Workout With Mommy & Me

I was given this video when my daughter (now 7) was about 4 because I wanted to work out, possibly with the kids so that they wouldn't keep interrupting the workout. I discovered a small problem when I first tried to do this video: I'm not into playing pretend any more. I felt rather foolish doing some of the moves, like flying like an airplane around the room, and pretending to make myself into a sandwich. Basically, I did it three or four times with the kids watching me (to see if I was really going to do it), and gave up. It is a very cute video (kind of like Romper Room, I guess. It's been a while since I've seen Romper Room for comparison..), and some of the exercises are genuine (I seem to recall straight leg sit-ups), but you'd have to really get into it to get any cardiovascular benefit. All in all, it's a neat concept, but it just doesn't work for some people. If you're self-conscious, I'd try something else. If you still like to put your hands above your head and pretend you're a giraffe eating leaves in the trees, it's a great way to get some quality time in with the kids and get some exercise at the same time.

I bought this tape because I wanted to expose my kids to different types of exercise, and I wanted something else that I could do with them. This tapes is for moms and very young children. The box says for ages 3 and up, but I think that the appropriate age range would be more like 2-5. This is a "workout" to a story: you travel through a make-believe jungle, under the sea, paint rainbows, dance on the moon, blast off like a rocket, and do other imaginary things. This is all in search of a special elephant. There are songs, counting to 10 in different languages, learning about different continents and the ocean. The "exercises" are running, jumping, "flying" your child in the air, abdominal crunches and roll-ups, and the like. Background graphics are inserted (animated ocean, outer space, jungle, etc.). The instructor's form is not wonderful, but I'm sure as you and your children do this tape there will be a lot of modification and "doing your own thing" going on! This tape drives me mildly nuts, but my kids (2 and 5) LOVE it! My son (5) begs me to do it with him often! I asked him why he liked the tape so much, and he said, "Because it's something I get to do with my Mommy." And after all, I guess that's the purpose of this video!