Everyday Systems

I'm decluttering and got a project thrust on me because a woman wanted an old TV I was going to take to a recycling event anyway. I decided to empty the TV cabinet of all its stuff. I won't go into all of it, just the fitness tapes/CD's.

I still had TWENTY-SEVEN VHS tapes, going back to early FIRM tapes. Maybe nobody knows what those are now. Some were still in cellophane. Probably got those at a Ross. And I know I've bought them at thrift shops. What happens to them now? I don't think anyone in the Third World can use them, though there are plenty of people who could "use" them. The last time I went to a thrift store the shelves were already bulging with dusty VHS tapes. That I actually looked at, as if I might buy one!

For DVDS, I have a Turbo Fire series, a 4-volume Zumba set, and the Brazil Butt Lift program, while my butt, as an old housemate used to say, slopes gently from my hips to the back of my knees. I also have 8 different T-Tapp discs. Lastly, 14 other assorted workout discs.

What do I actually DO? Well, this month I started the OneMinuteWorkout and it's grown into adding in a few exercises that match the target muscle group. And I'm walking. I've gone through phases where I almost got to 14-minutes of vigor consistently, usually using free workouts from youtube. Sometimes, I would just play them while I did my own exercises (I do still do many I learned from Tami Lee Webb's I Want That Body). And I do have a set of dumbbells that go up to 20 lbs. I had those long before Shovelglove. In the sprit of making do with what I have, I do NOT have a sledgehammer. I've used the dumbbells to do Shovelglove moves at times.

Boy, is it easy to stop exercising.

If I get to the point at which I work up to using those 20-lb. weights for something consistently, I'll consider joining the $10-a month fitness club in town to be able to work with some heavy weights and maybe a spiffy trainer machine, but what are the odds? If I haven't used them by the end of 2018, (gulp) they have to go.

Robin Williams said that cocaine is God's way of saying you make too much money. All the furniture in my house, besides my bed, probably cost less than $1000, and I still have pots and pans from 1979. But fitness tapes are a kind of cocaine, though not as expensive and there's no prison record.

I have a bungee rebounder that I won't give up yet. And a Gazelle.

No declarations of what I'll do with the DVD's. SOME of them I can let go of right now. But not my series! I'm on break! It could happen!

But not until I figure out how to connect my DVD player to the TV someone gave me. If it works.

Anyone else relate?

Oh, yes, I can relate With me it was diet books. Had a whole bookshelf full of them. I finally got rid of most of them a couple weeks ago and it felt so good, but kind of scary, too.

Oh my goodness, Oolala, I can definitely relate to the fitness VHS/DVD decluttering!

Back in the day, I had dozens upon dozens of workout VHS, DVDs, systems, etc. I did a decluttering years ago (when VHS was still being used frequently), and managed to whittle my collection down. I held on to a few that I felt I would get back to "someday," or ones that had given me decent results. I guess it's more psychological than anything, because since I've been doing my own thing for awhile, I don't ever foresee going back to doing lengthy routines. I've played around with some trial online streaming fitness subscriptions, but always cancel them due to how different my approach to fitness is now.

I belong to a video fitness website where members often trade/rehome VHS and DVDs that they no longer want, so that may be an option for you if you're uncomfortable seeing them gathering dust at the thrift store lol. To do that, you'd have to join, but it's a great forum for exercise ideas.

Not that it matters, but the three series I have I got used. I did drink The Firm poison back before the internet, so they had a lock on our desires for slimness without a lot of bouncing around. Those tapes were $40-50 a pop to start. I got one for Christmas, another copied (but not sold) from a friend, and the rest as they ended up in stores on discount. It was so amazing to me that what had originally been so expensive became so cheap that I kept buying. Not so cheap when I didn't use them!

I did actually use a core of them consistently at various times, and they can be fun, especially the dance-y ones. You can hear the hope, canchya!

Not a new story at all, I know.

I checked out the video site but haven't looked closely at the exchange feature. I might also offer them on my Nextdoor site and on the local Buy Nothing. Sometimes you can't even give them away!

LOL! You might be able to sell the DVD's on Ebay. Sell them together as a "lot" to make it worth your time.

(Do you still use the T-tapp ones? I'm curious what you have, LOL! I only do the Basic which I really find helps me with back issues.)

I get intimidated pretty easily by the thought of using something like eBay to sell stuff. I do have a few I looked up on eBay and I think I should be able to get a few bucks for them locally. But if no one takes them, I might look into it.

So many T-Tapp discs! and so expensive! A few hundred dollars, I'm sure. I'm still keeping them. I think I was dreaming of it working fantastically and my turning it into a sideline career. Boy, it is expensive to do all her trainings, but I didn't see many trainers in SoCal, so I thought I'd have a corner on the market, especially as a post-menopause success story. I went to a trainer for one session in NoCal, and it seems you have to be quite precise if you want the results. It wasn't easy to feel why certain positions were right. I lost motivation. But I want to take a look again. And I'm off this semester so it could happen! But not to be a trainer.

I have one VHS (I must have gotten that used) called Weighted Shoe Workout. Doesn't that sound graceful?

Discs: Yes you can instructional seminar
Instructional 1 Basic Workout and 2 Total Workout: Beginner\/Rehab (and that one on audio CD, too)
TWO copies of 55-minute Total Workout instructional workout #2
Step It to the Max Core Cardio
Tempo 2 (without instruction)
Hit the Floor LowerBody Workout

Audio CD Total Workout

If I change my mind, I might offer those locally as a set. Thanks for mentioning that.

Just had someone respond to an offer of my 29 free VHS tapes. She said she has a friend who uses VHS. I know on that site some people resell things, but more power to them, even though it is nice to think neighbors could get use out of them. But if they're more enterprising than I am, so be it.

Wow, you're ambitious to even think about being a trainer! I do know a gal local to here who was working towards becoming a trainer--yes, a lot of work! Me, I know my limits. I tried the TWO once or twice, but yeah...not my thang! BWO is right up my alley! I focused on learning that one really well (and hey, it fits right in with being about 14 minutes, LOL!) I like that it's really a "thinking" workout where you have to focus on what you are doing (every move is designed to engage at least 5 muscle groups--it's easy to feel like you aren't doing anything if you miss some of them).

Oolala, I am very curious about the Weighted Shoe Workout. It sounds like a sort of modernised clog dancing. 😉 sadly I threw away my old videos (I did accumulate quite a few) but I used to quite enjoy doing Callanetics, which was very calming, and i think it did make a difference to my core strength. The video was slightly hilarious though, with close-ups of Lycra-clad bods doing the Pelvic Scoop. (And ‘the marvellous Pelvic Rotations’, as Callan introduced them with heavy irony).

I’m very fussy about music and for that reason, enjoyed Cher’s aerobic dance workout - they did it with a smokin’ live band playing funky rock. Outfits were mad and Cher’s posse were terrifying.

I did these tapes sporadically for a couple of decades, I reckon. Did they do me any good? Was there any point? Maybe I became slightly less unfit than I would have been otherwise.

I still do Callan’s stomach crunches. They work. I don’t think aerobics help me much, but occasionally I can detect an extra grain or two of energy afterwards. Maybe I should start again....hey, Oolala, you have inspired me. I’m now seriously considering getting out my few DVDs. They are fun and better than lounging on the bed eating a chocolate bunny, as I am doing now. 😊 I have really lapsed exercise-wise, and it’s time to get back to it.

Great news that someone is interested in buying those videos!

Oolala, I am very curious about the Weighted Shoe Workout. It sounds like a sort of modernised clog dancing. 😉 sadly I threw away my old videos (I did accumulate quite a few) but I used to quite enjoy doing Callanetics, which was very calming, and i think it did make a difference to my core strength. The video was slightly hilarious though, with close-ups of Lycra-clad bods doing the Pelvic Scoop. (And ‘the marvellous Pelvic Rotations’, as Callan introduced them with heavy irony).

I’m very fussy about music and for that reason, enjoyed Cher’s aerobic dance workout - they did it with a smokin’ live band playing funky rock. Outfits were mad and Cher’s posse were terrifying.

I did these tapes sporadically for a couple of decades, I reckon. Did they do me any good? Was there any point? Maybe I became slightly less unfit than I would have been otherwise.

I still do Callan’s stomach crunches. They work. I don’t think aerobics help me much, but occasionally I can detect an extra grain or two of energy afterwards. Maybe I should start again....hey, Oolala, you have inspired me. I’m now seriously considering getting out my few DVDs. They are fun and better than lounging on the bed eating a chocolate bunny, as I am doing now. 😊 I have really lapsed exercise-wise, and it’s time to get back to it.

Great news that someone is interested in buying those videos!

Octavia wrote: I still do Callan’s stomach crunches. They work.

Are they different from regular stomach crunches?

I think no exercise is wasted and is good for the body (healthy for the heart etc...), so I vote it wasn't wasted!

I think I never even did the Weighted Shoe workout. However, true mild hoarder than I am, I didn't give that one away, even though I have no idea if my video player- I found that I DO have one- still works. And just today I found out that I don't even know how to turn on the [used] flat TV that someone gave me five months ago. I can't remember getting a remote for it, and haven't found one. These things can stop me dead in my tracks. I can't even play the DVD's now! I was actually feeling like I could look at and do at least 15 minutes of a DVD every day. It would take me a few months to go through them all, but it's the principality of the thing!

In the mean time, there were two empty drawers in that TV cabinet. The DVD's and a few VHS tapes I kept (let's not go there) and a bunch of CD's I found are sleeping in there now. Some would say that that's a setback, but there is still so much room in the drawers that I feel victorious! I'm hoping to love the extra space enough that I won't now think I can fill it up. Kind of like gaps between meals.

My friend Amy was in the Firm videos! I think that's the one. I never did them.

I have a few, none on VHS still, but I never use even the DVDs anymore. 30 day shred, that Israeli guy who did the step videos, a runner's yoga one. I prefer to do them on youtube now to keep it fresh.

I like the 30 day shred workout, but hate Jillian Michael's running commentary about your body. What made me aware of it was doing it while my daughter was watching. I realized that I did not want to expose her to that when she asked questions like, "Why would she not want to put on her bathing suit?" as a little toddler. Yes, why indeed.

P.S. Amy said that when she was in the Firm, paradoxically, it was the "healthiest" she ever was in her life, and the most insecure.

I don't doubt that insecurity in the least. How could you not be when everything revolves around fitting such a perky, delighted, and thin image? When it's likely you worry about every mouthful of food, not because you're casually feeling whether it's just going to make you a little too full, but rather that it might show up on the scale or in your reflection of you in your leotard, which are what obviously determine whether you are worthy to be approved of?

Ah, one of my soapboxes...

And I have to admit that when a video used a variety of body sizes, I would find myself thinking, my gosh, if that chunky woman can work this hard, how and she still be so chunky? Secretly thinking what a terrible deal it would be. That attitude can ruin a lot of women's chance at a lot of fun and pep in life.

LOL! I've been MIA for a while, but when I read this I had to chime in.

Oolala, I'll see your Firm tapes and Zumba DVDs and raise you a Sweatin' to the Oldies tape and a couple of Buns of Steel tapes!

Omg, I have all those and more. Denise Austin, Callanetics, everything Jane Fonda, and that thing where you breathe and make funny faces. (Just went and googled it...Greer Childers' Body Flex.)

And here's something scary...about a year ago I went on Amazon and tried to buy T-Tapp and it said "You purchased this item on..." I already had the DVDs and was trying to buy them again.

Flashback....anybody else remember the "20 Minute Workout" on tv?

Bess Motta!

Oh, Buns of Steel and Callanetics were in there. (A friend of mine here somehow got to know Callan Pinckney, though she was based in New York, I think. She died quite young, in her early 60s.) I had Simmons long ago, but moved on. Did I say somewhere that I actually do many of the moves I learned in one of Tamilee Webb's other videos as alternatives to Shovelglove moves? It was I Want That Body! She was one of the subjects of researchers at San Diego State U (virtually down the street from me) testing the most effective moves for certain muscles. And yes, 36 hours later, I feel those muscles!

And I had Childer's, too! What a nice dream that one was.

That's hilarious that you went to buy something you already had. (Is it the same thing that I was planning to go buy a heavy duty flashlight and a week ago discovered in a box of papers that had been sitting outside under an overhang above my dryer for two years just such a flashlight still in its packaging? And have since misplaced it again?)

LifeisaBlessing wrote:Bess Motta!

Omg, yes...Bess Motta! Love that big 80's hair.

I'd forgotten Tamilee Webb. My first Buns of Steel workout was led by a very laid back guy with a beard, lol. (Ok...google says he was Greg Smithey.)

And I'm glad to know I'm not the only one trying to buy things I already have. Thank God for that feature on Amazon.

Wow, this thread has brought back memories! I had tons of VHS workout tapes - the ones I remember the most are Jane Fonda, Cher and this weird step tape where the participants were all serious and hard-core - they looked as if they were going off to war instead of doing a step class. Oh, and I had a couple Denise Austin tapes. Cher's tapes were pretty entertaining with all the wild outfits.

I also remember an early morning TV workout (might've been the 20-min. workout someone else mentioned). It was on really early and I did it pretty consistently.

I remember hearing a lot about T-Tapp but never knew what exactly it was.

You all can stop being embarrassed about your DVD/VHS workout collections, because I am sure I have you all beat. And yes, there are plenty still in their plastic wrap.

At least I started working out again this week so some of them are visiting the inside of my DVD player and fulfilling their life's purpose again.

I wonder if the hard core ones are Cathe Frederick. She is still going strong. And yes, I have one.

TunaFishKid wrote: Flashback....anybody else remember the "20 Minute Workout" on tv?

Did them every day! "They" said, if you have been jogging or exercising regularly before you became pregnant, you can continue doing so all through-out your pregnancy. And I did, but my now defunct innards are not thanking me.

noni wrote:

TunaFishKid wrote: Flashback....anybody else remember the "20 Minute Workout" on tv?

Did them every day! "They" said, if you have been jogging or exercising regularly before you became pregnant, you can continue doing so all through-out your pregnancy. And I did, but my now defunct innards are not thanking me.

Well, if it makes you feel any better, my now defunct innards are not so happy, either, and I never did more than a brisk walk during my pregnancies, lol.

"TunaFishKid" said:

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, my now defunct innards are not so happy, either, and I never did more than a brisk walk during my pregnancies, lol."

Well, actually, it kind of does! Not that you have that problem, Tuna, but that it may have happened to me anyway, so now I can stop beating myself up.

And we thank you for the sympathy, Oolala!

noni wrote:"TunaFishKid" said:

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, my now defunct innards are not so happy, either, and I never did more than a brisk walk during my pregnancies, lol."

Well, actually, it kind of does! Not that you have that problem, Tuna, but that it may have happened to me anyway, so now I can stop beating myself up.

And we thank you for the sympathy, Oolala!

Good! Glad I could help.

My wife still uses Buns of Steel.

Lucky you, Over43.

When that video was popular, there was a scene on the old Ellen Degeneres sitcom in which Ellen was on the floor in workout clothes being browbeat by someone to exercise. Ellen said something like that she didn't care about buns of steel. All she could think about was buns of cinnamon.

Oh, that reptilian brain.

And some of us have bottoms that might be improved by looking like a bun of cinnamon.

Going now to put cinnamon in my coffee.