The 12-Minute Total-Body Workout

by Joyce L. Vedral

The author of the bestselling Now or Never offers readers a total fitness program that tightens, tones and shapes the entire body in only 12 minutes a day, without the use of expensive gym equipment.

Genres: Fitness, Health

192 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1989

About the author

Joyce L. Vedral, PhD, is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and a trailblazer in women’s fitness. She also holds a PhD in English literature from New York University. With over a million copies of her books and DVDs sold worldwide, she has inspired generations to take charge of their health through strength training and self-belief. Known for her no-nonsense style and warm encouragement, Joyce became a trusted voice not only in fitness, but in personal transformation.
Now, Joyce brings that same passion and conviction to her deepest calling yet: helping people build a direct, personal relationship with God. Unapologetic in her faith and bold in her message, she believes that anyone—no matter where they are in life—can talk to God and get answers. Her mission is simple: to show people they are never alone and that divine guidance is always within reach.
Joyce lives in Florida, still trains every day, talks to God all day, and doesn’t plan on slowing down until He says so.

Reviews

[Betty Cheng · Rating 5 out of 5]

This exercise routine is easy to start, easy to follow, has low risk of injury, low cost, low maintenance, doesn't require alot of space/equipment, convenient, and produces a trim body. If you already have injuries, then you'll want to consult a good physical therapist or fitness trainer to weed out any inappropriate exercises. If you don't have a good mirror, go buy one. It very important to check your form; this prevents injuries to your joints. However, at the recommended weights (3 lbs), it's almost impossible to injure your joints. Nevertheless, good form is important if you ever decide to use heavier weights. It's not a very aerobic workout but hey, it's a strength training routine.

Whenever I fall off the exercise wagon, I go back to this set of exercises to climb back on.

[Angela]

I have another of her books (Weight Training Made Easy) that I got at a flea market once. Really good to help get back into weight-lifting / strength-training. The book look super outdated, that's actually what made me pick it up, but when I really looked at it, I was grateful for another workout plan as I like to switch mine up and sometimes get lazy to look up and make new ones. (Although this was back in 2012 - so now with the internet and personal trainers being rampant, it's way easier to get stuff like this free or cheap online without having to do all the hard work yourself. Even so, I'd still recommend the Weight Training Made Easy as a great workout program that is easily adjustable to a person's level of fitness.) But I've actually re-read and redid the workout program several times since 2012, so you know it's good if you keep going back to it. I've read the 12-Min Total-Boday Workout, but I haven't actually incorporated it so I can't say whether it works or not in the strength-training sense. Possibly because one book is physical and one is an ebook. Maybe I'm old school in the sense of I like the physical one for taking to the gym or my home gym to flip through and workout with it. One great thing about Joyce L. Vedral is she's very good at explaining things to people at all levels of their strength-training journey, but especially good for beginners. And if you're experienced, skip that stuff, and get to the good workouts. Enjoy!

[Ronda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was published in 1989, so I wasn't surprised to find that much of it is a bit out of date. The diet advice in the back, especially, I wasn't impressed with. Nutritional information has come a long way since then.

But the reason I bought it was for the workouts, and there's a lot of good in that section. I'm not a gym rat, and I know very little about weight training, but I appreciate the approachability of this routine. It shows basic moves in a simple, clear way, and wasn't too difficult to follow. Her concept of isometric and dynamic tension makes these exercises a great deal more difficult than they appear on the surface, so going in full throttle the first week left me with more sore muscles than I ever remember suffering before.

I wouldn't recommend this book if you're beginning with no knowledge whatsoever, but if you know your own body and its limitations, there are some good tips. I was very careful, protecting my back and joints (as well as my abdominal diastasis) so there were a few exercises that I had to adapt, especially in the buttocks and abdominal sections. However, I still have found some good ideas and am trying to make this quick workout my own.