Tonique - The Basics

G

Gobias

Cathlete
Hi All,

I have seen the threads lately on Tonique and I am really interested. However, I still have a few questions:

*What is Tonique considered? Cardio, Sculpting, Flexibility, Endurance? I have seen the clips and still can't figure it out. To me it almost seems like the focus is endurance training? (Kind of like Cathe's Barre workouts?) However, Sylwia has some crazy muscle tone, so do the very light weights also count as sculpting? I read that some people get cardio out of it, but I don't see how. (I haven't tried them yet, so I may eat those words).

*Is there a particular order to try these in? Each DVD seems to have its own name, and I don't see a rhyme or reason as to the order I should try them. I see her date of release for each, but that isn't always indicitive of the proper order.

*Does anyone have a list of easiest to hardest?

*What would you recommend I try first? I am a pretty moderate - advanced Cathlete and use weights slightly less than her in STS, same as her in other videos. Can do Cathe cardio straight through, use leg weights on Cathe's Barre and leg conditioning drills. Cathe videos (99% of what I do) are tough, but I can get through them. I also do Horizontal Conditioning (with some modifications) and Lastics (when is another one coming out?!?)

*I read that Tonique can be about 2 hours long - does she have great premixes like Cathe? I am a bit worried about the boredom factor and I read that she has many repetitions. I do find my mind wander a bit (until Cathe somehow calls me out on it in her videos and I snap back to my workout focus).

*Any other tips on Tonique greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
 
The high degree of repetition, the high boredom factor, and the voice over narration are the three reasons why my Toniques sit unused on the shelf.

They may be fabulous, Sylwia gets results, as can be seen from her own physique, but I do not have the personality to endure such repetitiveness and small range of motions.

Clare
 
I just researched tonique but I have not tried them yet. On totalfitnessdvds.com there is mire info on the workouts. For the newer ones, the difficulty is not in order of release. It says that addicted to movement is to prepare for born to move and femme fatal is a continuation of born to move. Premier is the first video, the voice over is not Sylwia and I think the voice is annoying. You can view premier in YouTube part 1-8 I think. You might want to try one of those to see if you like the moves. There are no premix options but some videos come with shorter workouts. I think on addicted to movement there is an express that is 16 minutes and is a different workout to the main one. I can post an update after I attempt a workout.
 
Hi. I've been doing Tonique about 3 times per week (out of 6-7 workouts per week) for almost three weeks. I planned out a 3 month rotation with Cathe, Tonique, Jari Love, and other instructors for variety. I have to say I've gotten pretty decent results so far. I need to lose a couple of pounds, but I've lost about 5 lbs and I'm definitely seeing changes in my lower abs and lower body. I can't say these results are due to Tonique only because like I already said I'm mixing a lot of instructors and workout styles, but I do these types of rotations all the time and I rarely see results as fast, especially in my trouble spots. Last year I did not lose a pound and when this year started I started gaining weight again. It seemed that nothing worked. I have several medical conditions that make me gain weight, in addition to genetics, and the fact that I'm not getting any younger is not helping either. But this time around it seems that those trouble spots in my body that never respond to anything are changing and slimming down. Tonique is the only new thing I'm doing.

I own Premier (also known as Tonique Fitness), Born to Move, Energy Mat, and Addicted to Movement. In terms of difficulty I would say Energy Mat is the "easiest", then Premier, and ATM and BTM are almost the same level of difficulty, but the workouts are different and I don't think they can be compared. Tonique is hard. I've done STS 3 times and I lift as heavy or heavier than Cathe, especially in my lower body, I am a runner, and I can do any Hiit or Tabata workout with the energy of a 2 year old, and not only I found Tonique challenging, I found it exhausting, but I pushed myself and so far I have finished all the workouts so far. They are hard. Hard on the wrists, and other parts of the body. I modify some movements, but my endurance is getting better.

Tonique is not for everybody. If you tend to get bored, or get easily distracted, these workouts are probably not for you. In the other Tonique thread I mentioned that your mind has to be prepared for these types of workouts. There are hundreds and hundreds of repetitions, you need to have a special mindset for these workouts. I'm used to the style already and know that if I count my repetitions I keep my mind busy and forget about the time. These workouts can get long, the longest I've done is ATM at 78 mins, and I don't see myself doing one of the 2hr workouts ever, there are a lot of Tonique alternatives that can give the same results at less than 1 hr, I simply don't have the time or the patience for a 2hr Tonique workout. All those super long workouts can be shortened because Sylwia usually stays on one leg for a long time and then switches the leg and repeats all the other exercises. You can either switch legs every 15 reps or in some instances do one leg for 30 mins then rewind and do the other leg and stop the video at 60 mins and try the other segments some other day. You can find all clips of Tonique Premier on youtube. They are divided in about 8 video clips, you can check them out and see if this style of workout is for you before you make an investment. I think the workouts are mostly toning (high reps with 2lbs dumbbells or high reps with your bodyweight), she adds cardio segments, they are short and intense, but I still would not consider these workouts circuit workouts, there's nothing like Tonique. I have hundreds of DVDs and it's hard for me to give it a category. I say toning because the majority of the exercises are toning exercises, and there's a learning curve and endurance element, I find that Tonique is making me a better runner and a stronger weight lifter. If I do a Tonique workout the day before any other non Tonique workout I do a much better job.

I think you should view the clips of Premier on youtube and if you like them then add segments to your current workouts to see if they are for you. The mat segment of Tonique Premier is a good starter workout, you can keep adding segments of Premier until you master the whole workout, if you find you like the style and like the results then make the investment, buy Premier so you can have it and do it however and whenever you want, then get any of the others. Some Tonique users also seem to like Tracy Anderson and Dream Body workouts, maybe check those out as well to see if you like them more than Tonique.

I hope this helps.
 
Thanks all for your feedback. I wish some of you non users lived by me so I could borrow the DVD! Island Rose, your breakdown was extremely helpful, thanks for taking the time. Aprilrain, have you done the workouts yet?

I am going to go ahead and get Premiere to try. I see that I just missed the sale over at Video Fitness. :( Amazon is more expensive, so hopefully another sale comes along. Addicted to Movement also looks like one I want to try.

I am still a bit confused as to what these workouts are considered, but I soon shall see.
 
Gobias
I finally got around to trying Tonique. I did not work out much this past month so I feel a bit deconditioned.last week, I started with addicted to movement: the express workout (16 min) followed by sway (10min). My average heart rate for express was 163 and max of 181. This is similar for me in heart rate to supercuts and knockout rockout or afterburn which I did last month. I would say Tonique is more of a cardio workout but has some toning effect since my legs had doms for 2 days after. The express was doable in terms of moves but I went slower than Sylwia. Didn't do much of sway because I couldn't see the tv from the floor so I kept stopping to see what she was doing. The sway is ten minutes with legs raised (I used my bench) in plank position.
Yesterday I attempted the 1:18 hrs workout on addicted to movement. I did not pause the video but I did not do the moves the whole time. I attempted every move and aimed to do 10-20 reps of each. I had to stop to catch my breath so I marched in place while Sylvia did probably 30 or so reps. I modified a few moves where she stays bent over by using my step to put my hands since I was not comfortable (lower back felt strained) bent over with hands on the floor. I think for this workout I will make a spread sheet to track my reps to monitor my progress. I feel good today, sort of how I would feel after a long cardio workout like step or running. I did not wear my heart rate monitor but I would say my heart rate was at the max for most moves and I marched for 1-2 minutes between exercises. At the end of both workouts she does a bit of cardio as a cool down. I did my own stretches after.
I really enjoyed this workout and plan to attempt born to move this week or next weekend.
 
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