Peak 10 System

S

Stacy

Cathlete
Has anyone done Michelle's Dozois' 8 week Peak Fit System program? I love Michelle's energy but not sure I want to fork over $99 for the entire system. I have 2 of her workouts already (but haven't done them yet) I have Cardio Interval Burn which is in the Peak Fit set. I bought it way back when it was sold separately. I had some knee issues shortly after I bought it so worried the impact was too high so I put it away and recently rediscovered it while reorganizing my workout area. I also have her Peak 10 More Cardio Strength.

I'm wondering if I should just purchase her 2 newest and alternate those with the 2 others I have instead of buying the entire Peak Fit System. The Peak Fit set includes Strength 1 & 2 and also Core and Flexibility workouts and the Anytime workout, but not sure these would be worth the added cost of the whole system. I also own her BodyFIt 360 Athletic Conditioning.

Thanks for your input!
 
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I have her PeakFit System. I did it years ago and I really enjoyed it. It is very challenging and yes, I think it is worth it. I do revisit some of the workouts in it and keep planning to do the entire system again (and supplement it with her BodyFit 360 workouts) but haven't yet. The real jewels of the collection, IMHO are the Anywhere Anytime workout, Cardio Strength 2 and the two Pure Strength workouts. The band that comes with the system is unique and very cool. I bought mine years ago, so I cannot say the band you would get would be identical to mine, but the resistance is very challenging on mine. Core and Flexibility are also excellent workouts. Actually--they all are! I enjoyed everything. The only downside (to me) is that Cardio Interval Burn is the same workout as Peak 10 Cardio Interval Burn--not the exact same workout as they were obviously filmed at different times, but the identical workout nonetheless. Also Cardio Strength 1 is almost identical to Peak 10 Cardio Strength in the same way--but there are actually some minor variations in that one. Otherwise everything else in the program is different and unique.

Also--I own all of her Peak 10 workouts and other than the the very first two, none of them are the same as what is in PeakFit. Cardio Strength 2 unique--not the same as any of the Peak 10 Cardio Strengths that came after.
 
Do you think what I have is "good enough" or would the $100 for the Peak Fit system be justifiable?
 
Though I love the system, looking at it from a cost issue, what you have is good enough. The BodyFit workouts easily sub for the flexibility workout and the steady state cardio workout. They probably even substitute for the Anywhere Anytime workout though I will say Anywhere Anytime is more intense than the BodyFit workouts. For the total body strength workouts you could just use Cathe's. The important thing is to not pound your body with HIIT level workouts everyday which is what her Peak 10 workouts are.
 
I have a very different take on Michelle D. I would say to you, try out the 2 DVDs you already have by her BEFORE you spend any more money.

I found her stuff irritating. It looks good, but I can't get a good workout with it when I start. She is nothing like Cathe, nothing at all. With Cathe, you can preview a workout and start it and even though this is your first time through, you will get a good workout. This is because Cathe is relatively straightforward: she starts you with a movement, you use the same weight throughout, you do not deviate and suddenly start adding new movement patterns on top, and she tells you how many reps you are doing, which are always enough to thoroughly learn the movement and put the effort in to get the pay off in your muscle groups.

I do not find this to be so with Michelle's Peak 10. She sarts you with a lower body movement, and you select the weights for that to be worthwhile, then she rapidly changes to add another movement in, after only 4 reps or so of the base pattern; then you discover, there is no way you can continue with the weight you have selected and you have to pause the DVD, or rapidly get new weights, but then you find, by the time you start back, that Michelle does so few reps of that new move that she has already moved on.

I appreciate that Michelle is high energy, a nice lady, motivating, but I cannot deal with the frustration level her workouts produce, so for me, they are worthless. I have sold some of mine for this reason and will never purchase them again.

Watch them, try them out, see what you think. Then, spend money or revise your opinion.

Clare
 
Thanks for your thoughts Clare, I definitely was going to try the ones I have first, but I had the same thoughts when I was previewing them. I thought, hmmm, not sure that weight would work for me and then wondering if I'd have time to change for the next exercise.
 
I agree with that as well--but the cardio strength workouts are not meant to serve as your strength work. That's why in the actual system there are 2 pure strength workouts you can go heavier on. The Cardio Strength workouts are metabolic in the spirit of Cathe's Afterburn, To the Max and Crossfire. For her Cardio Strength workouts I use 8 and 12 pounds but go much heavier in the Pure Strength workouts. It's been a long time since I did the actual program but I am almost certain she placed Pure Strength and Cardio Strength workouts side by side on the rotation calendar with no rest day between, so I don't think she considers them your "real" strength work. However, This is just how I view them. So when she says to go with my heavier weight I grab my 12s and stay with them--never missing a rep and if she says light I do the same but with my 8s. I agree that the workouts move to fast to change dumbbells in the middle of a circuit.
 
I just did More Cardio Strength for the first time. I only made it thru the first 3 of 5 circuits and used 5 and 8's. I skipped the Peak segments. I'm getting over a head cold and a few months of not working out regularly. I think I'm going to purchase her new Fat Blaster Cardio Strength. Her cardio looks too high impact, but I do plan on doing the Cardio Interval Burn workout at some point when I have a bit more energy. Could someone post a general flow to Peak Fit's rotation calendar showing me how she rotates her cardio, cardio/strength and pure strength workouts? I'm going to use Cathe for the strength. Also are her pure strength workouts all total body, and if so are they mostly compound moves or a little compound and some isolation work. I'm wondering what Cathe strengths would work best. Thanks! I do like the upbeat music in these. I think Cathe with Michelle's music would be a great mix.
 
Nevermind, someone posted the Rotation Calender over at VF. But, would still like some input on the Pure Strength dvds. Thanks :)
 
I don't have the whole "Peak 10" system but I do have a handful of Michelle's wkouts. I think she packs a lot into an hour! Clare is right saying the wkout moves fast but, for me, not SO fast that I get lost. It could be that I've done her wkouts enough and took notes on what weight works so I can adjust quickly. If the peaks are too much, simply modify. I can't do some of the moves but it gives me a goal. I'm certainly not going to do something that I'm not comfortable with either (tuck jumps). She is def high energy but she clicks with me and I feel like I get a great workout when I'm done. But with all that said......to each her own. You have to decide for yourself if it's for you. Like a great pair of sneakers!
 
Stacey--Pure Strength workouts are total body and primarily isolation, but some compound. I remember really enjoying them and finding them both challenging--Pure Strength 2 more challenging than 1. Just talking about this is making me really want to revisit the program. I have been planning to for a while, but hadn't gotten around to it yet.
 
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