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I was hoping someone might be able to help identify a hand weight training book for women, which was popular about 20-yrs ago. I vividly remember the cover & after perusing over 1K books on Amazon, simply cannot find it... probably due to age & the many new fitness/exercise books, which have pushed it off the top sellers list long ago. Of course, it would help if I remembered even a portion of her name and/or title, but sadly, I don't.
The woman who wrote the book was on the cover, which was yellow/blue & a larger-sized soft cover manual... maybe 350-pgs. She was American, with a long Greek surname. I can't recall her first name. She was wearing a yellow bikini & was probably 45-ish. She was about 5' tall, had shorter blonde hair, with a cheerleader-like body (looked strong & compact & toned) & said as gently as possible, wasn't very attractive facially... think Judge Judy, but older looking, in a blonde, Loni Anderson wig & yellow bikini. I think she had been a body builder at one time... she had a bit in the book regarding posing, which isn't useful to me, but I'm trying to give as much info as possible in the hopes I can find it again. What also stands out is the book was on exercises only... no recipes or diet info added in as so many books today offer. She also showed simple fixes for working out at home... like how to use a chair to lie across, if one doesn't have gym equipment.
I don't recall anything about the title of the book... I want to say it may have been one of those 'Shape Up with Weights in 30 Days' sort of titles, but I'm only guessing.
What was unique about her book is there were so many pictures of exercises from different angles (important for a novice like me) & she offered many modifications for those with varying problems... like shoulder/knee/low back issues, etc. All the exercises were with 3-5 lb hand weights & the warm up was going through her series of 30+ exercises sans weights, then 3 sets with weights. (That may be standard, so forgive me if I'm stating the obvious... I'm not usually one who works out in a gym.)
I came across a copy of the book about 10-yrs ago, loved it because I work out sans trainer, but it got lost somewhere along the way in one of my moves. Since I'd like to do some mild working out with weights again & really liked her exercises (she made it easy to transition from 1 exercise to the next, which I found extremely helpful), I'd love to find it again. I know there are other books, DVDs & YTube vids, but I liked her workout & book.
Anyone have any idea? I owe you an ale or 2 (or wheat grass juice, if that's your preference) if you can help me find it! Cheers!
Yes!!! How on earth did you find it??? I happily owe you one... or two!
Thank you, Dragonmam! Going to Half.com or Amazon to buy a copy now.
P.S. Actually, it was this one... 'Bottoms Up'. I had no idea she had so many books... I'll have to peruse through them, but I loved the weights workout in this one. Thanks so much again, DM... you're awesome! And, please do tell me how you found it. All I recalled was the cover & in interviews she talked about being of Greek heritage... so I falsely 'remember' her name to be 90 letters long. Wrong!
I went to abebooks.com, a great source for old books. In their advanced search feature you can set a publishing range and I think I used keywords like weight or fitness. Then I just search down the list. I hit another one of her books but there was no image, though the name and subject seemed "right." I googled her name and checked the images and voila!... Blonde Judge Judy in a bikini (so accurate, btw!)
I went to abebooks.com, a great source for old books. In their advanced search feature you can set a publishing range and I think I used keywords like weight or fitness. Then I just search down the list. I hit another one of her books but there was no image, though the name and subject seemed "right." I googled her name and checked the images and voila!... Blonde Judge Judy in a bikini (so accurate, btw!)
I'm glad I could help.
Wow, I'm impressed & can't believe you took all that time. Once again, I owe you one. Bought 2 of her books yesterday on Amazon for pennies/each + S&H... so both for under $9.
Thanks for the abe link... that will be very useful for me down the line. I'm always on the hunt for obscure 1970s UK/US punk journals, so now I have a way to search. You're awesome!
Yes!!! How on earth did you find it??? I happily owe you one... or two!
Thank you, Dragonmam! Going to Half.com or Amazon to buy a copy now.
P.S. Actually, it was this one... 'Bottoms Up'. I had no idea she had so many books... I'll have to peruse through them, but I loved the weights workout in this one. Thanks so much again, DM... you're awesome! And, please do tell me how you found it. All I recalled was the cover & in interviews she talked about being of Greek heritage... so I falsely 'remember' her name to be 90 letters long. Wrong!
I'm a fan of hers from way back to (the 80s) when she wrote Hard Bodies with Gladys Portugues. I followed her program and wound up in a junior size 5 bikini. Of course I was in my 20s then, and I was very impressed with the great shape she had gotten into what was maybe her late 30s at the time. Oh, I think maybe her heritage is Russian. I remember a little anecdote from one of her books about her little Russian grandmother. OP, when you posted I knew who it was right off!
I'm a fan of hers from way back to (the 80s) when she wrote Hard Bodies with Gladys Portugues. I followed her program and wound up in a junior size 5 bikini. Of course I was in my 20s then, and I was very impressed with the great shape she had gotten into what was maybe her late 30s at the time. Oh, I think maybe her heritage is Russian. I remember a little anecdote from one of her books about her little Russian grandmother. OP, when you posted I knew who it was right off!
Just received 2 of her books... Bottoms Up & Definition. The former I'll use now, as I haven't worked out with small hand weights in years & the latter for more advanced workouts down the line. I'm not using them as much for weight loss as strength... I've had nagging, recurring shoulder/neck/arm injuries, which seem to regularly crop up & I see overall weakness... I'm one of those nutters, who can get trapped between two large glass doors because my biceps aren't strong enough to juggle coffee, keys & opening a door, whilst balancing myself on heels. When I was exercising daily, I kept all that at bay. I also like something that's a routine, otherwise, I'm not one of the most dedicated, motivated people when it comes to planned exercise... a routine forces me to just do it, no matter what... I literally pencil it into my calendar like an appt.
You're right... on page 31 of Bottoms Up she talks about beginning her program as she's 5'1" & even at a l17-lbs, looks like 'a box on wheels' like other women from her family's Russian background.
I'm only having to skim through, because I read it cover to cover years ago, but I didn't recall any of the exercises, so I'll begin in a day or 2 when I finish the book. As I move down the line, I'll have to purchase some more weights... all I have are 2 2-lb handweights & a 5-lb kettleball, but it's enough to get me started again.
I've never seen her do her program before... if anyone's interested, she has plenty of short YTube clips, showing how she does her exercises. I'm good with the book, but I did watch a few. Her form isn't the best (although she's in her 60s, so she's been doing them a long time & it works for her)... if she weren't so strong, I think some of her 'jerky' moves & over extension of joints would hurt a newbie, such as myself. But, I like her books in which she cautions of such things & offers modifications for delicate joints.
This is a real hoot! I had been searching for this bodybuilder/author for some time. I even checked all the books on Amazon, hoping I'd find it – to no avail. (What an arduous task, as there are so very many books of this type!)
Even though I thought it would be a long shot, I typed in a query much like the originator's of this post, and voila found this thread. Reading the descriptions made me certain that we were seeking the same person. (A pretty blonde, Judge Judy - so spot on!) Reading through the posts helped me find her (Joyce Vedral) and the book that I'd been seeking (The Fat-Burning Workout).
Thanks ever so much for posting that inquiry, and thanks to all the wonderful people who answered!
Joyce Vedral has DVDs but since DVDs are being phased out everywhere, you might be able to find them cheaply at Goodwill stores or maybe even on her website. Most instructors do online streaming subscriptions.
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