Wow! This is a tough and effective lower body workout. And super intense! This worked me hard. According to my Fitbit I was in my peak heart rate nearly 1/3 of this strength workout. And it felt like it. I was drenched in sweat by the end. Now, I did lift heavier than Cathe on a lot of the exercises and had my step higher on some, too–but I still think you will be challenged if you followed the workout just as it is presented.
It’s a pretty simple concept along the lines of her Total Body Trisets and Mesocycle 2 of STS. You do a circuit of 3 exercises (so a “triset”) and repeat the triset 3 times. She does not give you much recovery either. You are moving, moving, moving. I do think that the next time I do this workout (and I will definitely be returning to this one) I will keep my step at 10 inches for Triset 2.
Another masterpiece from Cathe/Cathe Live!
**1/07/17 Update: I have returned to this workout several times since I first did it. It is one of my favorite lower body workouts. This morning I really kicked this workout up a notch and I am sharing for anyone who is interested. For my birthday I got a 12 pound weighted vest (the same one Cathe uses in STS Squat Rack Legs). This morning I did this workout wearing the weighted vest plus I increased my weights (so almost every exercise I am lifting heavier than what I note I am using below) plus on Triset 2 I kept my step at 10 inches and on Triset 3 I raised it to 12 inches. The result? Brutal. This is the first strength workout that I have done (and that includes contrast training workouts like Ripped w/ HIITs lower body workouts and STS Plyo Legs workouts) in which I have been in my peak heart rate almost the entire workout. For this workout my Fitbit just showed a solid red streak for 3/4s of the workout (red means you are in your peak heart rate zone). Now, you may not want to push yourself that hard and I don’t always want to, but sometimes I do want to work that hard and in a low impact way. Well–this workout fits that mold perfectly if you do the little extras to increase intensity.**
Triset Legs is 47 minutes long; 6 minute warm up and 3 minute stretch. Equipment needed: step at 10 inches, dumbbells (Cathe has 10, 12 and 15 pound dumbbells) and barbell (Cathe uses the barbell at 25 and 45 pounds). It aired live on 9/17/15 and here is the video clip.
Triset 1 (repeated 3x total):
- Plie squats; singles and low ends (Cathe used 25# BB, I used 40# BB))
- 16 elevated lunges (one foot on step behind you) (one 15# DB)
- 16 uneven squats off side of step (one 15# DB)
Triset 2 (repeated 3x total) (lower step height to 8 inches) (she does the second triset out of sequence–deadlifts are done last):
- Alternating rear lunges off step; changes to pulses but all of the pulses are done on one leg before changing (Cathe used one 15# DB first set, 10# DBs 2nd set, 12# DBs 3rd set; I used two 15# DBs for all 3 sets)
- 12 Wide stance deadlift (Cathe used 45# BB; I used 70# BB)
- Cross-back lunges off step, 16 reps (one 15# DB)
Triset 3 (repeated 3x) (return step to 10 inches; I raised my step to 12 inches):
- Step up onto step and when you come down, you lower into lunge; 16 reps (one 15# DB first set, 10# DBs 2nd set, 12# DBs 3rd set; I used two 15# DBs for all 3 sets)
- Squats, 16 reps the first 2 sets, 24 reps the final set (Cathe used 15# DBs, I used 25# DBs)
- 12 Narrow Stiff Leg deadlifts (Cathe used 45# BB; I used 70# BB)
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