Celebrity trainers often branch out, selling their "training expertise" to the masses with fitness studios in big cities or with DVD's, books and other fitness products. If you do not do your homework before buying into these programs, you might find yourself overwhelmed, unmotivated and worst, injured. After all, just because a trainer is having success with a single celebrity, it does not mean that their methods will translate well to DVD or to large groups.

Tracy Anderson, the exercise "guru" who has claimed to have worked with Madonna and Gwyneth Paltrow is under fire, not only for her exercise program but for some harsh words she had for women in an interview set for release in the September issue of DuJour magazine. In that interview, Anderson took women in general to task for letting themselves go during pregnancy, saying in part that they used their pregnancy as an excuse. Anderson then revealed that she lost her own pregnancy weight in just weeks, following the recent birth of her daughter.

Anderson and Paltrow are business partners, so it would stand to reason that the latter would tout the former. But Paltrow admitted that she has osteopenia, the precursor to osteoporosis two years ago and people were quick to point out her diet, pushed by Anderson in her fitness program as the culprit. They forgot to add that Anderson's routine is based on very light weights, lifted at alarmingly high repetitions, a recipe that is bound to cause boredom as well as increasing the possibility of injuries. But, strength training, with real weights and proper form is an important consideration for women, specifically to prevent brittle bones.

The Tracy Anderson method relies on a time crunch that most women, especially new women just do not have. In the first month of her program, the workouts are two hours long, increasing to three hours in the second month. Those workouts are done six days of the week and are supposed to be non-negotiable. Anderson tells women that they should not feel guilty about carving out that "little bit" of time for themselves, but a nursing mother does not have two hours to herself every single day.

Critics of Anderson also warn about the strict and bizarre diet, including a concoction that had one journalist over her sink every single morning. A nutritionist reviewing the plan was horrified to learn that calorie counts were well below what is acceptable or safe- coming in at 700 -800 calories per day. With that kind of deficit, yes, you will lose weight but you will also be too weak to enjoy your successes, your hair and skin will suffer and you will run the risk of serious, potentially life threatening complications.