Healthy Habits: Tracie Long Focus Series

Disclosure: I received complimentary products to facilitate this post. All opinions are my own.

Tracie Long, experienced trainer, has developed a new DVD series - Focus - intended for women over 35. I had a chance to try them out, even though I'm not quite 35 yet, and liked them. I tried out the first three - Lift Higher, Kick Back, and Power Up - and want to share some tips related to these DVDs.

As we age, our metabolism slows down. So it's helpful to do workouts specifically targeted to boosting that metabolism, like Power Up. This DVD contains high-intensity segments with active recovery, and you can do this DVD no matter what your fitness level - you make the easy modifications if the regular workout is too hard. You will need a step and mat, although the workout is also effective without a step and you can use a towel or blanket for a mat. Kickback is also an interval-based workout that needs no equipment.

One thing a lot of women avoid is weight training. That's a shame, because it helps tone the body and increase metabolism. Lift Higher does require "heavy dumbbells" which are fairly inexpensive, a mat, rags, and optional ankle weights, and it's worth investing in a pair of dumbbells because you do get a better workout than you would with just body weight for some muscles.

For many women in their 30s and above, time is also a factor for working out. The beauty of in-home exercise is that it's much more convenient than finding time to go to a gym, or figuring out who's going to watch the kids. Plus, these DVDs run just 30 minutes each, so they're just as easy to squeeze into a day as watching an episode of your favorite sitcom.