I first subscribed to this magazine nearly ten years ago. I was impressed with the in-depth information presented and I enjoyed the motivational articles. I decided to begin lifting weights. The magazine taught me how to choose exercises, structure my workouts, and how to revise my workouts as I progressed.
But that was then, this is now.
I still pick up a copy now and then, hoping for a moment that I will learn something of value. But I never seem to glean useful information from the magazine. It follows the same format every month: the ever-present article on getting firm abs, a pilates or yoga workout, the feel-good mind/body articles, the disease your doctor needs to test you for.
The workouts
The workouts presented are short (~20-30 minutes) and light. While yoga and pilates are not necessarily bad workouts they are, at best, marginally effective if your goal is weight loss or muscle gain (both of which Shape claims they will do). If your goal is weight loss you could find plenty of exercises that burn more calories; similarly, if you want to gain muscle you would get better results by dropping yoga and replacing it with weightlifting. I imagine that Shape focuses on these workouts because they are easy and appeal to people. Of course, even marginally effective workouts are better than being sedentary so beginners may see some improvements.
I still see vestiges of the old exercise articles I remember, but they are... fluffier... I suppose that is as good a description as any. They may still tell you how to do squats and deadlifts, but they focus on making them easy instead of getting results. The realistic recommendations of the past were replaced by ridiculously light weights, and now even those have been largely eliminated. The November 2000 issue recommends doing squats using just your body weight for “sexy, shapely quads”. I have a news flash for them – your legs already carry your bodyweight all day, every day. If you don’t have sexy legs from it already, adding an extra 150 seconds of leg work is not going to produce miraculous results.
The mind/body articles
Shape is packed with these articles, which offer suggestions like “visualize yourself ordering healthy food at a restaurant”, “every day, write ten good things that happened to you”, or “stand nude in front of the mirror and describe how beautiful you are”. I won’t waste time telling you exactly how useless I find these articles, because I know it is only my personal preference. I’ll leave it at this: if you don’t find this kind of advice useful then Shape is not for you.
The food articles
I have to admit that Shape includes good recipes in every issue. They show you how to alter common recipes to make them healthier, but they also include unusual recipes that are a great change of pace for readers who may be sick of diet foods. Shape also does taste-tests which are helpful for choosing which brand of convenience foods to buy. I would not follow the diet-of-the-month religiously, but the underlying nutritional information in Shape’s diet articles is sound.
In conclusion
If you want to learn about exercise and fitness, Shape is not a good source of information. Try reading a reputable book which allows you to learn about different exercises and build a workout based on your goals.
If you enjoy the mind/body articles or you like having a monthly reminder that you made a commitment to diet and exercise, you might benefit from the motivation the magazine provides.
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