If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you may remember me referencing Collage Video in my post Get Up, Get Moving and Get Sexy, Part 1. Well, I love the site and wanted to go into a little more detail as to why I think it’s a great resource for finding fitness videos.

I find it very frustrating to buy a workout video only to realize it’s too easy, too advanced or the instructor is utterly annoying. Well, I figured there had to be a better way to determine whether a video was worthy of my investment.

After searching on google, I found Collage Video and feel in love. It contains over 900 on-line fitness video previews. But, that’s not all. (Did that sound like an informercial or what?) Anyway, you can also do searches based on what you’re looking for in a workout video.

What search features are available?

• Instructor or Brand - If you have a favorite instructor or workout brand, you can find all the videos in the database by that particular instructor or brand. (Right now, my favorite instructors are Michelle Dozois and Amy Bento.)
• Goals - Many videos are designed to target specific areas of the body or needs. You’re able to find those videos that are more geared toward weight loss, flexibility, endurance, or other specific needs.
• Level - Each video has been labeled by degree of difficulty, from beginner to advanced. In addition, they’ve included specialty videos, including pregnancy, senior’s and even kid’s workouts.
• Workout Type - Whether you’re into dance, kickboxing, strength training, or basic cardio, you can find the videos specifically listed as such.
• Length - You don’t have to sort through tons of videos that are an hour or longer if you’re only looking for a 30 minute workout. You can pull up only the ones that fit into your time requirements.
• Equipment Used - Whatever happened to just a good heart-pumping cardio floor workout or simple dumbbells. Now there are stability balls, rubber tubing and all sorts of other workout equipment. It can get very expensive if you have to buy different equipment for each video. This feature makes it easier to search based on the equipment you already have available to you.

Another one of my favorite features is the workout breakdown. In other words, when you find a video you think you’re interested in and click through to get more information, you can see how much of the running time is devoted to warm-up, toning, cardio and cool down. This of course varies depending on the type of workout you’ve selected.

Now, you’ll have to just go over and check out the site, because there are a few other cool features I didn’t mention that I think you’ll like also.

By the way, you can purchase the videos and exercise equipment right there on Collage Video’s site. However, I usually purchase mine through Amazon.com or Half.com. It’s much cheaper that way.

Have fun picking out your perfect workout video - then USE IT.

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No, I didn’t fall off the face of the earth. I went on a week long vacation and didn’t have internet access. You can imagine what my inbox looked like when I got back. Wow!

Well, today I have a guest post over at Organizing-Life. If you’re in need of food prep tips to make entertaining less stressful, make your way on over. While you’re there, you’ll want to check out Abbie’s great organizational and planning posts also.

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When you think about what you’ve eaten the last few days, do you feel disgusted or pleased with yourself? Myself - well, I actually feel pretty pleased. That’s because my family is on a mission to healthier eating, and I think it’s going well.

Let me tell you what really got us thinking more seriously about what we’re eating. And just for the record, we don’t eat junk food all the time, nor do we eat out all the time. I like to cook and try to prepare healthy meals most of the time. Nevertheless, our diets definitely have some room for improvement.

Recently, our son was diagnosed with congenital cataracts in his eyes. At that time, the specialist told us that it was not affecting his vision and surgery was not necessary. He said we would just watch them and check periodically for any changes.

Well, last week when we went in for just a routine vision check, the cataracts had worsened. The doctor really doesn’t want to do surgery right now because of our son’s age (5 years). This means we have time to look at other possible solutions, such as herbal remedies and nutritional adjustments.

After talking to a Master Herbalist at church and researching cataracts, it has become clear to us that through proper nutrition and an herbal eyewash, it’s possible to slow down the progression of cataracts or even reverse them.

What I’ve Learned So Far Regarding Proper Nutrition

Just because we’re eating vegetables and fruit doesn’t necessarily mean we’re eating well enough. To be honest, I’m finding it a little difficult to know what’s actually best with all the conflicting information out there to read.

However, I have managed to get started by incorporating changes in the following areas:

• Greatly decreasing the amount of sugar we’re eating and drinking
• Switching to all or mostly whole wheat flour for bread, muffins and pancakes
• Eating more raw and steamed veggies, in order to preserve nutrients lost through other cooking methods
• Choosing fresh fruits instead of cookies or other desserts
• Cooking with whole wheat pastas and brown rice, instead of white

As you might imagine, I’m now on the lookout for yummy but healthy recipes. One of our favorite breakfast items is muffins. Occasionally, I make them from scratch but I admit, more often than not, it’s a Martha White or Betty Crocker mix.

Well, after browsing for a tasty whole wheat muffin recipe, I just didn’t really find one that suited me or that included ingredients I had on hand at the time, so I came up with an awesome muffin recipe.

If you want the recipe, you’ll have to tune in tomorrow. I’ll also include the way I’ve made these muffins into more of a convenience meal for myself on busy days.

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