Debbie Siebers' Slim in 6

Preface: I had purchased and use the original Slim in 6 about 13 years ago after a bad breakout that I had eaten my way through. Suddenly, I was 35# overweight and I figured this was a good a shot as any. I stayed with it and got back to my original weight and then a bit even below that. >>FFWD to 3 weeks ago... after several moves across the country for my company with new roles each time and getting rundown and sick several times, I have put those 35# + 10# on --- 45# past where I need to be. That seems huge. It is :/ I looked through all the DVDs I had on Insanity (I barely got through the fitness test when I WAS in shape), PX90 (I couldn't keep up) and a bunch of others. Then I remembered Slim in 6 and found it online and got it the next day.Today: I'm 10 days in and glad I went this direction, again. It's not flashy and fast with bass pumping and a crowd behind an instructor screaming and panting and falling over. It's Debbie Siebers and just 2 other people behind her and it's what I need right now. This wasn't the original version I had used, prior... they've upped it with some new tricks and combine moves in new ways that I give them credit for it being more challenging and effective. The idea is to do each of the 3 DVDs for 2 weeks then the next. I surprised myself by going to the 2nd DVD after the first week because I felt I was ready, or at least to give it a shot and if it was too much I could always stick with the 1st - but I'm 3 days into the 2nd DVD.What I really like is how they change-out what you are working and how you are working into sections, and how they give you small breaks where you aren't stopping but you can still recoop a bit to go on to the next big set of moves. It's tough but it's also light and Debbie throws out joking comments at times that make this different that intense hard-core DVDs that have you crying and collapsing every 5 minutes. That said, this is a stepping-stone for me --- I plan down the road to try Insanity again and maybe even PX90, but this is the means for me to get back on track at a pace and in a way I feel good about and know I won't hurt myself doing. I feel accomplished and able to still move when I'm done, and they really do put a lot of thought and science behind how these workouts are setup because I DO see that I'm doing more and lasting longer each time I do them. You see your own progress daily if you stick with this.The one CON that so many reviews mention and I agree with - the resistance bands are absolutely cr@p LOL But I didn't buy this for the bands, I bought it for the program on the DVDs. Short-term fix: I pull the bands out of the clips and reset them before each time I workout. They seem to hold for at least a whole workout most of the time. Long-term: if you plan to do this ongoing and not just 6 weeks, invest in better resistance bands, or these will really make you crazy snapping out of the clips during your workouts over and over LOLTop Tips:- Sit down and watch each of the 3 sections as you're ready for them. I watched the first all the way through before I started. I wanted to know what I was getting into and what to expect and roughly how long each section was and what I'd be doing. It was much easier mentally that way than being surprised and overextending myself.- If you have to stop, hit PAUSE, don't just let them keep going without you. I found that when I do this I build up endurance much faster. Sure it takes longer than the actual run-time of the DVD, but I think it's 100% worth it.- Absolutely do the stretches! What's not sore today will definitely be sore tomorrow and even moreso the day after! I'll be 100% honest and say that while I can complete the exercise portion of the 2nd DVD with about 5-6 pauses to catch my breath and let my muscles rest a moment, when I get to the end I'm too wiped to do the 6-7 minutes of stretches and yoga moves (holding a Proud Warrior pose after 45+ minutes of pushing myself is something I just can't do yet). SO--- I do the first minute or so of stretches that are laying on the floor and I hit PAUSE, and I give myself however long I want - 15, 20 minutes even - and then I do those stretches. I don't start to do something else and get sidetracked - I make sure I do those stretches because they will save you a ton of sore and also help you build-up to keep moving forward.- Set how many days you will do this and can stick to, realistically. My desire was 6 days a week, but I promised myself I would do 4 and would hold myself to that no matter what. I managed to do 5 last week and instead of feeling discouraged like I had let myself down, I felt good because I had done 1 more than I had set realistically for myself. Because long-term commitment and believing in yourself is what gets this done and gets you through every workout.- Calculate your calories out, especially proteins. The first time I did this I lost a lot of weight FAST - this program does what it says it will if you stick with it, but I wound up with some loose skin (not a ton, but no one wants loose skin) because I was cutting my calories too low to lose too much in a way my body couldn't keep up with. I was lucky and as I increased my calories and added heavy weight into my regime, that the loose skin filled in over time. No regrets but I learned first-hand what trainers mean when they talk about saying to not calorie-starve yourself to lose weight when working out. Depending on your goals and how your body is, maybe none of this applies to you, but I felt it worth sharing.This isn't the program I will be doing months from now, but it's the program that will get me to the other programs I want to do- and it's an amazing and potent stepping-stone to get off the sofa and back into being fit.

I have been on the hunt for a new (to me) low-impact workout. I already have many different workout programs from both The Firm and Beachbody. When I saw video clips of the Slim in 6 program, I decided to give it a try.When it arrived, I "previewed" the workouts to see what they were like and what I was in for. What I saw, I liked! There are three DVDs: Start It Up! (approximately 25 minutes), Ramp It Up! (approximately 50 minutes) and Burn It Up! (approximately 60 minutes) On each DVD, they have additional workouts: Slim & Limber (approximately 15 minutes) and Slim & 6-Pack (approximately 10 minutes). On the Start It Up! DVD, there are two "bonus workouts": Thin Thighs Guaranteed (approximately 10 minutes) and Cardio Core Express (approximately 30 minutes). It also comes with a resistance band.Debbie Siebers is a wonderful instructor. She offers positive encouragement all throughout the workouts. She does transition through to the next move rather quickly, though. There isn't a whole lot of time to have "What the heck have I gotten myself into?!" moments. Even though the transitions are quick, they are easy to follow along with.I like that she takes time really ensure you are warmed up before beginning the workout and takes the time to ensure you cool down at the end. All the workouts no-impact to low-impact. This is perfect for someone like me who has issues with the jumping in many workout videos.There is no modifier in any of the workouts. There are not too many moves which would need a modifier. If you have balance issues, I recommend keeping a chair nearby to help keep balance.The resistance band may look all sweet and innocent . . . But it isn't! I found myself A LOT more sore using the band than I do when I use hand weights. It will definitely help toward achieving the results I want.Before beginning this workout program, I highly stress "previewing" the entire workout to see if there are any movements you may need to have modifications for. It was the first thing I did because I have low back issues. If I needed to modify something, I wanted to know which moves and then research how to modify them.The movements in all of the workouts are very familiar. I have performed many with the FIRM workout programs and Beachbody programs. So for me, there were no unfamiliar moves.The way the program is set up is you do the Start It Up! workout for two weeks. The second two weeks will be Ramp it Up! The last two weeks will be Burn It Up! However, that schedule is not set in stone. You can do any of them for longer periods of time, if you want.This has entered my list of Favorites, that's for sure!