I adore you, my dear readers and because of this I sacrificed myself to try out a stack of workout DVDs. Then, I dissected them (not literally), and came back here to rate them once I’d scraped myself off the floor. I’ve listed my favorites, the most worthy of your money, time, and sweat. The top 3 DVDs in this listing have all earned their very own awards, as well…

And, now …without further ado, I present to you…. (drum roll)

The BEST OF… Pregnancy Workout DVDs for 2008!

DVD TITLE AND INFO: LEISA HART’S FITMAMA PRENATAL WORKOUT
PRICE: $19.95
EXTRA EQUIPMENT NEEDED: Atheletic shoes, a yoga sticky mat or carpet, towel or exercise band, pillow, special ball by Leisa Hart (optional, $19.95)
FAST VS SLOW EXERCISES OFFERED: Choose from a Salsa workout or Yoga workout or do both!
VARIATIONS PER TRIMESTER OFFERED? Yes
TYPES OF EXERCISES: Dance (salsa) and Yoga
GOOD FOR BEGINNER EXERCISERS OR ONLY INTERMEDIATE/PRO? This video is great for all levels of exercisers. Try the yoga if you haven’t previously been exercising and then work up to the salsa, and finally do both.
FUN FACTOR: 9 – Exercise and learn to salsa (safely) all in one!
EXTRAS OFFERED (labor/delivery prep, etc): Labor and delivery prep

OVERALL RATING AND COMMENTS: 9 – I absolutely love that you can choose whether you’d like to do a faster paced workout or a slower one, because not all of us can afford a different DVD or gym class as our energy levels shift like crazy (although mine mostly seems to be shifting downward, these days). The added touch of a workout turned into a salsa dance is also lots of fun because you barely feel like you’re exercising. I know there’s probably a lot of you who LOVE to exercise and those big machines in the gym just make you giddy, but they just make me hungry for donuts. Sad, but true and I adore exercising that doesn’t look like boring exercise. Plus, who doesn’t feel a little sexier when they can show off their new salsa skills they learned later on?

BUY HERE.

DVD TITLE : FITBALL GREAT EXPECTATIONS PREGNANCY PROGRAM BY LISA WESTLAKE
PRICE: $19.95
EXTRA EQUIPMENT NEEDED: Exercise ball – use your own or buy a FitBall
FAST VS SLOW EXERCISES OFFERED: All slow movements
VARIATIONS PER TRIMESTER: yes
TYPES OF EXERCISES: All fitball/exercise ball related. Weight, cardio, relaxation, stretch.
GOOD FOR BEGINNER EXERCISERS OR ONLY INTERMEDIATE/PRO? Great for all
FUN FACTOR: 7 – This is great for women who like a nice, gentle (but effective) workout.

OVERALL RATING AND COMMENTS: 8 – While some of the workout DVDs I’ve seen that were designed for pregnant women have left me wondering whether the makers were ever pregnant at all, this particular DVD made me feel sure that I wasn’t the only tired and sick one out there. And, while I’m sure many pregnant women have energy levels soaring out the roof, jostling exercises put me on the floor – or, at the very least my stomach. This workout is a great one if you want something slow but effective.

BUY HERE.

DVD TITLE AND INFO: COMPLETE PREGNANCY FITNESS WITH ERIN O BRIEN -WORKOUTS FOR BEFORE AND AFTER CHILDBIRTH (Pre and post-natal dvds included)
PRICE: $24.99
EXTRA EQUIPMENT NEEDED: Normal house furnishings …or a person. Erin makes very good use of couches/chairs and coffee tables. So, basically unless you are living in a poor frat house, you should be good. If you don’t own a coffee table (or couch), chairs would work just fine. Don’t have a chair? Maybe you should go buy one, you’ll probably need it soon. That, and I don’t believe you.
FAST VS SLOW EXERCISES OFFERED: Most of the exercises range. For example, there are several fast paced exercises that don’t last for long and then transition to slow and back again.
VARIATIONS PER TRIMESTER: No, but Erin is doing these in what looks like her 3rd trimester, which is enough to make you want to giddy up and pull on your big kid pants. HOWEVER, if you ever feel faint and such do remember that you do hold that magical remote control with the pause/stop button.

TYPES OF EXERCISES: It’s mostly a good mix of cardio and some light weight training using your own body weight with things like squats and upright push-ups. It’s very creative.
GOOD FOR BEGINNER EXERCISERS OR ONLY INTERMEDIATE/PRO? If I can do this, so can you.
FUN FACTOR: 7

OVERALL RATING AND COMMENTS: 7.5 This is much faster than the FitBall workouts but still slower than Lindsay Brin’s workout. Mostly, I love the price and the fact that this video is not your average workout video in the way it was filmed (you’ll see). And, you have to love the creativity – while other videos ask you to grab weights or exercise balls, you totally use your furniture in this one. Now, that’s creative. I could do workouts virtually ANYWHERE! I think this video would really be a full out 8 if it could disguise the workout a bit more as something more…like dancing or something of that sort. But, as it is, it comes in close at a 7.5!

PS – If James Denton (plays in Desperate Housewives) makes you swoon…well, he’s her husband and totally makes an appearance in the video a few times. I’ve got your back, girls.

BUY HERE.

DVD TITLE AND INFO: LINDSAY BRIN’S COMPLETE PREGNANCY FITNESS PROGRAM (first, second, third trimester and boot camp 2 cds included)
PRICE: $69.99
EXTRA EQUIPMENT NEEDED: Light and heavy weights (your choice of weights)
FAST VS SLOW EXERCISES OFFERED: Faster
VARIATIONS PER TRIMESTER: Each trimester has a corresponding video
TYPES OF EXERCISES: Aerobics with weight training and yoga
GOOD FOR BEGINNER EXERCISERS OR ONLY INTERMEDIATE/PRO? If you’ve never exercised before getting pregnant or your idea of exercise consists of walking around Walmart, you may want something a bit more suitable.
FUN FACTOR: 7. The exercises do change up a lot, which is a plus. But, no matter how hard you try to convince me – moving so fast that my food is about to come up will never be fun. This chic rocks the workout scene like a freakin’ gladiator. I’m in awe…but, couldn’t keep up.
EXTRAS OFFERED : nutrition, advice, recipes, clothing, etc offered on the website

OVERALL RATING AND COMMENTS: 7. Okay, I need to really explain this rating. Do believe that this girl is GOOD – and while I did have my doubts at first that she’d ever even been pregnant by the intensity of her workouts, turns out she does have a baby girl. So, I’m just a wuss is all. So, for the normal non Hercules sorts that do good to get through the day without falling on the couch, you might want to try her other programs (like the Boot Camp ones) later on…if you ever find that energy. But, I do realize there are also a lot of Wonder-women out there who LOVE their exercising and could probably kick my butt in Tae Bo before I even make a fist…well, this is for you darlings. I do love the fact that these videos really will work your entire body VERY WELL. So, for you exercise freaks who are set on maintaining a very sculpted and beautiful physique, this would totally rate higher for you than it does for those of us who want to pass out after one run on the treadmill.

BUY HERE.

Welcome back!