Anybody on here done one of these? Or something similar? Did it work for you? Any advice or suggestions?
More importantly, it seems like you need to be in pretty good shape just to start these. Is that true, or can you be 450 lbs. and not able to run 1/4 mile without falling over?
Even though I spent five years in the Marines Jedi Academy, that was eight years ago. I’m waaaaaay out of shape and waaaaay overweight now. I need to get healthy again. I don’t want to look like John Cena or anything, but I do need to get healthy. I’ve got a 2-year old and one on the way, and I want to be around to see them get married and have kids.
I’m about 200lbs despite exercising plenty. I’m planning on running 5m/day 6x a week, with plans to upgrade to 6mi/day. I need to start cutting down sugar, sleeping more, and just in general eating less…not that I eat that much to begin with.
I have done a good chunk of p90x…then I began going to the gym more so I adapted some of it to a gym routine (using similar moves to construct a workout) which I have maintained and had good success with. I think its legit, I mean anything that forces you to exercise that much will have benefits, but its good stuff. If you are not in shape you can modify to a limited degree, but certainly helps if you are in some sort of shape beforehand otherwise I think you may get frustrated.
Never did Insanity, I dont love cardio, shadowboxing isnt my thing, and wasnt looking to cut weight so I gravitated more towards the weights/pullups of p90x…
Probably not. Long distance / endurance exercise will cause your T to plummate if you are training to exhaustion. Anything more than 4 miles a day is said to be bad. Obviously losing weight will help but it is not like you are over weight, assuming you’re 6 foot +, but strength exercise of large muscle groups is the best thing for upping your T levels. That being said, I still think you need to do cardio to keep weight down. I have recently taken up cycling on a road bike and love it. Although I have to ride about 1.5 hours to get a good workout in, I have fun doing it which makes it more effective.
If you are trying to cut weight, you are doing it wrong. Science would agree with me. You need to stop wasting time and do interval training (especially HIIT). Insanity would be perfect for you. All that cardio is eating away at your muscle and probably reducing your basal metabolic rate slowly over time. Bad idea.
@Greenman, what do you want to know? I"ve done P90X twice, P90X+ once, Insanity once, and P90X was my introduction to fitness. Before I was scared to do stuff (and still am to a lesser degree), but liked the idea of dumb bells. My workouts still to this day are dumb bell and pull up based.
The programs are VERY different. On P90X, you have strenght and cardio training. One of the hardest workouts (unless you are a runner) in P90X is Plyometrics. Once you do Insanity, Plyometrics is a walk in the park. Insanity is pure cardio and is attempt to burn tons of calories fast, but not trying to get stronger. That’s why the people in the infomercials are ripped and appear sickly.
Both are prone to injury. And if you were previously in good shape, you can risk a small chance of death if you push yourself too much. The technical term is " rhabdomyolysis " and it tends to occur in people with prior athletic experience. They are tough mentally but not tough enough physically, so they end up pushing themselves way too hard before their body can handle it.
I’ve run through the gammut of training regimens and used to do personal training part time, when I had time. It’s a fun job.
Anyway, the best exercise is anything that you can stick to, IMO. You could totally do P90X. If you start to feel dizzy, stop and get a drink of water. This will get you in shape. All strength and condition programs vary in their goal, so you need to ask yourself how you want to look. Do you want to look like Arnold, RG3 or a skinny model. Anyway you go you are going to be giving up something. Running 5 miles a day six times a week will definitely have you dropping fat, but it will also have you losing muscle. Bodybuilding style lifts will develop muscle, but can lead to flexibility issues and will not address “cardio” at all. Something like P90x is nice because it builds up muscle while providing a cardio workout, which is probably why it is such a popular program.
This brings me to diet. Anybody can work out for an hour a day. It is what you do with the other 23 hours that really makes a difference. What are your current tastes? You need to tailor a diet that is healthy and that you will stick to. For example, do not say “Oh, I’m going to eat boiled chick and steamed vegetables” because you definitley won’t. At least, not for more than a day or two. Focus on portion control for relativley healthy meals that you enjoy. That will be more important for weight loss than any exercise plan. The exercise will help to ensure that you don’t end up losing too much muscle as well.
Please, do not start doing oly lifts without a coach, unless you are just using a broomstick or someting. It is a recipe for injury. They look cool and are really trendy now, but they are highly techical movements where probably coached technique is necessary for remaining injury free and to lift more safely. I’ve seen people add 50 lbs to their lifts in one day soley due to technique coaching. I’ve also seen people injure themselves permanently due to lack of supervision.
Cardio is the most important kind of exercise if you are just looking to improve health and lose weight. However, I would not recommend running 5 miles, 6 days a week. It is better to stagger the miles, like 3, 4, 3, rest, 5, 8, rest, or something like that. This way, your body can recover after the long runs. Running is good for cardiovascular health, but causes injuries if you overdo it. I would be particularly concerned if you are overweight, as this will add stress to your joints.
Cycling is the another option, and in my opinion, is much more fun than running. Furthermore, it is low impact and less likely to cause injury. The downside, of course, is that you need to buy a bike. You also need access to a long road or trail for biking. Finally, biking is less exercise per time than running. So, it might not be suitable if you are very busy.
I also agree that you should get at least one coaching session for weight lifting. You do not want to get injured from using poor technique.
Truth be told, I haven’t worked out much at all in several years, and am very overweight. I’m trying to shed some pounds and get back into shape because I need to get healthier for my kids. I know I can go back to running, but I’m afraid of the stress it would cause the joints.
Any GOOD pointers on how to lose weight would be appreciated. Saying, “Run 10m per day 12 days per week” isn’t a GOOD pointer. That’s for somebody who’s already in good shape, or needs to lose 10 vanity pounds.
Diet. Fruits, vegetables and meat in moderation is healthy. Honestly, if you just stop melting cheese on anything and stop drinking beer entirely it will be a good first step to weight loss and better health. Start by just being aware of what you are eating. Don’t just eat whatever is convenient and only eat when you are truly hungry.
This. Plus make sure the instructors actually know what they are doing - i’ve noticed (and not to hate on crossfit although i hate it), a lot of the instructors are pure sht when it comes to performing these lifts. Worse yet, they pass along this nonsense to their students. My advice, if you do oly keep the reps low and focus on technique,
Greenie - i was in your position 4 months ago. i was an athlete in college, but work, kids & CFA put me on the couch for the rest of my spare time. After almost 10 years of inactivity, I was a ball of dough with zero energy. I picked up p90x in that condition just fine. I did start with about a month of the ‘cardio’ program, which is an easier version of the classic program (both are included in the P90X kit that you purchase). I just finished the classic program recently and have moved on to a crossfit type program.
I’m now a fucking animal - no fapping alpha, dominating my job, jack hammering the wife every night, chissled out of granite.
Diet is very important also while doing the program. Eat high protein, avoid carbs as much as possible - bread, wheat, rice, processed sugar, anything that comes in a box and has a long list of ingredients.