Body Blast: Push & Pull

Cathe Friedrich
Year Released: 2003

Categories: Balance/Medicine/Mini/Stability Ball, Total Body Workouts


This is the workout that I have been wanting from Cathe, but never really thought she would make.

I am somewhat tired of long weight workouts - like in S&H where you spend an hour weight training and in the end you have only worked 2 body parts. I have enjoyed all of Cathe's strength workouts, but I had been yearning for a change for a while, and this really fits the bill. A total body workout in under 45 minutes. Yeah!

It is fun and different. It is not the typical Cathe work your legs, then your chest, then back, then biceps, etc, like many of her previous work. Because she designed it to work the push muscle followed by the pull muscle, it is mixed up, which I really like. It gives me what I like about Firm workouts, and I am happy to be able to get that kind of workout from one of my favorite instructors.

I am guessing some people will feel like this isn't enough weight training, but it is for me. The count is mostly (but not completely) a 2-2 count so you can go pretty heavy. There are only 2 sets for some body parts, but I have always felt like that was enough for me if I go heavy.

I also really liked the music. It was a little mellow in parts, but I like that sometimes with weight lifting. Other aspects that I loved:
~ use of the stability ball
~ some different exercises never before seen in other workouts
~ working the back without any weights in a few moves
~ working the shins
~ a nice stretch at the end

I didn't actually care for the abs, which was basically only one move. However, since the workout is so short, if I want to add some more ab work that day, it isn't hard to find the time.

I do have some complaints about the DVD though. My music louder option is not any louder on this workout. Also, I think the premixes are not really what I want. I don't see a way to do just upper or just lower body with one premix. You can make this workout more intense by doing the weight work twice, but I can't see myself doing that. I don't really want to hear Cathe say how they should make 7# weights two times in one workout. (They do make them, Cathe!) If I want more weight training in a workout, I will choose something different. This workout is going to be saved for the days when I want something shorter and a little different.

Instructor Comments:
Cathe has always been one of my favorites, and she continues to be after many years. Some say her workouts are the same old thing, but I never find that to be true with her. I am always amazed at how different her new workouts are from the old, so she usually doesn't disappoint me.

Lisa C

07/03/2004