Claimed to be the hardest workout ever to be put on DVD, the Insanity workout is seriously, seriously intense. I just finished it and am satisfied with how I did. Below are my thoughts.
What it is:
Hardcore anaerobic exercises. Lots of interval training, lots of explosive movement, lots of bodyweight exercises, lots of power, resistance, plyometrics, core and balance work. Little rest.
What it is not:
Insanity is not an upper body workout. If you are looking to build up muscles in your arms, chest, and back, I would not do this workout. P90X would be a much more suitable alternative (another really good/intense program).
Who should do it:
Insanity is for people who are already in shape. Athletes looking to build their cardio, raise their VO2 Max, increase lung capacity, strengthen their core and legs. People in the video are Beachbody coaches, spinning instructors, marathon runners, army veterans, b-boys, that sort of thing.
Who should not do it:
If you are looking to get into shape, stay far away from this program. You will not be able to handle it. The warm up itself is enough to knock you out. I know people who can’t finish the warm up and it only gets more insane. You better be damn sure you are already in good shape, P90X grads would fit into this category, people who workout 6 days a week hard would fit into this category. The New Years resolutioners will need to find something else cause they’ll get worked over. People with breathing conditions like asthma should stay away as well. Consult your doctor before doing this. The general rule of thumb is if you think you are even a little bit out of shape, then don’t do it.
What you should know:
The claim is it is a 60 day program separated by a month 1 workout plan and a month 2 workout plan, but it isn’t. There is a recovery week in between in which you do a recovery workout in between, so its actually 63 days (I previously said 67, but my math sucks). So be sure you are committed to 63 days or you won’t finish. I wouldn’t advise skipping any days. If its important to you, you’ll find the time to do it.
My thoughts:
For a program called Insanity, it was one of the few things in my life that kept me sane since returning from Peru. I felt pretty confident doing my first fit test. I was absolutely exhausted when I finished it, but the numbers I put up weren’t that far off from the two people who did it in the video. That was somewhat promising to me. The whole premise of the Insanity workout is you work as hardcore as you possibly can for extended periods, and then take a short rest for recovery (its like the opposite of traditional high intensity training where you work moderate for a few minutes then explode for 30 seconds). As they say in the videos, you really have to dig deeper to do these workouts. I would say 80% of this workout is mental. Proper technique is very important in this workout, otherwise you risk injury. If your form is gone, then stop and recover cause you are done.
The first month of workouts are not quite as long as the second month, and they aren’t as tough. It would feel awkward to call them easier though, because they are anything but. They still kick your butt hardcore, just for maybe 10 minutes less. Because of all the hard work involved in the first month, you are much better prepared for the hurting that month 2 brings. Also of note is I switched from a vegan diet after month 1 to a diet richer in saturated fats and lower in carbs. That, in and of itself, is probably worth a post sometime in the future. I’m not really ready to talk about it yet as I am still challenging some of my fundamental beliefs. How did it effect my performance by switching diets? It didn’t, I still got rocked every workout.
What kept me going was the idea of pushing myself hard. Shaun T really does a good job of motivating you. Focus is important, fire in the belly is important, a little bit of anger did me well, and competition helped keep me going. I was not only competing with myself, but the people in the videos. It was a very satisfying feeling to see all these super fit people dropping like flies in the video while I was still pushing through and going strong. It juiced me to know I was right in there with the best of them. P90X was a similar feeling. Speaking of which, coming from it I did lose some upper body mass and strength while doing Insanity, but I’ll just build it up again now that I’m done.
I worked out in the morning for virtually every workout, except maybe some weekends. Even though I am more energized in the afternoon and feel stronger, I made it part of my daily morning routine so I would not have any excuses not do it a day. There was no “I don’t feel like it today” days at all. Every day it was about getting it done and getting it done to the best of my ability. I remember one particular day I had two workouts to do (they stack ab work on some days), Yoga in the afternoon, then rock climbing afterward. That was a tiring day, but it needed to get done so it was done. Even today, I am going rock climbing very shortly but I put my best effort into the last fit test and put up some monster numbers which I’ll post below. It is like brushing your teeth in the morning, just part of a routine. I have found that to be the best way of sticking to the calendar.
In Closing:
I rocked the CN Tower climb last weekend. Close to 12,000 people climbed and I looked on Google, Bing, Facebook and Twitter, and could not find someone who posted a faster time then me. The unitedwayto twitter has me listed as the fastest time of the weekend. This is despite being tired, fatigued, not fully recovered, hungover, slightly sick, dealing with too many people on the stairs and without a single session of stair training or running. I would say Insanity had a huge part in that.
Would I ever do the Insanity workout in its entirety again? No. It has taken me to new levels but long term I think its too much on a person’s body to be doing it 6 days a week. The individual workouts themselves are world class, and I’ll be using them frequently as part of my routine. But as a regimentation and sticking to the calendar, I think I am done with. Would I recommend the workout? Depends on who I am talking to. I can’t suggest it to everyone because it is not made for everyone, but there is no denying the fact that it pushes you to the brink of exhaustion, and in turn, makes you better.
I have before and after photos, but they seem a little narcissistic so I won’t be posting them. So instead, here’s a picture of a very malnourished vegan me taken in 2007. Enjoy.
My Fit Test numbers:
Here are my numbers. I’m pretty proud of my progression. Because I don’t know how to make a table in email, I’ll just list my numbers in order for each exercise. It goes from Day 1, Day 15, Day 36, Day 50, Day 63. I don’t have the number recorded for the low plank oblique on day 1, probably because i was too tired to lift up my body and forgot.
Switch Kicks: 120 – 132 – 130 – 136 – 137
Power Jacks: 54 – 63 – 67 – 75 – 80
Power Knees: 93 – 120 – 126 – 127 – 128
Power Jumps: 60 – 82 – 83 – 89 – 91
Globe Jumps: 14 – 15 – 15 – 15 – 15
Suicide Jumps: 17 – 21 – 24 – 28 – 32
Push-Up Jacks: 33 – 40 – 44 – 48 – 54
Low Plank Obliques: ??? – 100 – 100 – 107 – 131
Get Insanity here.
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If you liked this review, you may also like my P90X2, Rip:60, P90X+, Rev Abs, GSP Rushfit, or RMAX BER reviews