Winning Workouts

By Katie Neitz

We weighed traditional training (think jumping jacks) against funky fitness (think fusion) to determine whether you're better off with old-school workouts or new ones.

Exercise trends pop up more frequently than the latest Kelly Clarkson tune, and with all the noise, it can be hard to tell what's new and improved (stability balls are indeed better than mats) and what's just new (you want me to put my what where?). So to determine which workouts are worth doing and which are worth ditching, we pitted old-school methods of training your body against newer methods that are supposed to do the same. What we found out? In some cases at least, the old dogs don't need new tricks.

Old School Personal Trainer vs. New School Virtual Trainer

Winner: Personal Trainer Sure, virtual training is as easy and convenient as online banking: You enter goals and body info and get customized workouts delivered to your in-box. But like any long-distance relationship, except maybe the one with your in-laws, it's hard to maintain because there's no accountability. "I can also help you better if I'm in your face," says Neal Pire, a personal trainer in Ridgewood, New Jersey. Pire recommends face time for people who need physical guidance during a workout or might have trouble sticking to a program.

Winning Move: To get some of the benefits of personal training without the costs, try something in between: goal-oriented training, a new trend that involves working out in a small group with a specific goal, be it running a marathon or losing 30 pounds (á la The Biggest Loser). You get a support-group feel and possibly more motivation than by exercising solo with a trainer, says Norris Tomlinson, national director of group fitness for Bally Total Fitness. According to a 2005 survey by IDEA Health & Fitness Association, 71 percent of 1,400 health clubs had two-to-one (participant to trainer) programs and 43 percent featured minigroups of three to five people. Check with your gym to see what's available or post a note to form a new group.

Old School Abs of Steel vs. New School Core Training

Winner: Core Training While those skimpy, shiny leotards may seem questionable today, the Abs of Steel videos from the early '90s and the simple, short (8- to 15-minute) routines were totally cool at the time. In fact, they included the bicycle, which researchers at San Diego State University recently ranked as the best abdominal exercise because it's so good at strengthening the rectus abdominus (the long, flat muscle down the front and sides of the belly that tightens everything up). But core training is still a more efficient way to tone your midsection because it works your abs, back, and hips — aka your powerhouse muscles — all at once. "You use these muscles _together for just about every move you make," says Tami Reilly, assistant athletic director at Quinnipiac University in Connecticut.

Winning Move: For effective core training, make adjustments to the plank — a top-rated abs move at the American Council on Exercise. By itself, it's great because it works your back, arms, shoulders, and all of the deep abdominal stabilizing muscles in between. But you can make this soon-to-be classic harder by placing "gliders" or paper plates under your toes, which force you to work your muscles more as you stabilize to hold the position. For the basic move, lie facedown, resting on your forearms, with palms flat on the floor. Push up, rising onto your toes and elbows. Keep your back flat and hold for 20 to 60 seconds. Lower and repeat three to five times.