Please help me!!

[fitharp]

Sorry to bother you Cathe but I am about ready to give up and am hoping for some motivation and advice.
I am 36 years old. Have 3 kids 12,9,and 2. Growing up I was not very athletic and was able to be very thin without doing anything about it. After my first child I began to exercise and enjoyed it. But it was mostly an off and on type of thing. Then after my 2nd I became more consistant and was even geting into good shape. Then 2 years ago when I had my 3rd child I was very sick the whole time and so did no exercise, actually did nothing at all but lie around for 9 months. After he was born I was excited to get back into shape but it has been such a struggle. I'll get a new video and be so motivated by the great shape you are in that I'll go all out and really try. I have to modify most everything though. And it isn't just a little modification. It's no risers alot of power moves taken out and sometimes even arms taken out. So then I get discouraged and feel like I'm not progressing at all. It has been 2 years since I was pregnant and I still have this big tummy. I have tried your Beginner Rotation but that was to easy and I got bored so I'm not sure what level I'm at and just not sure how to get any better. I can finally complete the step part of How to get in shape for your wedding but with no risers - just the step. I don't know if I don't push myself enough or what. I am doing alot better on muscle strength and do see improvements there but cardio just kills me. My goals are to lower my BMI - I'm at 29% right now. Though not overweight by traditional charts. 5'4 and 125 pounds, (though it is all in the middle)Very small bones, upper body small, lower body except for middle very small. I would just really like some advice on what workouts I should do that I can improve my health on without feeling frustrated because I can't ever complete and what do I need to be doing so I can improve to the point of completing.
Thanks
Michele

 

[luvmylabs]

Hi Michele,


Not Cathe , Hope you don't mind

Please don't give up. I have done the same thing, exercise, then stop for a while and so forth. But now I am back on the wagon so to speak. You need to take it slow at first, your workouts will become a little easier, just don't give up. Just remember all the benefits that exercising can do for you, including being in shape to run after your little one. I was not atheletic growing up either, and gained all my weight with my kids.But I think about all the clothes that I want in the store but can't fit into and this make me want to exercise, somedays I am not able to because of time constraints, but I am trying . I really have to wake up early in the morning to get it done, (this is the hard part). Since the beginner rotation was to easy, try the intermediate rotation to see if this works for you. If possible invest in more of Cathe's videos , so that you have more choices and variety...Just hang in there..

 

[howrobin]

Not Cathe here.

The previous poster makes goods sense when she says to take it easy. With exercise, something is always better than nothing. It sounds as if you have had a dramatic and very demanding life change, namely, the 2 year old. My wife found that the recovery from our 2nd child was much slower and longer than the first (several years earlier). Each time we had a child, the doctors always acted as if she would be up and about shortly thereafter, but it never worked out that way. And older kids don't suddenly become self-sustaining just because a new baby joins the household! In view of that, perhaps you are expecting too much too soon. I think each child is incrementally more exhausting than the previous one(s), particularly as we get older.

Re. the cardio, you might consider trying Cathe's kickboxing dvd, Kick Punch and Crunch. She'll do one particular movement for 16 or 24 reps. When I first started out with kickboxing, I could only do about 25% of the work out. So I would do reps 1 through 6, then rest for 8, then do reps 1,3, and 7 or something like that. Sometimes I would just do every other rep. I gradually started doing more of the reps as I got into better shape. Since a lot of the kickboxing movements are less complex than the Cathe dance type aerobic routines I have seen, perhaps you would feel less frustrated. Also the kickboxing routines do not involve a step.

The last thing that occurs to me is that walking might help. If you can put the 2 year in a stroller and do a mile or two at whatever pace you can handle that gets you huffing and puffing a bit, that might help getting you into better aerobic shape so that you can eventually get back to whatever Cathe dvds you like best.

Don't know if this is any help, but wish you well.

 

[amybajamy]

Hi, I'm not Cathe either, but I feel your frustration. I have never had very good cardiovascular strength, and I have to modify sometimes on Cathe's workouts too. I have come to accept this and I have a great time doing her workouts. I can still be frustrating at times, but you can only do what you can do. What has helped me though is interval training. Step and Intervals from the CTX series and IMAX 2 and 3 are examples of this. The IMAX's are very challenging though. I love Step and Intervals it's challenging, but not as much as the IMAX's and it's shorter. The whole CTX series might be good for you because all of the workouts are shorter. Also have you tried Low Impact Step? It's more of a beginner workout, but I think is more fun and challenging than Begginer Step. Which Cathe workouts do you have and which ones are you having trouble with? Good luck to you and don't give up!
Amy