I bought a Shape magazine on impulse at the supermarket the other day and I thought that having a regular subscription to one might be a good motivator for me (motivation is one of my biggest issues for everything in life).

Does/Did anybody have a subscription to anything like Shape, Fitness, Women's/Men's Health, etc.? What did you like about them? Not like? Repetitive? Good information? More fluff than substance (I'm not too concerned about makeup tips when I'm reading a fitness magazine. If I wanted that, I'd read Glamour or Cosmo or Vogue or something).

Thanks for the help.

I used to buy Shape quite often, but after a while all the advice seemed to repeat itself...it was also difficult (for me) because a lot of the exercises in the magazine required fitness balls, kettle balls, resistance bands, etc. none of which I own. But it *does* contain some good tips, so If you think it'll motivate you, why not?

Same here. I used to get Shape magazine and I found that it was quite redundant. I like to go to the book store and browse the magazines or go online to places like www.shape.com. Then, I buy real books for reading. I just got (on Amazon) Thin for Life which was highly recommended by quite a few of the chicks on this board. It's supposed to be very motivating. For me, the fashion magazines are actually more motivating than the fitness ones because I get to fantasize about all the beautiful clothes that I'll be able to wear in the future (of course at a larger size and a cheaper version ).

Everyone is different, though, so you might really enjoy it and get a lot out of it.

I subscribe to Fitness, Self (Jillian Michaels is a contributing editor! I love her and see lots of results from her dvds so I add on somethings from here)and if there is something of interest to me Muscle and Fitness Hers. I take workouts from each and incorporate them into what I'm already doing as bonus exercises.

I used to buy Women's Health ages ago, but I stopped. It seemed to be more "Cosmo Lite" than health/fitness magazine. There's only so much "must-haves for [insert year here]" and "lose 10 pounds by next Tuesday" that I can take. I bought the magazine to get in shape and find out more about fitness, but instead I read nothing but tripe.

I subscribe to fitness and shape as well- and I go to both the websites a lot too. My biggest gripe is that they're so fast to read through!

I got shape as well - I actually got a free subsciption so I thought I would give it a go for a year. I haven't really read much but scan though it. From what I have seen I think it's got some good information.

I love SELF. When I first subscribed to it, I noticed in the Letters section that everyone kept mentioning a certain article. I emailed SELF and they sent me a copy of the article both hard copy and e-mail the next day with a personal note. I also subscribed to SHAPE and Women's Health, but have let those subscriptions go and kept SELF. It is a favorite of mine.

I love Self and the Weight Watchers magazine

I really like Muscle & Fitness Hers. I tried Oxygen for a while, but after a while it was too much Tosca. I'm sure she's a very nice woman, but I'm worn out with the "Eat Clean" franchise.

I am an Oxygen chickie. I consider it the best fitness magazine and nobody will convince me otherwise. The plethora of exercises that I learned about there and incorporated into my routine ... priceless! (and for everything else, there is Mastercard ).
I don't like Shape because they have strayed off the fitness path and the magazine is too much into fashion/cosmetics and other nonsense. I also love Men's Health (that's right, Men's Health, not Women's) and I am thinking about trading a subscription to one of my interior decorating mags for Men's Health.

The only magazine I've been subscribed to was Prevention. I really like it because it covers a wide range of health topics. The fitness and weight loss sections were just enough to keep me motivated, which is all I really needed. It also had new and interesting information on a variety of topics that I considered reliable. They really seem to care about facts. Their articles would get me thinking about health and fitness in new ways that weren't totally rehashed (an understandable problem with the subject.) Now I kind of miss it...

I'm with you there on Men's Health. Besides the eye candy on the cover and throughout the magazine ( ), I reckon they have better recipes, better exercises and better advice than all women's magazines.

I read subscribed to Women's Health and Oxygen. I agree its too much Tosca !! Bahh. It's annoying. She's on like every 3 or 4 covers and in almost every page. Bahh. And I agree Men's Health is much better than Women's Health.

I do find these magazines motivational. Honestly, I don't really try out the exercises in them much because I prefer to exercise in a class setting or with a video. I just like reading about people who lost weight, got healthy, and about recipes.

I don't think Tosca is on the cover that often, I think she was on it twice last year. She doesn't bother me personally, perhaps it is because I am 50 (and is she) so I admire her for "keeping pace" with the much younger crowd. But I can understand that there may be too much of her for other readers. Don't forget she is the publisher's wife.

And regarding Men's Health and the recipes - that's true! Right now, I have two issues, the one with Jason What'shisname on the cover and the UK edition with [drool] Gerard Butler [/drool] - they both have very nice recipes (I think the latter has more) and I already made use of one for dinner on Sunday (very low on carbs, fat and clean-up - gotta love that).