Hi Cathe! I have been viewing several different websites on weight loss and toning. While reading the reviews by Paula Z and some of her success stories, I came across your website. Your videos are highly recommened. I had no idea that there were so many fitness tapes on the market. I am now more confussed than ever. I am a 28 year old teacher and student. I currently weight 148 pounds and I am 5"7 tall. I have gained 20 pounds over the past 2 years and would like to lose the weight as well as tone, tone, tone (I live only 1 hour from Gulf Shores, so I am at the beach a lot during the summer). I have recently started walking 4-5 days a week for 30-45 minutes for cardio, but I am not doing anything right now for toning. My problem areas are my arms, inner and outer thighs, and my buttocks. I will finish graduate school in 3 months and will have the extra time to finallly devote to an exercise program. I would appreciate any advice, comments, or suggestions that you might have. I am not fond of aerobics, but love walking and would really like to know if that is sufficient for cardio and fat loss. Could you please recommend some of your video tapes that are geared toward my goals!! Thanks and I love your website! Leelee
weight loss and tone, tone ,tone
- Thread starter leelee
- Start date
Cathe Friedrich
Administrator
Hi Lee Lee! Welcome to the site. Nice to have you with us. I think that you are off to a phenomenal start since you are already walking 4 to 5 days per week for 30 to 45 minutes. That is a perfect foundation to prepare you for the next level.
To help you lose your weight you'll need to do three things: 1) eat healthy and appropriate food portions, 2) do cardio(aerobic) activities a minimum of three days per week, preferably four to five when wanting to lose more than 15 pounds, 3) lift weights for all areas of the body one to two times per week.
So as you can see your cardio activity is already established but eventually your body will get too used to walking and you will need to present new challenges to your body. You can do this by either adding more intensity to your walking program (ex. add hills or add bursts of running, or go longer, or faster), or by doing a variety of activities so that you always get new muscles involved in new ways. Since you enjoy walking, you could also do a combination of both walking with various intensity formats for about three days and doing other activities for the other two days (note: ease into new activities by starting at a less intense pace and shorter workouts).
As for toning your muscles, I hate to push my own videos on you but if you are starting from scratch, these videos will take a lot of the guess work out of designing a program. I have a 75 minute Maximum Intensity Strength video which can be divided into two parts if 75 minutes is too long for you. You will be instructed on there as to weight selection and technique. Always stay with light weight through the learning curve. I also have the Pure Strength Series. This three tape series is more intense and one that you may want to consider upgrading to after you get familiar with Maximum Intensity Strength.
As for the problem areas that you mentioned, you cannot spot reduce. But as you get about three weeks into your overall fitness program (healthy eating, cardio, and weights)you will see those problem spots start to react. It is important to stay focused and not to get discouraged if you should not see the results come fast enough. The trouble spots are usually the last to react to the fullest degree of what we want to achieve.
Good Luck!
To help you lose your weight you'll need to do three things: 1) eat healthy and appropriate food portions, 2) do cardio(aerobic) activities a minimum of three days per week, preferably four to five when wanting to lose more than 15 pounds, 3) lift weights for all areas of the body one to two times per week.
So as you can see your cardio activity is already established but eventually your body will get too used to walking and you will need to present new challenges to your body. You can do this by either adding more intensity to your walking program (ex. add hills or add bursts of running, or go longer, or faster), or by doing a variety of activities so that you always get new muscles involved in new ways. Since you enjoy walking, you could also do a combination of both walking with various intensity formats for about three days and doing other activities for the other two days (note: ease into new activities by starting at a less intense pace and shorter workouts).
As for toning your muscles, I hate to push my own videos on you but if you are starting from scratch, these videos will take a lot of the guess work out of designing a program. I have a 75 minute Maximum Intensity Strength video which can be divided into two parts if 75 minutes is too long for you. You will be instructed on there as to weight selection and technique. Always stay with light weight through the learning curve. I also have the Pure Strength Series. This three tape series is more intense and one that you may want to consider upgrading to after you get familiar with Maximum Intensity Strength.
As for the problem areas that you mentioned, you cannot spot reduce. But as you get about three weeks into your overall fitness program (healthy eating, cardio, and weights)you will see those problem spots start to react. It is important to stay focused and not to get discouraged if you should not see the results come fast enough. The trouble spots are usually the last to react to the fullest degree of what we want to achieve.
Good Luck!
I heartily agree with Cathe in her suggestions of the PS series and MIS. Before I discovered her tapes, I had been using other toning tapes, but once I began PS and MIS, ohmygosh, the changes that took place! I lost inches and gained definition. I'm turning 40 in two months and honestly, I don't dread it, because I look and feel better than I ever have before.
Do some searches on this site using PS or MIS as key words, and you will see what others have to say about these tapes. Not only do they help achieve great results, they are so much fun, too.
Just my two cents' worth. I love Cathe's tapes, have achieved great results with them, and want to shout it from the mountains!
Veronica
Do some searches on this site using PS or MIS as key words, and you will see what others have to say about these tapes. Not only do they help achieve great results, they are so much fun, too.
Just my two cents' worth. I love Cathe's tapes, have achieved great results with them, and want to shout it from the mountains!
Veronica
Aquajock
Cathlete
Good morning LeeLee!
I too would like to add my two cents' worth - "Well begun is half done", and I agree that you are off to a great start with your walking program. I also agree that you are (probably sooner rather than later) going to need AND WANT to add new challenges in terms of your cardio program, because you train up quickly and your brain and body will get bored with the now-easier same-o-same-o.
Miss Cathe is so right to suggest her videos for strengthening (what other people call "toning") - they are safe, comprehensive, and you can progress through them. Keep progressiveness of performance one of your goals, and persistence and consistency as well. And don't be afraid to try new things (i.e. her step and other cardio videos)!
If I could make a tiny suggestion: go REAL easy on the "weight loss" goal as defined by the bathroom scale. I know that seems to be coin of the realm in America, but understand that, if you exercise comprehensively (i.e. include the cardio, strengthening and flexibility components that create a thorough program), you will lose excess storage fat BUT GAIN INVALUABLE LEAN MUSCLE MASS, that enables you to move more energetically AND burns your body's fuel more effectively. The scale does not differentiate between fatty and lean tissue, and thus is, I believe, probably the least valuable of progress measurers. I would suggest using performance measurements and how much more energized you feel first, how your clothes fit second, and the bathroom scale dead last on your goal sheet.
YOU GO FOR IT! WELCOME TO THE CLUB!
Annette
I too would like to add my two cents' worth - "Well begun is half done", and I agree that you are off to a great start with your walking program. I also agree that you are (probably sooner rather than later) going to need AND WANT to add new challenges in terms of your cardio program, because you train up quickly and your brain and body will get bored with the now-easier same-o-same-o.
Miss Cathe is so right to suggest her videos for strengthening (what other people call "toning") - they are safe, comprehensive, and you can progress through them. Keep progressiveness of performance one of your goals, and persistence and consistency as well. And don't be afraid to try new things (i.e. her step and other cardio videos)!
If I could make a tiny suggestion: go REAL easy on the "weight loss" goal as defined by the bathroom scale. I know that seems to be coin of the realm in America, but understand that, if you exercise comprehensively (i.e. include the cardio, strengthening and flexibility components that create a thorough program), you will lose excess storage fat BUT GAIN INVALUABLE LEAN MUSCLE MASS, that enables you to move more energetically AND burns your body's fuel more effectively. The scale does not differentiate between fatty and lean tissue, and thus is, I believe, probably the least valuable of progress measurers. I would suggest using performance measurements and how much more energized you feel first, how your clothes fit second, and the bathroom scale dead last on your goal sheet.
YOU GO FOR IT! WELCOME TO THE CLUB!
Annette