By Gail Gedan Spencer for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Hiring a personal trainer can be a great way to personalize a workout but can get quite expensive. And fitting your schedule to theirs often isn't convenient. So bring one home on a DVD.

Here are a few new DVDs that allow you to customize a workout to your favorite moves or least favorite trouble spots.

• "Build Up Your Muscles" (Gin Miller Fitness, $29.95; available at collagevideo.com or ginmiller.com). Video fitness pioneer Gin Miller offers four 45-minute workouts, whether you own resistance tubing, weighted balls, dumbbells or wrist and ankle weights. The only other thing you need is a chair. Miller has a high fun factor (she likes to do funny voices and such) but that's relatively toned down in this disc, which is simple to follow and a great no-frills workout.

• "Prevention Fitness Systems Personal Training" (Gaiam, $14.98). The calm and friendly Chris Freytag leads you through five targeted workouts: lose weight, get firm, improve your health, flatten your belly, or slim your hips and thighs. And each workout has a weekly schedule, so you can just click on the day of the week in your chosen workout. (You can't click on Sunday; it says "rest.")

Or you can mix and match the two 13-minute cardio segments and five toning sections, as well as a warmup and cooldown, to make your own custom workout. It's infinitely customizable, and you're not bound to be bored with this many combinations.

Bonus segments include portion control, moves to beat knee pain and a waistline checkup.

• "Get Ripped!" (Razor Digital, $14.99). Canadian trainer Jari Love leads a scrupulously well-led and no-nonsense 55-minute weighted workout that's aerobically challenging as well as muscle building. It's all in the pacing, which is quick and includes a lot of reps. You'll need a barbell or dumbbells as well as an aerobic step.

Two background exercisers show modifications, and the propulsive music is timed to keep your pace.

Bonus segments include a conversation with an exercise physiologist, great tips on technique and modifications and somewhat of a self-serving gushfest of Get Ripped fans.

FITNESS FREEBIES

Go to www.propelfitnesswater.com/gunnar-one-on-one/ to build a personalized workout to load to your video iPod or computer desktop, courtesy of Propel Fitness Water and "trainer to the stars" Gunnar Peterson, who's personable and encouraging. You can use bands, weights and/or a fitness ball in these exercises.

And for more downloadable video workouts, go to www.propelfitnesswater.com/your- bones-your-body/, which has weight-bearing, bone- and muscle-strengthening workouts from the always-great Kathy Kaehler.