The concept behind "Pick Your Level: Weight Loss Pilates" is that you can customize your workout by choosing the level which best suits your needs for each and every exercise. This is done through the use of three different exercisers displaying three different levels of difficulty. Instructor Ellen Barrett always does Level 2, the intermediate version, while her two background exercisers show the beginning (Level 1) and more advanced (Level 3) versions.

The workout itself is broken down into three 10-minute segments: Standing Pilates, Side-Lying Pilates, and Pilates Matwork. The standing work is similar to several of Ellen's previous videos (eg, Crunch Burn & Firm Pilates) in that you are doing moves such as plies, leg lifts, standing leg circles, etc. This segment focused mainly on legwork, although the Level 3 modifier added arms movements to increase the intensity. Still, this section felt like light toning at best, and it certain lacked the cardio benefit to produce the "weight loss" promised in the title. The side lying moves are a bit more intense, beginning with a side plank. Some of the exercises here were similar to the Winsor Buns and Thighs video, and I could feel them in my glutes/outer hip. Again, Ellen does the middle level while the two background exercisers show modifications. Unlike in the standing section, however, each new move does not begin until Ellen explains all three levels, which makes for a lot of unnecessary downtime. In the final segment, Pilates matwork, Ellen has her Level 3 modifier add a few twists to traditional Pilates moves, making them more challenging. However, I found this to be a fairly easy matwork sequence which failed to incorporate any of the classic Pilates intermediate and advanced moves. Also, Ellen continued to focus on the lower body here; the abs work was not very intense, and no back work was included.

Overall, I did not enjoy this video. Even following the Level 3 modifier, I found the intensity to be a low intermediate level at best, and so I did not feel like I got much of a workout. Also, as mentioned above, there seemed to be too much down-time while Ellen set up the levels, particularly in the second and third segments; she also spends too much time at the end of each segment just breathing. Similarly, the workout seemed to move at a very slow pace throughout, leaving me bored and eager to finish it. A final issue was that I just did not click with Ellen's perky personality. I do think that this DVD is nicely produced and likely to appeal to some, mainly those who have enjoyed Ellen's prior Pilates videos and who are at a more beginning/low intermediate level in their Pilates work.

Instructor Comments:
After trying several of Ellen's videos, I have come to realize that I simply do not click with her personality. She is perky, although not overly so; there is just something about her that I find annoying. However, many people do love her workouts, so keep in mind that my own views are probably influenced by the fact that I have come to dislike her. ;)

Beth C (aka toaster)