NO MORE EASY BREEZY WORKOUTS

jillybean

jillybean

Cathlete
I think it is much easier to make a high impact workout low impact by removing jumps, plyo moves, keeping one or both feet grounded, etc. than making a low impact workout tougher. Low Max, for instance, contains movements - during the blast segments - that can be found in the WARM UPS of some of Cathe's other workouts. I realize that in a workout series deemed "Hardcore" we need to have at least one 'easier' workout to mix with the tough/intense workouts, but to me, Kick Max and HSC are easy as well. I long for the days of uber hardcore workouts a la Imax 1 and Body Max. If this means Cathe films only 2 or 3 workouts at a time, I'd rather have her do that than sacrifice intensity just to produce a larger number of luke-warm workouts. Don't get me wrong, Cathe's cuing, production, form, and choreography are still topnotch, but I turn to Cathe to break a sweat and to stay in my upper portion of my target heartrate zone; not to leave a 45 min. workout feeling barely warmed up.
 
I say more easy breezy workouts! :) I think that it's great that Cathe is trying to target the beginners. I'm trying to get my sister to do aerobics, she currently goes to curves. But if I showed her a Cathe video, she would just be too overwhelmed at first. I tell a lot of my of friends and co-workers that I do exercise videos. And they ask me for recommendations for beginners. I would tell them Cathe, but the majority of her videos are for the advanced/intermediate. I think my friends could benefit from Cathe, and I want to recommend her, but a lot of my friends are just getting started and her exercise videos would just be a little too much for them to start with. If Cathe comes out with more beginner videos, I would definately recommend her to my beginner exerciser friends. Then they could work their way up. I think they need to start categorizing their exercises into beginner, intermediate, advanced, if they are going to start making more beginning videos.
As for us advanced exercisers, I could definately use more cardio!!!
Eva
 
Uh, me either. Low Max is a burner and is NOT easy, breezy or for beginners. If you can't break a sweat doing Low Max, you're not doing it right. Same for Kick Max and all the others. You get out of it what you put into it.
 
IMO, Low Max isn't as much of a cardio challenge as most of Cathe's cardio workouts, but is more of a lower body burner.
 
Personally I love the Low Max workout. I workout with a HR monitor which calculates calorie burn and average heart rate. I know that this is an imperfect science but it's great for comparing one workout to another. My HR gets just as high doing LM as it does doing IMAX2. I was amazed at how intense low intensity could be. I guess you really don't need to jump around to get the same results. I'd recommend it to the most "seasoned" stepper!!
 
HA! I burn more calories with LowMax than with IMAX3.My heart rate gets into the anerobic range too during most of the blasts. My heart rate is in the aerobic range during the step sections and is higher than it is with the step sections of IMAX. If your heart rate isn't getting up there, maybe going lower on the low end work will help.
 
I first tried LowMax on a six inch step and thought it was kind of easy. When I switched to an eight inch step, that made all the difference. I agree with those of you who said it is a lower body burner. I did LowMax yesterday and my legs were screaming!

Although, I do have to agree that I would prefer Cathe to stick with the more advanced stuff. There's a ton of stuff available for beginners and intermediates, but not a whole lot of top notch advanced workouts out there (such as Cathe's).

Lastly, I too wouldn't mind seeing less workouts in a series if it meant keeping the intensity up in most of them.

Shelbygirl
 
I also work out using a HR monitor - and it along with my thighs and glutes the next day say Low Max is one tough workout! Gotta Go Low!!

It's one of my personal favorites because it doesn't aggravate my achilles tendinitis but I feel like I got just as good of a workout as I would have with the other higher impact workouts.
 
I agree! :)

There just aren't that many truly advanced workouts out there.

It is much easier to modify a hard workout into an easier one than the other way around...

Just my 2 cents!! :)
 
I love Low Max because I feel like it is a great challenge and AMAZING for leg toning. Especially if you challenge yourself using the 8 inches on the step and really focus on squeezing those muscles. And even though the cardio may not be as intense as other Cathe workouts, it still gets my heartrate going without a problem and burns my legs! After all, youre practically in a squat or lunge position for an entire hour...and THAT is definitely not "easy breezy"! Im all for real intense cardio but you cant beat Low Max for cardio and unbelievable leg sculpting all in one:)
Christina
 
I think that Low max and high step challenge are advanced. If you do them without modification they are tough. I think we all think that tough workouts have to be plyometrics and jumping all over the place. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy those workouts that are super intense, but I think that we have gotten away from steady cardio and just a workout that you feel good doing and your body doesn't feel beat up afterwards. Just my opinion:)

Susan
 
Low Max does not do anything for me as it was produced. The combos and blasts just don't get my heartrate up. Having said that, I have modified the workout and insert 15 step ups per leg after each blast and a corresponding weight exercise doing a minimum of 16 sets or 32 if its squats. I have seen excellent results. The combination of step ups, weights, and no weights in the blasts has really worked for me. I use this circuit workout on a day after IMAX 3 when I need less impact, but a challenge. By the end today, I could barely get my leg up for the side quicks on the last blast.

Maybe Cathe could produce something similar, so I don't have to make my own......

Tracy
 
I agree. Give me super hard workouts every time. I did interval max yesterday and it still gives me an awesome workout. I found most of Body Blast way too easy (except for the 80 minute premixes). I like the sweat factor on Low Max, but I never have DOMS from it. My favorites are Hardcore Extreme, Terminator, IMAXs and Body Max for pushing me super hard. I also find HSC easy. I really enjoy doing Kick Max but consider it medium intensity rather than high intensity.
Of course in the Intensity Series, Cardio & Weights is also easy (but fun).
 
I think the balance of workouts in the Hardcore series is very good. I also wear a heartrate monitor and it gets my heartrate up there. I will add that unless I do the Kickmax Blast Challenge first, this DVD does not get my heartrate up soon enough to burn sufficient calories. I always do the warm up and then the Blast Challenge and then continue on. I like that Cathe has both very intense and not so intense workouts and I agree that anything can be made harder by the amount of weight lifted, exertion put into it and by using longer premixes.
 
I agree about Low Max burning tons of calories, being no "easy breezy workout" and going lower on the low end to make it more difficult.

My heart rate monitor records approx. 100 more calories for Low Max than Imax 1, 2 or 3. I squat really deep on all the blast moves and that gets my heart rate up there. I have to pause after blast 4, 5 and 6 to catch my breath. Easy? NO WAY!

I also love the low impact. Or should I say my knees love it. I love doing the power moves but at 40 I start to feel it in my knees if I do too many high impact workouts in a week.

Sue
 
No, I am doing it right, thank you very much. But since when are non-weighted squat pulses and dynamic outer thighs considered intense?
 
I must say, I have mixed feelings about Low Max. When I first got it and previewed it, I was a tad disappointed because I knew the intensity factor just wouldn't be there for me. However, about two weeks after I got the entire HC series, I weirded out my left foot bigtime, to the extent that I couldn't even do AQUATIC impact, so . . . what used to be devil mish-moshes on Sundays and Mondays went to aqua joggiing and - Low Max. And, because of LM I finally got up the nerve to raise my step height.

That said, I agree with The Estimable Bean that Cathe's workouts, at least her cardio workouts, have gotten a tad lighter in intensity over the years. Low Max I might do on a day when I don't feel like working very hard - and yes, I'm doing it right, thank you very much again. Even when my foot was bad, I wasn't breathing hard at all, and although my thigh muscles were warm they weren't "burnin'". I guess I've been doing my own Cathe mish-moshes too long.

The simple fact is: on land, when you decrease impact you decrease intensity. I'd like to see an entire Interval-based series: Step-I-Max 4, Hi/Lo I-Max, Kickbox I-Max, and Boot Camp I-Max. Love, love them plyo drills.

A-Jock
 
I just wanted to say that I personnally LOVE LOW MAX!! I would really love to see a LOW MAX 2. I also love the way low max was blended with kick max and Imax 3 in the Hardcore Extreme DVD. I personnally like to do some high impact days and some lower impact days. I love the fact that Cathe is making workouts for people with different abilities and I hope this continues. Helen
 
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