'90s Workout

Flannel shirts and baggy jeans may have been the rage in the grunge-era '90s, but they didn't do much for the form. We prefer the music itself — say, the granddaddy of all grunge cuts, Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" — lending an audio assist as we trim down into a nice tight pair of boot-cuts or skinnies. Indeed, there's a certain something about the sounds of the '90s — reassuringly familiar yet not too musty — that make 'em just right for fitness inspiration, from the all-conquering crunch of Metallica's "Enter Sandman," to Moby's full-physique freaker "Bodyrock," to the Tragically Hip's sidewinding prescription for bigger muscles, "Little Bones." We're just gearing up — hit Next Steps for more '90s workout wonders.

Consider the double-stuff motivation of Cake's '90s alt-classic "The Distance" — you push through your routine on the pulsating power of its eyes-on-the-prize tempo, and you earn the right to enjoy an actual piece of the sweet treat later on. Now is the time to forget your limits and become one with the fitness universe to the tune of Madonna's "Ray of Light," to ignite your fat burner to the sounds of the Prodigy's "Breathe," to break out the step and the rope to House of Pain's "Jump Around," and to redirect all of that excess breakup anger for the sake of rock-hard abs, with Alanis Morissette as your drill sergeant on "You Oughta Know." Like No Doubt says, it's "Hella Good," so keep it up in Deep Cuts . . .

You got this far, so take your workout all the way with a '90s Workout Deep Cuts playlist designed to move you to your max. Stay "Connected" to your cardio with the streaming beats of Stereo MC's, or master your free-weight routine to the funky, gym-ready hip-hop of Coolio and "1-2-3-4 (Sumpin' New)." Wreckx-N-Effect would like to remind you of the shapely results when you polish off your Stairmaster minutes with "Rump Shaker," Rancid is on hand to let you know that the longer you neglect your belly, the more likely it is to blow up, with "Time Bomb," and hard-core trainers Anthrax are standing by to "Bring the Noise" while you — yes, you, fitness fiend — bring it home.

The beauty of a '90s workout is that you get a whole ten years' worth of tunes to train by. How could you ever get bored when you've got everything from Public Enemy's searing rap directive "Fight the Power," to Smash Mouth's alt-pop tribute "All Star" egging you on to fitness glory? You can do it, and we can help. So forget the big bucks you'd drop on a trainer and let the righteous rock edge of Republica's "Ready to Go" prepare you for the glory to come, while the hip-pop beats of Montell Jordan's "This Is How We Do It" keep you on track, and Ricky Martin shows some Latin-flavored love for your efforts on "Livin' la Vida Loca." We've even included your own personal, lean, mean, so-hot theme song, courtesy of Right Said Fred's "I'm Too Sexy."