Relatively New to Cathe's Workouts

L

lisazny

Member
Hi everyone,

I'm brand new to this forum and relatively new to Cathe's workouts, which I enjoy. I've been doing mainly the Firms. But I've started doing Maximun Intensity Cardio and Circuit Max. I also have Body Max.

So my questions to all of you are, which workouts are best for toning up the midsection. That's where I tend to gaing weight. I don't want to keep getting mistaken for a pregnant woman. (It's happened to me four times over the past five months.)

On another note, how many days a week do you do weight training workouts as opposed to straight step workouts? The thing is, I tend to feel guilty doing a strictly aerobic workout, because they've always said on the Firm tapes that doing just aerobics alone "causes a disastrous muscle loss." But then again when it comes to workouts that get your heart rate up, and *keep it up there*, Cathe rules!

So my last question is, are the step/cardio workouts also good for building up muscle to some degree? Or should I not feel guilty if my only workout for the night is Maximum Intensity Cardio?

Thanks very much!
Lisa
 
Hi, Lisa and welcome! I'll try to answer your questions as best I can . . .

1: Which workouts are best for toning the midsection? The only way to truly improve the musculature of the midsection (abdominal muscles and low back muscles) is to do isolated work that targets them, and this will NOT be accomplished by cardio work. Body Max has an ab routine, and Circuit Max has a very brief core routine with planks, and IMHO you need a good variety of ab and core routines to strengthen and "tone" the midsection. Consider purchasing the Ab Hits DVD or video, which will give you a good selection of ab / core workouts.

2: According to American College of Sports Medicine guidelines, strength training for all of the major muscle groups including lower body, abs / core and upper body, should be done twice per week. There are about a million and two ways of scheduling these strengthening sessions. The Body Max workout has an upper body conditioning segment as well, and Circuit Max incorporates light resistance intervals. Consider purchasing some of Cathe's strength routines; there are a ton of 'em including total body routines and split set routines.

3: Step / cardio routines are NOT good at building up muscle, although those that incorporate plyometric work or resistance circuit work may assist in muscle conditioning to a limited degree. Again, Body Max and Circuit Max incorporate power circuits and resistance training, but IMHO you need more than that; see #2 above.

IMHO, you need to bring more variety into your workout program. That'll involve spending a few sous, I know, but Cathe's workouts are worth it.

Hope this helps -

A-Jock
 
Thanks Annette. I'll look into gettig some of Cathe's strength training workouts. I'm thinking of Maximum Intensity Strength and/or Power Hour. But honestly, all of her workouts look amazing and it's hard to decide which ones to get.

Lisa
 
Lisa,
Unfortunately, no exercise can change the way your body fat is distributed. All the core exercising in the world will not reduce the amount of weight you carry in your midsection. Step/cardio workouts are great for helping you lose weight, but you are correct when you say that you need to do strength training also. If you don't have the time to do both in the same night, do them on different nights, or do some of Cathe's circuit workouts that combine the two, like Body Max and Circuit Max.

Don't ever feel guilty!! Remember that whatever you may be doing, it's A LOT better than nothing! And have fun!

-Nancy
 
Lisa, you don't have to worry about doing a strictly aerobic workout as long as you throw in some strength training somewhere in the week. What they mean on those Firm tapes is that people who ONLY do cardio and NEVER strength train will eventually lose muscle, not if you do one cardio workout on that day you will lose muscle. You won't. I aim for three cardio workouts and two strength training workouts each week, then reverse that the following week. It works for me. I have aerobic endurance and great muscle definition, and I'm 46 years old. I used to be a die-hard Firm fan too, until I found Cathe!! LOL!! A-Jock is right. She's always right, so listen to her sage advice!! I'm not kidding. She is really intelligent about these things. Cardio will not help you build lean muscle. It will help you lose fat. To build lean muscle you need to lift. The more muscle you have, the more efficient your body will be at burning fat, making the cardio workouts more efficient in turn. It's an on-going process, and it takes TIME. Also, as A-Jock said, doing jumps and circuit type training within a cardio workout will help to condition the muscles a bit, but overall to get muscle definition and build enough of it to assist your body to burn fat, you need to strength train. So, to answer your question, none of the workouts you currently have will probably give you the muscle you need. Cathe has plenty of strength training workouts from which to choose though! Everyone on here has their favs. Mine are Pyramid Upper Body, Pyramid Lower Body, and Power Hour. As for your midsection, again, the advice you've been given here is right on target. There is no such thing as spot toning or spot reducing. An overall cardio workout will eventually help you burn fat, and eventually your midsection will shrink. I have seen posts on here from people who swear by Pilates workouts to tone their core region though, so you might want to investigate that a bit. I hope this helps!! Whatever you decide to do, I wish you best of luck!! And, no you don't have to feel guilty if your workout for the day is MIC!!

Carol
:)
 
Yes A-Jock is completey right! I often wish I had some of her knowledge..:)..Although I seem to be a huge cardio fan..I do realize thats for fat burning. I'll tell you that the Slow & Heavy, and Pyramids series are alot like what I was doing on my own when I got the best definition in my muscles. I also had to eat cleanly to loose the fat in my stomach area. And yes...all of her workouts are amazing!! Welcome to the world of Cathe...:)...Carole
 
Thanks everyone for your replies. Power Hour seems like a good choice. What do you all think of Maximum Intensity Strength as well?

Lisa
 
Hi again everyone,

I just ordered Cathe's Pure Strength and Cardio Hits DVD's. I like the idea of focusing on just a few body parts per workout. Because sometimes for me, with a total body tape, I may be too tired when it comes to triceps work, for example, to do the exercises properly. Do any of you have these workouts? Anyway, I'm looking forward to expanding my collection of Cathe workouts.

Lisa
 
Pure Strength and Cardio Hits are bothe excellent DVDs. I'm gald you chose Pure Strength over Power Hour or MIS. I love both of those, too, but I think Pure Strength moves at a SLIGHTLY slower pace, allowing you to increase your weigth load over time--it is more of a strength workout than an endurance workout. (Truthfully, most of Cathe's tapes qualify as endurance weight work, but for the average person who is not trying to become a body builder (!), her tapes will work to improve strength and endurance and begin to shape muscles.)

Good luck!
Wendy
 
Thanks Wendy. I'll let you know as soon as I get the pure strength DVD's and do them. I'm sure I'll like them, since I already like all of the Cathe workouts I currently own. And in these past three weeks, I've been feeling less bloated and my stomach is looking a bit flatter just from doing Circuit Max and MIC along with my Firm aerobic weight training tapes.

Lisa
 
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