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10 Minutes to a Tighter Core

This Pahla B Fitness 10 Minutes to a Tighter Core workout is a simple, effective core workout. Paula takes you through 8 exercises which are repeated for 1 minute each with no resting in between moves. The workouts consist of several plank position moves so by the end of the workout, I was really feeling it in my shoulders.  If you are doing this workout following a tough arm workout, I recommend stretching your shoulders really well prior to starting. There wasn't any of your typical ab type floor work, so if you are looking for some core work that doesn't include crunches, take a look at this one.

10 Minutes to a Tighter Core

Target areas: Core
Time: 10 minutes
Equipment needed: none
Music: none 
Level: all
What I liked: quick, to the point core workout
What I didn't like: lots of plank work without breaks made for sore shoulders
Rating: 3

Build Your Butt At Home Tabata Workout

Who doesn't want a firmer, rounder booty? This Build Your Butt at Home Tabata style workout, by Pahla B Fitness, focuses on specific back-side muscles and I will definitely be feeling it later today. The workout consists of four different exercises that are repeated 8 times each (or 4 times on each side if they are side specific). I wasn't sure at first that I was going to like this workout without music or jazzy moves. However, after a few minutes of focused effort, I could feel the muscle fatigue setting in and appreciated the structured, tabata style workout that enables very efficient targeting of the specific muscle group. This was a relatively short workout, so I jumped right in to another Paula B Core workout to get a good 30 minute workout in this morning.

Build Your Butt At Home Tabata Workout

Target areas: Buns
Time: 20 minutes
Equipment needed: resistance band
Music: none 
Level: all
What I liked: tabata style workout encouraged focused work on targeted muscles
What I didn't like: not real jazzy
Rating: 4

20-Min Pilates Abs Workout for Endurance and Stamina

I liked the last Sean Vigue workout so well that when I went looking for a core workout today (my legs and shoulders were needing a break) I hit up his workout library.  Sean is an entertaining instructor with a self-deprecating, dry sense of humor that I like. If you are looking for a perky, motivational instructor, move along, but for me, his style is great! This workout combines some fairly standard pilates moves with what, for me at least, also seemed pretty advanced. He offered some modified moves when appropriate, but overall it was a pretty tough workout. The video switched locations mid-video, but Sean didn't miss a beat. As a bonus, it's almost worth doing this workout to see his beautiful dog that makes an appearance towards the end of the video. And if you are just watching it for the dog, then your abs won't be hurting later like mine are :).

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20 Min Pilates Abs Workout

Target areas: core 
Time: 20 mins
Equipment needed: none
Music: none 
Level: mid to advanced
What I liked: tough core workout emphasizing pilates endurance
What I didn't like:no music or countdown timer made it a little boring
Rating: 4

25-Minute HIIT Total Body Burn - Beginners Workout

This 25-Minute HIIT Total Body Burn for Beginners really hit the spot for a quick workout that manages to get the heart rate up and keep it up while also focusing on multiple muscle groups.  Allie Cohen, a Be-FiT instructor, made the transitions effortless with right-on-time cuing as you prepared for the next move. The workout is 4 circuits with 5 moves each, consisting of combinations of squats, lunges, arm presses, rows, triceps kickbacks and more.  I was surprised at how many different muscle groups were worked in a short amount of time. For a more advanced workout, you could repeat the circuits as each are hit only once. For beginners, this is an excellent workout to get the various muscle groups used to working out. Allie provides modified moves where appropriate so getting through the workout should be possible for everyone!

25-Minute HIIT Total Body Burn - Beginners Workout

Target areas: cardio; full body toning
Time: 25 mins
Equipment needed: light dumbbells (I used 5 pounds)
Music: background music was a plus
Level: beginners
What I liked: Quick bang for your buck workout with cardio combined with hitting all muscle groups
What I didn't like: no countdown timer
Rating: 4

30 Minute Full Body Workout

PopSugar's Anna Renderer brings a perky and motivational personality to this 30 Minute Full Body Workout.  The workout starts out with some dynamic cardio and stretching that can be customized to your own fitness level. The cardio/dynamic stretching combo gets your heart rate up nicely and transitions into the strength/toning circuits after about ten minutes. 5 or 8 pound dumbbells are recommended for the strength/toning moves. The intervals were put together nicely and transitions were easy to follow. Modifications for each move in the workout were included and demonstrated.  All in all this is a good workout for beginners, but one that I didn't find very interesting or challenging.  I do like Anna's style though so will be checking out her other workouts soon.

30-Minute Full-Body Workout

Target areas: cardio; full body toning
Time: 30 mins
Equipment needed: 5-8 pound weights
Music: none 
Level: beginner
What I liked: heart rate was up early and maintained at a high level throughout workout
What I didn't like: opening cardio was a little boring, but you could mix it up
Rating: 3

Ultimate Burn At Home Workout

This Ultimate Burn At Home Workout from Leslie Sweat definitely lived up to its name and kicked my booty!  Leslie has put together a hard-core 5 move circuit that is repeated three times to get a great full body and quick cardio workout in just 16 minutes.  Each move is repeated as many times as you can in a one minute interval and you get a thirty second water break to catch your breath between circuits. If you are a beginner, I recommend watching one circuit through before starting as the moves are difficult and you may want to try something a little less intense. Overall, this is a great workout that I really struggled to complete, but will add to my favorites so I can work on improving these moves. If you just have a few minutes and want to make the most of your time, this is definitely one to try!

Ultimate Burn At Home Workout
Target areas: cardio; core; shoulders
Time: 16 minutes
Equipment needed: 3-5 pound dumbbells
Music: none 
Level: intermediate to advanced
What I liked: short & to the point HARD workout
What I didn't like: too much talking at beginning of workout, but just stretch through it
Rating: 4