Gold Medal Fitness

Mitch Gaylord

Categories: Circuit Training (cardio and weights)


I picked up this DVD set at a used book sale. My cover says "Melt it Off - 4 Complete Workouts." I had previously owned some of the "Melt it Off" workouts that Mitch Gaylord did with fitness instructor Mindy Mylrea, and I worried that these might be the same, but they are not, they are completely different. Not only is there NO Mindy, but within the workouts themselves, Mitch never refers to "Melt if Off"--instead, he calls these workouts "GMF," short for Gold Medal Fitness, which is emblazoned across the set. Of course, Mitch Gaylord is an Olympic Gold medal winner (for gymnastics), so this name makes sense; I'm just not sure why the disparity with the outer cover of the DVD. The only thing that these workouts do have in common with the other "Melt it Off" set is the use of the "G Ball," a medicine ball. In these workouts, Mitch recommends 4, 6, or 8 lbs., and he sometimes switches it up.

Scott has given some great, very detailed reviews of the workouts on this DVD, so I'll just add my own shorter summary.

The Main Menu for the DVD reads as follows:
o Play All
o Introduction
o Melt in 10 Workout
o Play High Calorie Melt Workout
o Play Cardio Burn and Sculpt Workout
o Play Sizzlin Abs Workout
o Play Together Cardio Burn + Sizzling Abs

For each workout, Mitch is teaching live, and he is joined by two background exercisers. Mitch varies between performing the exercises and moving around the room coaching. See below for brief overviews of each class.

MELT IN 10 WORKOUT
In this sequence, 10 moves are performed in 10 minutes. The introduction that precedes this workout is about 8 1/2 minutes long and explains all of the moves so as not to slow down the routine itself. Some of the moves appear in the other workouts on the DVD as well (e.g., iron cross); they are both strength-focused and cardio-intensive. This workout includes a short warm-up and cool-down.

HIGH CALORIE MELT (AKA CITIUS)
Mitch repeatedly refers to this workout as Citius. I had to figure out that this is part of the Olympic motto (Citius, Altius, Fortius) and means "faster," appropriate for a cardio routine. This 58-minute workout uses the G-ball throughout Mitch is joined by Crystal and Jason, and the three perform three different levels of the exercises--helpfully referred to as Gold, Silver, and Bronze. After a nice gradual aerobic warm-up, the workout is performed in 1-minute of cardio rounds: you'll do 4-5 rounds followed by a core exercise (mostly push-ups), then repeat the cardio rounds. There were about three circuits of this altogether followed by a 4 1/2 minute cool-down-stretch.

BURN AND SCULPT (AKA FORTIUS)
Fortius means "stronger." Although this was the strength routine, it still moved quickly and had a pretty intense cardio component as well. Mitch is jointed by Liz and Sly, again demonstrating three different levels of the routine. The warm-up is similar to the one for the cardio workout, with the option of using the G-ball or not. For the strength portion, the first 16 minutes of the workout focuses entirely on the lower body with moves such as half squats, around the world squats, back lunges, side lunges, and on the floor, hamstring rollouts. Arms work included overhead curls, overhead passes, iron cross, and then a whole series of push-ups to finish, including a plyo push-up option. There was a nice 5-minute stretch, bringing in the total time for this workout at just under 40 minutes (39:58).

SIZZLIN' ABS
Mitch describes this workout as developing core strength without doing situps. It's pretty challenging! Mitch starts with his typical standing warm-up, using the G-ball or not. Moving to the floor with the G-ball, he performs exercises such as in-and-out extensions, tuck-ups, oblique rotations, kayak, scissor switch, and pike ups. Many of these moves are done for a high number of repetitions, making them even more difficult. Mitch concludes this 24-minute minute routine with a short cool-down stretch.

I am a daily exerciser, and I struggled to get through these workouts, mostly at the bronze level! I was using a 4-lb. medicine ball. There are places where you could probably sub a small dumbbell, but having the med ball is preferable. Although these workouts are a bit on the older side now (produced 10 years ago, in 2007), the simple studio setting does not feel overly dated. Mitch is a likeable, encouraging instructor, and I would definitely recommend this DVD to intermediate and above exercisers looking for great workouts with minimal equipment.

Instructor Comments:
As mentioned above, Mitch is extremely likeable. He talks directly to the viewer, encouraging you to put in your best effort while at the same time to choose the level that is right for you. He feels very genuine, which is one of the qualities I like best in an instructor.

Beth C (aka toaster)

06/02/2017