DESPERATELY SEEKING ADVICE!!

[HOTCHICK]

Calling all Cath,ites,

I am new to cathe, and I have 3 dvds Pure strength, Slow and heavy, Power hour/Maximum strength/Bodymax and also the Circuit max video.
As You can see I love strength training, I am used to doing the Firm videos that is what got me hooked on strength training, however I decided to start doing more cardio to help me shed weight such as Gin Miller, Keli Roberts,Karen Voight etc and also Circuit Max as I love circuit training(bearing in mind that it took me three months to pluck up the courage to do the circuit max video as it looked tough) sure enough I nearly collapsed. Anyway the question is which out of the strength dvds should I attempt first as I am afraid of Cathe as her workouts are tough? I appreciate any advice but I need to be weaned on gradually, so please be gentle with me.

thanks

Hotchick.

 

[Bernard]

Hi Hotchick,

I am probably not going to be much help here, but I received PH and MIS last weekend, and have done both this week, and I am VERY new to Cathe's strength workouts, and I have been fine both are equally as good as each other. PH is more of a Body Pump workout, MIS is slower. I must warn, PH is a killer on the butt and thighs, I couldn't bend down for 3 days after doing it :7 (I was only using 4# dumbells, and an 8# bodybar !) I am doing PH again tonight - can't wait !
I have yet to purchase PS series, and S&H, so hopefully others will step in with their own thoughts on those !

Good Luck !

BTW, Hotchick, where did you get your Firm vids from ? Anywhere in the UK sell them ?

Anna

 

[Cruncholi]

Hi Hotchick,

You might want to start with Maximum Intensity Strength (MIS) out of the ones you named. This is a very thorough total body strength workout. The pace is slower than Power Hour (PH) and Circuit Max (CM), but faster than Slow & Heavy (SH). I think its about the same as Pure Strength (PS).

In any case I think this video will give you a good idea of Cathe's weighlifting style. But, please begin with light weights so you don't injure yourself and that is probably what your body is used to if you have been Firming. Another bonus of MIS is that there is a step warmup and the legs portion (in the beginning) gets your heart rate up so it is somewhat of a cardio workout for about the first half hour.

Good luck.

Cruncholi

 

[Debra]

I started with MIS & loved it so much I quickly purchased the Pure Strength Videos. If MIS is too much at one time, split it into upper & lower body. Lately I've been alternated between MIS & PowerHour. Since you have the DVD's, I find the newer ab & plank work from Power Hour & Slow & Heavy very effective but less time consuming compared to the older ab sections.

With any of these workouts, go light the first time through or you'll be moaning for a week! I think PowerHour & Leaner Legs are high on the moan inducement scale because they're non-stop (kind of like Firm's). The low end stuff really gets you. Slow & Heavy is actually the lowest on the moan inducement scale because of the long recovery between sets.

Since they're all new, you'll probably want to give them each a visit & then focus on either endurance or strength.

Have fun with all your new Cathe's!
Debra

 

[SteppingFool]

Don't be intimidated with Cathe, esp in strength training. I think Cathe strength training fit into every level of exercisers. If you are a beginner, just use lower weight than she does -- as long as it challenges you.

I would start with MIS or Power Hour. Then PS, and then SH.

Have fun!

Haslina

 

[jillybean]

I would start with MIS but I would start soon. I did The Firm for years and was scared of diving into heavier weight training with Cathe. I was pretty pathetic at first, but I made strength gains much sooner than I thought possible. Then you could move onto Power Hour or Body Max. Have fun!

 

[HOTCHICK]

Hi Anna,

and all the other Cathites who responded to my post, I want to thank you for your advice.
It appears that all of you are advising me to go with MIS first so this is what I am going to do and see how I get on.
I will start with light weights just to get the feel of it and see how it goes,and let you all know if Cathe has put me in hospital yet(Ha Ha).

Oh! by the way Anna I got my Firm vids from WWW.Amazon.com, have you ever purchased from them? not the UK Amazon but the USA one.They sell about 16 firms themselves but also have market place sellers who sell old or hard to get Firms I have about 15 of them. Amazon also sell thousand of keep fit vids and DVDS,and each video has a £1.40 charge then the total shipping charge is £2.50 total for as much dvd/vid combinations as you like(standard shipping of course) they say to ship standard is about 12-21 days but my videos always come within a week.Also you can ship faster if you want,but dont ship more than 2-4 vids/dvds at a time or the customs officer might be lurking.
Anyway Anna have a surf, and if you have trouble finding the fitness farm through Amazon or you need recommendations for the best Firm vids etc, please let me know.

bye for now

Hotchick

 

[R_Lam]

Hi,
The PS series is pretty good. It splits body parts into 3 day sessions and the pace is quite manageable. I have been using this series since the summer and have been very reluctant to try other rotations ( except the 3 weeks of S&H after my first 12 weeks of it )only because once you start seeing results it's hard to switch. I FIRMed for 2 years and never got my arms to lean out this quickly! I am beginning to see the horseshoe that people talk about in their posts! Not to shabby for someone who can only lift 10 lbs for the pressess and 5's for the skull crushers and extensions. I like the split routines because if I feel too lazy to do cardio then the split routines are what I reach for and they are very nicely paced.