FitHits: A Tribute to The Man in the Mirror

Below is an hour-long workout set to the tunes of Michael. It’s the FBG’s official tribute to the Man in the Mirror. The weird of the weird. And the Kind of Pop.Without whom we would have far fewer songs that get us out on dance floors and pump us up through tough workouts.Warm-up
(3:23) Rock With You: This older MJ tune is a great way to start your workout. Use the nice, steady beat to get those muscles warm and moving with a quick walk or slow jog.

The Thrill
(4:52) Billie Jean: Get to steppin’, ellipticalin’, walkin’, joggin’ or bikin’ with this famous baseline. Pick up your pace to a moderate intensity as you strut your workout stuff.

(3:44) Shake Your Body Down: Now that you’re into the workout, start to shake that groove thang by picking your pace to your max. Feel free to shimmy those shoulders as necessary during this disco track by the Jackson Five. (Michael was such a cute kid.)

(6:02) Wannabe Be Startin’ Somethin’: Slow your pace back down to moderate for the first two minutes of this song. Once MJ really starts jamming, up your intensity for a 30-second hard interval followed by one minute of rest. Repeat twice, then hold your moderate intensity for the remainder of the song. You’ve definitely started some major calorie burn.

(3:59) Remember the Time: Use this 1991 track to recover and remember your best times listening to the King of Pop. (My personal fave is my hubby dancing to “Man in the Mirror” at our wedding.)

(4:38) Scream: It’s time to pick it up again for this song that features both Michael and Janet Jackson. If you have video on your iPod download the video for this one. It’s totally worth it. The song is intense, so use the song’s pacing to gradually build up to a hard pace, ending in a full out 30-second sprint. Scream as necessary.

(4:56) The Way You Make Me Feel: You should be burning now, so take this full song to drop your pace to easy during this feel-good song.

(4:18) Beat It: Gradually pick that pace up again. I particularly like to jog to this one and pretend that MJ is telling me to beat the pavement with my running shoes.

(4:40) Dirty Diana: I’ve always loved the hard-rock feel to this one. Every time Michael gets to the rockin’ chorus, pick up that pace to a full sprint.

(4:06) Bad: By now, you should be feeling the workout groove. During this song remain at a moderate pace and just feel like the bad-ass you are. If you can moonwalk, feel free to do so. Moonwalking is a core and thigh burner.

(4:14) Black or White: Every time I hear this track, I think of the awesome video with the different people morphing into one another. It was seriously so awesome. Recover at an easy pace for this song as you listen to Michael’s positive message.

(5:57) Thriller: The most famous video and song of all, you knew we’d finish the playlist with this one, didn’t ya? During this song you have two options. Option 1: spend 2 minutes at a moderate intensity, 2 minutes at a hard intensity and then 2 minutes at a all-out breaking-records pace. Option 2: Dance like a zombie. Your choice, but give it your all.

Cool Down
(5:19) Man in the Mirror: As I mentioned earlier, this song has a soft spot in my heart. And it’s a great song about self-awareness and being the best you can be (which is always cool in FBG-land). Think about ways that you can better yourself while cooling down, starting with giving yourself credit for a hard workout finished!

Feel free to share your fave MJ tracks below. Honestly, we had enough for a 4-hour track list, but that would be considered overtraining.Thanks for all the great workouts, Michael! —Jenn