Have so little time to workout, does Firm Express Get thin in 30 days do a good job?

[Keepfitgirl]

I keep looking at the Firm Express set, as I a very active toddler and at the most I seem to get 30-40 mins to workout. I was wondering if this set is enjoyable and feels like you get the job done, even though the workouts are so short? It seems like such a great idea but I do like to feel like I've done something! FYI I've been mainly using KCM's 30 mins to fitness or some of Cathe's pre-mixes, plus some CS shorter workouts.

Thanks

Emma

[metalbarbie]

Depends on your level. The rotation needs add-ons for the more experienced exercieser. Adding 1/2 hour of cardio is perfect for this set.

[nyskier]

I personally did not like this series and I traded it. I found the pace to be too frenetic. If you like the pink Firms you may like it. How about Jillian's Body Revolution? That one also has shorter w/is.J

[ebianco]

It depends on what goals you want to achieve while squeezing into your timeframe.

I really REALLY like these - to me they are like mini HIIT workouts. Very cardio-intense (even the strength ones). They would NOT be my go-tos for strength at all, but are great for quickie calorie burners.

I work out for about an hour and consider myself to be low advanced, I use these when I'm short on time, as add-ons (LOVE them as add-ons to RKS, for instance), or when I'm having a low energy day because I know these will pep me up and motivate me to push hard when it's only 20 minutes. I do feel like I get a great cardio workout in the 20 minute timeframe (some workouts are harder than others) and feel like I "did something" even though it was only 20 minutes. Part of that though is that the w/u is only 1-2 minutes and the stretch is basically non-existant, I prefer to spend a little time stretching after.

I agree that you would be more likely to enjoy these if you like the Pink-era Firms, the fast-moving style and exercises are pretty similar. LOVE those bursts! Now that I'm more advanced I tend to sub something harder, if they make them low-key, which isn't usually an issue.

[blueskies]

Emma,

Instead of Firm Express, I highly recommend PACE Express! I am in the middle of my first 6-week rotation, and this system has been (as I've told my check-in group) my fitness nirvana. I will never go back to traditional workouts again, unless under extreme duress or protest!

Your total exertion time is 12 minutes, done in three separate 4-minute segments. Strength and cardio are combined. No equipment. Total workout time is under a half hour, counting getting dressed, putting the DVD into the player, putting it away at the end, etc. It is ideal for your time of life with a young child. How I wish these would have been around when my DD and DS were little!

I am literally dripping with sweat at the end of the 12 minutes. My entire body feels worked out. It is energizing. I don't get so hungry later in the day that I am eating the paint off the walls. Best of all, there is such a little time investment.

This is the exercise program I've been searching for. It sounds like it could fit the bill for your requirements.

[bzar]

i have 2 discs from the FE series that were released separately via retail. they're not bad, but do go at a frenetic pace as others have stated. i actually liked the 2 FE's that i bought, but thought that buying the entire set wasn't worth the money. the entire set, at the time, was going for $100, and 4.3 hours of workouts.

instead, i would recommend Chris Freytag's 10 Pound SlimDown (regular) (see below for "extreme" series). i have the regular set, and it does get the job done in 20 min w/o killing you! i like the pacing, choice of exercises, etc. i found myself looking forward to doing these exercises after the first time i tried them.

if you buy the 10 pound slimdown "extreme" set from QVC, for $40 plus s/h, you get 5, 40-min workouts and 5, 20-min workouts from the "regular" set. and all of the discs have unique footage (none of it is repeated footage). so, for $40, you'd get 5 hours of effective workouts.

[Lucky Star]

Originally Posted by blueskies

Emma,

Instead of Firm Express, I highly recommend PACE Express! I am in the middle of my first 6-week rotation, and this system has been (as I've told my check-in group) my fitness nirvana. I will never go back to traditional workouts again, unless under extreme duress or protest!

Your total exertion time is 12 minutes, done in three separate 4-minute segments. Strength and cardio are combined. No equipment. Total workout time is under a half hour, counting getting dressed, putting the DVD into the player, putting it away at the end, etc. It is ideal for your time of life with a young child. How I wish these would have been around when my DD and DS were little!

I am literally dripping with sweat at the end of the 12 minutes. My entire body feels worked out. It is energizing. I don't get so hungry later in the day that I am eating the paint off the walls. Best of all, there is such a little time investment.

This is the exercise program I've been searching for. It sounds like it could fit the bill for your requirements.

Rebecca, I've long been intrigued by this set but I have no idea what kind of exercises are included and how high the impact is. I know the thing about PACE is that you're supposed to be able to modify as needed, but for instance are there lots of forward lunges or (even worse!) jumping lunges? Could you give me an idea what kind of exercises to expect?

[Keepfitgirl]

Thanks all for your great suggestions. I am looking for quick workouts that can cover everything (but particularly cardio) for days when I feel I don't have much time. FYI, I'm probably low advanced cardio-wise and intermediate weights. I've just got a couple of the Chris Freitag ones from both series, so I'm looking forward to trying those. I've also got Jillian Michael's Shred (not Body Revolution) series.

I've never heard of PACE Express and will investigate. Where did you get yours from blueskies?

Thanks

Emma

[blueskies]

Originally Posted by Lucky Star

Rebecca, I've long been intrigued by this set but I have no idea what kind of exercises are included and how high the impact is. I know the thing about PACE is that you're supposed to be able to modify as needed, but for instance are there lots of forward lunges or (even worse!) jumping lunges? Could you give me an idea what kind of exercises to expect?

Hi Gina,

There are impact exercises in PACE, but there is always a low impact modifier for everything. As far as I know, there are no jumping lunges (I hate them too!), and I've previewed all the workouts. Some of the routines do include forward lunges, side lunges, or backward lunges, but they are only done for 30 seconds at a time, then the exercise changes.

I was surprised at the variety of body weight moves in this series. Most moves I've seen or done before in other routines, but there are some "new" (for me) moves. There are combinations of kickboxing, calisthenics, standing abs, push ups, plank variations, some yoga-type moves, kick backs a la Leslie Sansone (PACE calls them "butt kickers" lol), plus variations on running in place and jumping jacks, as well as many other exercises. As I said before, all impact activities can be modified to low impact.

Side note--I love your kitty avatar!!!

Originally Posted by Keepfitgirl

I've never heard of PACE Express and will investigate. Where did you get yours from blueskies?

Emma,

I bought my PACE Express program from the website, although it is available on Amazon. Here is a link to the website. If you click on the link, make sure your computer sound is turned down or off because the website automatically starts a mini-'mercial that you can turn off once you get there.

Speaking of infomercials, here is the link to the full-length one for PACE Express. It is infomercial-y ("But wait!!! There's more!!!!"), but I was very impressed with the success stories, especially noting that the participants only did the 12-minute routine as their exercise. Nothing else was added. The participants achieved their results from a realistic 5 - 10 months of doing the program. One woman has been doing PACE for over 2 years!

Having bought the actual program, I can honestly say that there is no "bait and switch." You don't discover that, "Oh yeah, in addition to the 12 minutes, you really should add about an hour of extra activity a day to see results" or "To really accelerate their results, the participants doubled and tripled up the workouts." There is none of that here. What you see is what you get. The two bonus workouts are there if you want to add on an extra 4-minute routine to the end of one of your sessions (not required at all), and the stretch routine is optional.

Of course, there is a diet component to PACE, but it is mentioned up front and in the testimonials. I think all VFers know that diet is important to any weight loss/fat loss program anyway, so this shouldn't come as too much of a shocker.

I am very happy with my purchase of PACE Express, so much so that I will continue with the program indefinitely once the first 6 weeks are over. I did have an issue with some of the DVDs being scratched, but PACE's CS is sending me out free replacements. As I mentioned before, I've been looking for a program like this for a very long time. I wish that this would have been around 25 years ago when I first started exercising. It woud have saved me so much time, frustration, and money.

To avoid hijacking Emma's thread, if anyone would like further, more detailed information about PACE Express, feel free to PM me. I'd be happy to answer any questions.

[Keepfitgirl]

Rebecca, feel free to hijack! I'm sure everyone would like to hear more. I managed to click on the infomercial link but when I click on the PACE website link, it keeps saying the certification has run out (or something like that, sorry technophobe speaking!). I don't know if it's because I'm in the UK. I've briefly tried to find it in the UK but it's not available on UK Amazon. Amazon.com postage tends to be a bit expensive, so I'm going to keep searching for a bit.

Emma