just found Cathe on FitTV; what to start with?

P

pat1949

Active Member
I have been an avid user of The Firm for just over a year now, with great toning and firming results as they promise. I am 55 years old, 5 foot 2" and 128 pounds, I do not diet but instead eat balanced meals, an occasional protein drink and few snacks.

I first experienced Cathe on FitTV this week and had the most AWESOME workout that left me tired but energized - I want more! But since I work part time and can't always catch Cathe with the times she is on I want to have some advice:

I want to both lose about 10 to 15 pounds and get more definition in particular to my arms (all muscles) and my back. There is an overwhelming number of videos to review and then of course, how do you use them in rotation? I have NO idea what videos to purchase to do this as i get started nor do I know how to rotate them. The Firm makes all this very easy with no guesswork.

Can someone advise me which videos to start with, let's say 2 or 3, and how to rotate them to accomplish the results I want? Or, is there a place on the website here that would have that information?

Thank you so much.

A new Cathe admirer,

Patricia
 
Hi Patricia and welcome!
I am not one of the most experienced Cathe admirers but this is definitely the place tolearn alot. Many fantastic and educated people. My initial thought from what info you mentioned is CTX. It has a little bit of everything - all types of cardio and leaner legs. With the DVD you also have an upper body workout together besides the ones with the individual workouts. What type of cardio do you like? Timesaver might be another option. I'm sure you will get alot of other suggestions from others that are more familiar with her workouts. Do you like the Firm style of mixing cardio and weights or do you prefer to do these separate?
 
Hi! It'd help us to know what workout equipment you have, how much time each day/week to workout and whether you prefer vhs or dvd. Are you interested in any cardio workouts or just strength training??

Thanks!

Stacy
 
Thanks Marie.

I like low impact cardio most; step is fine for me about once a week. And you areso right on with time - I like sessions to be about 50 minutes. The mix of cardio and weights is perfect for me.

I'll check onCTX, if it's on VHS. We have DVD in our home but we have a workout room and right now it only has VCR.

Thanks Marie.

Pat

>What type of cardio do you like?
>Timesaver might be another option. I'm sure you will get alot
>of other suggestions from others that are more familiar with
>her workouts. Do you like the Firm style of mixing cardio and
>weights or do you prefer to do these separate?
 
Thank YOU Stacy.

I have a Reebok step and of course, The Firm two piece step. I have 2.5, 5, 8, 10 and 12 pound weights, a floor mat, 3 dyna bands (for pilates), The Firm weight bar (and 8 pound special kind of barbell) and we also have an Apollo 250 TuffStuff gym that does every kind of exercise.

I like to workout about 5 days a week for about 40 to 50 minutes each day.

My preference, which Marie asked about too, is VHS. We have DVD but not yet in our workout room.

I like cardio mixed with strength training. I'm sure there is a name for that; I remember Denise Austin calling it interval training. I do like this kind of routine best.

Thanks for the clarifying questions, Stacy.

Patricia



>Hi! It'd help us to know what workout equipment you have,
>how much time each day/week to workout and whether you prefer
>vhs or dvd. Are you interested in any cardio workouts or just
>strength training??
>
 
For arm definition on VHS I'd suggest the CTX Upper Body vhs. The CTX series is good if you're interested in doing cardio everyday, however it's not that low impact. The CTX Upper Body vhs has all the upper body workouts compiled onto one tape that's about an hour. On days I'm feeling strong I'll do the whole thing, but I like to break it down into 2 separate days with a little cardio or a short leg workout on the same day. The upper body pyramid workout is also excellent for defining your upper body. For more of a cardio and weights combo....Cardio&Weights is fun and the step choreography isn't too difficult to learn and this is coming from a klutz! I also enjoy Boot Camp.

I prefer Cathe's Supersets and Push Pull on dvd b/c alone on vhs I dont feel they are too difficult.

For some weights only total body....Muscle Endurance or Power Hour are good choices.

The two upper body Pure Strength workouts are great, but are a bit dated, but that doesnt bother me, but it does some.

I don't have any of her newest releases so I can't comment on those. So did we confuse you totally now??? lol

Let us know if you have more questions, it can be an overwhelming decision!!

:) Stacy
 
Hi Patricia!
I just saw your post. I also have done a lot of workouts from the Firm in the past. Right now I'm doing mostly Cathe workouts as I've done for 2 years now after I discovered them. I absolutely love them! I agree with Stacy. One of my favorites of Cathe's workouts that I recently bought is Cardio & Weights. It is a pretty even blend of the 2 in a circuit style, like a lot of Firm workouts. I'm sure you'd love it. It is about an hour in length. It uses the aerobic step and dumbbells. You also mentioned wanting to see more definition in your upper body. I've found Pyramid Upper Body to be extremely effective for that. It's about 50 minutes. I also love Power Hour; this one is more for muscle endurance and has higher reps. I've heard the Slow and Heavy Series is awesome for strength building and I plan to get that one soon.

Another of my very favorites is Body Max. It is about 1.5 hours in length. I often break it up and do the first hour and the upper body segment at the end another time. The first 30 minutes or so is high intensity step, followed by about 25 minutes of more high intensity step with high rep lower body work mixed in circuit style. The last 30 minutes is an awesome upper body workout which covers all upper body muscles. You can easily do this part on a different day than the other parts or add it onto another workout.

For all step workouts I really enjoy Rhythmic Step and Step Blast. Lots of fun and very challenging. Step Jump and Pump is great too but has only 20 minutes of step. The rest is hi/lo cardio with weight work mixed in circuit style.

Hope this helps!

Liz :)
 
RE: can u help me too?

I knew Cathe many years ago when i lived in US and have been using her Video when i returned to my home country. The VHS collection that i have are pretty old now i think..STEP MAX, STEP FIT, STEP JAM, etc.

Anyway, i have stopped my aerobic exercise for few years and i would like to start it again. And of course, it has to be Cathe !!!. The local instructors here are still lagging behind a lot in terms of forms and pointers and how to structure a good exercise programme ( compared to Cathe)... And i am trying my best to choose the well structured and well prepared exercise program as i do not want to hurt my knees, my muscle etc...

I am now planning to order a new collection. I like steps aerobic with good music..and also would like to focus on doing strength training for my abs and hips and thighs.

I have step bench and a set of dumb-bells at home.

Am looking forward to hear from your guys :)

CT
 
RE: can u help me too?

Hi CT!

I very much enjoy step aerobics with great music also. I have some of her newer ones and love Rhythmic Step, Step Blast, and Imax 2. I also have the Ab Hits DVD which has LOTS of ab and core work. Cathe's Pyramid Lower Body workout has a good portion of hip and thigh work in it and is very good.

Take care,
Liz

:)
 
Stacy, while it's still a lot to consider, you've reduced the overwhelm of the choices. I do hope the step choreography is not complicated because I am really not coordinated!

I'll check on all that you suggested and start with 1 or 2 and go on from there.

Thank you again.

Patricia
 
Liz thank you for more suggestions! Circuit style is one of my favorite kind of workouts so I'll look at the video sampler of Cardio & Weights.

I was thinking about breaking up something like Body Max (way too long for me!) so it's good to know it is doable!

I'll check out the step videos you suggest but i would guess from the title they're going to be too advnaced in choreography for me. I just can't follow some of the routines and I have at leasat 1 step tape (not Cathe) I gave away because of the complexity.

Thank you for the suggestions!

Patricia

>One of my
>favorites of Cathe's workouts that I recently bought is Cardio
>& Weights. It is a pretty even blend of the 2 in a circuit
>style, like a lot of Firm workouts. I'm sure you'd love it.
>It is about an hour in length. It uses the aerobic step and
>dumbbells. You also mentioned wanting to see more definition
>in your upper body. I've found Pyramid Upper Body to be
>extremely effective for that. It's about 50 minutes. I also
>love Power Hour; this one is more for muscle endurance and has
>higher reps. I've heard the Slow and Heavy Series is awesome
>for strength building and I plan to get that one soon.
>
>Another of my very favorites is Body Max. It is about 1.5
>hours in length. I often break it up and do the first hour
>and the upper body segment at the end another time. The first
>30 minutes or so is high intensity step, followed by about 25
>minutes of more high intensity step with high rep lower body
>work mixed in circuit style. The last 30 minutes is an
>awesome upper body workout which covers all upper body
>muscles. You can easily do this part on a different day than
>the other parts or add it onto another workout.
>
>For all step workouts I really enjoy Rhythmic Step and Step
>Blast. Lots of fun and very challenging. Step Jump and Pump
>is great too but has only 20 minutes of step. The rest is
>hi/lo cardio with weight work mixed in circuit style.
>
 
I'm new to Cathe too, and I agree that Cardio & Weights is a great place to start. The step moves are a bit tricky, but they are do-able. I'd suggest you use a 4" step (no risers) until you get the hang of the steps.
 
Hi again Patricia,
I was initally very intimidated by Cathe's choreography when I saw the video clips online. It really comes together when you try it at home. I got the hang of Body Max and Cardio & Weights (a little less complex) faster but also got the others down. I had to rewind a bit at first but once you get it, it's such a great feeling. When you have something to work up to, the workout does not get boring. I've been doing some of her workouts for 2 years and have yet to get bored. So give it a shot! I think you will be unable to give away a Cathe workout. Her cuing is excellent and the workouts very motivating and fun. I would consider myself to be intermediate in level and usually only do about 2/3 of an all step workout at a time. I can do all of Cardio & Weights but it is very tough (in a GREAT way, you'll see!)

Liz :)
 
Patricia,

My vote, if only buying only two VHS:

Cardio and Weights
Muscle Endurance

A third would be:

Kick Punch Crunch (It's a bit longer than an hour, but you can easily FF through a segment or two)

I personally don't have this, but it might be worth looking into and getting an opinion on:

The Wedding Video

Be warned, Cathe is addictive!

Diane
 
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