Opinions on my routine?

[winter2b]

Hi all,

I'm hoping that you might be able to offer opinions on my routine and make suggestions if you think I should change something. A little background on me - I am 28, 5'2 and weigh 155. I am about a medium build, so this is too heavy for me. I think ideally I would be in the 125-130 range...depending on how the weight comes off...possibly lower. My goals are to build a nice lean physique with flat tummy and to get my body fat percentage (and weight) into appropriate ranges.

Here is what I have: an elliptical machine, weight bench, dumbells, a barbell, stability ball.

Workouts I have: Step Blast, Rhythmic Step, Boot Camp, Push/Pull, Pyramid UPper and Lower, Cardio and weights and the Timesaver DVD, (and whatever is on FitTV)plus Firm BSS1 and BSS2

Do you think I need to purchase any additional workouts - or will these get me where I want to be?

I would really like to have the majority of my weight off by May...and I'm hoping you can help me find the most efficient way of doing that. If you can offer any help, I would REALLY appreciate your time and effort!

My initial idea is to try to do 3 days per week of cardio and strength workouts and 3 days of cardio - plus an ab workout 6 days with one day of rest each week. I have gone through and categorized each tape as either cardio, strength or combo and am going to try to rotate through them based on their category. Do you think this is enough cardio/strength to accomplish my goals? Is it too much? When I do the timesaver workouts, I feel like I get a pretty good workout, but I also feel like I should be doing a longer workout to reach my goals. Do I need to do 60 minutes 6 times a week to get the results I described above?

One additional question...I am just getting used to Cathe's workouts and just starting to learn some of her step patterns. Sometimes I feel like such a clutz. If I can't get a step - should I rewind and try it again or try to get it somewhat close and hope that eventually I pick it up? If I rewind, I feel like I'm letting my heart rate drop and not getting the effect of the workout.

I apologize for this being so long. I am amazed by the dedication to fitness shown on this board, and I want to be that kind of person! Thank you for helping me!!!

Amy

 

[cheekster]

Hi Amy!

Congrats on making a commitment to getting fitter. I'm your age (27), and although I'm a lot taller, I'm also of a medium build, so I thought you might be interested in my opinion. I'm certainly no fitness guru, but I did recently lose about 35 pounds, and have been doing step for about 10 years. Here's what I think:

1. Doing 60 minutes a day six days a week might be a little much at first, and I really don't think you need so much to start losing weight. Obviously, only you know what you can handle, but I'll bet that 4 or 5 days with an additional day of yoga or stretching will do the trick without totally burning you out.

2. I recommend adding a few more cardio workouts to your collection, especially BodyMax, PowerMax, Imax, and Imax II. You seem to have a lot of strength workouts, but fewer cardio, and the step workouts you have now have pretty complex choreography. I think you'd like these because they're really hard, but easier choreographically, and are easy to modify in terms of intensity without totally losing the flow. If you are doing one of your more complex step workouts and get a little lost, I suggest you just keep rewinding until you can do the move. I agree that it sort of takes the intensity down a bit, but if you just bite the bullet and work through the moves, you'll be surprised at how quickly you pick them up. If something's really stumping you, practice it before you start.

3. Don't forget the food part. (I know you know this already, but just had to say it anyways ;-)) Just a few small changes can make a big difference when you're putting forth so much effort in your workouts.

I think the most important advice I could give you is to expect to mess up sometimes, skip workouts, give in to that doughnut, and generally fall off the wagon. Don't slip into the trap of self hatred over a little mess-up. Everyone who has lost weight has stumbled along the way, and the only way to reach your ultimate goals is to just forgive yourself, get back up, and rededicate yourself to health and fitness.

Good luck, and have fun with any new workouts you choose!

-Kate