RSS6 KICKBOX WORKOUTS : FIGHT WITH YOUR LEGS
February 29, 2008
This is the follow up to the article Kickboxing : Strengthen Your Attitude, published on February 14, 2008. In that post, I explained why I love this type of exercise, which goes far beyond just burning calories. I also promised to tell you about some of the best programs I know.
Kickboxing is an express ticket to great physical and mental potency. “Potency” is an odd word to use in this context, but it really fits. There is a presence or a force that you know resides within you. I know it sounds intense. Well, I’m an intense person, too intense sometimes. Ask my family. I think it’s a good thing.
Like all sport correctly done, kickboxing has a technique that’s designed to maximize the benefit and reduce the risk of injury. If you’re beginning, look for DVDs with an instructional segment included. Search CollageVideo for kickbox. (A note : Collage has just updated its website and it looks great but the Search function is a little wacky. You can now put any Search term into a single box (as it should be on any well-designed site) but the results are inconsistent. I think it’s searching every term separately so you’ll get many hits, even with very specific keywords.)
Beginner
1. Chalene Johnson’s TurboJam series : Chalene maintains that if working isn’t fun, you won’t do it, and I agree. This is a party and the music is great. When you visit Beachbody, you’ll see that Chalene has a beginner series of programs, which include instructional segments, as well as a Maximum Results series. The Maximum Results uses more equipment, including a stability ball (the huge round things) and elastic tubing; it is a little harder, but not a lot harder, and easy to learn. You’re surprisingly sweaty when you’re done. Even better, you’ve absorbed Chalene’s well-tuned sense of fun and you’ll have had 15 years taken off your mental outlook. You can read more about Chalene’s programs in this article about working out when you really do not feel like it.
One to watch : Patricia Moreno’s Core Cross Train Kickbox : This is a brand new video (which I do not own), but she is so excellent in Yoga Dance Fusion that I very much doubt you’d be disappointed. Instruction is offered at various levels. The pace appears not so frantic as the more advanced programs below. If you have concerns about your back or want more controlled kicks and punches, this one looks outstanding with the focus on balance, strength, and grace. It will be interesting to watch the reviews.
Patricia Moreno Cross Core Train Kickbox
Intermediate
1. Criss Cross Cardio : This is a good workout if you have done some kickboxing. This is a workout I like more every time I do it. The backup is a little odd, like they’re not really into it, but neither do they detract, and it gives you something to watch. There are some short intensity bursts along the way and choreography that is a little more complex at times, so the difficulty level is probably Intermediate /Advanced (Collage rates it Advanced but I disagree). My favorite section is the Capoeira at the end. This is a form of Brazilian martial arts based on dance. It is flowing and strong and works legs and core muscles in a smooth and rhythmic way using body weight for resistance. The section is about 20 minutes long but it feels so good that I love doing it. You’ll know something is happening to your legs and butt and yet the movements are very comfortable.
2.Billy Blanks :TaeBo Billy’s Boot Camp Infomercial Basic : You will get a variety of difficulty levels and instruction. The rubber bands are included, as well as a few extras. While I find many of his workouts to be the same moves packaged in new containers, they remain a very thorough workout. At billyblanks.com, he has an online Store with DVD’s, customized equipment used in the videos, and some motivational extras. It’s a fun website to wander around in. You can meet his daughter, Shellie who appears in all the videos. The description of the videos is better on the Collage website and though they don’t have them all and are slightly more expensive, they do have preview clips. Billy is a very motivating instructor in that he so badly wants you to achieve greatness that you push yourself in order not to disappoint him.
One to watch: Power Strike With Ilaria Montagnani : The reviews are varied on this one, and I don’t own it myself. I include it here because the instructional segment appears so well done. I will not review it but I suggest you take a close look at it when you’re on the Collage site. It has always caught my eye.
Power Strike with Iliara Montagnani
Advanced
1. Cathe Friedrich Kick Max : Ah, yes, can’t leave Cathe out of an intense workout discussion. This video is typical Cathe, technically brilliant with 10 intensity blasts that are painfully tough. I have to work up to this and go easy a couple of days after. One reason I love kickboxing is because it involves very little impact so it’s easy on the knees. This is an exception, where several of the blasts require you to be airborne. The whole program is extremely well-structured, has great movement variety, with emphasis on upper body, lower body, and core. This woman is at the top of the game and this video shows you why. May the force be with you.
Cathe Friedrich Kick Max
2. Kelly Coffey-Meyer Cardio Kick Step-Boxing 2 : I’m always looking for something new with step and layers upon layers of choreography does not ring my bell. Adding step to kickboxing means more to think about and improved lower body and eye coordination. The pace is fast and you feel powerful and agile at once. The program ends with an unusual core strengthening segment, done on your knees. The idea is to isolate your hips, take them out of the equation, so you can really work the core muscles. The problem is that my knees really do not enjoy this position, so I do it on a stability wall holding 3lb weights.
3. Amy Bento Kickbox Xtreme : Can you say “cardiovascular push”? Prepare to fling sweat and breathe hard. Because the movements flow so well, you find yourself pulled along and you will break through your barriers every time. This is the workout where I feel fierce. Amy is fun but serious, certainly not aggressive. In fact, she could be the stereotypical aerobics instructor, in that she is very pretty, has a powerful but curvy body, is a little cheerleader-ish (though she’s toned that down since her earlier videos), likes fun hair color and makeup and wears them well. You worry she might be dizzy and find she’s anything but. Then she works you hard to get you back for making presumptions about her. Somehow I begin feeling fun and end feeling invincible. Oh, this is one good workout.
Amy Bento Kickbox Xtreme
My next purchase : Cathe Friedrich Kick Punch Crunch &Legs &Glutes : I want to buy this video in a big way, though I know I will suffer. Just look at the expression on her face on the cover. It looks vicious!! I like ferocious. I like raging. That’s how I plough through my fences. Check out the clip! Woohoo, this looks like good stuff. If I have to pause the video a few times to get it together again, then I am truly happy. When I’m done, my every problem has been left on the floor. The fog has lifted, the mountains are gone, and the road looks clear.
Cathe Friedrich Kick, Punch Crunch &Legs &Glutes
Comments
4 Responses to “6 KICKBOX WORKOUTS : FIGHT WITH YOUR LEGS”
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A Greener Tea
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Tried TurboJam today after reading your review. Cardio Party. It was ok–I expected to be really worked, but it was milder than I expected. I will use this on “low energy” days, but will probably stick to Cathe for the really killer workouts. Would like to try Amy Bento and Pat Moreno DVDs next. thanksy for posting your thoughts on this and other matters. I am about to turn forty with 2 little kids and a full time job–so ,I really enjoy your site!
PS–I also have tried and like the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred for days when I don’t have a full hour to work out, her 20 minutes are jam-packed with effort and energy and I felt sore the next day!
Hi, Pam,
I agree about TurboJam. I rated as Beginner for that reason. You and I are probably at similar fitness levels and we look for the same things in a workout. Sometimes you feel like killer, and sometimes you don’t. TurboJam gets me off the couch when nothing else will. I often weight my hands and/or legs to get more of a workout.
Cathe is hard to beat but I can’t watch her everyday. Amy Bento’s Kickbox Extreme is very good. She and Kelly Coffey-Meyer are my current favorites. Kelly’s workouts are excellent and different. You will get worked good. Patricia Moreno has a beautiful style , and the reviews on the Collage site are very positive, but it doesn’t look hard enough.
Look too at this article http://www.agreenertea.com/woman-strengt-gorgeous-4-tough-step-circuit-workouts/ if you haven’t already. Some fine circuits if you’re looking for a change from kickboxing.
I’ve watched clips of Jillian Michaels videos but didn’t see 30 Day Shred. I’ll look again. I like 20 minutes of hard cardio, which leaves time for some Pilates or yoga that I never get around to doing otherwise.
Pam,
Forgot to say above - among the TurboJam Maximum Results series, you’ll find Total Body Blast and Punch, Kick, and Jam.
Do the first one with a 6lb med ball.
Weight your arms for Punch, Kick, and Jam , and your ankles for the last 20 minutes when she’s doing Capoeira.
By the end of the hour, I’m done. But you’re right - Chalene is never killer.