Workouts for Women

This is an excellent book for beginners who want to exercise, but don't know where to start. Joni provides 10 easy-to-follow circuit workouts, each combining cardio and strength training moves for the entire body.

Joni's done it again. With her website (www.workoutsforwomen.com) she brought online training to women all over the world. With her book, 'Workouts for Women: Circuit Shaping' she offers the workouts from her website in book form. In Part 1, Joni explains the basics of circuit training (combining both strength and cardio exercises together) as well as the basics to starting an exercise program. She emphasizes the importance of strength training, especially for women. Part 2 contains the circuits--10 different circuit workouts that are about 12 minutes long and include a warm up exercise (such as side steps) followed by 9 strength training moves using dumbbells, ankle weights and/or a step or chair. Each exercise is demonstrated and she also provides instructions on technique and form. Exercisers can do each circuit one or more times, depending on fitness level and exercise time. Each circuit offers different exercises from squats and pushups to lateral raises and lunges. The section ends with a thorough stretching routine with pictures and instructions. The last section covers healthy eating and includes a 3-day mini-meal plan, emphasizing the benefits of eating several small meals throughout the day. Most of the recipes are simple (e.g., Morning Parfait and Chickpea-Ta Pockets), require little preparation and taste good...my kind of meals. Overall, this is an excellent book for beginners, providing a wide variety of fun, fast workouts.