P90X DVD Workout Base Kit, Home Gym Bodyweight Exercise Program, No Workout Equipment Needed, Nutrition Guide Included, 12 Fitness DVDs

7 reviews for P90X DVD Workout Base Kit, Home Gym Bodyweight Exercise Program, No Workout Equipment Needed, Nutrition Guide Included, 12 Fitness DVDs

1. 

   Jeffrey S. Petkun – September 9, 2024

   p90x gets you into shape and gives results
   I’m in week 6 of the p90x cycle and so far am very happy with the product and with the results that I’ve seen. I’m somebody who was already in shape and decided to replace my previous gym routine with p90x. I have a tall and skinny build (about 6’1, 175 lbs), and have been able to notice budding ab muscles along with some improvements in my chest and legs. The workouts are hard, and the first time through each of them can be very frustrating, but if you stick with it you’ll find that each time you do a routine, you get better at it. I don’t follow the diet plan, but I have been eating protein bars and have cut down on snack food since I began the program. Here is my breakdown of each routine.1) Chest and back: You do this routine on day 1 of weeks 1,2,3,9,11, and it is almost all pull-ups and push-ups. When I began p90x, I could do about 1 to 2 pull-ups, and now I can do about 6 to 7 at a time, depending on the type (you use different grips for each exercise). There are about 5 types of push-ups and pull-ups which you alternate between, and then the whole routine is repeated. This is definitely one of the harder routines, and at the end you can barely lift your arms. You need a pull-up bar for this routine. I also use push-up bars which helps my wrists and improves my form.2) Plyometrics: You do this routine on day 2 of weeks 1,2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,12. This is the hardest of all of the routines, as you are constantly jumping and squatting. There are 5 sets of exercises which each have three 30 second exercises followed by one 60 second (easier) exercise. There is one additional sports set at the end which is easier than the other five. This is definitely the most draining workout, and the first time through, I had to pause it multiple times. Now, I can do it with almost no pauses, but it completely wipes me out by the end. If you have hard floors like I do, I recommend a workout mat. Mine slides around a bit, so I have to pin it under the couch in my apartment.3) Arms and shoulders: You do this routine on day 3 of weeks 1,2,3,9,11. This routine is mostly focused around lifting either weights or using resistance bands. There is always one person in the video using bands, so you can use either and not worry about not knowing what to do. I use resistance bands since they are less expensive. During this routine, you do multiple sets of lifting exercises: biceps, followed by shoulders, followed by triceps. While it is less grueling than days 1 and 2, it still makes your arms very tired by the end.4) Yoga: You do this routine on day 4 of weeks 1,2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,12, and on days 1 and 6 of weeks 4,8,13. This workout is longer than any of the other workouts (about 90 minutes). The first half of the workout is very intense and is mostly different “warrior” poses. Most of these poses involve being in a lunge stance for a few minutes at a time and really make you balance while working leg muscles. This part of the routine is as hard as anything else you do in p90x. The second half of the routine is much easier and you mostly do different balance postures and stretches. I’ve been splitting this workout up and doing the second half after work, which I prefer doing so that I don’t have to wake up as early. Overall, this workout (especially the first half) is very difficult, and it takes work to master each pose. You need a yoga mat for this one.5) Legs and back: You do this routine on day 5 of weeks 1,2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,12. It consists of sets of 2 leg exercises (squats or lunges) followed by one round of pull-ups. The wall squats and one legged wall squats are the most difficult exercises and really make your legs burn. Overall, it is not as intense on your legs as the plyometrics day, but it is still very difficult. The people in the video hold weights during most of the leg exercises, but I don’t own them, so I just do the exercises without them which is hard enough. The pull-ups are similar to the ones from chest and back.6) Kenpo: You do this routine on day 6 of weeks 1,2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,12 and day 3 of weeks 4,8,13. This routine is a bit easier than the others, but still gives you a good workout. You throw a lot of kicks and punches during a short period of time, without a lot of breaks. It is good cardio and is the most fun routine to do.7) Stretching: You do this routine on day 7 of every week, and also on day 4 of weeks 4,8,13. During this routine you stretch out muscles of each part of the body. Most of these exercises are from the warmups of other routines or are from the second half of the yoga routine. It’s important to give your body a rest and stretching can make you better at the other routines. I try to do it each week and have only skipped it once so far. I find this routine very relaxing. This is also a good day to do the Cardio X routine as well since it is not very difficult, and I don’t feel like I get enough cardio with only two days each week devoted to it.8) Core: You do this routine during days 2 and 5 of weeks 4,8,13. You do a hybrid of exercises which work different muscle groups. Some of the exercises work abs, while there are also push-up exercises for your chest, and others for your legs and back. While not as hard as some of the routines you do other weeks, this not an easy workout.9) Chest, triceps, shoulders: You do this routine during day 1 of weeks 5,6,7,10,12. This is one of the hardest routines of the program, and after you finish, you will barely be able to move your arms. The push-ups from this routine are much harder than the ones from other days, and some (such as one arm push-ups) are still too hard for me to do. The triceps and shoulder exercises are similar to the ones you do during the other weeks, but doing them on the same day as the push-ups makes them much more difficult.10) Biceps and back: You do this routine during day 3 of weeks 5,6,7,10,12. While this is not the hardest workout in the program, your arms will feel sore by the end, as you do a lot of bicep curls and pull-ups. It is slightly shorter than the other routines, which makes it go by quickly.11) Abs: You do this routine on days 1,3,5 of weeks 1,2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,12 at the end of the other routines each day. The ab workout is maybe the best workout of the package and gives the most visible results. It is 15 minutes long, and is hard work. The first few times through, I couldn’t get through the entire routine, and my abs hurt afterward, but I’ve improved since, and have noticed the most results from this workout.12) Cardio X: I did this workout a few times during the rest week (4,8,13). It starts out with some of the “warrior” yoga moves, followed by some kenpo, then some plyo, and finally some of the core exercises from other days. This workout isn’t to difficult and is a good supplement if you have some extra time to burn off additional calories, especially since you only do cardio twice a week usually.Overall, I’m very happy with the program. The dvd’s are good quality (although they aren’t wide-screen which is annoying since the black bars on the sides of the screen are becoming visible when I watch other things on TV). I also like that during each workout there is a status bar at the bottom of the screen which tells you how much longer the workout is as well as how long you have left in the current exercise (although the status bar has also burned into my screen a little bit). The casing that holds the DVDs is pretty bad, so you might want to put them in a jewel case instead so that they don’t get scratched up, as I’ve seen a few people complaining about this in the comments. Tony is a bit cheesy at times, but I don’t mind that. Some people complain that he talks too much between exercises, but he has to in order to give you enough time to rest between each exercise. The only thing which I find annoying is that he advertises the recovery drink during each routine. He’s pretty good at describing the exercises, but the first time through, you might want to watch how to do some of them. I was already going to a gym and running each day for a half an hour, so the time commitment isn’t too much worse for me than before and I don’t have to leave my apartment. It is definitely for people who are already in shape, so I recommend if you haven’t worked out in a while that you should probably ease into it with the cardio x, stretching, and kenpo routines before getting into the others. As I said above, I don’t do the diet plan, but I’ve made an effort to eat healthier foods and more protein, which I think is good enough. I also end up getting drinks with friends each week, so I try to make up for it by either running a little extra on those days or doing Cardio X in addition to my other routine. When I do go out, I also try to stay away from mixed drinks which contain a lot of sugar. A few times I’ve been away for a weekend and had to skip a day, but I made up for it by pushing everything back and then doing stretching on the same day as Kenpo to catch up. p90x is definitely a much more fun and more motivating way to work out, and if you work hard enough, you will get results.

2. 

   Jacopo – September 9, 2024

   The best home workout program for getting super-fit
   P90X is a 6/7 day “fitness” program combing strength training, cardio, and nutrition. It is intended to be used by people who are already moderately fit (or at the least, not completely sedentary and unfit) and want an “extreme” training program. I would definitely not recommend P90X for people who are medically obese or who have never done any real exercise before. It is of course better than nothing, but very overweight people will struggle with many of the exercises. The Beachbody web site has a fitness test that it recommends people take before starting the program. This will tell you whether you have the basic physical and cardiovascular strength to get the most out of the program. For those who might not be ready for P90X yet, I recommend starting with Power 90 In-Home Boot Camp. It is a good primer since many of the exercises from that program make their way over to P90X. The majority of the one-star reviews on this program are from people who made the mistake of purchasing bootleg copies of the DVDs, and are unsatisfied with the videos or the seller. I have seen the bootleg videos and want to say that, even though this program is expensive, it is well worth it to have the full high quality videos from Beachbody. You are going to be watching these for over an hour a day. Trust me when I say that it makes a huge difference to have good professional videos that allow you to change the audio settings, give you audio cues for the exercises, and allow you to navigate easily through the workouts. If you buy from a third party, make sure it is a trusted seller with a lot of feedback. Trying to do this program with poor videos and no documentation will leave you very confused and frustrated.HOW IT WORKSP90X is basically a circuit training program that is cardio-heavy. You will be doing routines that involve quick repetitions with very little break in between (30-60 seconds max). If you are looking to gain a significant amount of muscle, this program is probably not for you and you should consider something like Mark Rippeteau’s Starting Strength. You will get stronger and develop muscles, but not as much as possible with many other programs. The main goal is to get you “fit” and looking good. The way they do this is through calorie restriction. Whereas most muscle-building programs have you eating an enormous amount of calories (you have to fuel the muscle growth), P90X creates a calorie deficit to reduce your body fat and show off the muscles you do have. I would say an average of 6-12 pounds of muscle can be added through P90X, but anything above that is not typical. It’s just not possible to gain much more when you’re consuming the amount of calories recommended by the program.EQUIPMENTYou will need to invest some money in additional equipment to use this program. Expect to spend a minimum of $80 (for a barebones pull up bar, full set of resistance bands, and a yoga mat) up to $600 – $700 (for all the stuff below plus 3 months worth of supplements, protein bars, and drinks). Realistically I would say most people should budget $150 in addition to the cost of the program for accessories. The three main things you need are a yoga mat, a pull up bar, and either a set of dumbbells or resistance bands. Without these you can’t participate in 80% of the exercises.Pull Up Bar – General consensus is that the Iron Gym Total Upper Body Workout Bar – Extreme Edition is one of the better pull up bars. You need to be able to do wide-arm pull ups, and the Iron Gym is good for that. People seem to like it slightly better than the P90X Chin-Up Bar. I personally use the GoFit Chin-Up Bar. It mounts to my doorway and although it’s not specifically designed for wide-arms pull ups, you can do them easily enough. My house is not built for most door-mounted pull up bars so the Iron Gym wouldn’t work for me. The GoFit is also fairly unobtrusive so I just leave it up all the time.Weights/resistance – Each workout shows you how to do the moves using resistance bands. I’ve used them before for Beachbody’s Power 90 program. Although you do get a good workout, I did not like the bands because all of the bands I have ever owned (by several different companies, including Beachbody’s P90X Resistance Bands Workout Kit–3 bands: Light, Medium, Heavy), have broken. It is not fun to have a band snap you in the face while using it. I do like how you can use the bands for pull ups though (you wrap the band over the pull up bar, sit down, and pull toward you). This is nice if you can’t do a full pull up before starting the program. If you can, I recommend dumbbells, although this can get very expensive. Dumbbells cost about $1 per pound, and you will need several different types for the different exercises, especially as you get stronger. When I first started I was fine with a set of 10s, 15s, and 25s, but really could have gotten more out of the program with a greater range. The second time I did P90X I bought the Bowflex SelectTech 552 Dumbbells This made a huge difference. It is so convenient to be able to easily change the weights without having to bend down or line up a ton of weights on my floor and then put them all away once done. It also makes a big difference because I can make very small changes (15 pounds may be too light, and 20 pounds too heavy, so I can set the weights to 17.5 if I want). The bulky size of the SelectTechs do make them awkward with some of the P90X exercises. There are maybe 5-6 moves that are difficult to do because of the size of these dumbbells, and I actually switch to regular dumbbells for those. You can do every move in the P90X program with them, just not all the moves comfortably. Their convenience makes up for it though. Unless you are very strong to begin with, I do not recommend the Bowflex SelectTech 1090 Single Dumbbell for P90X beginners. It is just too bulky, and really is not needed unless you are super strong to begin with. There are not too many exercises where you will need to lift more than 55 pounds per arm, even if you do develop a lot of strength. And if you do, you can always just increase the reps. If you already own a complete set of dumbbells and have a weight rack to easily get to them, then that is the preferred option for this program.Yoga Mat – Apparently there’s a lot of opinions on yoga mats in the yoga community. Beachbody recommends the fairly expensive Manduka BlackMatPRO 71-Inch Yoga and Pilates Mat. If you’ve never done yoga before and you’re not sure how much you will like it or whether you’ll stick with P90X, I advise getting any yoga mat. I have the YogaAccessories 1/4″ Extra Thick Deluxe Yoga Mat which works fine. You’ll be using this 4 times a week so make sure you like it. Beachbody actually recommends the Manduka mat for plyometrics, and I plan to purchase it for that reason and see how it is. Given how much you are jumping during plyo, it makes sense to have some more shock absorption under your feet when you land. My mat does tend to bunch up some when doing Ab Ripper, which can be annoying and why I now want the more stable Manduka mat.OPTIONAL EQUIPMENT:Yoga block – Whether you’re very flexible, or not flexible at all, I recommend a yoga block like the Hugger Mugger Cork Yoga Block, which helped me out immensely the first time I did yoga, and helps a lot now that I’m more practiced since I can get a better stretch. In a pinch you could probably use a very thick book wrapped in a towel to accomplish the same thing.Push up bars – These allow you to get better range of motion and get a better work out. They are also easier on your wrist. Push ups tweak some people’s wrists when they do a lot of them, which is why these are good. If you have dumbbells you can use those almost as well (but not as conveniently or comfortable). I use the TKO Extreme Training Push -up Bars They are plastic but very sturdy and work amazingly well. P90X does make their own brand called “Power Stands,” which are pretty much the same except they have a bit of an angle to them on one side, which may be more comfortable on your wrist for a few of the moves like decline push ups.Sports bottle – Of course any water bottle will work, but I really like the CamelBak BPA-Free Better Bottle with Bite Valve. It’s better than a regular bottle because the built-in straw means you don’t have to turn it upside down to drink from it. This is a minor thing but it makes my workouts more enjoyable.Heart monitor – I don’t use one too often, but I can see how it would be very useful for making sure you are working hard enough during plyometrics and kenpo. If I look at my heart rate monitor during kenpo and my rate isn’t high enough, I will pick up the pace. I don’t really recommend anyone purchase one just for this program until they get into it and decide they want one, as it really isn’t that necessary.Apparel/Shoes – I wear VIBRAM FIVEFINGERS SPRINT FOOTWEAR – MENS for everything but plyo and yoga. Yes, they are incredibly odd-looking, but they are great because they are very lightweight, which helps a lot during Ab Ripper and is less weight on me during pull ups and kicks. You can also do the majority of P90X barefoot. I don’t recommend these (or going barefoot) for plyo unless you have very strong feet. For Kenpo, Yoga, and Legs and Back, I recommend shorts with a very short inseam. You are doing so many lunges that longer basketball-type shorts get in the way.Computer – I recommend a computer simply because logging your P90X results and food intake will go a long way to keeping you motivated and sticking with the program. It is imperative that you use worksheets to log what you do during strength training, so you can improve on it the next week. There are so many exercises that you won’t be able to remember what weights you used and how many reps you did from previous weeks. The worksheets that come with the program are kind of bland, and you can find much better ones on the Internet. The most popular logging programs for Excel are XtremeFit and P90Xcel. I use the latter and it is awesome. I can track my progress so much easier with it, and it has excellent printable worksheets that are easier to use than anything else I’ve found. The Beachbody web site is also an invaluable tool and has an unbelievable amount of support on it for people doing the program. There are thousands of people doing P90X at any given time and their coaching program means there are always people willing to answer any questions you have about the program.NUTRITIONNutrition is key to this program. It is possible to achieve the results you want by not following a good diet, but it will be much more difficult. You can work on your abdominal muscles for three months straight and really improve, but if you don’t reduce your body fat down to about 10-14% (for men), you will never be able to see your abs because they are covered up by a layer of fat. Good nutrition also keeps you from bonking during the workouts, and during this program, you WILL need to have proper nutrition if you’re going to get through an hour of weightlifting and have the energy to then complete 15 minutes of ab ripper. P90X’s nutrition plan unfortunately has some serious flaws. During the first 30 days (phase 1), you have to consume a protein/carbs/fat ratio of 50/30/20. For most people, this will be incredibly difficult to do. If you’ve never tracked your diet before, it is highly likely you aren’t coming anywhere close to those ratios and they are probably reversed. You have to eat massive amounts of protein during the day to get these ratios. It is not hard to do once you understand your diet, but you will need to spend just as much work on your diet as you do the workouts. The only way I can do this is to count calories and keep a food log. I use a site called Fitday to log my foods, which shows me the ratios I need. During phase 1, I consume an average of 8 egg whites a day and 6 servings of protein powder a day. Yes, that is a lot. But that is one of the only ways to reach those ratios. Many people may be turned off by counting calories, which is why Beachbody came up with a Portion Plan. It uses color coded blocks to tell you how many portions of certain foods you can have, and by following this plan you are supposed to end up with the correct ratios. The only problem is it doesn’t work. It is absolutely impossible to reach their ratios on the portion plan. If you are interested in the math, here is my example:The program calls for me to get 2400 calories during phase 1 (Level II). At 50% protein, that’s 1200 calories from protein, 720 from carbs, and 480 from fat. The Portion Plan gives you 100 calories per serving and requires 7 servings of proteins a day. Let’s look at the food that gives you the most protein on their plan: egg whites. 6 large egg whites = 21.5 grams of protein x 4 calories per gram = 86 calories of protein per serving. Let’s take it a step further and say I get all 7 portions of my protein that day from egg whites. That equals 602 calories, leaving me to try to find an additional 598 calories of protein for the day from my portions of carbs and fat. Even if you choose your servings of carbs and fat from foods on their plan that are also high in protein (like baked beans for carbs and avocado for fat), there is just no way to end up with their ratios. You need closer to 12 servings of protein a day. I don’t know how they let this portion plan end up in the final program but it contradicts their requirements. My suggestions is that people who are serious about results track their food for a month until they know how to eat, and everyone else just eat tons of protein a day for the first 30 days.Aside from that, their ratios in the program do make a lot of sense. Here are the three phases:Phase I (day 1 – 30) – Fat Shredder Phase – 50/30/20 (protein/carbs/fat) The first month is designed to add muscle, so it calls for lots of protein. Although they call it the “fat shredder” phase, unless you are very overweight, you will more than likely lose a higher percentage of fat after the first month, once you have put on a lot of muscle during this phase. They really should have renamed this phase. Since muscle weighs more than fat, people should not be discouraged if they see zero weight loss the first entire month. I highly suggest measuring your results with a tape measurer or a body fat calculator like the Omron HBF-306C Fat Loss Monitor rather than the scale. It is actually best not to even step on a scale the first month. During this phase I recommend foods with very high levels of protein and low levels of fat and carbs, like egg whites, turkey breast, and some protein powders. Don’t just get any protein powder, look for one that has significantly more protein than carbs. A very good protein powder during this phase is Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard 100% Whey, Double Rich Chocolate, 5.15-Pound Tub (24g protein, 3g carbs, 1 g fat). Some powders have too many carbs in them, which was my mistake the first time I did this program. Be careful with protein bars as well, which also contain lots of carbs. No more than 1-2 a day. Protein powder is almost always better than a bar during this phase. Look at the nutrition info for chicken breast. You can get chicken breast that has a decent amount of fat in it, or you can actually buy low fat chicken breast that has only a couple grams of fat. Bottom line is that during this phase, you should be thinking “PROTEIN PROTEIN PROTEIN.”Phase II – (days 31-60) – Energy Booster Phase – (40/40/20) – Since you are increasing your carbs here, you should have more energy to complete the workouts. If you have been dogging it the first 30 days, now is the time to step it up. Increase the intensity of your workouts, especially the cardio ones. You should start to see a decrease in body fat percentage here if you haven’t already. If you decide to do the doubles program, I would suggest increasing the carbs a bit to handle the second workout.Phase III (days 61-90) – Endurance Maximizer – (20/60/20) – By now your body is used to the program, and all the extra carbs should mean better workouts. Now you can switch your protein powder to something like BSN Syntha-6 Ultra-Premium Sustained Release Protein Powder, Chocolate Milkshake, 2.91-Pound Jar which has a lot more carbs, or eat protein bars instead.THE WORKOUTSI wont’ spend too much time discussing them since so many others have, but below is some general info that I have observed. You are going to need at least 1 hour a day for P90X, 6 days a week. 1.5 hours is more likely when you factor in setup, breaks, and ab ripper. The workouts are very well done, and with the exception of a few faults I’ve noticed, I can’t find anything too wrong with them. The audio options are great and let you select music and voice, voice only, and alerts only. There is a time graph at the bottom showing your progress and how much you have left to go, and a time indicator for each individual exercise. The host, Tony Horton, is a great host. He is humorous and lighthearted, but not annoying. The rest of the staff in the videos do not speak much so they don’t get on my nerves either and are all pretty likable. Even though I’ve done these same workouts dozens of times and can recite them verbatim, I don’t find them particularly monotonous or get bored with them. Nothing is worse than a workout video with a host who is too cheerful and annoying. Tony has a lot of energy, but he comes across as a normal guy; frequently making jokes about being tired or commenting humorously on something one of the staff is doing. He understands exactly what the average viewer is thinking and responds to it. He tells you how to modify the exercises if you’re getting tired, shows you common mistakes that the home viewer is likely to make, and gives you very helpful tips on how to improve your form. It’s almost like he is personally watching me do the exercises. The first time I did it, I would not understand a routine or be puzzled about my form, and then I would hear Tony’s voice telling me how to improve it or giving me a useful tip that made a huge difference in the exercise. I could easily go have a beer with this guy (light beer of course).1. Chest/Back – 52:00 – Almost entirely push ups and pull ups.2. Plyometrics – 60:00 – This is the most awful (in a good way) and difficult workout I’ve ever done. Keep a bucket nearby because it is highly possible you will throw up the first time you do it. Each exercise is about 30 seconds long, but you are jumping around for a solid 50 minutes. This is basically a HIIT workout. Even when I did my second round of P90X, it took me 4 weeks before I was fit enough to get through this entire video, and that included taking extra breaks during every segment. This workout will not only get your cardiovascular fitness in amazing shape, but also improve muscle elasticity to make you jump higher, run faster, throw farther, and hit harder. I STRONGLY advise people to listen to Tony’s tip of the day when he says to “land like a cat.” If you don’t land softly, all that stress and weight will get you injured. I was laid up with a stress fracture for 4 months, most likely from doing this barefoot the first time and landing too hard on my feet. One problem I have with P90X is that I don’t think they stress safety considerations for plyo enough. If you are significantly overweight (I would say a BMI of 27 or higher), you should NOT do this workout, or you should change the intensity so you land very softly. Do not do plyometrics on a hard surface or bare floor. Use a carpeted surface or a plyometrics mat (the Manduka mat I mentioned above is great). If this workout is too much for you or if you aren’t really concerned with getting the athletic benefits from it (ie, you want to lose weight rather than become more athletic), you have the option of skipping it and doing the bonus cardio video that comes with P90X. If you’re a runner, you can substitute a run on this day and the kenpo day.3. Shoulders/Arms – 60:00 – Designed in a series of three exercises per round, working your shoulders, biceps, then triceps. I recommend everyone make sure they have a small weighted dumbbell set like 5 or 10 pounds for their triceps. This is my favorite workout because it is so well structured,4. Yoga X – 1:34:00 – If you’ve never done Yoga before, this will kill you the first few times, and is one of the toughest workouts in the series (behind plyo). It takes tremendous core strength and balance to get through some of the routines. I always thought yoga looked ridiculous but it has given me so much better flexibility and strength, that I can’t imagine not doing it anymore. I couldn’t do the crane move at all the first time I did this. Within 4 weeks I could hold it the entire 60 seconds. It is scheduled perfectly in the week so that it cures a lot of the pain and soreness from the previous 4 days of working out. If you are an advanced yoga practitioner, you may find this video a little too basic for you.5. Legs and Back – 60:00 – This is a fairly tough workout. When I was on the track and saw someone doing lunges, I always thought they looked ridiculous and wondered what it accomplished. This workout is filled with lunges and they will work the heck out of your legs. If you have never done lunges before, try doing about 30 deep lunges or squats in a row and you will have a feel for how they can build muscle. The back portion is all pull ups.6. Kenpo X – 60:00 – This is the weakest workout in the whole program. It is a very fun workout, but it’s just not intense enough. It’s all kicking and punching. I constantly find my heart rate dropping too much during the punches and blocking. I augment this workout by moving my feet around a lot during the punches and blocks to keep my heart rate up. During the end of it when Tony is doing some of the blocks and elbow series, I will just imagine I am fighting dozens of guys in a karate movie and shadow fight wildly, moving all over the room for the entire time. I am not one of these people that looks for extra intensity during workouts but a decent portion of this program is just too slow to really burn calories. I would advise people who don’t feel think Kenpo X is enough, to substitute it with a 1 hour run, or just use the Kenpo Cardio video from P90X Plus by Beachbody.7. Stretch X – 60:00 – You can skip this and take a rest day instead, but this video is great for increasing flexibility and reducing soreness from the previous workouts. At 1 hour long, it is no joke, but you’re also not going to be exhausted afterwords and you’ll end up burning a couple hundred calories during it.8. Core Synergistics – This workout is started during week 4, what is teasingly named a “rest week.” This is an extremely tough workout designed to utilize all the muscles in your core. I hate this workout while doing it, but like a lot of people, find it is a really fun one.9. Chest, Shoulders & Triceps (Phase II) – 58:00 – Things are changed up here somewhat to work different muscle combinations. This is one of my least favorite workouts. I do not feel it is nearly as effective as either Chest and Back or the Shoulders workout from Phase 1. Instead of a lot of “regular” push ups, you do a lot of crazy things like one arm push ups, clapping and plyo push ups (where you get completely airborne), and balance push ups. The workouts are much more interesting, but also much more difficult. I can do 70 regular push ups by phase 2, but still can’t do a single one arm push up. I know that balance push ups work my core more, but I still don’t feel like they’re as effective at building up my chest as crushing out 30 regular military push ups. Form is pretty much everything here.10. Back & Biceps (Phase II) – 56:00 – It’s nice to have a change in the routines during this phase.11. Cardio X – This is just an optional workout designed for people who are on the “lean” program, meaning they are more concerned with losing fat than gaining muscle, so they do extra cardio. Most of the routines are just designed to make you sweat, and a lot of them are the same routines from Plyometrics. As I mentioned, you can also use this in place of plyo if that turns out to be too much. It’s a nice little bonus.12. Ab Ripper – 16:00 – This is done three times a week, and follows the strength training. It focuses more on your core than other ab workout videos. If you think about skipping this or dogging it during the workout, you will pay dearly during Core Synergistics in week 4. I highly recommend those that workout in the mornings do Ab Ripper later in the evening. I found that I was too wiped out when trying to do it immediately after the strength training videos. My only complaint is that they should have included a separate disc for ab ripper, or at least included a title selection on the discs it is on so you can skip the strength training workout before it if you’re doing it later in the day. Otherwise you have to fast forward through the entire strength training workout to reach it.GENERAL TIPS/OBSERVATIONSDo not weigh yourself every day, and do not get discouraged if you fail to lose weight, or even gain weight. During Phase I your goal is to increase muscle. It is actually not uncommon to gain weight since you’re putting on muscle. Looking at a scale every day may just discourage you. The first time I did P90X the scale said I lost a measly 7 pounds my first month, but my body changed drastically. I dropped down 2 inches off my waist and put on a lot more muscle. I check my weight and body fat percentage every two weeks, and my measurements every 4. Use your measurements and body fat, along with how well your clothes fit to measure progress, not weight. I have found that rapid weight loss usually occurs with many people between 3-4 weeks after starting the program. Make sure to take before pictures, then take pictures again at day 30 and compare them. If you don’t see a difference you are doing something wrong. This sounds like a cliche, but I had MANY compliments only halfway through the program. As ridiculous as it sounds, I actually had girls walk up to me, feel my arms, and ask me if I had been working out. This program will transform your body.There are two things that will determine success with this program: intensity and nutrition. You can “dog it” and halfheartedly go through the workouts and write down that you have completed each one, but if you do not bring intensity to the program, you will not get nearly as much out of it. You must be mentally prepared for P90X and push yourself past your mental limits. This means pumping out two more push ups when your body is telling you you are done (body always quits before mind). It is extremely easy to just go through the motions on ab ripper and complete it, which is what I did the first several weeks. When I decided to concentrate on form and really work on feeling a burn during each exercise, I got so much more out of it. I cannot stress this enough. After a few weeks on the program when you think you know how to do everything, watch the crew do the entire rep before doing it yourself, and see if you can improve your form. I drastically improved my form the second round I did P90X, and found a big difference in the way I was doing the exercises. For instance, I started going much lower in my squats during Groucho Walk (yes that is an actual exercises). I also dropped down much lower in my form during Warrior 1 in Yoga, and realized that an extra 4 inches makes a BIG difference and a much better workout. The second area for success is nutrition. You must make sure you consume enough calories every day and get in enough protein. Many people fail with this aspect. Diet is more important to body image than exercise and you must cut your fat, sugar, and salt intake if you want to see your abs. I know so many people that do this program and don’t follow the diet guidelines at all, and then don’t understand why they don’t get the results they want. On the other hand, if you are super intense in the workouts, you can get away with a poorer diet.Overall, this is one of the best and most efficient workouts for people who want to get super-fit in a relatively short amount of time and are willing to work hard to get it. You need drive and self-control to really get the most from this program, but if you put some effort in, you will be amazed at the results.EDIT 10/5/10: 3 rounds of P90X later, I have learned a few things and made some mistakes, and the best advice I can give anyone doing the program, is to 1) lower the number of reps closer to 7-10 like Tony does and use heavier weights. This goes for men and women. The last 3 reps of each exercise really do have to be super tough. It’s a shame I didn’t figure this out for so long. You should really be struggling on that last rep and if you can just barely get it up, great. If you can pump out ten reps without feeling too bad, then keep doing reps until you can’t do anymore, and on the next set, increase your weight. 2) Don’t lift the weight too fast. There are a couple times where Tony tells you “this should be a slow controlled exercise.” He should say that for everything, and I think he goes a little too fast on some of them. Slower movements will provide much better gains. A 3-1-3 tempo is great (a 3 second positive, a 1 second isometric squeeze in the contracted position, and then a 3 second negative to bring the weight down). You may have to decrease the amount of weight you’re using by going slower, but this ensures you are developing the muscles more and not cheating by throwing your body weight into it.EDIT 1/18/11: I know this review is insanely long, but I wanted to offer some more advice. Exactly one year later and I am feeling something in my back that I have never felt in the three rounds I have done of this program – soreness. That’s because I did Chest and Back yesterday, and really focuses on working my back muscles. It sounds dumb, but I actually envisioned my back muscles working and moving while I was doing the exercise. When I did back flys, I pulled all the way back with the weights and tried to make my shoulder blades touch. When I did pullups, I dropped ALL the way down so my arms were hanging, and focuses on working my back muscles to pull myself up, rather than using my arms. When I did lawnmowers, I kept my arm tightly tucked to my chest to ensure I was using my back and not my shoulder. The difference I feel today is huge in comparison to what I was doing, and I wish I hadn’t wasted all that time doing back exercises with poor form. When Bobby is doing back flys incorrectly and Tony corrects him so he doesn’t use his shoulders, it is a perfect example of how easy it is to minimize your results by using poor form. I know I said intensity and diet were the two main things you should focus on while doing this workout for success, but a year later, I think I should add a third – proper form.

3. 

   Fred c. – September 9, 2024

   Produit conforme. Le top. Très bien emballé.

4. 

   Daniel Engel – September 9, 2024

   Das ist eine Rezension von und für den Durchschnittsmenschen.Soll nicht heißen, dass man das Program auch beinhart durchziehen kann.Mir war es ehrlich gesagt zu anstrengend 6x bis 7x die Woche zu trainieren, wenn man bedenkt, dass mit Vorbereitung (gedanklich), Ausschwitzen, Duschen, locker 2 bis 2,5 Stunden draufgehen.Habe mir so schon bei mehreren Anläufen relativ rasch die Lust und Motivation genommen und bin gar nicht mehr ins Fitnessstudio gegangen.Denke ihr wisst wovon ich spreche :)Kurz zu meinem Gewohnheiten:Bin oft faul, sitze lieber vor der Glotze oder der Konsole.Kaffee mit Kuchen ist ein Muss :)Ein typischer Durchschnittsmensch der auch mal gerne alle Viere von sich streckt.Ihr seht der Ernährungsplan hat mich bisher noch nicht wirklich interessiert.Aber zurück zu P90X.Habe jedes Training getestet (ausser den Ab Ripper (Bauchmuskeltraining), was man auch sieht, der Bauch wird nicht kleiner, könnte auch am Kuchen liegen).Jede Einheit lässt mich an meine Grenzen stoßen, einfach toll.Ständig pusht man sich, schwitzt, schreit, drückt (nicht) auf Pause, hält durch und ist extrem selbstzufrieden sofern man durchhält.(Bin aber auch das eine oder andere mal nach Halbzeit flach gelegen).Es wird soviel Abwechslung geboten, kann mir wirklich nicht mehr vorstellen in einem Fitnessstudio zu unterschreiben.Bin jetzt seit 4 Monaten dabei und es macht immer noch Spaß, auch wenn ich es gemählicher angehen lasse sehe ich definitiv Erfolge.Optischer Natur und auch was die Kraft und Ausdauer angeht.Ich empfehle eine Klimmzugstange (Alternativen für Anfänger werden im laufenden Program angeboten), 2 Hanteln mit verschiedenen Gewichtscheiben, gutes Schuhwerk (Bei Plyometrics (Beintraining) z.B. muss man öfters durch die Gegend hüpfen, aber wie fast bei jeder Übung bietet Tony Horton eine Anfänger Variante für Menschen an, die vielleicht nicht springen können oder möchten.)Eine Yoga Matte und eventuell Yoga Blöcke (besonders hilfreich, sollte man nicht gut gedehnt sein (ich persönlich kann meine Zehen nicht berühren, da helfen besagte Yoga Blöcke aus, sie sind aber kein Muss, besitze sie auch nicht und strecke stattdessen meine Hand aus um so mit den Fingerspitzen den Boden zu berühren).Liegestützgriffe (für mich mittlerweile ein Muss, da man so noch ein wenig mehr Weg bei der Bewegung zur Verfügung hat).Bänder müssen nicht wirklich sein, man kann sie z.B. statt Klimmzügen einsetzen, empfehle aber Klimmzüge zu machen, weil es einfach eine der besten Übungen für den Rücken und den Körper im allgemeinen ist, (Stichwort Körperspannung), (auch wenn es Anfangs sehr hart ist auch nur 2 oder 3 zu schaffen, dran bleiben lohnt sich :)).Auch hier werden Tipps verraten die Klimmzüge für Anfänger erleichtern.Für alle anderen Übungen kann man die Hanteln in die Hand nehmen oder rein mit dem Körpergewicht arbeiten.Man kann das Program wirklich sehr schön auf sich selbst abstimmen, sollte aber stets an seine Grenzen gehen und ehrlich zu sich selbst sein.(Kennt ihr die Zeitungsleser im Fitnessstudio?)Das Program eignet sich sowohl für Damen als auch für Herren.Je nach Fitnesslevel und Trainingsziel, aber das muss jeder für sich selbst entscheiden.Wie schon erwähnt, es werden stets verschiedene Schwierigkeitsgrade durch die 3 Menschen angeboten die neben Tony Horton durch das Program führen.Der angesprochene Tony Horton ist ein sehr sympatischer Trainer der wirklich Ahnung von seinem Geschäft hat (schon sehr viele Jahre dabei).Durch seinen Humor (er ist nebenbei stand up comedian) lockert er das Training angenehm auf.Manche Sprüche gehen einem aber nach dem 20x dennoch auf den Wecker, hier sind die Einstellungsmöglichkeiten zu Begin der DVD hilfreich. (ohne Musik, ohne Kommentar).Hab ihn bisher immer quatschen lassen, da seine Sprüche das Training wie gesagt einwenig auflockern und alles was dieses harte Training erleichtert ist hilfreich, glaubt mir :)Ihr seht also, mir macht das Training sehr viel Spaß.Kann P90X nur weiterempfehlen, so fit und gesund habe ich mich schon lange nicht mehr gefühlt.Zu den anderen Produkten von Beachbody kann ich wenig sagen, bisher reicht mir “Teil 1” von P90X alle Mal, ein super Gesamtpaket.PS: Männer macht Yoga, es lohnt sich und ihr werdet schwitzen wie noch nie in eurem Leben.

5. 

   luca – September 9, 2024

   extreme home fitness! se vuoi metterti in forma in 90 giorni questo è il prodotto che fa per te. Facile da seguire e comodo. corredato da business plan per i miglioramenti e dieta da seguire. Risultato garantito 100%, bring it!

6. 

   JohnnyK – September 9, 2024

   In february 2010 I weighed 20 stone.I decided enough was enough and ordered Insanity, a product from Beachbody a bit like p90x only more focused on cardio, bodyweight exercises and interval training. I found Insanity very challenging indeed. The workouts are deadly and it was 4 months before I could even attempt one of the Max Insanity workouts and 8 months before I could hit one of the routines with full intensity and survive. let me say again, insanity is hard as hell!But I lost 3 and 1/2 stone and turned my fitness right around. I went from being a guy who used to eat all the crap of the day and who used to joke about going to the gym and was referred to as ‘the athelete’ in work in cruel jest to a guy who was accepted by the gym-goers as ‘one of there own’ even though I never set foot in the gym! People still, 10 months later, comment on how much weight I lost.But this is a P90x review… 10 months ago I was seriously overweight and unfit. I could not have handled a P90x workout 10 months ago. P90x is the real deal as far as getting ripped and pumped is concerned. It has a much more muscular/ripping/bulking out aspect to it than insanity, (however you will NOT turn into a stumpy excessively chunked body builder on this). I was very close to buying a budget copy of P90x of any retailer who could give me it for less than the asking price of £106. However I took the hit and bought it off Amazon and got a genuine copy. I am very glad I did. When I bought insanity I got it for around £45 from some random retailer. The manuals were not complete and were full of typos, and most importantly all the bonus disks were faulty and would not play properly. The genuine copy you get from here is worth EVERY PENNY. it will work, it has all the content and if its faulty you can return it!! When you consider your grocery shop for a week could hit £100, and you put £70 of fuel in your car this week, it is not much to ask for £100 for P90x which (if you do as it says) will turn your life around! It includes all the workouts, online motivation and diet plans that you need to succeed.Compared to insanity, the diet plan is better. it contains much more info and several options to suit you, including a ‘portion plan option’ for people like me who just wanna grab some food and go – a cup of veg, a half cup of chicken, couple ounces of cheese etc or a more complex ‘meal plan’ approach for folks who like to plan everything and eat exactly what the plan says.The workouts are intense and challenging. P90x is designed around getting maximum results using supplements. you can do P90x without supplements, but you will suffer more and get slightly less results. I did not use the P90x supplements as you cant get them in the UK yet. I used Berocca for vitamin and S.I.S. REGO for post-workout recovery. I also used For Goodness Shakes for post-workout. These are not essential but do help to cut down on the pain and recovery time for your muscles. I didnt use pure protein supplements as I have a body type that gains muscle well naturally and I have never needed additional protein. You know your own body, go with what you know.The amazing thing about P90x is IF YOU DO WHAT IS SAYS you will get absolutely amazing results. you will get ripped in 90 days. This will not happen for everybody. Mainly because many people will look at the advised diet and go, ‘no, I know better’. Maybe you do… all I can say is if you stick to 90% of the advised meals, 90% of the time you will progress rapidly. P90x achieves half its results by bulking up your body, and half its results by ripping the fat off you. if you dont follow a good diet you will get fitter and stronger, but noone will know coz you’ll still be fat!!Finally I would say consider what your immediate goals are before choosing this over Insanity. Insanity will get you ‘fitter’ (cardiovascularly,endurance-wise and I think you will lose more weight on Insanity. P90x will turn you into a machine, giving you muscle growth and ripping you right down to the pure, sexy muscle. For a fat guy like me (20 stone) Insanity, then P90x was the way to go. Good luck and stick with it.

7. 

   s̩bastien paucod РSeptember 9, 2024

   Énorme! Ça marche si on est assidu. Les séances ne durent que 30 minutes, elles sont intenses mais pas de douleur.Seul bémol, il n’existe pas en français même sous-titré.