs but at this point I'm mostly focused on just keeping up with her new content, trying everything that interests me for free on YouTube and only making purchases if I KNOW I will use them (like the Firm 15 series-and I also purchased her Tighter Assets DVD set as a way to support her). My main workout focus lately has been heavy lifting with Caroline Girvan, and I'm only doing Barlates/barre type stuff one day a week, so trying to squeeze it all in!

[monterey vidiot]

I looked at totalfitnessdvds.com and I don't see a Barlates sale -

[Messe]

Originally Posted by monterey vidiot

I looked at totalfitnessdvds.com and I don't see a Barlates sale -

https://www.totalfitnessdvds.com/category-s/12.htm

[furmomof6]

Colleen, thanks for all the details of her different progams!

Ebianco - I'm glad you mentioned Fit 15 being like Tighter Assets. I liked the TA workouts (the first two weeks), so I may purchase those!

As mentioned, I really liked the first two weeks of Linda's Tighter Assets program. The third and fourth weeks were a little too advanced for me.

[monterey vidiot]

Originally Posted by Messe

https://www.totalfitnessdvds.com/category-s/12.htm

Thank you, Messe!

[fatkat555]

I was wondering if anyone has done her Wall Pilates series? I don’t currently own any of her stuff, but might purchase a workout to support her. She has so many!