First Time Posting

FruitLoop25

New Member
Hello, all! I am pretty new to Cathe and have steadily been collecting dvds this year. I have always been so intimidated to try her workouts so they just sat on my shelf. Well, yesterday I bit the bullet and unwrapped Push/Pull because I read (while lurking on forums) that people think that is her easiest workout. Well, not only was I able to do the workout but I matched Cathe’s weights (except for one exercise because I don’t have a 25 pound dumbbell only up to 20 pounds)!! I know this is her easiest workout but I was SO FREAKING proud of myself! This 51 year old woman was jumping around like a toddler on Xmas morning!! I ran out to my husband and told him and honestly- I was on cloud nine!!! I felt so powerful afterwards like I was Super Woman!! Haha

Cathe is AMAZING!!!! I can’t believe I am only discovering her at this point in my fitness journey!! I love everything about her!! I love seeing such strong, powerful women! I loved her cute personality! I loved her timely pointers. She’s pretty dang awesome!!! I splurged during the Labor Day sale so I have more workouts coming (and that cool round mat)! Thanks so much for listening to this Cathe newbie babble on! I was nervous to post but after lurking here for awhile feel this is a very supportive community. Do you all remember your first Cathe workout where you finished it feeling so proud of yourself?
 
@FruitLoop25 - Welcome to the Forums! I hope you continue to post your experiences with Cathe's workouts. I also enjoy BodyBlast's Push/Pull workout. It's fun. Don't sell yourself short ... it's a solid workout.
Do you all remember your first Cathe workout where you finished it feeling so proud of yourself?
My first Cathe strength workout was the Pure Strength series on VHS way back in the 1990's. I have it on dvd now and still use it. My first Cathe Step workouts were with Cross-Train Express originally on VHS too - after which we quickly bought up all her older Step workouts they were so fun. And eventually we repurchased the older ones on dvd too.

The Labor Day sales are a great way to catch some fantastic Cathe deals. Have fun and let us know how you like them!
 
Congratulations and welcome! So happy you gave Cathe a try.

I've found over the years that her strength training workouts feel far less intimidating than her cardio workouts, if that's helpful to you at all while choosing which next workout to dip your toe in. If you've got the DVD that has both Push & Pull and Supersets on it, give Supersets a try for sure. It's also on the easier side, and still a favorite of mine to fall back on when I just need to lighten up (literally and figuratively).

My first two Cathe workouts were Rhythmic Step and Power Hour which I got on VHS back in 2002. Rhythmic Step took me a long, long time to figure out as I only had extremely basic step experience before that one, so I tended to avoid it quite a bit back in the day. I felt pretty dang amazing and accomplished when I got through all of Power Hour, though. I was pretty much hooked on Cathe's workouts from that point forward.

I'd say 90% of my home workout library consists of Cathe's stuff now - and I've since grown to adore most of Cathe's cardio - especially step workouts (and most especially the intricately choreographed ones) - I no longer have two left feet!

Glad you're here!
 
Sorry for the delayed reply! I had, originally, posted during a quick work break!! Thank you so much to everyone that responded! I really appreciate it. I have already learned so much from you all while lurking! It will be nice to actively learn more from you by being able to ask questions!

Kellyro77- I will definitely try Supersets!

Debinmi- oh, no!! Well, thanks for the warning!! Haha Wish me luck!!!!
 
Welcome FruitLoop25! I started with Cathe's Basic Step and Body Fusion, and Low Impact Step DVDs. The first one of Cathe's workouts that I really felt proud of myself after finishing was Party Rockin' Step 1, after finally nailing the choreography. The other really big one was completing STS 1 for the first time. I hadn't done a dedicated program before and was proud of myself for sticking with it.
 
The first one of Cathe's workouts that I really felt proud of myself after finishing was Party Rockin' Step 1, after finally nailing the choreography. The other really big one was completing STS 1 for the first time. I hadn't done a dedicated program before and was proud of myself for sticking with it.
STS is a big achievement. You are right to be proud of such big accomplishments.
For both STS and party rocking.

Party rocking is so much fun. I recall being frustrated learning and mastering the choreography.
It is one of the most difficult to learn.

Here is the clip for anyone wondering!
 
Hazlady and FitSaxe- Holy cow!!!! Ok, I am so not ready for Cathe’s cardio!! My eyes just about fell out of my head!!! That’s crazy impressive!! You should definitely be proud!!! Also, I’m jealous you could complete the STS rotation! I’m horrible with rotations! Although, I think I did buy a couple dvds from that set. I want to say one of them is a chair/mat yoga and the other had 2 mobility workouts. However, I could also be confusing them with a different workout set which is more likely!

Right now, I am doing mostly walking workouts and hi/lo aerobics for my cardio. I know- I’m definitely not up to snuff for the standards here! I hope I can still stay!!

All the studies I read say that I should do HIIT as I age- especially now that I am 50+. However, I really, really love steady state, low to moderate intensity cardio. It just truly makes me happy and zen. It’s my favorite form of exercise. I think that’s why I have been able to stay motivated to work out because I only do workouts that make me feel good! I don’t know if that’s good or bad for my future in terms of longevity and fitness.
 
Right now, I am doing mostly walking workouts and hi/lo aerobics for my cardio. I know- I’m definitely not up to snuff for the standards here! I hope I can still stay!!
ALL levels of fitness are welcome here! We all started somewhere. Since you like hi-lo keep your eyes peeled for a sale on Cathe's LITE Cardio Party. It's a fun, low impact old-school style hi-lo with a little kickbox vibe thrown in. LITE's Rev'd Up Rumble is more kickbox but has a hi-lo feel, and it's low impact too. And if you want to get your feet wet with a HITT, then look at ICE Low Impact Sweat or Xtrain's All Out Low Impact HITT. They both have premixes to shorten them up (Timesavers). I also like the Ripped with HIIT Low Impact HIIT (2 workouts both less than 30 minutes).
 
@FruitLoop25 We all get better with time. If you like challenges you will strive for more and will complete STS. Truth is I was intimidated to embark on STS journey. I set myself a goal: Completing 4ds, Gym style and CTX.

Oh also i did Bodybeast :D

Funny thing with STS is once you have completed it for the purpose it was made for, you will ask yourselF to re-embark again. Read through past threads here on the forum. There are many of us who love and swear by STS. We love it so much to the point of asking for STS 2.0 lol:D:D. Try it and you may have FUN;

I built up intensity, strength by embracing and reaching out for various goals. Trust me I had no idea all those challenges were resulting to what I have gained :D :D The best achievement to be honest is the mental strength. It is all in the head. You can do it.

Take care:D;)
 
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Welcome FruitLoop25. What a fun user name!

I feel that most of Cathe's strength workouts can work for everyone, because one can always lift lighter, do every other rep, do a timesaver premix, or any number of of other ways to adapt. I've restarted an interrupted fitness journey, but didn't feel comfortable using another instructor, so I used a lot of those strategies. I trust Cathe, because she does the workout with us and gives valuable form pointers. If something strikes your fancy... don't let the "level" stop you, as you can generally make it easier. It sounds like you're doing great! :)

As others have mentioned... many of Cathe's step workouts are challenging, especially the choreography. If you're interested in trying step, but not ready for the fancy stuff, Cathe's Basic Step is fun and "doable" and a great place to start. If you don't like it... don't do step. If you do... it stimulates the mind, learning all those new steps, so try another. HIIT, even when I was in better shape and working out regularly wasn't a favorite of mine. I only did it about once a month. I did want the anaerobic benefits from that type of workout, though, so I found that some of Cathe's step as well as her kickboxing workouts provided anaerobic "blasts", and I really enjoy that type of workout.

We all have our own preferences, and while I like to step outside of my comfort zone every so often, I do tend to stick mostly to the types of workouts that I love. The fun factor gets me putting in my full effort (rather than just going through the motions).

I do remember the first time I completed a Cathe workout, and I remember how proud I was of myself, the additional motivation that drove me to try other Cathe workouts, and a sense of joy and accomplishment. You want to know something? For me... that didn't go away. Every time I lifted heavier, mastered a knew step, got a MMA combo completely correct, improved my form... I felt it again. Now, I'm starting over again, and it took me awhile to "feel" good about anything (kept comparing my "now" workouts to my "old self" lol), but once the girls on this forum helped me get my head on straight (thanks ladies!) and started seeing some progress, I started "feeling" it again. Thank you for sharing. I'm one of those people that feels joy when I hear about someone else's accomplishment. I love that you are so happy, and I hope that you feel that many times when completing a Cathe workout. :)
 

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