As an alternative to yoga and our Gazelle machine, I’ve been trying out some exercise videos on Netflix Instant Play. Here are my quick mini-reviews (in the order that I tried them) for those of you interested in exercising in your living room!

1) Crunch: Cardio Sculpt: This was a tough first video, and I would definitely not recommend it. This is the kind of exercise video that makes me think I’ll never use exercise videos. The steps were confusing at times and moved too quickly from one to the next. It was a decent workout that brought me to a sweat, but my frustration wasn’t worth it.

2) Crunch: Cardio Dance Blast: This was much more fun than I expected, considering I take myself too seriously most of the time to do something dance-y for exercise. It was 40 minutes long. The host was fun enough that you didn’t feel ridiculous doing the often goofy dance moves. Only complaint is about the exerciser in the background wearing jeans and a t-shirt. Couldn’t a producer find her some work-out clothes? She annoyed me.

3) Crunch Super Slim Down: Pilates Yoga Blend : The host was good, and she worked to show you modifications to the workout, which I really appreciated with some of the more difficult moves. This video also provided a good variety of exercises. Later this night, I thought I was having stomach problems, but realized the next morning I was just sore from the ab work out!

4) Yoga for Health: I was really excited about this video, which was the intro to a series of video, featuring special episodes on headaches, etc. But I was immediately turned off. The host’s accent was too thick to understand, especially in an echoey room. The frustration of the sound combined with amateur video forced me to shut this off within minutes.

5) The Trainer’s Edge: Integrated Strength Training. This is definitely a contender for my favorite video. Instead of most videos that have the host in front, then a random dozen people behind, this one only had 3—including the host. The three exercisers were easy, medium, and hard, so you could watch whoever you wanted to match level-wise. I felt really good doing light weights during this 40 minute workout, mostly because of the clear enthusiastic host. Note: This is my first guy host. I don’t know if some of you prefer women, but I thought this guy was nice. He made sure to say that you should do the workout that’s right for how you feel, because your body changes every day. He also emphasized that we’re working for progress, not perfection.

So I know it’s Shark Week, so I’m starting this week’s entries at the wrong end of the animal kingdom. And yes, I did watch a little bit of shark footage (Air Jaws!) last night on Discovery, but the Heidi Fleiss: Prostitutes to Parrots reality special on Animal Planet is what really caught my attention. I’m not sure if this special will lead to a spin-off series, but this is a series that I would watch.

Unlike some viewers, I wasn’t surprised about the parrots or the fact that Fleiss is a “crazy bird lady”. I watched the cycle of Celebrity Rehab where Fleiss participated a few years ago, and the parrots were a big part of her plan for recovery even then. She’d tacked up pictures of all of her birds behind her bed in a strange sort of rehab shrine, and her devotion to the animals in the midst of her addiction was one of the most interesting parts of that cycle.

This show isn’t really about Heidi Fleiss; it isn’t about parrots. This show’s existence alone proves how much we love to watch someone fall. One of the most successful business women ever (even though her business happened to be illegal) was transformed (really, broken down) through her experience as a prisoner and an addict into someone who is eccentric, obsessive, and awkward.

BUT behind all of her strange behavior, Fleiss has finally learned compassion and love. She never knew how to care before in her role as a madam, but, now as an almost-recluse (only leaving her Pahrump house to empty change from her Dirty Laundry Laundromat or check in on the manager at her dog hotel), she does. These birds provide her salvation. These birds are the only thing keeping her sane (ish), sober, and happy. My concern would be that viewers are ONLY focusing on how Fleiss has fallen from greatness and glamour and created this bizarro life. I worry that viewers don’t see the inspiring potential behind her shaky, bird-chewed exterior.