Overwhelmed with all of Cathe's Options

crazystepr

crazystepr

Cathlete
I am far from having all of Cathe's workouts, but of the ones I do have, I am incredibly overwhelmed lately. I feel like I should be cross-training more than I have been, so I'm having trouble making up rotations that include Cathe's workouts as well as running (which I hate), swimming, and cycling. I have also been having slight knee pain on and off lately so I don't want to step or run too much (which stinks because I would do step workouts all day, every day if I could!)

So anyway, yesterday I had some extra time and wanted to make up for some seriously bad eating the day before so I did both Imax 2 and Cardio and Weights. Today my shoulders are a little sore but I was planning on doing ME--should I not do ME since my shoulders are sore? I'm so confused and overwhelmed with all the possibilities and I don't want to do anything wrong. So since I did an interval AND a circuit workout yesterday, should I do weights today only or cardio only? Should I not step? Should I do kickboxing? Ugh. I need help. Any advice would be SOOOO appreciated!


Allison
 
What does a typical workout week look like for you? How many cardio sessions (and how long) do you normally do a week? How many weight training and/or circuit workouts do you do in an average week?

I'd say, if you did all that yesterday, you should take a rest day today. If you feel compelled to do something, then what about just a walk?

If your shoulders are sore today, I wouldn't suggest kickboxing, as that usually taxes the shoulders quite a bit. Plus, you did a lot of cardio yesterday.

Are your legs fatigued today? If not, perhaps you could do a leg day (nothing killer, maybe some floor work or something). Perhaps you could do some pilates, some yoga, or a long core workout.

I just worry about you overtraining.

As far as fitting it all in, if you have a BOSU and some of Cathe's high step workouts, you can try substituting the high step for a BOSU, for a change. Also, Cathe offers some kickboxing (KP&C, Kickmax, Cardio Kicks - not sure which of these you may have) and some hi/lo (MIC, parts of CTX, parts of Circuit Max, parts of Drill Max).

I, too, love step - but find when I do it frequently, I experience knee pain. That is when I turn to kickboxing. It is often low impact as well. But as I said earlier, if your delts are fried today, I wouldn't recommend kickboxing today.

HTH:)
 
For me, ME is a killer workout so if you're sore I would go with kickboxing. IMAX 2 and Cardio and Weights is full of step so I think you should change things up a little.

Marcy
 
Why would you want to run when you hate it? I know it's good for cross training, but I don't think you should do something you hate (or eat something you hate) just because it's good for you. You should try doing something else instead, that you enoy...there's plenty of options out there!
 
Allison,

If I were you, I would simply pick one of Cathe's rotations and go for it! They are all well-rounded and thought out. :7 I am going to do this month's! I have to modify most workouts (I had hip surgery), so why don't you modify where needed? It sounds like you are looking for a structure to your workouts and following a rotation does all the planning for you.
Now, take care of yourself, ice when needed and do not be afraid to take a rest day when something hurts.:7
 
Allison,

If you're having slight knee pain, I would stop doing all impact cardio for a while. I think you should let your knee heal for a while (and take Motrin daily) and see how it goes. Meanwhile, you can do power walking or low impact cardio and see how your knee is faring. This will also enable you to focus more on weight training (no weight bearing lower body standing work though) whille you take off from more rigorous exercise.

I know this isn't what you want to hear, but trust me. You don't want to further injure yourself.

To answer your question, you can do ME today (possibly skip shoulder portion).

Hope this helps.
Lorrayne
 
You all have given me such great advice--thank you from the bottom of my heart. What makes it so amazing is that you genuinly sound like you care and worry. It's really touching.

I've decided to try and follow Cathe's newest rotation. I've actually never done one before--can you believe it?! But I figure, hey--why get all worked up. Not only does she provide you with great workouts but she actually tells you when to do them too! It's a pretty sweet deal if ya ask me!!

We'll see how it goes! Thanks again!

Allison
 
If you have knee pain, do not run. As other poster said, you do not have to go running just because Cathe does and just because she puts it in her suggested rotations. Any activity she puts in a rotation must be taken by every individual as "under advisement." It's up to you to decide and say: "heck no, no way I'm doing that" and then you just make a substitution. Cathe's rotations are only suggestions. You have to do what suits you and makes you healthy and happy.

Having said that, I think it could be foolhardy to continue exercising in your current vein. You did too much yesterday, I think, and now you hurt and don't know what to do. Imax 2 on its own is enough for the day. Then stop, and let your body rest. You grow fitness by allowing your body to respoind to the challenges you have set it and grow and repair muscle after the event. Therefore rest is a crucial element in a fitness program. If you carry on like this you will crash and burn because you are cheating your body of the rest it needs to repair itself. I mean, after doing Imax 2, how much additional benefit to the cardiovascular system do you think C&W really represents? It is unneccessary and could indeed be harmful.

Imax 2 yesterday, then today you could have done ME, then tomorrow another great cardio DVD, like say KPC, then do Muscle Max the next day, etc. I think it would be wrong to do ME today after C&W yesterday. There is sufficient weight work in it to make it constitute a weight training day. So, today your muscles need to rest. Tomorrow, you can weight train again.

Your shoulders ache. Your knees hurt. Listen to your body. Rest. Maybe spend today working on your flexibility? After yesterday, I am sure all your body's muscles need it. Don't forget, the shoulders are not just used in shoulder exercises: they come into play on chest work also, and who knows on what else. Your knees are telling you that you are straining the joint through too much high impact cardio. So, don't you think that Imax 2 and C&W in one day is too much? So, do yourself a favour and leave the weights and cardio for today.

You seem to have a certain frenzy and anxiety surrounding your approach to fitness. Why? I think this is the most importnat issue to address. Do you feel a need to workout that is overwhelming you? If so, you need to take a step back and breathe. Remember why you are exercising, what health benefits it will bring you. Aim for between 1 and 1 and half hours of exercise per day, no more than that. Aim for a varied program, alternating weights amd cardio and at least one day off per week.

You don't have to include both swimming and cycling into your prgram to introduce the cardio variety you need to avoid injury and cross train. You love step. So, do no more than 3 step workouts a week, and then include 1 or 2 swimming days, or 1 or 2 cycling days and then stop worrying about it. Then add in 2-3 days of weight training and you have it all taken care of. Relax. Breathe.

So, how about:

Monday: Imax 2
Tuesday: ME
Wednesday: Cycle or swim
Thursday: ME or MM
Friday: Step Blast or another fave step workout
Saturday: Cycle or swim, + perhaps a shorter premix from a Cathe weight workout
Sunday: rest or yoga/stretch/flexibility work

It can indeed be that simple. If you like, why don't you list the DVDs that you have and we can make suggestions on how to fit them together? What are your goals? Are you focussing on heavy weight training or more endurance typoe?

Hope this helps,

Clare

Remember, you do not have to do anything. When you work out, how much you workout and what you do during your workout is totally up to you
 
Um, Clare, did you get inside my brain or something? :) I feel like you've known me for years with everything you just posted. It's amazing.

Yes, I have a very frenzied, stressful approach to exercising. I want to do it all, everyday, 7 days a week. However, I am pretty lenient when "life gets in the way" and I can not workout. For example, last week I wasn't able to work out on both Saturday or Sunday. So I went with the flow and was able to do a tougher workout on Monday. You're right--doing both Imax 2 and Cardio and Weights probably wasn't the best idea if I was going for a tough workout day. I should've combinded workouts differently. However, my knee does not hurt today and my shoulders are just a little sore. (Doing "arnold presses" in C&W with 12 lb dumbells was harder than I thought it would be!!)

Thanks for the rotation idea. I only have a few of Cathe's dvds. Hmmm...let me think of the ones I have....

Imax 2/C&W (obviously, hehe)
LIC
Bootcamp/ME
BM2
Butts and Gutts
Drill Max
PUB/PLB
PP/SS
Cardio Fusion
Harcore Extreme
KPC/Legs and Glutes
Low Max
HSTA
Slow and Heavy Series
Step, Jump and Pump/Step Blast
MIC, Rhythmic Step, Interval Max
Terminator
Basic Step/Body Fusion
Cardio Hits

I think that's it....

Wow, I have a LOT more than I thought I did!

Thanks again for all your help. You guys really are the best.


Allison
 
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