P90X3 Review

Review time!  I am just finishing up 90 days of P90X3, and I have a lot to say!  Mostly because there are A LOT of different workouts in this program, especially if you take advantage of Beachbody On Demand, which allows you to access the Deluxe workouts, a HUGE bonus, as the Complex Lower Body workout is probably my favorite in the whole program.  I chose P90X3 because I loved the original P90X and I loved the idea that these workouts were only 30 minutes.  With my added coaching responsibilities and the intense meal prep I do in the morning, I don't have the time that I used to.  But let me slow down and start from the beginning!

What is P90X3?

P90X3 is truly a total body workout, dare I say even more so than the original P90X (I haven't done P90X2, so I can't comment on that).  While the original P90X spent a long period of time (usual an hour per workout) on weight-lifting for very specific parts of the body (back, shoulders, biceps and legs), most of P90X3's workouts focus more equally on the "four powerpoints of muscle gain and results":  Resistance, Power, Cardio, and Core/Flexibility/Balance.  There are quite a few moves that are cross-over moves, considered appropriate for some or all of the four areas.  The easiest example I can give is the pushup:  it is used in almost every single workout, including X3 Yoga.

Research shows that the most dramatic body transformations happen in the first 30 minutes of a workout, and a lot of Beachboy's newest programs are taking advantage of that.  P90X3 is not different.  There are very few water breaks, the cool down is NOT part of the 30 minutes, and if Tony finishes the program before the 30 minutes are up, he makes you do a bonus round!

How does P90X3 work?

Like most of the Beachbody workouts, P90X3 relies on muscle confusion.  The program comes with 16 (!) different workouts used over the course of a 90 day schedule.  Just when your body becomes used to the workouts, they change and your body is required to do something different and even more challenging.  The schedule has you completing the same weekly schedule for 3 weeks in a row, with a  4th "recovery" week.  For example, here is what the "Classic" schedule looks like:

There are also options for a "Lean" workout schedule, a "Mass" workout schedule, and a "Doubles" workout schedule.

Who is P90X3 for?

Pretty much anyone who is a fan of Tony Horton.  Personally, there's nothing I'd rather hear more at 4:30 in the morning than Tony's cheeseball commentary.  ALSO P90X3 is for people who want an extreme workout, but don't have a lot of time.  You are going to need weights.  For a beginner or someone who has never lifted weights before, 5-15 lbs is probably good.  However, if you want to go hard, especially if you're a man, you are going to need upwards of 30-50 lb weights, especially for the lower body workouts.  You'd be surprised how much your legs can handle.  You'll also need a pull-up bar or a place up high to attach a resistance band.  I did the entire P90X with no pull-up bar and no resistance band and while I still got a good workout, I had to skip A LOT of moves.  One of the videos is only pushups and pull-ups.

Although this isn't advertised, P90X3 (and all the P90Xs) are fantastic for cross training.  The weightlifting builds strength and muscle endurance while the power and cardio workouts build power (shocker!), stability and agility.  Any workout that includes a jump squat IMMEDIATELY improves my hip strength which allows me to run long distances pain-free.  I love it.

What comes with P90X3?

I'm glad you asked.  My favorite thing that comes with P90X3 (other than all the workouts) is the Fitness Guide.  This guide tells you exacts what moves are in every workout and how to do them.  If for some reason you don't have Beachbody On Demand (which has the entire P90X3 program including the Deluxe workouts and is stupid cheap), you can bring the guide with you while you are traveling and workout that way.

Let's talk about the workouts:

Resistance Workouts

Total Synergistics:  A full-body resistance workout featuring compound movements, which utilize multiple muscle groups in every exercise.  With compound movements, the increased force to the body stimulates the body's natural ability to produce performance-enhancing hormones, such as testosterone.  This triggers powerful metabolic changes and is one of the fastest ways to change your body composition.
The Challenge:  You'll be stacking push-ups and pull-ups, two of the most effective upper body exercises.  The result is not only increased muscle size and strength, but stabilization and functionality.
Incinerator:  This workout is designed for muscle fatigue.  If you don't burn out, you won't get the best results.  It is another push-pull routine, but this time, the push-pull moves that follow each other work the exact same muscle group.  So you'll work one muscle group doing either a push or a pull move, and then you'll work the exact same muscle group again doing the opposite exersize.
The Warrior:  This is a total-body workout, free of equipment.  You'll circuit upper- and lower-body resistance with core and cardio work, essentially touching on every area of fitness in one workout.
Eccentric Upper and Lower:  These are classic weightlifting workouts focused on the theory that "time under tension" is the key to inducing muscle growth.  In these workouts, you'll slow down the eccentric (or negative, lengthening) half of each movement.  The eccentric part of a move recruits more muscle cell motor units than the concentric (or positive, shortening) half, resulting in the biggest band for your buck.  These workouts will really pump up your muscles.
*Deluxe* Complex Upper and Lower:  These "complex" workouts focus on efficiency in all areas:  musculoskeletal strength, muscle elasticity, dynamic movement patterns, core functionality, and mobility.  Each workout is comprised of five rounds of four exercises that require a weighted resistance exercise followed by an explosive movement.

Power Workouts:

Agility X:  This is a full-body workout that requires floor targets to dictate movements to focus on precision, power, flexibility, balance, and strength.  As opposed to traditional cardio workouts, these targeted movements force explosion, deceleration, and proprioceptive adaptations, the sum result being an increased ability to move effortlessly for extended periods of time.
Triometrics:  My favorite!  Why?  It is the perfect cross-training exercise for running.  It's plyometrics, or "jump training", which are explosive moves that are highly effective at training muscular efficiency or power.  However, with Triometics, each move has three levels, and they are not all focused on jumping.  Some moves focus on stability, some focus on the landing.  Each of the three levels of every moves increase your range of motion, your stability, and your strength and power.
Decelerator:  Decelerator focuses on the landing, not the jumping, because studies have shown that most athletic injuries occur on landing, not takeoff.  You'll use strategic angles to force loads on different parts of you body, which allows you to increase your ability to stabilize and protect muscles, connective tissues, and joints.

Cardio Workouts:

CVX:  This is an interval cardio workout done entirely with a weight.  Each group of three moves is done twice, and the second time is always focused on speed.  Combining both resistance with intervals increases the impact across every energy system.
MMX:  My other favorite!  This is a Mixed Martial Arts routine that combines karate, keno, jiu-jitsu, judo, and tae kwon do.  The moves will not only give you a cardiovascular workout, but you'll be taxing your upper-body strength, core power, leg endurance and flexibility.
Accelerator:  This cardio workout has you exercising at two different speeds, which allows you to increase your cardiovascular and muscular efficiency.  It also eliminates downtime associated with power-based workouts, while maximizing the consistency of traditional aerobic workouts.

Core/Flexibility/Balance Workouts:

X3 Yoga:  X3 Yoga improves your musculoskeletal flexibility, balance, stamina, body awareness, and core strength.  Improving in these areas allow you to recover faster, get less injuries and even build stronger muscles.
Pilates X:  Pilates focuses on controlling the body through its core while centering on breathing and balance.  Pilates X takes this philosophy to build core strength and muscle elasticity, stabilize the joints, and create a solid human platform to perform any activity in life.
Isometrix:  Isometrix means every "move" is actually a position that you hold for 45 seconds (isometric contraction).  Adding instability to the mix requires your body to fire its stabilization muscles.  When training these two simultaneously, you create an unshakable platform to work off, heightening the affects of movement training that you'll target in other workouts.
Dynamix:  Dynamix is stretching with constant movement. The moves allow you to actively increase range of motion, flexibility and stabilization.  These systems are your keys to free and easy moment with daily activity and other exercise.
*Deluxe* Ab Ribber X3:  This 15-minute workout focuses on all areas of your abdominals:  your rectus abdominus, transverse abdominus and internal and external obliques.


Lucky for you, the P90X3 Challenge Pack is on sale this month.  As with all Challenge Packs, you receive a month of Shakeology (worth $130) and the entire P90X3 program (worth $120) for a total of $180 (originally $205).  Now is the perfect time to talk to me about ordering, because my next Challenge Group starts on Monday, May 4 (May the Fourth Be With You, har har).  I feel very comfortable talking about P90X3 and supporting you through the program.

You have two great options.  If you are 100% sure P90X3 is right for you, you can order here.  However, if you'd like to talk to me about your options or even getting a FREE ONE MONTH TRIAL of P90X3 (or a variety of other workouts) fill out my Challenge Group Application below and I will contact you!

And if you REALLY want to get pumped up, check out the infomercial!

PiYo Review

I love running.  I love weightlifting.  And last July, I learned that I really loved PiYo.  If you have ever talked to me about working out, you've probably heard me call PiYo my "soul workout".  PiYo saved my life and my body.  Last June when I had knee surgery, I was at the end of my rope.  I hadn't run for five months... or really done any kind of strenuous exercise.  My husband wasn't working and I was stressed and depressed.  My cousin-in-law had been gently baiting me with both the anticipation of PiYo's release and the possibility of coaching for months.  Even still, when I signed up to be a coach with PiYo on the day it was released, one day after my knee surgery, I not only felt like I was jumping the gun, I was not super hopeful that it would do anything major for me.  Best case scenario, it would be exercise that I could easily and safely do while I was rehabbing my knee.

Not to sound pompous, but I am hardly ever wrong... and I was very wrong about this.

Here is my review of PiYo including answers to the most frequently asked questions, along with explanations of each of the workouts.  If you have any additional questions, don't hesitate to ask in the comments or send me an email or private message!

What is PiYo?
PiYo is a low-impact, high-intensity workout that combines the flexibility and power of yoga with the  core-focused strength-building of Pilates.  However, I tend to think this definition does not do it justice, and in fact, can be misleading.  For cardio and strength-training junkies like me, they hear the word "yoga" and go running for the hills.  "Yoga is boring" is what I often hear from them (and frankly, from myself).  For yogis and people who find their meditation and peace from practicing yoga, they go into PiYo expecting the same.  The thing I think I want to stress the most about PiYo is that PiYo is HIGH-INTENSITY.  You will move.  You will sweat.  Your muscles will scream.  It is not boring and it is not meditative.  It is for people with an open mind for an unexpected way to exercise and transform their bodies.

Why is PiYo effective?
Every movement in PiYo engages the core muscles.  A weak and inflexible core minimizes your ability to properly and effectively use the rest of your body during the workouts and in your everyday life.  Every movement in PiYo also engages multiple muscle groups at the same time while in constant motion.  This not only mimics the functional movements of the real world, but keeps your heart rate up to ensure that you are burning calories the whole time!

We've all heard of the benefits of stretching.  The dynamic stretching in PiYo is effective in many of the same ways as static stretching.  Stretching and flexibility can improve the range of motion of your joints, allowing your muscles to work most effectively.  Because stretching lengthens your muscles and supplies blood flow, it increases your ability to build muscle and recover from muscle fatigue.

Who is PiYo for?
This is actually great because unlike many Beachbody programs, PiYo is literally for everyone!

• For men and women who want to lose weight-- The high-intensity moves that require the use of multiple muscle groups at one time keep your heart-rate at the optimal level for calorie burning!
• For people who want to build lean muscle-- PiYo uses your own body weight as the primary source of resistance... no weights required!
• For fitness beginners-- There is no complicated choreography to learn.  There is a modifier in every workout for every move.  Chalene is VERY vocal when it comes to explaining all the movements and when they happen.  Even in moves where you are not looking at the TV, you understand what she is asking you to do and how to do it.
• Extreme fitness enthusiasts-- PiYo is constant, often athletic movements that require muscle endurance, flexibility and core strength that even the most fit men and women may lack.
• People who want the results of an extreme program, without jumping, weights, or straining their joints--  PiYo has no jumping and no weightlifting.  Even two weeks after my surgery, I was able to complete the program following the modifier.  After four weeks of PiYo (six weeks post surgery), I saw NOTICEABLE changes in my body, despite modifying.
• People who don't have a lot of room and don't want a workout that requires a lot of equipment-- All that is recommended for PiYo is a yoga mat!

What do I get with PiYo?
Your PiYo program will come with a Quick Start Guide that will explain how to maximize your results, two 60-day PiYo workout calendars for either PiYo or PiYo Strength (PiYo Strength DVDs sold separately), the Get Lean Eating Plan with clean eating meal suggestions specifically tailored to the PiYo program, and a tape measure to take your body measurements in order to track your progress and get your free t-shirt upon completion of the program!  And of course, your program also comes with the following workouts:

Align:
Get the basics on the moves you will see in all the workouts.  Chalene will explain the movements and positions to you, show you the proper form, and give you the opportunity to become comfortable with everything in a relaxed setting.

Define Upper Body (20 min):
This basic workout includes all the moves that you will see throughout the program that really focus on your arms, upper back and core.

Define Lower Body (20 min):
This basic workout is another stepping stone to the more challenging workouts in the program.  It includes all the moves that you will see throughout the program that really focus on your glutes, hamstrings, and core.

Sweat (38 min):
This is a transitional PiYo workout that takes you through moves that work every part of your body.

Buns (28 min):
This workout really targets your glutes and hamstrings to tighten and strengthen the lower part of your body.  It's leg day!

Core (30 min):
Core incorporates both standing and floor moves that target your lower, middle and upper abs AND obliques with very little actual crunches!

Strength Intervals (22 min):
This workout is non-stop for the entire 22 minutes.  It alternates between intense body weight resistance moves and heart-rate elevating athletic cardio to give you a well-rounded workout!

Sculpt (27 min):
Sculpt is all about muscle endurance.  It uses body weight moves you've seen before, but constantly varies the tempo to challenge your strength and your balance.

Drench (47 min):
By far the most comprehensive and challenging PiYo workout in the program.  Drench consists of two parts.  The first part is the body weight, high-intensity moves featured throughout most of the workouts.  Flow, the second section, focuses on stretching and balance.

BONUS Hard Core on the Floor (30 min):
If and only if you order through your coach (me), you'll receive this amazing core workout that--you guessed it-- includes only floor work.  However, say goodbye to boring crunches, because you won't see any of those here!

Don't even get me started on the PiYo Strength DVDs!  Those are for another, shorter blog post day!  If you want to get hyped up about PiYo, you can watch the PiYo Launch Promo!

Now that you know absolutely everything there is to know about my favorite program PiYo, what are you waiting for?  I have Challenge Groups starting the first Monday of every month and along with Shakeology and a diet of clean eating, I can guarentee success!

Why am I not losing weight? Don't blame the fat fairy.

I want to take a moment to be real with you, and also encourage you (it is Motivational Monday, after all)

The other coaches on my team and I often talk about how to encourage our Challengers and people in general who feel discouraged during the first few weeks of their programs. When the numbers on the scale don't drop rapidly, they figure their new healthy lifestyles weren't working. We're all so busy, so if something is not working, why make the time for it?

There are a few things I want you to consider if you feel like this is you. 

1.  First and foremost, think about this: it probably took a while, maybe even years, for you to get to this point, the point where you feel like you need to lose a few pounds. This happened because life happened. This is normal! However, the exercise and nutrition changes you started making a few weeks ago need to become lifestyle changes. I promise it’s not going to take the same amount of time to lose the weight as it did to gain the weight, but to do it in a healthy, permanent way, it’s going to take some time.

2.  Second, you are putting your body through a new rigorous routine and believe it or not, there's going to be some swelling and water retention until your body regulates.  Why does this happen?  When your body starts a brand new exercise program, you use your muscles in new ways.  Microscopic tears in your muscles during these exercises cause the muscle soreness you experience.  In order to "protect and defect" your body from future muscle tears (essentially making your muscles stronger so you can continue to improve with that exercise), your muscles become swollen and inflamed and therefore retain water.  Once your muscles and your body become used to your new exercise routine, the muscle inflammation will decrease and so will your weight.

3.  Another big difference especially for those who have never worked out like this before OR were not eating what they should have (let’s face it, in college I might have been 10 pounds lighter but I was eating a soft pretzel and chocolate pudding every day for lunch), your body didn’t have the muscle that you are currently building. So when we are focused on the number on the scale, we might not realize that there is actually less flab around our bodies to pinch. THIS is the goal!

This is your EXTRA CHALLENGE for this week: no matter what program you are doing or what week you are on, if you are feeling discouraged, take your measurements and your pictures again, but do not get on the scale. Finally, take a good, hard look at what you are eating. Are you eating things you shouldn’t? Calorie counting is a great idea, but it’s not going to work if those calories include Cheetos and Gatorade and bagels. It was a tough slap in the face for me too, but the results have been undeniable.