Peak Fit Challenge/Michelle Dozois - For Advanced Exercisers?

workout

workout

Cathlete
Hello, I know there was a thread talking about Peak Fit Challenge program; I was wondering is it a good workout for an advanced exerciser? It looks pretty good but would like to know if anyone on this forum has done the 8-week program and what's their opinion on it. Thanks for any information you provide!

PS: Anxiously waiting for Cathe's Low Impact Series. :)
 
I haven't tried them, but I've heard their great. According to some of the reviews I've read, many people are saying they're advanced. I'd love to hear what anyone has to say whose actually tried them.
 
I started using them about 2 weeks ago. Prior that, I was a full time Cathe user with a little TF, KCM, Insanity, Bob Harper thrown in. I am enjoying the workouts but they are tough. They are high impact. I am not crazy about the strength workouts, as its not enough strength and there is still a cardio aspect to them.

I would not recommend them for a beginner.
 
The cardio strength ones are pretty hard, the strength part of those workouts might be lacking a bit if you are used to having some heavier lifting days, but I have not tried Pure Strength yet. I'm not going to do a full rotation, but just mix them in with everything else I do. I recently did Pure Cardio, and absolutely loved it, but it's not as hard as the others because there is no "peak" 4 section at the end of each circuit. I think this an exceptionally good value for what you get in this, especially after they lowered the price from the initial pricing.

I'm never quite sure what the definition of Intermediate vs Advanced is, but I agree, these are not for beginners, but I think they will work well for intermediate and advanced exercisers.
 
Cardio Strength is for advanced exercisers IMO. It's tough. I do mostly Cathe workouts, and I have a trainer, and I believe this workout is pretty comparable as far as difficulty. Lots of compound moves and good cardio segments.
 
Well thanks fellow Cathletes for your response. I may get the set since it's a pretty good deal for the price. Like Dela said, I would probably just mix it up in to my current workouts for variety. I've worked so had with STS and other systems to develop some muscle definition and I wouldn't want to do the Peak Fit Challenge system and lose it somehow. I can also use heavier weights in the strength dvds too. Thanks.
 
I love this system. It is so well put together. I'm enjoying the system. Love the moves and the motivation that goes with it. No dread factor for me which is great:)
 
Bringing this back up, I am thinking of trying these. I bought one DVD to see if I like her style the realized she has a program. I am wanting to hear results you guys got with these.
 
I can't post about results because I haven't had them long and I'm not doing a true rotation but I really do like them. No dread factor for me. I'm not a cardio lover but felt the need to up my endurance level a bit and these are helping. I need a little fun in my cardio. :p
 
Before you buy, watch the clips on totalfitnessdvds.com

What you see is exactly as the workouts are.

I keep trying to like them but I can't. The cardio involved is pure dance up and down, jump and leap about the floor cardio, very hi/lo. Even the cardio strength DVDs are 50/50 split with way too much cardio and an endurance emphasis to the weights. My biggest beef against Michelle here is that she doesn't do enough reps of any one move for you to get into your groove lifting and feel it. She chops and changes all the time. Most women have a lower body that is significantly stronger than their upper, and just when you think Michelle is doing a lower body weight move, so you grab a heavy weight, she then shifts to upper body or compound focus, and the weight you have is way too heavy, so you have to pause her, rewind and start the whole thing again. This frustrated the hell out of me and I stopped working out to these DVDs. The cardiostrength title is a misnomer: there is no strength involved here, only cardiovascular work.

Kelly Coffey-Meyer does a lot of compound moves, but the difference is, she repeats, she includes enough reps that you can really put effort into each move, and she is slow enough that you can lift heavy, even with compound moves. Her cardio segments are then separate from the lifting segments, so you never get confused, or find one bleeding into the other and you can give your all to both. Kelly's Plateau Buster is, to my mind, better than any of Michelle's Peak stuff. You could also try any of the following for better metabolic conditioning workouts than Michelle's Peak Fitness: Paul Katami, Toby Massenburg, Mike Donavanik, Patrick Goudeau. View them all on totalfitnessdvds.com

Every time I view clips from the Peak series, I am disappointed: each looks remarkably similar to the one before. Same format, same moves, same leaping up and down with very little variation.

These aren't for me and I have wasted money on them. If anyone wants brand new, used only once or never at all, Peak DVDs, and wants to offer me something for them, they are yours. Bargain!

Clare
 
I have currently been doing her summer Peak challenge via Facebook. This is the second time I have gone through the program and I would say it is definitely an advanced program. And you will see marked cardiovascular improvement! I really love the Cardio Strength workouts as well as the Cardio Interval Burn workouts. Her weight workouts that are included in the total program are good too, but I still prefer Cathe. But the other two, Cardio strength and cardio interval burn have a nice different feel to them.
 
I have this system and just did Cardio Strength 2 for the first time. I too agree these are advanced but there is hardly any emphasis on strength-building: the weights are there simply to induce/enhance the cardio effect because she goes way too fast for you to lift heavy with proper form. While I like this program, I can't stick to the rotation as written because the workouts are similar to each other and I get bored easily. Thinking about selling them as well.
 
UNLVCrjChick said:
I have this system and just did Cardio Strength 2 for the first time. I too agree these are advanced but there is hardly any emphasis on strength-building: the weights are there simply to induce/enhance the cardio effect because she goes way too fast for you to lift heavy with proper form. While I like this program, I can't stick to the rotation as written because the workouts are similar to each other and I get bored easily. Thinking about selling them as well.
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I just did Her new Cardio Strength this morning, and while she can go fast, I believe it is not all cardio but there is definitely weight lifting value here. I am a huge fan of these workouts, having seen marked fitness gains. I understand that people have preferences, and I would just like to elucidate that these are opinions....and I have a good opinion of these workouts...so please do not think that there is worthless weight workout in her workouts because I find that is simply not the case....

Now I must say that the weight work is not STS or "Slow and Heavy"' but really, these workouts are not marketed as such. If I want a hardcore weight workout, then I will choose another workout.These Cardio Strength workouts remind me of a much more difficult and am more modern FIRM-genre workout in terms of their content. That is, cardio and weight work interspersed together. I got the best results with those kinds of workouts,,,,not all weights and not all cardio.
 
tralaiven said:
I just did Her new Cardio Strength this morning, and while she can go fast, I believe it is not all cardio but there is definitely weight lifting value here. I am a huge fan of these workouts, having seen marked fitness gains. I understand that people have preferences, and I would just like to elucidate that these are opinions....and I have a good opinion of these workouts...so please do not think that there is worthless weight workout in her workouts because I find that is simply not the case....

Now I must say that the weight work is not STS or "Slow and Heavy"' but really, these workouts are not marketed as such. If I want a hardcore weight workout, then I will choose another workout.These Cardio Strength workouts remind me of a much more difficult and am more modern FIRM-genre workout in terms of their content. That is, cardio and weight work interspersed together. I got the best results with those kinds of workouts,,,,not all weights and not all cardio.
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I never said there wasn't any weight-lifting value. There is weight-lifting value in the sense she uses the weights to make the cardio/moves more intense. However, due to the sheer speed you are lifting (she even says at one point that you don't have to use full range of motion for bicep curls because it's challenging - as in too challenging for the heavy weight given the speed so you're using momentum), you will not see significant strength gains, although you will see endurance gains.
 
Just throwing in my 2 cents. I am a huge Cathe fan--think her workouts are the best thing ever. But before I found Cathe, I adored the Peak 10/PeakFit workouts. I still do even though I don't do them nearly as often as I used to. They are excellent workouts. And I got awesome results from them.

Like tralaiven said, they are no STS or other heavy lifting workout, but they will do the job. I always use 8 pound dumbells for my light weight and 12 pound dumbbells for my heavy weight and I feel like I get an excellent workout. I use them as MWT/endurance workouts, but I love those types of workouts (Cathe's AB, CF, TTM!) and try to do one a week. There are a lot of great trainers out there, btw, that do these kinds of workouts and do them well--Jillian Michaels, Bob Harper--both of them create excellent cardio + strength workouts that are circuit-MWT/endurance workouts that will do a great job but aren't going to build tons of muscle.

And like tralaiven--cardio + strength circuit workouts have always given me the best results.
 
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I would try the original two--Peak 10 Cardio Strength and Peak 10 Cardio Interval Burn. If you like those two, you'll like all of them. I'm partial to the Cardio Strength workouts. My favorite of them all is Cardio Strength 2. But it's part of the PeakFit system. Also love the Anywhere Anytime workout--also part of the system.
 
My goal is to lose weight so I was thinking of getting the system and see if I can't get some weight gone, I do like the one I have the newer one I think is what it is. The remix one. I also think I don't like workouts to much alike so that concerns me some but I can add a Cathe workout in there to make it different?? I am not sure yet but like I said the interval cardio remix is the one I have and I really like that one, but I wonder if it will be repetitive. But I could add a few diff ones like I said ., oh Gish not sure still
 
Well I caved. I ordered the Peak fit System this morning. I've been in such a workout rut and this looked like a good solid program. I too get great results from cardio/light weight DVDs like the old Firms.
 
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