Metamorphosis by Tracy Tracy Anderson 4 DVD Set

I wanted to wait until at least the first 30 days to write this review, with the intention of updating it every 30 days for viewers to try and get a picture of what the process is like before buying it.Some Background: I have been a Jillian Michael's devotee for the past year, but saw myself bulking up without burning fat, and didn't exactly feel like I looked very feminine anymore. I was starting to look barrel-chested and didn't like it. I am 5'8'', 130lbs, althetic, consider myself to have a healthy diet (I NEVER eat fast or greasy food, stick to mostly veggies and fruits and lean protein, etc. but i do have a bit of a sweet tooth) and didn't really have much weight to lose, but really wanted to trim some things up. After this I wanted to switch it up, so I decided to give Tracy a try because her method was just so entirely different than anything I was comfortable with or have ever done before. It is by far the goofiest workout program I have followed (i am really not coordinated, and there is quite a bit of a dance-element here (which makes sense, as Tracy is a former dancer)), but I have never seen anything work as well as Tracy's method has worked for me.I am posting this review for those who aren't overweight and consider themselves healthy, are in a healthy weight range, but just want to try something new. I find most of the reviews on here come from heavier people, or people who haven't consistently worked out, and I feel like I often can't compare their results to mine because they tend to see any results from fitness at a much faster rate than I would.The Positives: This is not as intense of a workout as Jillian's, but I actually dread it less and find it more effective. I enjoy the dance cardio portion (30 minutes) because you sweat but don't feel exhausted like you can't take another step. The muscular structure portion changes every 10 days, but also consists of several components in the 30 minutes (standing arms, arms with weights, standing abs, abs on the mat, and so far a leg lift portion). In the first 1-3 weeks my body was so tight and pulled together, all my clothes were fitting better, and i just looked lean and fantastic. All without the scale even moving. I am doing Omnicentric, so I lost inches first in my bust, arms, and waist (you know how it goes ladies), and the hips and thighs budged only after 3 weeks and only budged a bit.The Negatives: Yes yes, she doesn't really cue you. But I think this is just her method of instruction, she does the same thing at her studios. If you can get over the fact that you may sometimes be catching up to her, or not doing everything perfectly all the time, then you will be fine. I sort of find it a bit freeing, but you do have to pay attention. Just don't freak out and get overwhelmed when you don't understand what she is doing right away. Relax, it's supposed to be fun. Also, if you can at least count to 8 you should be able to follow ... it's not hard people. I did go out and buy her Dance+Cardio DVD that just came out to switch up the cardio portion a bit because it was starting to get a bit boring doing the same routine everyday. It helped a lot. Regarding fitness, I am currently in week 4, and let me tell you, I am feeling a bit squishy. This is something I have read about both here and in forums, and possibly has something to do with your muscles repairing themselves, growing, swelling, and pushing out the fat that is on top of them in an unattractive way (who knows), but in the matter of days my perfectly flat stomach got pouchy. And let me tell you, I was not happy. After suppressing my freak-out and doing some research, this actually seems quite common, and in the next 1-2 weeks, things should firm up all over again, even better than the first time. So just don't get discouraged and stick with it. This is usually the phase in any workout program where people drop off (I am told). I also thought I would have dropped at least a few pounds by now, even though I am in a healthy weight range. However, it is the holidays and I have been cheating on the 'dynamic eating plan' pretty consistently, so that probably has something to do with it.In conclusion, I would like to revisit this at the 60 and 90 day mark, but for right now I would say that this program has done for me what nothing else ever has, and I am committed to sticking to it through the 'squishy' 4-week phase and seeing what else happens. If you are looking for something new and that will challenge you in ways you haven't been challenged before without becoming boring, this is for you.

This version only has the DVDs and none of the diet plan and measuring tape additions to it. You can look up the recipes online and use your own tape but don't think you're getting a deal on the full set.The diet is rough. Eating mush for a week will make you cranky but I sucked it up and looked forward to my week of solids. I don't really get the week of mush because I do chew my food and it ends up in the same state when I swallow it. However, solids week is your 600-700 calorie week so its more of a starvation crankiness. I didn't lose any weight despite the major calorie deficit I'm guessing because my body was in starvation mode. Unfortunately when I had to stop the workout and I went back to eating normally (vegan, no junk food, less than 1700/day) I ended up gaining weight since my body thought it needed to hoard calories. So that blows.As far as the exercise portion, I haven't gotten past level 3 in this because I'm scared to death of restarting it and injuring myself again.First, I did not do the cardio because its essentially jumping up and down the entire time which isn't my cup of tea due to lower back issues so I did my own that's not as rough on the spine.The bulk of each session are leg lifts. HUNDREDS of leg lifts a day. I wasn't really sure how this was going to help my abs but I went with it and very quickly noticed a change in my butt but not my stomach just yet. By the third set of lessons the leg lifts incorporate more of a side bend as you are on hands and knees and when you lift your leg to the side you bring your knee to your shoulder. This is what led to my injury.It only took reaching for something on a shelf for me to have an excruciating pain rip across the side of my ribcage and under my shoulder blade making it hard to breathe. It was one of the most painful experiences I have ever had in my life and had I not been able reach my boyfriend on his phone I was going to have to call 911 (no idea what i would've done if my phone hadn't been in my pocket). I spent 2 hours writhing and screaming in pain before he was able to pull me up off the floor to take me to the ER. The Dr determined it was a muscle spasm and my arm was in a sling for several days. It took nearly 2 months for me to even consider working out again and when I tried one of those knee to shoulder leg lifts I could feel exactly where the spasm shot across my side.I do yoga and am generally pretty flexible so that injury really surprised me. I don't feel like that rigorous a workout, 6 days a week is just not good for somebody who isn't already in top athletic shape (and why would you need this if you were?). While I enjoyed the rearview results I will never again attempt to do this routine in its diet plan and exercise schedule entirety. I *MIGHT* attempt the training part again because it really did show results but I'll switch to every other day and not do the full movements to the side.Be VERY careful with this routine, Tracy warns you not to modify or leave something out but I can tell you its not worth injuring yourself. If you want to do it (I do not deny it brings results) listen to your body, eat healthy food in smaller portions, and lighten up on the routines if you need to.