Tabatacise & All-Out (Xtrain)

M

mini-natty

Cathlete
Hello Cathe & SNM,

Before I ask my question, I want to say that I'm very excited for Xtrain. I always look forward to everything you do Cathe, as it exceeds my expectations in what I want/need in an advanced workout. My heart & body just keeps getting better, and I owe it all to you :). Thank you.

My question is regarding the two cardio workouts in Xtrain (mentioned in the title). Will there be repetition within the exercise drills? I ask this because there is somewhat of a "dread factor" between myself, intense cardio (hiit, Tabata, ect.) and repetition. IMO, to keep the dread factor at bay, repetition should be eliminated or kept to a bare minimum. Just a little background info: I can do all of your cardio with little/no modifications. I enjoy variety in my cardio routines and love everything from kickbox to step to hiit. Unfortunately, I do avoid workouts that require me to repeat drills (Cardio Core Circuit is a prime example). Although I do love that workout for providing me with a wonderful cardio session with no equipment in the courtesy of my home, I don't reach for it as much as I would like to :(. OTOH, gems like hiit 30/30, Intensity hiit sections (high/low), Imax 1, 2, 3 successfully get my HR into aerobic/anaerobic zones without the dread, solely based on the fact that there is no repetition within the drills. Those are the types of workouts I love and gravitate towards.

I'm sorry if I sound like a demanding, whiny, customer. My intention is not to come across that way. I'm just stating an honest personal preference, as I know many Cathletes feel the same. I completely understand that it is virtually impossible to please everyone all of the time, and I will continue to purchase and use your wonderful workouts for many, many years to come!

Thank you again :)

Natasha
 
Not Cathe here but I'm guessing she will probably have a premix where the drills are done only once. I know this was the case with some of the workouts in the low impact series like Afterburn and Cardio Supersets. I personally like the drill repetitions in the cardio workouts. I always use the first drill as sort of a warm up set and if I'm new to a workout it's a great way to get a feel for the moves and gradually break into the workout. The second drill is usually when I will go all out and give it my all. Anyway, whatever Cathe ultimately decides to do I'm sure the workouts will be great and I definitely can't wait.
 
Drill Repetition

Hi Natasha,

I prefer repetition of Drill as well. Practising through repetition does help in performing clean moves. I do aim to get my drills as clean as possible :p;)
No dread factor for me at all, as long as repetition are maximum 3 times.

I presume premixes will cater for everyone demand.

Kind Regards,

Nathalie
 
I don't mind the repetition either. I wouldn't want endless repetition, but 2-3 times doesn't bother me at all. Plus, it helps build a longer workout and I like to do an hour of cardio. But then like coaccountant23 mentioned, it makes it easier to make shorter pre-mixes, which I also love.
 
No, some drills are just too hideous to be repeated (air jacks), so knowing they come only once allows me to continue rather than hitting the eject button. I also think Cathe is creative enough that she doesn't need to repeat drills and can come up with some we haven't even seen yet. Laying down the gauntlet....!

Clare
 
I don’t mind some repetition if it’s organized nicely. For example, I appreciate how the feeling of repetition is limited in Crossfire because of how the workout is structured. In the 1st segment (fitness blast), you have 4 different cardio drills where each of the moves is done twice before moving on to the next. Cathe then says you’re going “back to the beginning” but you only have to do each of the 4 moves once in the final round. So the whole segment goes something like AABBCCDDABCD where A is one cardio exercise, B is another and so forth. I really don’t mind ABCD being tacked onto the end. Now, if it was AABBCCDD being repeated again, it might induce dread. Segment 2 (firewalker tabata) follows a pattern like EFGHEFGH at what feels like lightning speed. For segment 3 (circuit blast), you do a cardio move, then weight move & repeat the pair, like IJIJKLKLMNMNOPOPQRQRSTST. And the pace feels slower, especially for the 2nd weighted move in each pair. Overall, varying the pace and pattern is what seems to make (limited) repetition more enjoyable for me.

OTOH, in Hiit double wave pyramid, I spend most of the first wave thinking about (occasionally dreading) having to repeat the whole thing from the top once the 2nd wave hits. In CCC you have 5 circuits which include doing 3 cardio exercises twice per circuit, so one circuit is comprised of ABCABC. Once you finish ABCABC, you do your core exercise and then move on to a new set of cardio moves DEFDEF. You never have to revisit ABCABC. This repetition doesn’t bother me so much (although I keep wishing CCC had a countdown timer).

In Afterburn, you do a pair of exercises twice and then move on to the next which goes something like ABABCDCDEFEF and so forth. This isn’t too bad because you don’t have to revisit moves later on in the workout and you can easily shorten the workout by skipping the 2nd pair and just doing ABCDEF and so forth. My only complaint is that the pairs can seem to go on forever, i.e. the pattern of 2 exercises and repeat doesn’t change and so can feel monotonous or neverending even if the moves are changing. I still really like Afterburn but I’m using it here to explain why I prefer how TTM and CF are structured, which makes them feel more fresh throughout despite repetition. Afterburn does throw in use of gliding discs and weights for some of the moves which helps vary things, but I find TTM and CF more varied and easier to mix/match sections of to create different feeling workouts (probably partly due to bonus footage/premixes). However, on the days I’m in the mood for all low impact, I reach for Afterburn.

The other thing that helps with repetition is how motivating I find the music. If I really like the music, I can put up with almost anything. I really enjoyed the music in TTM and CF. The music in Afterburn was one of the better ones in LIS but I still prefer music with lyrics. (30/30 remains my favorite Hiit workout despite the lyric-less and rather nondescript music.)
 
I thought I was the only freak of nature who felt this way, until I discovered there was a bunch of Cathletes just like me who felt the same in the following thread on OD:

http://cathe.com/forum/f97/workout-rant-i-hate-drills-290699/index2.html

That's what inspired me to start a thread here, because although I do like drills, I just don't like repetition. There is no right or wrong here, just personal preferences :). I would jump for joy (literally :D) if Cathe made 1 or 2 of the new cardio workouts include fresh, new, innovative drills, unrepeated. Crossing fingers over here! Regardless, I still per-ordered the new series and am looking forward to them!

Clare
You took every.single.word out of my mouth :). Thank you :)
 
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I never really thought about whether I like or dislike repeating drills, so I guess I don't mind them :p!
Like Amberdawn, I DO think about that next "pyramid" in DWP (Double Wave Pyramid). I especially dread the 1/4 hop turns; that 2nd set is usually a lot shallower than the first :eek:!
I think everyone has their nemesis, right?
 
Interesting comments... I would agree that the variety in TTM and CF is very motivating. I love all of Cathe's workouts for the unique challenge each provide - but I might agree that some I save for days when I am more mentally "up" for the challenge. One of those would be CCC - that workout for some reason really challenges my mental stamina because of the repetition of THREE drills back to back- it's just painful that one! I don't seem to mind Hiit pyramid - because each drill is different for the entire wave and it seems to fly timewise.

I love workouts that use the step in 30/30 and TTM and I love Intensity's step portion over the Hiit (the step in that one is still the toughest step workout for 25 minutes!). Anyways- just wanted to share my thoughts too.

Tonight - I did STS plyo legs and it was actually "easier" I think because of all the plyo work and tabatas in the two new workouts. I really think that tabata's and Hiits are the way to go. Get in...go hard...get out! Feels great. Can't wait for tabatacize!
 
Nanbo said:
Like Amberdawn, I DO think about that next "pyramid" in DWP (Double Wave Pyramid). I especially dread the 1/4 hop turns; that 2nd set is usually a lot shallower than the first :eek:!
I think everyone has their nemesis, right?
Click to expand...

Exactly! . . . and 1/4 hop turns would be mine!:eek:

Also, like Amberdawn stated so well, how things are repeated really matters. Now I know why I don't like the repetition in Afterburn but I don't mind it in CF.
 
I love the repetitions in Afterburn and it's on the second set where I really get my butt kicked. But I do love that there is a premix available that goes through all drills ONE time with no repeats when I am short on time. So, in the new vids if drills were repeated but offered a single run-through premix that would work or vice versa where the drills had no repeats, but offered a double set premix that would work, too. Cathe is great about giving us options ;)
 
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