By Gabe Sanders PhD, NSCA-CSCS
If you have watched infomercials in the few years, I am sure you are well aware of the abundance of exercise DVDs that are available. The marketers of these exercise DVDs do a great job of selling their products with the promise that if you complete their training regimen, you will have abs of steel and loose all the weight you want. While it is possible you can achieve those results, the questions are, “Will you stick to the regimen since it is a DVD?” and ” Who do you have to keep you accountable?”
Personal trainers give you accountability
One of the most overlooked aspects of personal training is the personal accountability that personal trainers can give you. If you struggle with consistency, you should hire a personal training to help you feel motivated to go workout. Think of this motivation as positive peer pressure that will help you achieve your fitness goals.
A recent study assessed how a group of females responded differently to personal training or exercising with a DVD. The study found that females exercised harder during an exercise session with a personal trainer. They burned more calories and increased their heart rate by nearly 10 beats per minute more than exercising with a DVD. Interestingly, nearly 90% of the females in the study preferred the personal training session to the DVD lead exercise session.
Paying a personal trainer is worth your money to help you stay motivated and accountable. Paying for an exercise DVD system may likely lead to disappointment and money down the drain; because it is difficult to motivate yourself to exercise. At the end of the day, know yourself and what works for you! If DVD exercise works for you, great, buy it. If hiring a personal trainer works, great, go for it. Just be consistent and keep working to improve your health.
Article’s Resources
Killen, LG, Barry, VW, Cooper, C, and Coons, JM. Live vs. digital video disk exercise in college-aged females. J Strength Cond Res 28(12): 3393-3398, 2014