>Kathryn, how is core secerts and is it worth the money. would
>you sooner invest in some of the hardcores of Cathe's I don't
>have or go for that. Thanks Karen
It depends on what you like, and how you feel about workout intensity. If you're in the "if it's not as intense as Cathe, or not "advanced," it's not worth it" camp, then you wouldn't like Core Secrets. If you're in the same camp as me, the "I value workouts of differing intensities, and find that functional fitness workouts are very beneficial," and you like using the stabilty ball, then I'd say go for it.
I'd say the workouts are intermediate in intensity. You can, of course, use heavier weights when doing it, and I always get a few extra reps in while Gunther is setting up moves (he often does only 8 or 10 reps per set). You could also repeat the workouts for more intensity. I happen to love what moves like "one-legged-deadlifts-with-one foot on the ball, reaching the opposite hand to the floor," which are great for balance and core strength. I find they are challenging in a different way, and don't require heavy weights, because they engage smaller stablizing muscles. THey are almost "restorative" in nature, and act like pre-hab (like "rehab" but before you get injured.)
I did mainly core Secrets for my strength for a couple of weeks before my Hardcore rotation, and was surprised at how that seemed to help me go hard and heavy with HC. I intend to use them (or other functional fitness/core workouts) for the recovery week in my HC rotation.
I have the original Core Secrets set (with the add-on workouts: 5? DVD's in all), but just ordered the newer workouts (one uses the stability ball, but two don't). You can see clips of the workouts at
www.collagevideo.com .
