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First phase of Insanity is done!

Saturday, August 15th, 2009

So a mild sense of accomplishment accompanies the finishing of the first phase of Insanity. What can I say? The program lives up to Beachbody’s hype. At no point was I able to completely keep pace with a workout without either taking a mid-set breather of a couple seconds or a between-set break at some point during the intervals, but the cool thing is I got better with each and every workout. I fully expect better results in my next fit test due in 9 days.

Lessons learned? P90X was a great foundation for this program, but it, in and of itself, didn’t fully prepare me for Insanity. As I mentioned before, P90X isn’t very cardio-intensive, so you’re certainly going to be playing catch up if you’re not used to intense cardio. And I’m not talking about 5 mile jogs, either. As great as long distance running is for aerobic conditioning, it does next to nothing for anaerobic conditioning, which is what Insanity and most high intensity sports play upon.

On a related note, I knew almost nothing about the pros and cons of different training systems back when I was heavily involved in sports during high school. I ran cross country (aerobic), played basketball (anaerobic), and baseball (low intensity), but had no idea how much more I could have improved myself with some targeted conditioning programs. I remember going from Cross Country — where I could run a 5k in around 19 minutes (not amazing but not bad) — to Basketball thinking all of my aerobic conditioning would carry over, but then quickly getting humbled when my muscles rapidly fatigued and I gassed out after only a couple of court sprints. It took me about halfway through the basketball season before my leg and cardio endurance finally stabilized and I could maintain my intensity through most of a game.

What I realize now is that athletes need to think about a lot of their fitness systems at once if they’re going to maximize their performance on the field. This is what we need to carry into our fitness regimens if we’re to avoid the infamous plateaus that plague most casual gym-goers.

When I undertake a training regimen, what are my goals? Am I trying to bulk up, slim down, increase muscle endurance and recovery time, jump higher, run faster, etc. etc. It’s not enough to go to the gym three times a week without a plan and expect drastic improvement. Programs like P90X and Insanity work because they *force* you through a targeted program proven to deliver specific types of improvements. It is possible, however, to go through these programs and still learn nothing about why they work. However, I’m curious by nature, so I always question why things do or don’t work.

On a lot of forums, you’ll see newbies ask about what they can expect to gain from programs like P90X and Insanity, and usually there isn’t a lot of good info for them to compare and contrast the programs. For instance, can I expect my vertical leap to drastically increase because of Insanity? The answer is, I’m not sure. It improved a lot in P90X because I was so out of shape and could get back to my baseline after 3 months of plyometrics once a week, but I don’t expect 2 months of Insanity to NECESSARILY KEEP increasing it in a similar manner. I do, however, expect my jumping endurance to improve drastically, meaning I could maintain jumping intensity for much longer durations playing, say, basketball. If anyone knows the best way to target fast-twitch muscles (whether it’s high-intensity interval training, or Insanity’s so-called Max Interval Training, or it’s some other routine), feel free to comment. I did come across an intriguing looking program called The Jump Manual that targets increasing fast-twitch muscle fibers to drastically improve vertical leaping ability. I have no idea if it works, but I do like the idea that it is a targeted program rather than a One Size Fits All How to Get Fit in 3 Weeks sort of deal.  What is fitness, really, if you have no idea what you’re improving and what you can expect from doing your workouts?

Anyway, I have a Recovery Week of Insanity coming up, then it’s on to Round 2. I hadn’t given much thought to what creatures lurk within the second phase, but Larry of the Do Something Initiative, has begun the round and has warned all that it is like starting over.  That is really and truly a frightening prospect.

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Week 4 of Insanity

Tuesday, August 11th, 2009

Sorry for the delays in posting. Really there hasn’t been much new to talk about. Basically I wake up every morning, drink a protein/banana/peanut butter shake…wait 30 minutes, then DESTROY myself at one of the day’s pre-ordained Insanity workouts.

Some folks talk about the workouts getting easier over time, but I am  not one of those folks. I feel my output increasing to some degree, but I am always spent after the workouts and I STILL have to take extended breaks in-between sets late in the workouts. I would be demoralized, but I’ll wait until my 30ish day pics and Fit Test to see how much or little I’m progressing. Obviously the Fit Test is more important to gauge progress, but I’m also intrigued to compare pics since I’ve been struggling to maintain weight while on the program.

My appetite is still beastly…my metabolism is jacked up. I eat five meals a day and still have the desire to cram down ramen noodles or something just to get that nice “Full in da Gut!” feeling. I swear I’ll have some more interesting observations about the program before all is said and done, but for now I’m happy to just squeeze in the workouts. And, oh, I’ve completed 22 days of Insanity but I still have 41 more days. That in and of itself is the most mind-blowing thing for me to try to comprehend.

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Insanity Day 15 – First Fit Test Results

Monday, August 3rd, 2009

So, the first fit test results are in. Insanity is WAY different from P90X with regards to its fit test.

With P90X you take a fit test at the beginning of the program and at the end. Most of the exercises would be familiar to anyone who has exercised before; you know, push-ups, pull-ups, vertical leaps, bicep curls, etc. With Insanity it’s a whole different ball-game. You take the fit test every 15 days or so, and you probably have never attempted most of the exercises. But they’re INTENSE!

The fit test in Insanity counts as a day of workout AND as a sign post along the way to progress. It’s actually very cool in that regard, the only problem is nobody who has never tried the program understands one iota of hell what the exercises involve. So, while the fit test is hard, nobody outside of the program can easily use it to understand what sort of progress is possible or reasonable to expect. P90X is a much better test for the layman who is wanting to understand what sort of results to expect, whereas the Insanity fit test is much more useful as a progress indicator for the unfortunate saps neck deep in cardio needing some way to gauge how they’re doing, but it’s inaccessible to anyone outside of the program.

With that disclaimer out of the way, here are my Day 15 Results compared to Day 1:

Switch Kicks — Day 1: 94 |  Day 15: 115

Power Jacks — Day 1: 41 |  Day 15: 50

Power Knees — Day 1: 76 | Day 15: 91

Power Jumps — Day 1: 32 | Day 15: 40

Globe Jumps — Day 1: 7 |  Day 15: 8

Suicide Jumps — Day 1: 13 |  Day 15: 15

Push-up Jacks — Day 1: 23 | Day 15: 30

Low Plank Obliques — Day 1: 40 |  Day 15: 45

Across the board, I suppose I had roughly 20% improvement on the various exercises.  I was really happy with the improvement given two weeks of work, but physically it felt just as difficult the second week as it did when I started.

I will hold off on pictures for now, but I will likely post 30 day pics. On that front, I’m pretty surprised at how fast my body has been changing. You burn fat FAST on this program. The jury’s still out on how much you build muscle, but the tell of the tape will be Day 63 there. Stay tuned.

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Thinner

Tuesday, July 28th, 2009

There is a pivotal point early on in the Stephen King book and movie, Thinner, when a man and woman nearly run over a gypsy crossing the street and the gypsy, in turn, whispers ominously “Thinner” into the rotund man’s ear. Over the course of several weeks the man begins withering away to nothing, becoming a horrifically emaciated version of his former corpulent self.

The first week of Insanity has started off a little like that.

To give some perspective — When I did P90X, I started off at 205 pounds with a nice little pot gut just in case I got stranded in an ice storm and needed to dip into some reserve fat stores. After a month of a high protein, low fat and low carb diet and the workouts, I bottomed out at 196.5 pounds. From the second month on I gained some of the weight back and ended up around 200 pounds. Nothing too shocking there. Fat burning off, muscle being added back on. The net result was something close to the original weight with much better tone in general.

However. Insanity has been different. I started off the program at 200 pounds (see above). After 8, I repeat, 8, days, I’ve hit 194 pounds. And I can’t stop eating.

You see, I didn’t read the nutrition guide closely enough. The meal plans it recommends are something like this: 5 meals a day around 300 calories apiece; adjust depending on current weight, age, and activity levels. Well, you see, I read the guide, did the calculations, and because I am slightly ADD missed an important step. I wanted to actually gain a little weight while doing this program and came up with 3000 calories a day, which I’ve mostly adhered to.

After losing 7 pounds in nearly as many days I became mildly alarmed, seeing as how I hadn’t figured I had 7 pounds to lose very easily. I revisited the nutrition guide, redid the calculation, and realized I missed an important step. As it turns out, I’d need 3500 calories just to maintain a weight of 195 or so, and 4000 if I want to gain weight.

Holy FREAKING CRAP. That is a buttload of food. I don’t know if you’ve ever tried to cram 4000 calories of food into your diet, but it is VERY hard to do with real food. If it’s synthetic pizza, or other sundry junk food, then sure, just throw down a triple baconater from Wendy’s (yes, I custom ordered one of those once) or a Monster Thickburger from Hardee’s and you’re 1/3 of the way there. But with fruits, veggies, and lean meats….forget it.

In my defense, the Insanity Nutrition Guide was a little misleading with its examples. Not only are the example meal plan portions WAY low, but the example calorie calculations are a little unrealistic. The example given was an active 40 year old woman with a very small frame. Now I realize this is a possible scenario, but it isn’t one that gives us a clue as to how the program would work for a larger athletic fellow at all. As it turns out, my caloric needs are almost twice that of the dainty older woman’s.

Anyway, I’m readjusting my strategy. My wife is already freaking out that my nutritional needs in a day are that of most third worlder’s in a week. Still, my goal with Insanity is to get in kick ass cardio shape and at least maintain my basic gains from P90X. I don’t want to look like a skeleton, so I will eat as much as I can.

Also, I realize some of you reading this may think that the rapid weight loss is a great and desirable thing, particularly those of you struggling to lose weight. Take it from me, though, that I don’t think rapid weight loss is a balanced and sustainable strategy. Sure, losing 20 pounds in 3 months if you’re 30 pounds overweight shouldn’t necessarily be frowned upon, but losing 7 pounds in a week when you’re NOT overweight is a whole different ballgame. So, I’m going to revamp the meal plan and figure out how to get more calories into the schedule. Incidentally, the wonderfully smart and fit Chalene Johnson writes about crash diets and weight loss… not entirely the same subject, but there is some overlapping material here, and she knows way more about this than I do.

Trust me, because I’m slightly ADD (see above) I’m allergic to calorie counting and have always felt it’s a crutch for the anal retentive amongst us who don’t want to analyze the quality of food but instead want to grab trendy fad diet boxes they’ve seen advertised between reality television shows. Why work harder when you can spend more! However, Insanity is making me rethink the whole calorie tracking thing as it has boosted my metabolism into something akin to the golden, confusing days of puberty, minus the zits. One thing I’m looking into is weight gaining shakes.  Another thing I’ve always resisted, but GOOD GOD, 4000 CALORIES A DAY!!! It’s either that or eat so many wraps, bowls of spaghetti, eggs, apples, bananas, salads, and chicken that I empty out the local grocery store single-handedly. I’ll keep you posted.

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Insanity versus P90X

Sunday, July 26th, 2009

So, my first week of Insanity went well. For the most part, I ate 5 small-to-medium-sized  meals a day per the nutrition guide’s recommendations, and I ate clean, mostly whole foods. You know, stuff not found in boxes covered with mascots and graphics, listing 4,000 chemicals that obfuscate what it is, exactly, that you’re eating, found in the middle of the grocery store . I didn’t eat perfect, mind you, but it was better than normal.

As for the workouts themselves –  on the web you may see what seems like sheer hyperbole when folks talk about these workouts being the hardest ever, but for the most part I think the fear and awe surrounding the workouts is pretty well deserved. I’ve yet to be able to keep up with a workout entirely, and I’m not sure when I’ll be able to to be honest. These are workouts you grow into. I can’t imagine many people being able to complete them the first go around except for maybe college and olympic track stars or something.

But in keeping with the site’s theme, how does Insanity compare to P90X? Likes Apples compare to Oranges. Honestly, folks, which program you decide to do should depend on your personal fitness goals. P90X is an excellent all around strength conditioning program that can help you become stronger, more flexible, coordinated, and achieve better balance and athleticism.

Insanity, in contrast, seems to be an excellent all around cardio conditioning program that can ALSO help  you become stronger, more flexible, coordinated and achieve better balance and athleticism, but with this program you will see much more pronounced cardio and anaerobic conditioning improvements, whereas with P90X you’re going to see much more pronounced strength conditioning. The cool thing is both programs can help you become a better athlete.

So, if you’re already happy with your level of strength and don’t mind simply maintaining a couple of months and need a huge cardio boost, then Insanity might be your program. If you’re already pretty satisfied with your cardio conditioning but need a big boost in strength, then P90X might be your program.

I have a sneaking suspicion that an intrepid person could combine both programs and get some stellar results.

Here’s a combination I think has potential to be pretty killer for the veteran fitness types:

Monday — P90X Resistance (ex. Chest and Back)

Tuesday — Insanity Cardio (ex. Plyometric Cardio Circuit)

Wednesday — P90X Resistance (ex. Shoulders, Triceps, Biceps)

Thursday — Insanity Cardio (ex. Pure Cardio)

Friday — Insanity Cardio Recovery (this one has lots of Yoga-esque moves so you would get some of the benefits of P90X Yoga X in 1/3 the time)

Saturday — P90X Resistance (ex. Legs and Back)

Sunday — Rest

You could do such a program for 3 weeks and then on the 4th recovery week you could do pure Insanity workouts for 6 days.

My guess is you’d get 90% of the benefits of each program in the same span of time it would take you to do just P90X.

That’s one idea, but there are others. If you’re a beginner, I’d recommend a round of P90X before attempting Insanity, but 3 months of P90X and 2 months of Insanity has also got to be a killer fitness combo.

I’ll present more thoughts and ideas surrounding Insanity versus P90X in the future. In reality it’s not an either/or approach, though — it’s a both/and possibility.

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Bringing The Insanity

Tuesday, July 21st, 2009

So, I’m not planning to let the site languish just yet. I received Insanity last week and have just started the program. Check out the incredible packaging of this thing!  And even the Fit Test of this thing is a killer.

My initial results were as follows, although I’m not sure how much it will mean to you if you haven’t tried the testosterone extinguishing exercises for yourself:

  • Switch Kicks — 94
  • Power Jacks — 41
  • Power Knees — 76
  • Power Jumps — 32
  • Globe Jumps — 7
  • Suicide Jumps — 13
  • Push-Up Jacks — 23
  • Low Plank Oblique — 40

To keep my experience with the program pertinent to this site’s original intent, I’m going to at least  refer to P90X where possible. I’ve been reading various fitness and weightlifting forums and it seems like a lot of people are confused about the advantages and disadvantages of P90X over Insanity and vice versa. To me, it seems obvious these are entirely different programs with different goals, but I think Beachbody’s marketing is what confuses people because it always seems to focus on Getting The Body You Always Wanted in Just ___ Days! The Fit Test alone should clue you in to the vast difference between the programs …every part of the Insanity Fit Test is cardio based, tapping into the anaerobic threshhold, whereas the P90X fit test features more strength endurance routines such as standard push-ups, pull-ups, bicep curls, wall squats and so forth.

Regardless, I’m still planning on doing a “Who Would Benefit Most from P90X” and I may do the same with Insanity when the time is right. I’ll be back in the next few days with my initial workout observations and so forth. I’m actually sort of nervous because I know it’s going to make me crumple on the floor and beg for mercy.

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Tony Horton on Holding On and Letting Go

Wednesday, July 15th, 2009

He doesn’t update his blog often, but when he does it’s usually worth reading:

http://tonyhorton.blogspot.com/2009/07/holding-on-and-letting-go.html

Letting go of the junk you’ve been holding on to requires finding a more powerful replacement. In your heart you need to trust that the simple act of releasing tired old worthless behaviors is going to bring about a better life. Why is it that when 100 people all get the same life altering information, only a small percentage of those people run with it? It’s because the majority of those people can’t let go of the people and belief systems that keep them right where they are.

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Insanity – The Next New Thing

Sunday, July 12th, 2009

So, it’s been a few weeks since I’ve completed P90X, and in the mean time I’ve been doing some of the strength resistence routines along with some plyometrics. Believe it or not, the numbers steadily improve, although without any quantum leaps.

In other news, Beachbody finally released Insanity last week.  The niche it fills is that it strives to do for cardio what p90x does for all around strength conditioning. Never one to resist good marketing, I immediately purchased the program as it became available, so hopefully I get it tomorrow or the day after tomorrow (Yes, I expedited shipping). The infomercial is even starting to play at the butt crack of dawn on the likes of the Food Network, Bravo, and a few other middling stations. Be sure to check it out, as it reminds me of a cross among Extreme Home Makeover, The Biggest Loser, Under Armour, and Dance Dance Revolution. I crap you not.

Anyway, I’m in a weird phase where I could see myself either going for a massive mass-gaining strength program or an explosive sports-friendly strength conditioning program. It seems like Insanity leans more towards the latter than the former, and my body type probably does as well.

In my spare time, I’m also taking Krav Maga lessons, taking CERT classes, and am about to take a CPR/First Aid class.  Clearly I should probably watch more TV.

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How to Improve at Sports without Playing Sports

Monday, July 6th, 2009

A couple of months ago I played basketball and made the observation that it went pretty well considering I hadn’t played basketball in years. Well, the other day I decided to pump up a deflated ball gathering dust and mold in our garage and put my post-P90X physique to the test just casually shooting around at our condo’s tennis court / basketball court.  Even though this wasn’t overly intense activity, my experience was surprising!

If you’ve ever played sports and felt “connected” to what you’re doing, maybe even in the zone, you’ll know the difference between that and coming back to a sport you haven’t played in years. In general, when you feel in the zone with something, you feel like you have something to offer that activity, and that activity has something to offer you. In contrast, when you’re coming back to an activity you haven’t engaged in for years — particularly a more strenuous activity — you feel more like you should be slumping in defeat in the mere presence of that activity and that activity wants nothing in return but your demise and exile from the land of the living.

The past couple of days with basketball have been pretty encouraging. I felt completely coordinated, and my shot was weirdly accurate considering it had no good reason to be. Generally it’s been my experience that it takes several days, even several weeks to get a basketball shot reasonably back after being dormant for even a few months. For me it has been maybe 80% of the way (or even better) there already, which is way different from my previous history of chucking air balls and bricks when first coming back to basketball after long hiatuses. In general my shots felt strong and crisp, dribbling was easy, and I felt agile. Added bonus? I was able to dunk again for the first time in about a decade. Granted, it was no LeBron James backboard destroyer or anything, but it was an honest-to-god hand-touching-ball-while-simultaneously-touching-rim-while-also-penetrating-basket combo;  enough even to remind me of one of the few areas p90X does absolutely nothing for — hand sensitivity! You may not believe it, but ANY form of dunking hurts for the uninitiated. This is an under-discussed aspect about dunking (where are all the confused, frustrated, outraged sensitive-hand-dunker-bloggers?) This means my guitar playing would be fraught with similar under-callousing / under-conditioning issues I’d need to address independently from P90X, but these are minor quibbles at best.

In a future blog post I’ll try to highlight more where I think P90X really excels, where it falls a bit flat, and who would most benefit from the program. I’ve kind of touched on these issues in the past, but I haven’t really dug deep into them, and I think it’s worth exploring. I say that because my wife, with her newfound bounty of time from finishing grad school, has decided to not start back on P90X (so much for the web address’s premise!) but has instead started another interesting Beachbody program called Chalean Extreme.  She hasn’t gotten too far into the program, so the jury is out on how good of a fit it is for her, but I can certainly see some advantages with that program for her specific wants and needs over P90X. Maybe she’ll be so good to grace us with her presence for a moment to discuss the program when she gets a chance.

But who is P90X most ideally suited for? Any type of athlete? Certain types of athletes? Someone who wants to lose weight? Couch potatos who want to repent? Gym rats who need a change?  Someone who wants to bulk up? This is what I’ll take a stab at answering soon.

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Post P90X Thoughts

Friday, July 3rd, 2009

It’s been about a couple of weeks since completing P90X. If you’re on the fence about starting the program, I can’t recommend it highly enough, providing you have the time to invest in it. This is not a good program for someone with two jobs or who is attending school in the evenings while working in the day. There is just too much time needed for the workouts and meal planning. However, for people who aren’t working/schooling more than 50 hours a week, it’s perfectly achievable. You have the time, providing your family can cut you some slack.

Upon looking back at my photos and stats, one big surprise that stands out is my increase in vertical leap. I didn’t really have a goal of seeing dramatic gains in this area, but I added 8 inches to my vertical, almost getting back to my peak high school basketball numbers. In high school I had a 27 inch vertical and now I have a 24 inch vertical. I started the program with a 16 inch vertical. Why is this gain surprising? I only did Plyometrics once a week, but that coupled with losing some fat and gaining mobility was probably enough to make the difference.

Also, I did the Chest and Back workout this morning, which was the first P90X workout I’ve done in a couple of weeks, and my numbers were slightly better than the last time I did that routine. That tells me that 1) you don’t suddenly start losing your gains after the program, and 2) I could probably keep progressing pretty nicely if I resume a routine that’s only 4 or 5 days a week rather than the intensive 6 day a week program.

My plan is to keep working out in a variety of ways. I’ve already signed up for my first Krav Maga session to see if I like it.  From what I understand, Krav Maga (a self-defense program taught to elite special forces, among others) encourages the kind of conditioning that P90X provides — namely muscle endurance (over raw strength) and explosiveness and mobility. I’ll report back on whether this is something I continue in the future.

I also procured a copy of the Insanity preview disk, which has a Plyometric Cardio routine that is KILLER! Seriously, if there’s one area where P90X is somewhat lacking, it’s cardio. The Kenpo X routine isn’t really too demanding, and the Cardio X routine is pretty light-weight, too, although it’s good for beginners. Plyo X is the hardest cardio workout, and Insanity Plyo is like Plyo X on crack and speed. So it’s really the next level if you’re looking for cardio improvements. When the product is released, I will almost certainly buy it as I don’t know if I’ve ever had as hard but fun of a time as I have had with Insanity Plyo/Cardio the past couple of weeks.

So, I could either focus more on cardio while maintaining or slightly improving overall strength conditioning with a program like Insanity, or I could keep going with P90X and sub out the cardio routines with Insanity routines to get the best of both worlds. I’ve read elsewhere that when training you often have to make sacrifices in one area to make big gains in another, so if I’m really wanting to improve cardio, it might be best to go all out in a program like Insanity rather than mix and match with P90X. The great thing about Insanity is the workouts are just around 40 minutes, so it’s definitely easier to fit into a busy schedule.

Anyway, a friend of mine asked me what the future of this web site is, and honestly I don’t know. The web address has P90X in the title so it would make sense to only post things related to the specific program. But then again, P90X becomes more of a workout philosophy over time — consistent effort, variety of exercises, holistic workouts, maximum intensity, goal setting, progress tracking, etc. In theory, I could be doing P90X without doing P90X if I start incorporating completely new routines and sub out for all the existing ones.  Mind blowing, I know, but true. P90X teaches you one path to fitness. There are others, but this is definitely a tried and true approach to fall back on when in doubt. For now I will update periodically!

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