I Am A Fusionista: Bringing Fusion Fitness Home With Me

My quads are trembling, my glutes are burning and my abdominals are screaming. As a fusionista, this is to be expected after class. I just never thought I could feel this way from doing home videos! Fusion Fitness makes sweat look sexy and a bad day feel oh-so good.

What started out scary became my greatest addiction over the years. Fusion Fitness in Kansas City is a place of comfort for me. The owner, Darby Brender, knows each of her clients by name and proves that fit and sexy comes in all sizes. She staffs incredible women who have a strong passion for the Fusion environment. Darby and one of her instructors Sadie Durbin became more than just fitness instructors — they became my support system. This place is incredible. These women are full of knowledge and inspire me each day. I love their one-liners written on the wall and the fantastic posts they have on social media; both keep me accountable. So when I found out I could bring class into my house? I jumped at the chance.

Before opening the Dream Body Cardio Series DVD set I closed EVERY SINGLE blind in the house. I could not imagine anyone seeing even my silhouette attempting this workout. My favorite thing about this five-disc series is that it offers the option to break each workout into mini 30-minute sessions. As a mom this is PERFECT! Sometimes our little ones wake up before we expect, and we cannot always finish what we started. Darby thought about that for us and made sure we couldn’t use that excuse!

The first disc M.I.L.F. (Don’t think naughty, it stands for Max Interval Laced with Fusion, although I do like to think it makes me one hot mama!) had me SWEATING in the first five minutes! Darby starts off with repeating high-intensity cardio intervals and ends with isolating those sensitive areas: abs, arms and buns. BEST. HOUR. EVER.

The second disc, inTENse is nothing short of its name. It is INTENSE! Sadie burned me out quickly, in a good way! The workout switched back and forth between cardio, arms and abs. As soon as one muscle started screaming she added another muscle to the mix that would cry, too. Misery loves company, right?

Fusion 50 is the third disc and fit perfectly into my schedule on a day I was running behind. Brooke does an excellent job creating a tough sweat session in a shorter time frame. This was challenging because it moves a little faster and incorporates hamstrings, which is a muscle I tend to forget about until it hurts. I appreciated the focus on this! Like the other DVDs, this too incorporated arms and buns, which was much appreciated.

Francie focuses on legs in disc 4 BATA BARRE, and boy is she a powerhouse. I have a love/hate relationship with tabata — I hate them when they’re happening and love them when they’re done. (Same goes for burpees!) In my workouts I tend to go really hard and forget to slow down and isolate the smaller muscles. I sweated harder lengthening my muscles in moves similar to a ballerina than the beginning doing the tabatas. My mind really had to zone in on the movements; I appreciated that connection. Being able to do this at home on a rainy day with a sick child was almost calming.

My abs have never hurt so much so quickly as they did in Bikini Bootcamp with Amy in disc 5. Holy smokes! The resistance band challenged my core almost more than my arms. Don’t get me wrong, my arms were on FIRE! I had to focus a lot on keeping my core tight so my back wouldn’t arch. Kickboxing plus a resistance band, brilliant! Laughing at dinner that night hurt SO GOOD!

The back of each DVD explains what is needed for the workout, most of which I had around the house: 2-pound weights, a ball (I used my son’s small sensory style ball; the spikes made me tougher!), paper plates (if you’re working on a hard wood floor I would suggest putting down hand towels), circular band (I picked this up at our local sports store) and, of course, a yoga mat. There is an option for music free; I preferred that over the music, but I always like having my own beats over the music commonly offered in workout DVDs!

Yep, I made do with my son’s toy ball!

I was sick for a couple weeks recently and my body was so drained after. I wanted to ease back into my workouts, so I popped in the Fusion Bump DVD. This disc is a prenatal workout that does a great job focusing on small movements without overextending a recovering body. I was not in any discomfort at the end of 55 minutes, and my body felt refreshed yet challenged. I was concerned I may feel guilty, like I didn’t do enough to get a good workout, but Erica proved me wrong!

I wore my heart rate monitor for each of the five discs in the set and burned between 530 to 660 calories. I never thought that could be possible at home considering I burn 600 to 700 in a live class, but these DVDs are tough and motivating. You hurt too good to stop; I’d take a few breaks here and there and would jump right back into it.

FBM Rating (Out of 5):
Instruction: ★★★★
Long-Term Likeability:★★★★★
Music: ★★★
Fun Factor: ★★★★★
Meets Expectations: ★★★★★

Overall: ★★★★1/2

Fit Bottom Line: If you’re a busy mom who needs to squeeze in a tough, quick workout or if your activity plans didn’t go as scheduled, we can’t recommend the Fusion Fitness Dream Body Cardio Series enough. The ladies are encouraging and motivating but also tough and powerful. The Bump series is excellent for new Moms getting their groove back or those sick days when our bodies need to ease back into things. 

Prepare to fall in love and be addicted — Fusion Fitness is THAT amazing! We’re bringing sexy back! Do you have any favorite classes you wish you could package up to take at home? —Jennifer