Melissa Wood Health Review
If you’ve read my blog before, you might know that lots of girls ask me if they should combine my program with other programs. The answer is no! My program works well on its own. Adding to it would overwork your body. :)
But that doesn’t mean I can’t help you form an opinion by reviewing different fitness programs. In this post, I’ll explain what Melissa Wood Health’s program is all about!
If you want to read about my thoughts on other programs, be sure to check out the other reviews I’ve written: Lilly Sabri’s Thigh and Fat Burnings Workouts, Tracy Anderson’s TA Online Studio, Emi Wong’s 21 Day Transformation Program, Kayla Itsines’ BBG, Chloe Ting’s 30 Day Lean Thigh Challenge and Leslie Sansone’s Walk at Home Program.
Who Is Melissa Wood?
Melissa is a mom of two with excellent qualifications. She received a health coaching certificate from The Institute for Integrative Nutrition, and she is a certified yoga and Pilates instructor.
Over time, she began sharing short workout sequences on Instagram. Eventually, people started asking her to share full workouts online. This helped her start the Melissa Wood Health Method.
Melissa calls herself a teacher, rather than an influencer. She hopes to lead women to be kinder to themselves and to develop more self-confidence. She teaches women how to use their bodies effectively and to feel good in their bodies.
Her priorities for a healthy life? Melissa recommends that women meditate, move every day, and try to let go of the things they cannot control.
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What Is The MWH Method?
The Melissa Wood Health Method (MWH Method for short) is not just about building the body you desire. Instead, Melissa emphasizes that she wants people to develop a better relationship with themselves.
The workouts in this program are all low-impact. Melissa focuses on doing slow, controlled movements that will create lean muscle. She encourages women to work out 4-5 times a week for at least 20 minutes.
Although Melissa will sometimes use ankle weights, resistance bands, or a Pilates bumpy ball to up the intensity of her workouts, she also says that all her workouts can be done with just your body weight.
She doesn’t believe in the common fitness phrase, “no pain, no gain” which is something I wholeheartedly agree! Rather, she believes that gentleness with oneself and care for one’s body is ultimately more beneficial than pushing through a grueling workout.
Because of this, Melissa doesn’t do super intense strength training. Her entire method is focused on controlled yoga and Pilates movements.
RELATED POST: Why I Prefer Bodyweight Training Over Lifting Weights
Melissa Wood Health Method Review
Overview of the Method
The MWH Method gives users a weekly schedule that they can follow. Each day of the week users have the option to do videos that range from 10 to 30 minutes. Most videos take about 20 minutes to do.
Each day focuses on a different body part. Some videos work the whole body, while others are focused more specifically on the arms or butt. All of the videos on her site are a combination of yoga and Pilates.
The method also has videos outside of the weekly plan. These range from meditations (which she thinks are essential to being healthy overall) to workouts specifically designed for beginners. This gives you the flexibility to do a routine that works for your needs.
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Content of the MWH Method Videos
During the routine, Melissa instructs viewers on the movements as she does them. She counts down herself and doesn’t use a timer or any music. This creates a peaceful atmosphere.
Melissa always includes a brief warm-up and cool down in her videos. Because her method is so low impact (no jumping whatsoever!), most of these moves are pretty simple. For example, a lot of the warm-up and cool-down exercises involve sitting down crossed-legged and breathing in, stretching, or doing the cat-camel.
Each video includes a disclaimer that states that people should consult a doctor before trying her exercises, especially if they have chronic conditions or are pregnant, nursing, or elderly. She emphasizes that her videos don’t count as medical advice or counseling.
Most of the questions I receive are all about full-body toning and slimming the lower body, so I’ll focus the rest of my review on her full-body and lower body routines. :)
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Full Body Workouts Using Your Own Body Weight
I watched three different full-body workouts of three different lengths. The videos were 17 minutes, 20 minutes, and 21 minutes. These are pretty standard lengths for Melissa’s workouts.
In the videos, Melissa uses her body weight. She does say that viewers can use ankle or wrist weights if they prefer. She wants people to do what feels best for them.
I love that Melissa encourages people to use their body weight. I prefer bodyweight workouts too! Shifting from weighted workouts to bodyweight workouts helped me to:
- Look leaner
- Improve my range of motion
- Feel less sore after workouts
- Develop fewer injuries
- Enjoy my workouts more
- Feel more confident!
The yoga-Pilates blend in each video included a lot of leg extensions and stretching. All three of the videos included moves like mountain climbers, various types of planks, arm reaches, pulses, leg lifts, pigeon pose, and child’s pose.
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Lower Body Workouts
I watched three lower body workouts, and they were similar to the full-body workouts. She uses just her body weight again and does similar moves to the full-body routine.
Common moves include planks, leg lifts and extensions, pigeon pose, and child pose.
However, she also added moves that focus on the legs more specifically, such as pelvic tilts while squeezing your thighs together, butterfly twists, leg extensions while squeezing your glutes, small squat pulses, and crunches with leg extensions.
These videos will work your lower body, but they are also really good for improving core strength and stability.
First Impressions
I like several things about this program! Melissa is excellent at providing clear instructions to follow. When you watch the videos, you can easily follow along, even if you are a beginner.
Bodyweight Exercises
As I mentioned, I think that bodyweight exercises are sufficient for creating a long, lean, and strong body, and I love that Melissa focuses on this too.
I like the way my body looks and feels when I do bodyweight workouts. Most women that I’ve talked to agree!
Bodyweight exercises can be done anywhere (they don’t require going to a gym). They are also less like to cause bulky muscles. Instead, bodyweight exercises help me to create the lean look that I love.
Bodyweight exercises are also great for improving core strength, balance, and flexibility. You can read more about why I prefer bodyweight exercises in this blog post. :)
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Workouts Fit Into A Busy Schedule
I appreciate that the MWH Method workouts don’t take a lot of time. If you are a busy student, mom, or working woman, you should still be able to find time to squeeze one of these routines into your schedule.
You can also do them anywhere and anytime. I love that I could easily do this program from a hotel room, for example!
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Is Mellis Wood Health Method Good for Weight Loss?
I think that low-intensity strength training exercises are important if you want to be strong and toned. But these exercises aren’t enough if you want to lose weight.
Doing cardio is necessary to be healthy and, for most people, slim. Unfortunately, cardio is missing from the MWH Method.
If you want to lose weight, I think you should definitely add cardio to your workout routine. Strenght training will help you get toned, but cardio will help you with fat loss.
Also, if you want to slim down your legs, cardio should be a part of your workout routine. Low-intensity cardio (I recommend long power walks) burns fat, which is why it is so important to do if you want lean legs.
Girls with endomorph body types have a naturally curvy build, and they can have trouble losing fat. If this is your body type, cardio is especially crucial!
If you are unsure about cardio workouts or you don’t understand why I love cardio so much, please read this blog post. In it, I explain more about how certain types of cardio help your body burn fat. :)
Also, for healthy weight loss, you should also take care of your diet. Bad diet cannot really be fixed with more training.
Melissa shares healthy meal ideas on her website but, as far as I’m aware, she doesn’t offer a complete meal plan with calories and macros adjusted to your specific goals and lifestyle.
If you want to lose weight, make sure your eating the right amount of food. Eating too little or too much, will slow down your progress. So to make sure you get your diet right, you can calculate your ideal macros and calories.
Can You Combine the MWH Method with 3 Steps to Lean Legs?
The MWH Method has good parts to it. I like the bodyweight workouts that Melissa provides! :)
But this doesn’t mean that you should combine the MWH Method with my 3 Steps to Lean Legs Program. My program already includes both bodyweight resistance training and cardio workouts. Adding more resistance training from the MWH Method would overwork your muscles.
My program is designed to provide bodyweight resistance training, cardio workouts, and meal plans for all three different body types. You do not need to add anything to it. :)
I hope you found this review helpful! Let me know if you have any questions in the comments!
Love Rachael xx
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Rachael is an Australian born certified personal trainer and nutritionist who holds a Bachelor degree in Science.
After struggling for years to find an exercise and diet program that is tailored to women striving for lean and toned body with no bulk she designed her Lean Legs Program. This program is tailored to each body type and focused on helping women get toned but feminine bodies, without getting bulky.
Her mission is to empower women and help them stay in shape in a healthy and balanced way.