I''ve had this for over two weeks, but have put off doing it because, to be honest, I was a little scared of how hard it would be! :-) I just got done doing it for the first time, and absolutely loved it! It is full of fun, creative moves, and the 64 minutes of it just flew by for me.I have all of Sylwia''s Tonique workouts but just haven''t clicked with her Cardio Mat workout, which is my least favorite Tonique. This new Energy Mat workout has a different feel to it than Cardio Mat, and I like it a lot more.
The entire workout is just over 64 minutes long, and all you need is a mat, which makes this perfect for travel. At the very end, the workout moves right into the bonus Energy Stretch workout, which is a 30-minute dynamic stretching routine. (It''s the same Energy Stretch workout that''s also included on her new Tonique Born to Move with Sylwia DVD workout.)
I brought my laptop into my workout room with me as I did this today so I could take notes on the workout and provide a breakdown of it.
* First 23 minutes -work on all fours - For the first 23 minutes of Energy Mat, you''ll be on all fours, doing variations of side leg lifts, donkey kicks, etc. This section reminds me of Tracy Anderson''s Hipcentric, in that there are a lot of variations of leg lifts. From past experience, I''ve found that this type of work on all fours targets not only your legs and glutes, but also your arms and core since you''re holding yourself up for so long.
* Minutes 23-34 -leg moves on knees then back to all fours - At minute 23, you''ll come up on your knees for a few minutes to do so some leg work, before going back on all fours to do other side to complete some of the exercises. You''ll spend another 7 minutes on all fours, before moving into a short plank and burpee series. In total, you spend the first 34 minutes on all fours, which put a bit of strain on my wrists, so be careful if you have weak wrists.
* Minutes 34-52 -bridge work - After the first 34 minutes, Sylwia has you move to your back for bridge for about five minutes to really work your glutes. Then she moves into working your core while still on your back. This section has a lot of really unique moves that I have never seen before! For instance, at one point, she has you balance in a one-legged bridge, and then you move the other leg below the balancing leg to really get into your glute. There are also some fun variations on V-sits that target the core.
* Minutes 52-1:04 misc. moves -At 52 minutes in, you''ll move to all fours again for 3 minutes of push-up-type work. The she has you sit and stretch for a bit, before moving into a few minutes each of mountain climbers, low squats, and side-lying leg extensions. After the leg extensions, you''ll do a quick stretch.
* Minutes 1:01-1:04 -cardio moves - At 1:01, Sylwia will have you end with one last section of cardio. You''ll do some side to side jumps (with your hands on the mat), some push-ups, and then end with some freeform dancing, in the spirit of Tonique Sculpt Dynamics with Sylwia Weisenberg. This is the only segment of the entire workout where you don''t either have at least one hand or your back or side on the floor; it''s essentially done upright.
The workout ends a bit suddenly, with Sylwia lying on her mat and giving a thumbs-up sign. It moves directly into the Energy Stretch section, but since I was pretty tired at that point, I just did a few minutes of stretching on my own.
Basically, for the entire workout except for the last few minutes, you''ll have one or both hands or your back on the floor at all times.
The music is non-vocal electronica, and some of it was familiar from Born to Move.
Sylwia speaks in a voiceover throughout the workout, and she has excellent cueing, so you don''t have to keep watching the screen, especially when you''re on all fours. This is a nice change from some other workouts that don''t do this (I''m looking at you, Tracy Anderson! :-) ) There were only a few times during the bridge sequence where I couldn''t quite see what she was doing with her legs and would have liked a bit more guidance. She also doesn''t talk as much in this one as she does in Born to Move, and I wish she would have since I love her encouraging words; they always motivate me to work out harder.
This is called Energy Mat for a reason -my heart rate stayed elevated the whole time, especially during the work on all fours. A lot of the exercises also incorporate movements where you feel like you are stretching while working out. I really liked this element of the workout!
Overall, this is another fun, unique workout from Sylwia! The only problem is that I can''t wait for another new Tonique workout to come out!
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