Hi JenniferAnn....
And welcome
Questions:
1- I used many, many, many rotations of Cathe tapes trying to "figure out" which works best for me and what I found is that they ALL work in one way or another. So what I do now is 6 weeks (a time frame I've found that works best for me)of either an endurance based rotation (PowerHour, BodyMax, MIS, CTX) or 6 weeks of a strength based rotation (S&H, PS Series) and use very heavy weight.
2- low intensity hi/lo means cardio workouts that are "non Cathe" floor cardios, which in my video library are videos like Gilad workouts and Charlene Prickett workouts (she has many)! The idea was given to me by a forum member, Honeybunch (who by the way is like the "E.F. Hutton of fitness", when she speaks, listen!
) and to shake up my program and get through a plateau she suggested I "give up" the high intensity cardio (aka Cathe) for a few weeks and do low intensity. She mixes her cardio intensity and I think that's what I'm going to do as well after this low intensity rotation.
And "reverse count" refers to Cathe's Slow & Heavy Series videos. The normal count is the video count of 2 counts eccentric phase (lowering the weight) and 6 count concentric phase(lifting the weight), but after 3 weeks of S&H, I wanted to do 3 more so I tried reversing the counts and I do 6 counts lowering and 2 counts lifting. Just another way to create muscle confusion and hopefully get results.
3- I will ALWAYS do Cathe cardio, but this was an idea to help me break through a really stubborn plateau, so I had to "give up" Cathe for just a few weeks. But I'll be back in a few more, just alternating her with a few low intensity workouts here and there.
4- And as for diet (I hate that word!), I follow no hard and fast rule because it is my belief that one shouldn't have to eliminate an entire food group or type to achieve results. I modify how much fat I eat, I don't add sugar to anything, I eat only whole wheat bread products (fiber is our friend!), and I strive for as many servings of fruit and veggies per day as possible. The main thing I do is keep a food journal (just a simple notebook) and I jot down everything I eat or drink. I try to maintain about 2000 calories/day, which seems high to some folks, but I'm miserable and hungry if I restrict too many calories, so 2000 has been a do-able number for me, and some days it's more depending on what rotation I'm doing, and some days less, but I basically eat 4-5 smaller meals (breakfast-am snack-lunch-pm snack-dinner)and it keeps me from getting really hungry and helps me manage my food intake. I still love food, so I have to learn to live with it and I eat pretty much what I want, just in moderation. (you should have been here a few weeks ago when I went through my ice cream thing!~it wasn't pretty!) But as I said, I don't believe in cutting out whole food groups or going flour free, etc. I just keep track of everything I eat, which helps keep me mindful, and I eat as many fat free and/or low cal alternatives that I can (salad dressings, Miracle Whip lite, fat free cheeses, etc) It's just really about making good choices and watching your overall intake. After a while, you just don't want to waste 450 calories on a piece of cheesecake when you could have had a giant salad with meat in it plus bread on the side and still save a few calories! Then some days you want the cheesecake and it's cool, just write it down and keep going!
You have to find an eating plan you can stick with for life or it won't work, that's my belief!
Anyway, welcome aboard, and if you need or want anything, please let me know, and you will find such a wealth of info here in this check-in, so I'll look forward to seeing your posts and chatting.
Donna
