New to 4 Days...Question

A

andreasue

Cathlete
Hi all,
I just received 4 Day Split for my birthday (yeah!) and I intend on starting with the Kickbox workout tomorrow...was wondering if anyone had any comments or advice before I start this rotation (I'm a little worried about the HIS workout!)?


Also...is there a breakdown of the 4 Days workouts anywhere? I'm wondering how long the cardio is for each workout.

Thanks!
 
I have only done it once, but did like it. Here is what happened to me. I am not exactly spiffy on the step, nor am I very coordinated. Once I get something, though, I've got it. So, I did 4DS in the order it comes with the discs and the first, if I remember right, is the step - high intensity I think. I nearly quit the whole thing and listed on ebay. I stuck with it though and am so glad. The rest was so much fun, and the second step part was not as difficult, at least for me. I am actually pulling it back out next week and looking forward to it. What I am saying is this - if you get frustrated, don't give it! It is a very good set to have.
 
Thanks, Catherine and Shana, for the info.

30 minutes sounds okay for the cardio. I think I'll probably do this rotation every-other-day with a run in between.

I'm starting with the Kickbox workout because I feel most comfortable with that. I'm prepared for some frustration with the HIS portion but I will remember that others have been too and that I should be patient and stick with it.

I'm excited to get started...hoping to see some greater muscle definition with this rotation!
 
Hi Andrea!

This is my FAVORITE Cathe workout series--so far! :)

I am starting to "get" the Low Intensity Step workout, but it took MULTIPLE--and I do mean multiple--attempts to get it. I haven't even bothered with the high intensity one--it kind of looks out of reach for my skill set, if you know what I mean. LOL.

But you can always sub in another Cathe cardio of your choice for the step if those don't work for you. I love Step Fusion for this purpose because the time is right (most of these are about 34-40 minutes in the 4DS series if I remember right.)

The Boot Camp cardio is very straight forward, kicks your butt, and is totally awesome. I LOVE that one!

And my muscles are already getting mroe defined from it.

Have fun--4DS is so awesome!
 
I love parts of it- except for the two step ones (especially HIS). I would be careful on the cardio segments to stretch a little better/more than on the dvd's. I always find my achilles and ankles aching terribly after these workouts before there is so much jumping and pushing off of your feet.

I found the boot camp very, very fun and the time flies by. The kickbox is not as fun IMO but is still a good workout.

I haven't been doing the weights on it lately because I made my own rotation where I do 2-3 days of all over body conditioning (like Power hour) instead of splitting body parts. The weights on it are great too though.

Have fun!!
 
Thanks for the input Wendy and Irish196...your posts came at a good time!

I tried the HIS workout yesterday and was sooo frustrated by it. I can't believe how poor the cueing is in this step routine! I knew it would be very tricky but this seems above and beyond anything that I can master. And having your back to the TV during any routine, let alone one that is this challenging, is ridiculous! I must admit to muttering a few unkind words about Cathe as I tripped and stumbled through this one. I'll probably keep trying little bits and pieces at a time but I certainly won't count on this for my cardio!

I'm going to try the LIS workout tomorrow. I'm a little nervous to hear that you both find this one difficult also. I don't know if I'm up for more frustration just yet...is the cueing lacking on this one too?

I do like the weight routines...they make me feel strong :)
 
Andrea, you are so like me when it comes to frustrating stepping! I previewed HIS and just laughed. I knew there was NO way I could master that one so I just spared myself the frustration and substituted something else instead, LOL.

OK, on the LIS--I don't think the cueing is bad, it's just the moves are different and aren't taught so much in a layering way to learn them. Does that make sense? Like in the first combo, there's a sweep around the step and Cathe simply says, "Sweep around the step" and I was BAFFLED for like the first five times I did it. But I stuck with it and all of the sudden, the light bulb went off and it was like "Oh! I get this now!" In the last combo, there's a side sweep, pivot, pump repeater that I'm still trying to master. I got closer last week, though, so I'm getting there.

But I don't think you'll be tripping as much because this isn't high impact and you aren't flying all around the step. So that should keep the frustration down somewhat. I only do this once a week and I'm still getting it, but I will say this--the music is GREAT, I'm sweating, and the workout flies by and that's what makes me determined to learn this one!!

Let us know how you do!!

I'm glad the weight makes you feel strong--me, too! I'm using this to prep for STS. :)
 
In her other longer step workouts she has more time to break down a move so you see it 6-8 times by the end. With these shorter ones, you don't do the moves as often before you move on. I think that's why it feels like she's not cueing the same way.

LOL, not to mention we're facing away from her!!! :)
 
Hello,
I have 4 day rotation - and it is great!!! My favorite of the cardio workouts is the kb. The step workouts are great, too. HIS is, of course, more challenging than LIS. At least for me anyway. I like how I can use the premixes to let a longer cardio workout or have a circuit workout. It's amazing how much harder the workout seems when you change things up - like doing the weights 1st.
I like the boot camp also. But it has taken longer to build up to keeping up with Cathe. :)

Keep working hard.
 
Don't give up on learning the routines. I have pretty much mastered the LIC with the exception of that side sweep, pivot, pump repeater that was mentioned in an earlier post. I am trying to piece learn HIC. I've got the warm-up and first segment down. The next has been a challenge. I have been following the rotation that was posted one month. I am really seeing so much more definition in my arms. My legs, well they are still flabby. This makes me really want the STS soon. I guess what I'm trying to say is this really is a great workout that you can really gives you results.



Chrisite
 
LOL! I thought I was the only person in the world who couldn't get the side sweep, pivot, pump repeater! :p I've actually mastered 4DS LIS with the exception of that portion, but I've found that if I concentrate on keeping in step and don't try the pivot, I can pick up at the elbow to knee & pump repeater and don't fall behind. So my suggestion is modify where you can and gradually try to pick up the harder parts as you master more of the basics. It's worked wonders for me, and I'm actually doing pretty well on 4DS HIS, too. I'll admit the first time I tried both of these, I thought I'd never get them, but don't give up.

I actually pulled out IMAX 3 the other day, because I thought I was doing pretty well on picking things up. About 5 minutes into the warm-up, I started laughing because I felt so uncoordinated! I actually went back and pulled out 4DS--I never would have done that a month ago! Keep at it! It just "clicks" after a few times. :)
 
>LOL! I thought I was the only person in the world who
>couldn't get the side sweep, pivot, pump repeater! :p

HA! I'm so glad I'm not alone on this one. I swear, the first time I saw it I had a Scooby Doo "HUH?" expression on my face! HA HA!!
 
These are doable -- really they are! I am stubborn and refused to give in to my frustration with the step work when I first got these workouts -- I love step! It took a lot of rewinding and practicing because of, as was stated earlier, the shorter duration of the workout and the lack of time to layer the moves, but I did get the moves and the workouts are now a lot of fun -- particularly LIS. Once of my favorite cardio workouts now is to the LIS/HIS combo premix.
 
I haven't been on the site in a few days, but I sure was glad to come back and find all of these posts! I was so annoyed with HIS, only to find LIS almost as difficult! I've been feeling a little disappointed for having chosen this as my 'big' birthday gift. I'm glad to hear that others find them doable with a little stick-to-it-ivness!

Honestly though...I get very frustrated when I don't get a good cardio workout. It leaves me feeling unfulfilled. I'm not sure how I'm going to master these routines and still get my heart rate up to where it needs to be. Sound like LIS is a little easier to learn. Maybe I'll stick with that one and substitue some other cardio for HIS (until I conquer LIS).

The sweep, pivot, pump is a killer for me too as are those crossovers...I just couldn't get me feet right! Any helpful hints for the crossovers?

I LOVED Bootcamp..every single moment of it!!! It was a great cardio workout and my Bis and Tris were pumped!!!

Back to Kickbox tomorrow!
 
Hi!
I received 4DS a few weeks ago. I just knew it would take me a while to learn the step segments. What I did was resign myself to the fact that while learning the routines, I wouldn't get much of a cardio benefit. On days where I lifted heavy, I would practice one of the step routines first, as a 1/2 hour warm up. I would do, say, HIS for 3 days, then LIS for three. Sometimes I would just do jumping jacks in place of the more complicated segments, and watched what they were doing. Eventually, I got it!!! Took a while, but so worth it. They are so much fun, and I would get so excited when I finally mastered a move! I'm ready to do the routines on an 8 inch step, and I know it will really get the heart rate up! :) Don't give up on the step parts!!! I think these are my favorite now, and in the beginning I was sooooo frustrated!!!! And there is so much more to these dvd's, too!!!!
~~~Nancy J.~~~
 
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