Before I begin comparing P90X and Insanity I want to go over a few more details about my current fitness and nutrition levels prior, during and after my experience with these two programs.
My previous workout routines and fitness level before I started Insanity or P90X
First off, I didn’t feel I needed either Insanity or P90X to lose weight, or even gain muscle, as I feel pretty confident in how I look and feel to begin with. My typical workout routine has been to do a mix of cardio and weight training at the 24hour gym near where I live several times a week with at least one day a week dedicated to hiking or cycling outdoors.
I get bored easily with cardio so I always like to be doing something different at the gym, or even on my way to it. Often I may jog the 1.5 miles to the gym, or if I drive I might jog for 20 minutes on a treadmill. If I do that on a Monday, then on Tuesday I’ll do 20 minutes of rowing on a machine, or 20 minutes on an elliptical.
Similarly, I also like to vary my weight training. If I am focusing on my chest and doing bench presses for one day, then on my next chest day I’ll do dumbbell flies or tricep dips, etc.
For outdoor activity I live near the Iron Horse trail that allows for some pretty level cycling for distance or I can always hit up Mt. Diablo for some hiking trails. Either way, I usually like to spend at least 1-3 hours depending on how my energy level feels that day.
My typical work-out routine had me spending on average 4 hours per week in the gym with 1-3 hours of extra sport activity for a total of 7 hours a week.
Making the time to workout isn’t always easy – timing is everything
I’m fortunate in that I work from home as a consultant, and as I look at my current workout schedule I think back to when I was working in an office every day and there is probably no way I could participate in this level of exercise. Fortunately if you find yourself short on time both Insanity, P90X and others on Beachbody.com off 10, 15 and 30 minute a day workout options.
Why you need a guide to healthy eating – try to follow the Insanity and P90X guidelines
No really. I’m a huge fan of pizza, beer, donuts and all things dairy. This food will guarantee that you never see ab definition if you’re over the age of thirty. So I wanted to give things my best go and during my experience with Insanity and P90X I tried my best to focus on a mostly vegetarian/vegan diet. However, I did eat red meat (hamburger) once per week and white meat (chicken) only two times a week. I also cut out all alcohol during the week, so no after work beers with coworkers on Thursday night, and only allowed myself on Friday and Saturday nights to indulge.
My goal with Insanity and P90X
Being someone who is in decent shape I didn’t feel the need to slim down or even tone up. Rather my focus was on learning additional exercises I could incorporate into my lifestyle, as well as break up the monotony I had been feeling with my gym sessions. At the end of the day I am someone who gets bored with routine and I needed a change of pace to keep me motivated with working out.
With so much hype on TV and the Internet about Insanity, P90X and Beachbody.com workouts in general I felt it was time to learn what they were all about.