Terminator DVD

This DVD consists of three workouts: The Viper, Gauntlet, and IMAX Extreme. The workouts are compilations of Boot Camp, Muscle Endurance, Cardio and Weights, and IMAX2.

These workouts are fantastic. The Viper and Gauntlet are circuit workouts and IMAX Extreme is almost purely cardio.

The Viper is the most strength-intensive. It uses the Muscle Endurance clips and has less cardio emphasis than the other two. It certainly makes you sweat. The exercises move in a relatively logical pattern and there is plenty of time to change the weight on your barbell when necessary.

The Gauntlet includes more cardio: with cardio segments from IMAX2 and Cardio/Weights (like in Viper) and also from Boot Camp.

IMAX Extreme is intense!!! I am sweating buckets with this one! I finally finished it today with absolutely no modifications. The IMAX2 choreography took a tiny bit of time to learn, but I picked everything up during the first time I watched the video.

You do not need to own any of the workouts that this compilation is comprised of in order to "get" the choreography. She explains everything very well and cues at just the right moments. You can also definitely make modifications to make it easier if necessary (by taking out the high impact or by decreasing the weight you use).

I think this workout is the best investment I have made. The music is great, the workouts are motivating, and I have a great sense of pride after finishing them!

OVERVIEW

Did I just go swimming? When I complete Imax Xtreme in its entirety I am drenched in sweat and immediately ravenous. I don’t have a heart rate monitor, but I must have burned off lunch, breakfast and more! A surplus calorie burn is always great, but the benefits of this workout do not end here.

Combining Cardio and Weights and Imax2 is so much more stimulating than doing these individual workouts as-is. What makes these two workouts perfect complements is the balance they deliver. Cardio and Weights is less intense and the choreography is repetitive, something your mind and body needs in order to recover from the intense Imax2 segments. At first, I was skeptical about the inclusion of the 4 compound weighted segments from Cardio and Weights - I did not really understand why they were there and I thought they would ruin what should be a long and intense cardio routine. However, after giving these sections a shot I realized they were short enough to add an extra endurance challenge without bringing my heart rate down to cool down mode. The endurance challenge had a post effect as well, because my legs and arms fatigued a little more during the workout, making it more challenging to walk up the step and do all the arm movements.

PRESENTATION

The music is awesome; it is one of the best out of my entire workout video collection. The most empowering music comes from the IMAX2 segments, which is appropriate as this is where the most intense cardio is featured. The music featured in Imax2 has more of a dance beat. The crew’s energy is exhilarating. I am usually not much of a “woo” person but those bouts of cheers enlivened my mind and added tremendously to a positive attitude, which heightened the fun factor.

DIFFICULTY

The sheer length, constant movement and periodic intensity blasts are enough to leave an intermediate in the dust and a beginner begging Cathe for mercy. When I first attempted this workout I was a low intermediate who knew that I had a lot of growing to do.

This is the workout to do if you want to make that transition from an intermediate to an advanced exerciser. Although the journey won’t be pretty, there are plenty of ways to modify. 1) Lower the step height when you start tripping up 2) Skip the compound weighted segments or treat those sections like break 3) Take short breaks between intervals (keep the workout running but come back when you are ready). 4) Take out some of the arm movements during the cardio.

Although I am now able to complete this workout I am still doing #3 and #4 sometimes. I can’t wait to complete this one day with full energy before, during and afterwards.

CHOREOGRAPHY

The choreography is so repetitive in Cardio and Weights - (note: it did not feel this way when I was first being accustomed to Cathe’s choreography but now that I am familiar with it, it seems to drag on a bit.) Imax2 step choreography on the other hand seems more difficult to pick up because of the variety. But once you learn it, the choreography is easy to execute. There is some intricate footwork here and there but the majority is athletic. Cathe’s cueing is dead on most of the time but there are a few times where she is a little late to cue. It however does not affect my ability to this workout - with some familiarity of the choreography, it is very easy to follow along.

HIGHLIGHTS

When Cathe says during Imax2 that the workout is going to kick it up several notches from this point on, take what she says seriously. This may be a parts workout, but the Imax2 intervals appear in their original sequencing (#2 to #9 in order).

The most difficult segment is the last one, Interval #9. I thought I had already reached the summit but the workout is going to end at the peak of intensity. Here Cathe brings on words of encouragement and brutal honesty of what is to come. Oh my, if you ever wanted to be a hero, now is the time. Get ready to do plies airborne style. Oh, I almost forgot to mention, during this segment the music begins with a serious beat and then suddenly switches to the pina colada song. I can’t help but crack up laughing here. I don’t know if it is the song or Cathe’s words of support that helped me reach the finish line.

LASTING APPEAL

This is not a workout I can constantly reach for, unless I was superhuman but it has tremendous replay value - there is so much variety, fun and challenge that you will not tire of it in the short run. It is the only workout in my collection at this time length that can be so grueling and fun at the same time. If I have the time and energy, this is a workout I reach for because it is fun and makes me feel like an athletic champion.

This is what some might call a “parts” workout, but it’s really so much more than that. Cathe took sections of her Intensity Series (IMAX 2, Boot Camp, Cardio & Weights, Muscle Endurance) and put them together in new ways to make new workouts. There are three workouts on this DVD, and they’re all pretty long, unlike her Timesaver “parts” DVD. I do wish these were shorter - they’re all over an hour, which makes them hard to fit in. The first workout is The Gauntlet, which mixes pieces of IMAX 2, Boot Camp, and Cardio & Weights. While I absolutely loved each of these workouts individually, I didn’t find this combination particularly enjoyable. The second workout is IMAX Xtreme, mixing IMAX 2 and Cardio & Weights - I have not done this one at all, because it has the compound weights pieces of Cardio & Weights, and I’m not into compound weight work. Finally, there is my favorite, The Viper. This mixes parts of Cardio & Weights, IMAX 2, and Muscle Endurance. While I think it is too long at 1 hour and 20 minutes, I do find it a lot of fun when I have time to do it. Grade A+ for innovation, A- for the workouts.

The Viper This workout consists of:

Cardio & Weights warmup

Four Cycles of:

1 C&W cardio segment

1 IMAX 2 interval

2-3 ME strength segments

ME stretch

The workouts clocks in at a whopping 80 minutes!! It is like an extended Circuit Max or Cardio & Weights.

If you've got time, this might be the workout for you! You get in quite a bit of cardio (about 40 minutes), a nice upper body workout (19 minutes), and about 10 minutes of lower body.

This is a hard workout for me, yet still doable. The strength work in between the cardio gives my heartrate a needed rest until the next cycle of cardio.

My only complaint about this workout is that Cathe has you do interval #9 about 65 minutes into the workout! By that time my legs are jello. My energy is spent! I think she should have put in a bit easier interval instead.

Overall, this is a great workout for those with a bit more time on their hands and want a good circuit workout.

I give this workout a B+.

The Gauntlet:

This is my favorite of the three Terminator workouts. It clocks in at 70 minutes. A longer workout, but not impossibly long for me to do on a weekday (when time is more of a factor).

Cathe has set up this parts workout as follows:

IMAX 2 warm up

1 IMAX 2 interval

1 Boot Camp lower body exercise

1 C&W compound exercise

1 Boot Camp upper body exercise

1 Boot Camp cardio segment

She repeats this cycle six times.

She then concludes with the stretch from Cardio & Weights.

This workout moves from one thing to the next. No time to get bored! My heartrate stays up there the whole time. In fact, at times I needed to pause the DVD to give myself a chance to catch my breath (but in a good way)!

Ladies, there is great news... she didn't add in the dreaded interval #9. Bad news (at least for me) she did put in my other two hardest- #6 and #10!

Cathe gives advance notice of the upcoming exercise, with plenty of time to change the weight of your barbell- if necessary. Even though it is a parts workout, I felt it was smooth from beginning to end. The only way someone would know it changed from video to video is by what Cathe and her fabulous crew are wearing!

This workout makes me feel so strong at the end!

If you like IMAX 2, Boot Camp, and Cardio & Weights- you'll like the way Cathe mixed the three up.

I give it an A! Way to go!

review of IMAX Extreme IMAX Extreme is put together as follows:

Cardio and Weights warmup

1 Cardio & Weights Cardio

1 Cardio & Weights Compound

2 IMAX 2 intervals

Repeat this cycle 4 times.

She then concludes with the IMAX 2 stretch

This workout clocks in at 75 minutes. This is a workout I would reserve for a Saturday. Not just because I have more time, but I am also able to sleep in a bit longer. I would need to be well rested for this workout!!!!

I have only done this workout once as is. This is my least favorite of the Terminators by A LOT! Why? Because you are basiclly doing two whole workouts at once! I would never consider doing the majority of C&W and Imax 2 back to back! In this parts workout you do all of C&W (except the heavy upper weights) and all but two intervals from Imax 2!! Just typing that makes me tired!

I know this workout has a place in some people's lives, but it isn't for me. And I do like intense workouts!

Would I still advise people in getting the Terminator DVD? Yes! The Viper and Gauntlet are great. And you could always do what I do- just do some of Imax Extreme.

Great idea for an intense workout... just not my cup of hot chocolate!

I give this workout a C and a big YIKES!

The Terminator contains three compilations from Cathe's Intensity series, called: The Gauntlet, Imax Xtreme & The Viper.

DVD specific reviews:

review of IMAX Extreme

This work out is part of The Terminator DVD and it rocks! IMAX Extreme fuses Cardio and Weights with Imax2. It has 5 cycles that each start with the Cardio and Weight step portion and the compound weights and then moves to two Imax2 intervals.

This work out flies by with this format, and the two work outs incorporated here compliment each other very nicely. The C&W portions are longer, dancier combos and the IMAX2 segments get the heart rate pumping with easier combos followed by intensity blasts.

The compound weight moves from C&W are short and keep my heart rate up. I don't consider them strength training since the reps are quick, you use low weights and you do upper body with lower body moves.

I love the music and it is loud enough to get into but not too loud to drown out the cuing. I also like the opening music of the Pina Colada song. This version of the song is so much fun and really makes it an enjoyable song, which is funny because I've never cared for it!

I also love that the cardio is a full 60 minutes, like MIC. I can't always devote this much time, but its nice to have when I can. Its hard to say if this work out is harder than a "pure" interval work out. I'd say it is a tie, since even though you aren't going full blast as much, you do go longer.