Photo: amazon.com

I've had "Squeeze Stronger" on my shelf for a month or so now, and I kept choosing other DVDs to review first, I suppose because I wasn't totally sure from the title what the video entailed. Or maybe because I was intimidated by the ridiculously awesome abs. But I'm glad I tried it now.

The workout, led by celebrity trainer Tracy Effinger, is tough. You use weights for your upper body, and for all moves, the focus is on lighter weight and lots of reps. By the end of a set, though, trust me -- no weight feels light.

The DVD is 80 minutes long and split into Upper Body & Waist Squeeze (39 minutes) and Lower Body & Abs Squeeze (43 minutes). I did the whole thing at once, but would recommend doing them on consecutive days because, well, did I mention it's tough?

While the actual moves take up very little space, you do need a bit of equipment: One or two sets of dumbbells (1 to 8 pounds or more), small rubber ball or firm pillow and a broomstick or SQUEEZE stick -- all of these items are listed on the cover. You also need a chair, and I would recommend a soft mat or thin pillow for some of the floor work.

Photo: Paramount Home Entertainment

Let me begin with a disclaimer -- I love "So You Think You Can Dance." I even called in to vote once in Season 2 (big deal for me -- I never do that). When I heard they were releasing "So You Think You Can Dance: Get Fit" fitness DVDs, I was thrilled. I recognized the names of all the dancers involved, and the geeky fan in me couldn't wait to dance with some of my favorite contestants.

There are two DVDs in the series. There's Tone and Groove, featuring Twitch on hip-hop, jazz with Katee and Dmitry teaching the cha-cha. Then, you have Cardio Funk, starring Lauren in a hip-hop routine, contemporary with Travis and disco with Courtney. Each video features a lengthy warm-up and plenty of well-cued instruction for each dance. You have the option, once you've learned the dances, to skip the instruction and go straight into the dance -- a good thing, since Tone and Groove is 109 minutes and Cardio Funk is 116 minutes long.

The dancers are fit, for sure, and they're great at what they do. But does that mean you'll be able to dance like a pro at the end? And, more important, does it give you a good workout? I tried them out for you, and can give you all the answers.

Photo: Paramount Home Entertainment

"So You Think You Can Dance" might be nearing this season's end, but with that comes good news -- you have a chance to win copies of the two new "So You Think You Can Dance: Get Fit" workout DVDs!

Some of your favorite contestants from past years lead fitness-based dance routines, so you can sweat it up with Twitch, Katee, Travis and more. And entering is a cinch -- you just have to go to the original giveaway (not here!) and leave a comment about your favorite kind of dance.

So you think you can win? You'd better hurry -- the giveaway ends at 5:00 p.m. ET on Thursday. Go enter now!

Photo: Paramount Home Entertainment

It's no accident that many of the contestants on "So You Think You Can Dance" look fit and fabulous -- they work hard for those bodies. Now, six of the most popular contestants have put together two workout DVDs. And you have a chance to win one of each!

The two DVDs are "So You Think You Can Dance Get Fit: Tone and Groove" and "So You Think You Can Dance Get Fit: Cardio Funk." "Tone and Groove" stars Stephen "Twitch" Boss doing Hip Hop, Dmitry Chaplin in the Cha Cha and Katee Shean doing Jazz.



"Cardio Funk" lets you sweat with Courtney Galiano doing Disco, Travis Wall in Contemporary and Lauren Gottlieb dancing Hip Hop.



The DVDs also feature interviews with the cast and a breakdown of the steps. Any fan of the show (or fan of dance, for that matter) is sure to enjoy this workout, and now, five lucky That's Fit readers will have a chance to win both of these DVDs!

• To enter, leave a confirmed comment below telling what kind of dance you love to either watch or do.
  
• The comment must be left before 5 p.m. ET on Thursday, August 6, 2009.
  
• You may enter only once.
• Five winners will be selected in a random drawing.
  
• Five winners will receive a copy of "So You Think You Can Dance Get Fit: Tone and Groove" and "So You Think You Can Dance Get Fit: Cardio Funk" (valued at $33.98).
  
• Open to legal residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older.
• Click here for complete Official Rules. Winners will be notified by email, so make sure to check next week to find out if you've won!

Who doesn't love Bollywood dancing? It's energetic, it's beautiful, and it's fun! And although I wasn't completely satisfied with the last Bollywood-inspired workout I did, I was excited to try Bollywood Booty, featuring fitness star and yogini Hemalayaa.

The video is beautifully shot, and Hemalayaa makes all of the moves look easy and natural. She has two other women dancing with her who also do a great job. And, some of the moves are guaranteed to get you giggling, which is part of the point -- throughout the 45-minute workout, you're constantly reminded to smile and enjoy yourself.

If you've watched much Bollywood dancing, you'll definitely appreciate learning some of the names of the hand and arm movements -- seeing those broken down definitely makes the whole style much more approachable. But is the video worth your hard-earned money?

Devotees of yoga are often divided into two schools -- those who practice for the physical benefit, and those who practice for the spiritual/mental aspect. While I like what yoga does for my body, I definitely fall more into the latter group. Yoga provides a peace of mind that just isn't matched by most other forms of exercise.

Element: Am and PM Yoga for Beginners is right up my alley. It focuses strongly on the mind while giving good instruction on how to move the body.

But, is it the best choice for someone new to yoga? I tried it out and am happy to report my findings!

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One of my favorite shows, "So You Think You Can Dance," is in full swing, which gets me itching to dance. Dance off the Inches: Dance It off Ballroom is the perfect opportunity to do it -- it's a dance video that aims to work your muscles and help you work up a sweat!

Photo: amazon.com

The video has four sections. First, there's a Step Guide to get you familiar with the footwork. Then, you go through the cha cha, samba and jive. Ballroom dancer Kristina Milova takes you through a short routine in each style, and while she makes all the moves look intricate and professional, the truth is, they're easy to follow.

Over all, you're learning just 10 steps. Using these, you'll burn calories while improving your dance skills. But is it enough of a workout to be worth your time?

I'm always skeptical when a workout video claims to be "for everyone." I mean, how many workouts have ever left you thinking, "Boy, I bet my mom, best friend and little nephew would all enjoy this"? I'll be honest -- it really doesn't happen often for me. Not at all.

And that's why Jeanette Jenkins Cardio Dance was really a pleasant surprise. The video begins with Jeanette introducing herself, and then all of the other participants do a short intro as well -- boy howdy, is there a variety! Women of all shapes are included, from very full-figured to super fit and trim. There's a pregnant woman, a grandmother, and even a couple of kids involved, including a young boy who is the most entertaining person I've ever seen on a workout video. And everybody was able to keep up and have fun!

I like Jeanette's personal story, too. She grew up in public housing in Canada, and fitness was what kept her focused and out of trouble. She's gone on to found her own company, write a book, release numerous fitness DVDs and work with celebrities and pro athletes such as Queen Latifah, Kimora Lee Simmons, Christina Applegate, Taryn Manning, Ian Ziering, Jordana Brewster, Tom Arnold, NFL's Ty Law and Brian Cox.

Like most in the fitness industry, I'm pretty familiar with Jillian Michaels. I know she's tough and no-nonsense, and she gets results. What I wasn't sure about was how well that would translate to a DVD, but I had a chance to find out when I got a copy of two of her workouts --"Jillian Michaels: Banish Fat, Boost Metabolism" and "No More Trouble Zones."

I mean, think about it. On "The Biggest Loser," she pushes obese, out-of-shape people to the puking point, but she's there and able to read their responses. On a video, obviously, she can't, so I was very curious to see whether she would still be tough as nails.

As it turned out, the videos provide a good workout, but they weren't ruthless. It wasn't quite like I imagine a workout with Jillian in person would be. And, "Banish Fat, Boost Metabolism" didn't require any equipment, while "No More Trouble Zones" required only light weights -- that's always a plus to me.

We all want a strong, slim, sexy stomach, but seriously, I don't know anyone who really enjoys getting on the floor and doing a zillion crunches. The results are great, of course, but there are other ways -- more enjoyable ways -- to get a fabulous core. Like, say, with the Core Rhythms DVDs. I mean, dancing seems to work on the contestants of "Dancing With the Stars," so why wouldn't it work for you, right?

I've talked about this at-home workout before -- I really enjoyed it. It makes me feel sexy and gets me sweaty, both of which get major points for a dance-based workout in my book. Some of the moves are tough, but there are lots of help options, so anyone can do it. And now, you get your chance -- four lucky That's Fit readers have a chance to win the Core Rhythms Dance Exercise Program Starter Pack, which consists of four discs: Full Workout, Quick Workout, Latin Dance Made Easy and Kick Start.

Entering is easy -- here's how:

• To enter, leave a confirmed comment below telling us about your favorite song to dance to.
  
• The comment must be left before 5pm ET on Friday, March 20, 2009.
  
• You may enter only once.
• Four winners will be selected in a random drawing.
  
• Four winners will receive the Core Rhythms Dance Exercise Program Starter Pack ( valued at $39.99).
• Open to legal residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older.

Click here for complete Official Rules.

Winners will be notified by email, so make sure to check next week to find out if you've won!

When I first received the 10 Minute Solution Kettlebell Ultimate Fat Burner DVD to review, I had two reservations. First, anything that promises a 10 minute solution gets my hackles up -- I mean, how much can one really accomplish in 10 minutes? And, second, I had never worked with kettlebells, and was kind of skeptical about a DVD requiring equipment that I'd never even used.

Those two concerns turned out to be moot. As far as the 10 minute issue goes, you can rest assured that the workout is far longer than 10 minutes -- it's made up of five 10-minute segments focusing on different parts of the body, although, most things you do using a kettlebell work your full body. The different segments (which all have a short warm up and cool down) actually worked out really well for me -- I did this on a really busy day, and it was convenient to do 10 or 20 minutes at a time.

To do this video, all you actually need is a dumbbell -- the instructor herself uses a dumbbell, but gives instructions for using either that or a kettlebell, so you can use whichever is handy for you.

And, actually, I did more than talk to them about the DVDs -- I tried them out! Currently, the two available are Boot Camp: A Fat-Blasting, Body-Altering, Butt Kicking Workout and Body: Sculpting Sessions to Tone and Define the Abs, Legs, Arms and Butt. I did them both, and seriously, I can see why Rory and Kim are not only thin, but toned -- these workout videos don't mess around!

First, I did the Body DVD, which has four 20-minute sections -- Ab Blast, Leg Shred, Arm Hell, and Butt Burn. However, while each section definitely worked the appropriate parts, it wasn't like lifting a weight over and over. You move quickly from one move to another, and many of the moves incorporated multiple muscle groups, which I'm always in favor of doing.

Kim Kardashian's main squeeze might be professional football player, Reggie Bush, but this year, she wasn't even watching the Super Bowl. Nope, instead of vegging out and stuffing her face with all kinds of delicious scrumptious diet-unfriendly football foods, Kim was working out.

It wasn't just a regular old workout, of course -- she was shooting a workout DVD. The shoot was planned long before anyone was aware that February 1 was the Super Bowl, and while Kim didn't want to miss the big game, she felt shooting the video was more important.

Kim explained why shooting this video meant so much to her, saying, "For young girls to see exercise videos that have only skinny girls ... well, that's something they can't attain. I want this to be something that can be realistic for most girls." The video will be geared toward curvier women, showing them how to tone up and stay in shape. And, while I applaud Kim for wanting to promote a good body image, I'm very curious to see how her workout differs from the "skinny girl" workouts. Aren't you?

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Got a big ol' boulder of salt handy? Good -- take this news with it. Star magazine is reporting that Kevin Federline is looking to join Dancing With the Stars.

Now, he was a backup dancer at one point, so he might actually be pretty good on the show. And the contestants tend to drop a lot of weight -- something he could really stand to do. However, there's one problem -- aren't you supposed to actually be, you know, a star?

Sounds like that workout DVD isn't working out, but let's hope K-Fed starts working out anyway. Rumor has it he'll be following his ex, Britney, while she's on tour, so perhaps her rockin' new bod will inspire him to bust a move of his own. Even if he's not being filmed or getting paid to do it.


We don't all have the opportunity to lose weight on a TV show, but if you're hoping to shrink a size, click on the badge below for a little help!

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Probably you've heard of the bestselling book Skinny Bitch -- written by Rory Freedman and Kim Barmouin, it came out a few years ago and definitely got people talking. It's not just a book about diet and weight-loss -- it's a book about veganism and the horrors of the meat industry. It got a big push when Victoria Beckham was spotted holding a copy.

Well, being a Skinny Bitch isn't just about eating well -- it's about being active, too. Kim and Rory know this, and they want to help everyone get a little more active. Well, actually, a lot. They've filmed three fitness DVDs, two of which are available now, and one that won't be available for a couple more months.

Oh, and did I mention I had a chance to talk to both of them? I found out how these bitches (who, actually, are surprisingly unbitchy) stay fit. We chatted about their new DVDs, some of their favorite workouts, and facing challenges. Check out the gallery to see what they had to say! And, be sure to check back to hear more about Skinny Bitch fitness and for the girls' tips on going vegan.