Hardcore: Kick Max

Cathe Friedrich
Year Released: 2005

Categories: Boxing/Kickboxing/Martial Arts


I’m reviewing this workout after doing the warm-up, kickboxing segment, and cool-down multiple times, the kicking drills a couple of times, and the high intensity drills / blasts once.

I have to say this video has never totally won me over. Maybe I didn’t give it enough of a chance, since a number of people who at first didn’t care for it found a way to make it work for them. Maybe my goals when I reach for a kickboxing video are just too different to accommodate this one. Maybe I just don’t get “it,” whatever it is here. I dunno. It’s not a bad video by any means; it just doesn’t work for me. And it appears I’m just one of those who prefers Kick, Punch & Crunch.

What didn’t I like?
*The whole thing felt too “parts is parts” to me – that is, too much of a little bit o’ this and a little bit o’ that without great segues from one to another (like when Cathe tells you to cool down on your own after the high impact drills before starting the kicking ones). I remember when this first came out there was some discussion about how the bits and pieces seemed geared for various requests from Cathe’s fans (low impact! interesting kickboxing combos! focused kickboxing drills! high impact! super high intensity drills!). Even with some distance in time I still can’t get it to gel together in my mind. Yes, the kicking drills make sense with the kickboxing, although not all of the kicks in one appear in the other. But then with such a choreographed kickboxing routine and with such a focused kicking segment the athletic drills, which have few kickboxing moves in them, felt out of place to me. I guess my problem is that when I pull out a kickboxing video I want to do kickboxing. That said, for some people the workout does makes sense as is or makes sense with a little rearranging.
*The high impact drills just were not for me. I must disclose that I don’t normally do a lot of high impact, what with having had a few joint issues already and living in rented apartments. I had killer shin splints after the one time I attempted this segment, and I know to some extent (OK, maybe a large extent) my shoes and flooring were to blame, so make sure you have good, supportive, and new(ish) athletic sneakers plus flooring that absorbs shock well. This segment would require a lot of creativity to modify down in impact (you’ll pretty much just have to substitute in all new moves in some parts), which I just don’t have in me.
*I felt the chaptering could have been more extensive and as a result the premixes could have been more creative. Both the kicking and the high impact drills were all in one chapter each. Maybe I’m missing the whole point of the workout, but I thought it would have been interesting to have a premix mixing the kickboxing combos and the drills, for example. More importantly for me, there wasn’t actually a premix that would allow you to do the warm-up, all of the kickboxing, and the cool-down – just that, nothing else. I ended up always just playing the whole workout and keeping my remote with its skip button handy.
*The sound and music on this Hardcore series just doesn’t have the same crystal clear quality of other Cathe series. They’re perfectly serviceable (well, the music’s a hair on the low side), but, let’s face it, when you pop in a Cathe you expect the best in DVD technology.

What did I like?
*The kickboxing combos were interesting and low impact – except for the filler jacks, that is (although one could just do a tap out to modify out the impact). As someone who considers herself an int./adv. when it comes to cardio (although I was more of an int.+ when this first came out), these were at the perfect level for me. As you may have guessed after reading this far, I kept this around just for the kickboxing, which gave me a solid workout in under 45 min. that didn’t leave me felling so wiped out I couldn’t do anything else for the rest of the day.
*The kicking drills were great. If only I had the time and patience for them, I’m sure I would have seen great improvement in my kicks (and perhaps my butt, hips, and thighs as well). These are definitely a step up from those on Kathy Smith’s Kickboxing video.

A few other comments:
*You have to know what you’re doing before picking up this video. Cathe doesn’t stop to break down punches or kicks, so prior kickboxing experience is a must. But you certainly don’t need a black belt to tackle it.
* I had recently discovered Janis Saffell when I picked this one up, and I agree that the style of kickboxing choreography in KM is reminiscent of Janis’.
*I found it easy to take out the pivots in the kickboxing portion and just stay front, eliminating some of the twisty turny torqueness that manages to crop up in Cathe’s low impact offerings.
*For me the kickboxing portion is a hair less intense than similar ones on KPC, but the high intensity drills were easily more intense, so I agree that in the end things balance out that KM is a touch more challenging than KPC, if one does both of them all the way through.
*OK, I’m a real dork, but I got a kick out of the plaster casts of classical and pseudo-/neoclassical statues (I’m always up for a workout with the Diskobolos) lining the “patio” done up in that faux finish with which I covered several high school stage sets. I don’t know much about the Firm mansion, but that’s about as close as I’m willing to come to that feel.

So what does this all mean? You may love this video exactly as is, you may find you like it once you make it your own, or you may find that it’s just not for you. This is probably one of those you’re just going to have to try for yourself.

Instructor Comments:

KathAL79

09/27/2008