Tag Archives: insanity

Health and Fitness

Insanity Asylum Review

1 Comment

I finished Insanity Asylum a little while ago and haven’t gotten around to writing about it until now. Here are my thoughts:

Insanity Asylum is a 30 day home workout program from Beachbody and hosted by Shaun T, the same dude that brought you programs like Insanity, which I found to be a mofo. This program is no different in that regard. Shaun T really likes to kick your ass. The program is designed for people who have already completed Insanity and want to take their athleticism to another level. It is designed for athletic performance.

Equipment Needed: You need a little bit more equipment in this one compared to some other home programs, including an agility ladder, jumping rope, dumbbells, resistance bands, and an optional pull-up bar.

Workouts: There are 6 workouts and 2 bonuses. The workouts are Speed & Agility, Vertical Plyo, Strength, Back to Core, Gameday, and Relief. The bonuses are the assessment, which you do before and after the program to show your progress, and a 15 minute overtime program, which you’ll wish you didn’t have to do since its after Gameday. Asylum also comes with a nutrition guide, worksheet to track progress, and a calendar.

You combine the 6 core workouts for 30 days, which goes by very quickly. You can also use these programs in addition to Insanity or P90X, but I imagine you would be very, very tired. Workouts are usually about 45 minutes, except Gameday which is closer to an hour and Relief which is a 30 minute stretching program you have to do a few times in those 30 days. Of the 30 days, you only get 2 rest days so plan your time accordingly.

I found Insanity Asylum to be pretty challenging and tiring. I have never used an agility ladder before and discovered how embarrassingly uncoordinated I was at the beginning of the program, but gradually improved over time. The movements might feel unnatural and complex at the beginning, so you may need to practice a bit before getting them down correctly. Shaun T stresses the importance of proper technique for maximum benefit of the program. The assessment did show a significant improvement in performance numbers in a number of exercises compared with my pre Asylum numbers, so I guess that means Asylum helped.

I did find that this program really strained my lower back. Especially after the Strength program, I would find my lower back aching the entire next day. My feet and ankles were also sore until after the program ended (I did the workouts wearing Nike Free shoes). Also, be aware that you will sweat a lot in the program. A LOT. I would suggest a towel to dry off any chance you are able to because if you are working out on a smooth service such as hardwood, concrete, or tile, you WILL start slipping. It happened to me a bunch of times and I almost landed right on my ass once. In the videos, they do the workouts on astro turf so never run into the issue. You have been warned.

Overall, I give the program a thumbs up. I felt it really helped with my balance and coordination, especially. I cannot say for sure if that translated to improved climbing or grappling, it could be all in my head, but I did feel it. If you are looking for a challenge and improvement in athletic performance, then definitely give it a try. You can get Asylum here.

—————————————————————————————————————–

If you liked this review, you may also like my P90X2, GSP Rushfit, Rip:60, P90X+, Insanity, RevAbs, or RMAX BER reviews

Health and Fitness

Rushfit Workout Review

12 Comments

I recently completed the GSP Rushfit workout and thought I would share my thoughts. I did finish late because I injured some cartilage near my ribs and needed to rest it up for a few weeks before I could continue. With that said, GSP Rushfit was a hell of a program and a lot of fun.

What is it?
GSP Rushfit is a home workout starring the one and only Georges St. Pierre and designed and guided by his trainer Eric Owings. GSP goes through the workouts with you and adds some hilarious colour commentary every once in a while, but most of the narration and coaching is done by Eric. I found the Eric/GSP combo to be quite refreshing as they complemented each other well. Each week consists of 6 days on, and 1 day off (rest day).

GSP Rushfit is an 8 week program with calendars for beginners, intermediate, and advanced. They do have a fit test assessment that you should do prior to choosing which calendar to go with but I wasn’t able to find it in the guides what numbers you should be shooting for to determine what program you should choose. I ended up going with the advanced program because when I did the fit test I was toe to toe with the champ with my numbers. Yeah!

As far as I can tell, the only difference between the beginner and advanced program is that in advanced you just do more workouts in the 8 week period. In the last half of the advanced calendar there are doubles (two workouts a day) almost everyday. On the calendar they have “Cardio” which is something you are supposed to do on your own. I thought this was a tad lame and lazy on the part of the designers but most of my days I was going to jiu jitsu training so figured that would do. There are 7 workouts to do over the 8 weeks:

Stretch for Flexibility, Balance and Agility (these were on the “Bonus” DVD), Abdominal Strength and Core Conditioning, Explosive Power Training, Full Body Strength and Conditioning, Strength and Endurance, and The Fight Conditioning Workout. The workouts all start with the same warmup and end with the same cool down. The warmup did an average job at warming up the appropriate joints. It should have focused more on the ankles and shoulders because those are used a lot in the programs. I did feel on a number of days that my shoulders and ankles weren’t sufficiently warm and felt some discomfort. The cool down is also way too long. It is only 7 minutes, but when you are doing doubles you really just want to get the heck out of there because you are so pooped. The workouts themselves are all 5 rounds to simulate a championship UFC fight except for the Flexibility and Balance and Agility workouts.

All of the workouts were great and varied to keep things interesting. What was really cool for me to see was watching GSP do his thing. You could tell he was really great at explosive stuff but really sucked at isometrics and flexibility movements. He cheated like most people do and Eric would call him out on it. It was rather entertaining. I found Full Body Strength and Conditioning to be the most challenging and by round 4 was pretty tired. Strength and Endurance was also pretty tough and had me gasping for air by the end of it. The Abdominal Strength and Core Conditioning workout was ok until round 5 when they had you doing bridges, which I couldn’t hold for the entire time until I was near week 7. My favourite workout was The Fight Conditioning Workout because it involved a lot of coordination involving striking, grappling, wrestling and judo components.

Pros of GSP Rushfit

  • Eric Owings is an excellent instructor. Very detail oriented, clear and concise
  • GSP cracks me up with his French Canadian accent and quirky sense of humour
  • Very good workouts that will leave you pooped but feeling alive
  • Good variety of movements and different body parts being worked that aren’t seen in other home workouts
  • Minimum equipment required. You only really need dumbbells.

Cons of GSP Rushfit

  • Complex movements such as the Turkish get up should not be in a home study course, in my opinion, because if done improperly could result in injury
  • Workouts are too long and there is too much chit chat between the warmup and the workout and the workout and cool down. Again, 6 days a week for 8 weeks is a big commitment for most people, at least make that time working out as efficient as possible.
Final Thoughts
GSP Rushfit is an excellent program that will whip you into shape. Like most of these home workouts, it does require a time commitment. It comes down to your priorities and what you value in life. If you are a fan of GSP and love mma and are looking to get a little more physically fit and lose weight, this is the product for you. I did feel some carry over strength that translated in my jiu jitsu training with GSP Rushfit. Maybe you will too!

—————————————————————————————————————–

If you liked this review, you may also like my P90X2, Rip:60, P90X+, Insanity, RevAbs, or RMAX BER reviews

Health and Fitness

Rip 60 Review

7 Comments

What is Rip:60?
Rip:60 is a 60 day program that utilizes suspension training. That’s just a fancy way of saying ropes and pulleys. Suspension training is a useful type of training because it helps with balance, agility, coordination, and works muscles that you didn’t know you had. Doing a pushup on a stable floor is relatively easy. Put your feet in some unstable straps and the game changes slightly. Lots of MMA fighters use suspension training in their regimen, the most popular being the TRX system (which I also have). Georges St. Pierre and Jillian Michaels endorse Rip:60 and have included bonus DVDs.

How long is Rip:60?
8 weeks. 6 days on, 1 day off.

What equipment do I need for Rip60?
The suspension trainer, which comes with the purchased product, and some weights. In the videos, they use an adjustable kettlebell you can buy on their website. I used adjustable dumbbells which I already had. To work my forearms and grip strength more, I also used a pair of Fat Gripz (highly recommended for added difficulty and training of the forearms).

Description
Rip:60 is 1 DVD per week, 6 days a week with 1 rest day. That means you do the same workout for 6 days straight, which could get a little boring for you depending on how patient you are. Once the week is over you progress to the next DVD and repeat until all 8 DVDs are done. The weeks get progressively harder, but I found week 6 to be the hardest, not week 7 or 8. There is also a recovery week which is just a bunch of stretching with the help of the suspension trainer. Every workout includes a warm up and cool down. The workouts are run by a guy named Jeremy Strom whom I didn’t find very good.

There are 4 bonus DVDs. Rip:60 for runners, power yoga, one from Jillian Michaels and one from Georges St. Pierre. The power yoga is useless and I wouldn’t recommend it as the straps just get in the way. Stick with traditional yoga. The runners one is only slightly better. In the GSP DVD, GSP goes through a workout and it is narrated by Jeremy Strom. This one is decent except you pretty much get no time in between exercises and don’t really know what’s next. This is bad because the exercise has already started while you are still trying to adjust your straps, get into position, and figure out what to do next. The best of these bonus DVDs is Jillian Michaels, she rips it (pun intended), although the workout isn’t as intense as I would have liked. She should have been the one to run through the workouts in the 8 weeks.

The Good
Rotation in the straps, which TRX doesn’t have, makes the exercises more challenging. There are some seriously killer bodyweight exercises you can do with rotational suspension training that you wouldn’t be able to do in TRX. The straps themselves are also quite sturdy. I think TRX is a little better built, but Rip:60 won’t fall apart on you anytime soon and definitely a good piece of equipment to have in your home gym. The DVDs themselves are fairly good workouts using suspension training, although I believe they could have been so much better. I would have loved to see more uses with the trainer and less burpees and strictly bodyweight exercises, but nonetheless you can get a pretty good burn and sweat using Rip:60.

The Bad
Since Rip:60 hangs from door if you don’t have something to attach it to overhead, sometimes the exercises are hard to do because of the proximity to the door. And you should be aware that the metal components may scuff up the door, so if that is a concern you’ll need to tape something soft like a towel to the door. Also, Jeremy Strom is annoying as hell and sucks as a coach. If I was paying him as a personal trainer I’d fire him. His timing is off almost more times than not. He isn’t very motivating or funny and sometimes he’ll say 2, 1, go, sometimes he’ll say 3,2,1 and you are supposed to go, sometimes he’ll say 1,2,3, and so on. It gets unbelievably annoying when you are ready to hit it and aren’t sure when you are supposed to begin. You might think I am nitpicking but just wait until you are exhausted and he says there’s 5 seconds left and you start giving it everything you got only to find out there’s actually 15 seconds left. You’ll want to kill him, too. He also takes jabs at other home workout programs, most notably P90X, which isn’t really necessary. The strength and quality of the program should be enough to stand on its own merits, there is no need to take jabs at a different program (minor complaint, as this one isn’t the only program that does this). See Jillian Michaels’ DVD to see how its supposed to be done. Her DVD is near flawless and gives you an idea how home instruction is supposed to look like.

Final Thoughts
I had to take a week and a half off because I jammed up my foot real good. To finish on time, I had to do doubles and triples. I definitely wouldn’t recommend that, but having a few off days on a 60 day program doesn’t give you a lot of flexibility to catch up. Follow the program schedule as best you can. I didn’t follow the nutritional guide but ate pretty clean throughout and followed an 8 hour eating window and a weekly cheat day. In the end, I am as light as I have ever been in my adulthood and about as lean. So yes, I am very happy with Rip60 and would definitely recommend giving it a whirl.  You can get it here..

—————————————————————————————————————–

If you liked this review, you may also like my P90X2, GSP rushfit, P90X+, Insanity, RevAbs, or RMAX BER reviews

Health and Fitness

Rev Abs Review

4 Comments

I finished Rev Abs yesterday a day late.  Plagued by injuries, over committed on obligations, and a change of scenery made this one a very tough one to complete, but I did it and I am happy.  I haven’t done the final fit test yet but I am expecting the results to be less than stellar.  I’ll probably do it tonight.

Rev Abs is a very cool program.  Its designed to strengthen your core using cool Capoeira moves and other fun exercises, some involving dumbbells.  In traditional Beachbody fashion, you don’t really need a lot of equipment aside from aforementioned dumbbells.  Brett Hoebel is the guy in charge of this one, and he’s a likeable and funny dude who can get you moving and grooving.

Rev Abs is a 90 day program, with two phases, each 45 days long.  Phase 1 is designed to give you the strength and endurance needed to do Phase 2.  I did notice Phase 2 to be slightly more intense.  I wouldn’t say this is an extremely difficult program.  In fact, if you were to ask me which program to do to get in shape I would say start with Rev Abs.  That isn’t to say its a walk in the park, you still have to bring it and you will definitely sweat and feel it.

There are 3 rounds to every workout with the last round called the Spice Round.  Its the most challenging of the rounds and its designed that way so that you push past your comfort zones.  I like this a lot.  He talks about paying your dues and this is something that resonates with me quite a bit.  Nothing of value comes without paying your dues.

Brett makes you do a lot of silly things like say the Rev Anthem to test your heart rate and a bunch of other stuff.  I would highly suggest you participate in it, because it makes the program a lot more fun.  This was a very fun program.

And now for the bad news.  If you fail to follow a good nutrition program like I did, you will not get the results you want.  I’ve been involved in a little experiment in which I basically eat how I ate in high school.  Buffets, massive family dinners, beer, ice cream, you name it.  This has added belly fat to my stomach despite my best efforts with the Rev Abs program.

This is a lifestyle choice people.  You can run and lift and play sports all you want, but if you aren’t eating properly and you aren’t resting properly you just won’t see the results.  Somehow, after over a year of six workouts+ a week, I’m a bit of an authority on these home workouts.  I get all of the same questions over and over again..should I do [x], do I need [x], can I see [x]… All I can say is JUST DO IT.  I see people flop at it all the time.  They don’t see immediate results and then they quit.  On the flip side, people who completed the programs look and feel much better than they did before.  I did P90X without actually seeing hardly any results, but I felt stronger. That was convincing enough for me to continue.  Over a year later, my only regret is I didn’t start sooner.  I have been asked when I will stop, and the answer is rather simple.  Never.

Rev Abs is a great program.  If you follow it, push yourself hard and eat right and get your rest, you will see results.  Simple as that.  Take out even one part of that formula and the magic disappears. Get your copy of Rev Abs here.

—————————————————————————————————————–

If you liked this review, you may also like my P90X2, Rip:60, P90X+, Insanity, GSP Rushfit, or RMAX BER reviews