I LOVE Caroline Girvan

[hdw]

Originally Posted by laurawd

Could someone please compare Caroline G's intensity to that of, say, Cathe's weight workouts?

It's harder. You can even see her struggling to finish her set, and she uses HEAVY weights. That pushes me to use very heavy weight (for me). Even if I have to take a break, I feel it's OK. With Cathe, I refuse to take a break and try to keep up with her so I tend to pick lighter weights.

I guess she pushes you harder.

[IceQueen07]

Originally Posted by hdw

It's harder. You can even see her struggling to finish her set, and she uses HEAVY weights. That pushes me to use very heavy weight (for me). Even if I have to take a break, I feel it's OK. With Cathe, I refuse to take a break and try to keep up with her so I tend to pick lighter weights.

I guess she pushes you harder.

I very much agree with this.

[hdw]

Originally Posted by dianestjohn

Agree. Caroline's workouts are shorter so the warm-ups are not as long as Cathe (or does she maybe skip the warmups? I get her workouts confused with those of Heather Robertson). Also, the format of her workouts (40 seconds of work and 20 seconds of rest, relentlessly) makes them intense. And there are often horizontal moves - plank to pushup to standing or burpees or similar) which I personally find much more challenging than Cathe's workouts which are mostly vertical.

This does not sound like Caroline. Caroline does not have warmups. She created warmup separately but I usually use Cathe warmup. I feel Cathe has the best warm up.

Caroline workouts are longer. Her full body is usually 65 mins but she labeled it 1 hour. And that does not include warm up. She varies her timing on each workout -- 40:20, 45:15, 45:45:30, etc. The last number is your rest time. She also does split workouts which means it takes you 2-3 days to complete full body. She always starts her week with HiiT workout on Sunday.

[bex]

Originally Posted by hdw

Even if I have to take a break, I feel it's OK. With Cathe, I refuse to take a break and try to keep up with her so I tend to pick lighter weights.

This has been exactly my experience. I've tried to get into Cathe for years, but since I mostly cycle around upper-intermediate, I always felt inadequate to take on her advanced workouts.

Somehow Caroline's workouts feel more welcoming for me to do whatever I can. The result has been that I'm getting much stronger.

I'm thinking that when I finish EPIC I might do some more Cathe workouts with my new self-accepting attitude and see what happens.

[dianestjohn]

Originally Posted by hdw

This does not sound like Caroline. Caroline does not have warmups. She created warmup separately but I usually use Cathe warmup. I feel Cathe has the best warm up.

Caroline workouts are longer. Her full body is usually 65 mins but she labeled it 1 hour. And that does not include warm up. She varies her timing on each workout -- 40:20, 45:15, 45:45:30, etc. The last number is your rest time. She also does split workouts which means it takes you 2-3 days to complete full body. She always starts her week with HiiT workout on Sunday.

Yes, you’re right - she doesn’t do warmups which I find annoying. But many of her YouTube workouts are around 30 minutes. I don’t do splits so I only do her full body workouts, HIIT workouts or her other random workouts - I’m not following the Epic rotation.

[laurawd]

Originally Posted by hdw

This does not sound like Caroline. Caroline does not have warmups. She created warmup separately but I usually use Cathe warmup. I feel Cathe has the best warm up.

Caroline workouts are longer. Her full body is usually 65 mins but she labeled it 1 hour. And that does not include warm up. She varies her timing on each workout -- 40:20, 45:15, 45:45:30, etc. The last number is your rest time. She also does split workouts which means it takes you 2-3 days to complete full body. She always starts her week with HiiT workout on Sunday.

Thanks! Very helpful.

[laurawd]

Originally Posted by IceQueen07

I think Carolyn is harder , at least for me. But I enjoy it so much more.

Thanks. Harder b/c of heavier? I lift heavier than what Cathe uses in videos (except rear belts, for some reason!), so I am curious about Caroline... I guess I will have to try.

[Kathy G]

Originally Posted by laurawd

Thanks. Harder b/c of heavier? I lift heavier than what Cathe uses in videos (except rear belts, for some reason!), so I am curious about Caroline... I guess I will have to try.

Her light weights are 6 kilograms (13.2 lbs. each) and her heavies are 20 kilograms (44 lbs. each), I think.

[lreidgreen]

Originally Posted by bex

Completely agree - Caroline is my new best friend!

I discovered her in November thanks to the discussion here, and she's helping me get into the best shape of my life.

I did the beginner EPIC 3x and now I'm on Day 15 of EPIC 1. I'm following the workouts in order but mixing in other workouts when I feel like I need a change, so it might take me 4-5 months in total.

You said you did Beginner EPIC 3X- did you do the workouts consecutively or did you take days off in between? It looks like it is Lower, Upper, Core, Total Body then HIIT so you could do them back to back I guess. Just wondering how you did it.

[bex]

Originally Posted by lreidgreen

You said you did Beginner EPIC 3X- did you do the workouts consecutively or did you take days off in between? It looks like it is Lower, Upper, Core, Total Body then HIIT so you could do them back to back I guess. Just wondering how you did it.

I take days off or mix in other workouts as I feel like it. This was my schedule for November:
Nov 3 - Bike ride (1 hour total), 15 Min Full Body KB Workout, Beginner EPIC Series Day 2 Upper Body.
4 - Bike ride (1 hour 40 mins total).
5 - Bike ride (1 hour total). Caroline Girvan's 15 Min Lower Body KB Workout, Beginner EPIC Series Day 3 Abs & Core.
6 - Travis Eliot Yoga Evolution.
7 - Bike ride (40 mins total). Caroline Girvan's Beginner EPIC Series Day 4 Dumbbell Full Body, Iron Core KB Express.
8 - Rest.
9 - Full Body Flow (Audible yoga practice).
10 - Bike ride (45 mins total.
11 - Bike ride (1 hour total).
12 - Bike ride (1 hour total). Caroline Girvan's Beginner EPIC Series Day 5 HIIT, Skogg Roots Level 1.
...etc...

FYI The bike rides are throughout my day, as part of my commute. The other workouts are one session.

Now that I'm doing EPIC 1, I generally get in 3-4 Caroline's workouts per week, plus bike rides and/or yoga.