Imax 3 vs. Tabatacise

tygra

Cathlete
Imax 3 was alway my "hate it, but want to work hard" workout of Cathe's. I've done Insanity but Imax 3 was a dread factor for me, thinking I couldn't get through it. I've been on a XT rotation (BTW, love the burn sets and 100 reps challlenges, seeing definition I haven't seen in years) and Tabaticise scared me. I have made it through all five Tabatacise chapters a few times...of course with a little extra pause from DVD player between some of them....and love that workout. Works like no other, feel incredibly accomplished completing all 5. So, last night I decided, due to music in Imax 3, to put it in and see how i did --- I did well, but I have to say my lower back and knees really felt Imax 3 vs. Tabatacise, even though both are high impact.... With all Cathe's new offerings not sure I'll ever do Imax 3 again... anyone else feel the same between Imax 3 vs. Tabatacise?
 
Several things strike me having read this post.

If you have done Tabatacize this week already, and then did Imax 3, you may have felt more pressure afterwards in the joints and back because both of these involve seriously high impact, and maybe you just maxed out on impact for the week?

Secondly, I wonder if the difference between floor impact moves and step impact moves is at work here? I think we all have a preference and find one or the other of the two easier. Maybe, you find floor-based HiiT/tabata/plyo work easier on your body? I know that I find the step versions of these easier to perform, so, this would have an effect upon my perception of both dread before, say, Crossfire, and how I felt in my body after it. Give me To The Max any day.

Of the three Imaxes, number 3 does have the most impact of all. Cathe really turned it up a notch; I remember not liking this at the time. However, having now seen the tabata stuff, the HiiT stuff, Intensity, Drillmax, Crossfire, etc, I'm not convinced that Imax 3 has any more impact than these others.

You inspired me to view the Imax 3 clip here again, since I have not done it for about 8 years, and I have to say I liked what I saw. The music is rocking, and what's present in Imax 2 and 3 is the cardio sections in between the blasts which are fab. Some of her best choreo, certainly better than some of the low impact choreo I have seen lately which just doesn't do much for me. So, I think I will always prefer Imaxes over Tabata. Besides blasts in tabata, what else is there? Sure, it is terribly efficient. But is it really fun?

It may, in the end, all boil down to: what's your cup of tea? What makes you feel beter and what do you most enjoy doing? You don't need to do any workout that makes the build up of dread before it tur the whole thing into a nightmare until it is finally done. What's the point? If you dread Imax 3 and have no other feelings for it, retire it or sell it! It's like books and buses: there'll be another workout along in a minute! So many workouts, so little time.....

Clare
 
I just wanted to thank you for reminding me of the existence of Imax 3. I hadn't done it for about 6 years, so I gave it a whirl tonight and enjoyed it. Thank you!

It's like in times of economic hardship, you need to shop your closet: I'm shopping my video fitness collection!

Clare
 
Imax3 will always have a place in my collection. I used to do it once every couple of weeks and always felt so accomplished afterwards. I love the choreography of the step and blast portions and like the imax format in general, so there is never any dread factor for me with this one.

I agree with Clare that maybe the impact+step causes you to feel the impact more than floor-based jumping/plyo. Also, imax3 is longer than tabatacise so you’re pushing your body for a longer period of time. FYI, I modify several of the blasts in imax3 to reduce impact, e.g. I usually jump onto the step with 2 feet but step rather than jump off.

I like imax3 slightly more than tabatacise because I prefer the format & step choreo. However, tabatacise is very versatile in that I can do one tabata or several depending on how much time/energy I have. I also prefer the shorter warmup and lack of pre-workout stretch in tabatacise vs the imax3 warmup. I prefer to get right down to business.
 

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