Fitness Destinations » Insanity

FitnessDTV Effective Exercises – Squat Jacks

Aaron Potts — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 15:06:31 +0000

In this edition of FitnessDTV we are talking about effective exercises, in particular, the Squat Jack movement from the Insanity 60-Day Total Body Conditioning Program.

Squat Jacks are a great movement because they are an effective exercise, but at the same time they can be modified as much as needed in order to still be an effective exercise even for someone whose level of fitness or flexibility is not yet where they want it to be.

As with all Insanity movements, this exercise uses no equipment whatsoever, so it can be done anywhere.

Click here for a direct link to this video on YouTube.

Click on through to learn more about the incredible Insanity 60-Day Total Body Conditioning Program. Insanity consists completely of body weight exercises, so you can do it anywhere, and you do not need any equipment at all.

© Aaron Potts - visit Fitness Destinations for more great information about weight loss, health, and overall fitness!
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FitnessDTV Effective Exercises – Push up Jacks

Aaron Potts — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 12:47:48 +0000

In this edition of FitnessDTV, we are talking about Effective Exercises – in particular, the Push Up Jack movement that is part of the Insanity 60-Day Total Body Conditioning Program.

This movement is a great upper body exercise, it doubles as a core exercise, and it also increases your neuro-muscular coordination, which in turn improves your balance and agility, while also keeping your brain sharp.

As with all push up movements, try to go down as far as you can, getting your upper arms parallel to the ground or lower.

FitnessDTV Effective Exercises – Level 1 Drills

Aaron Potts — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 22:03:03 +0000

In this edition of FitnessDTV, the effective exercise we are demonstrating is called Level 1 Drills, and it is from the Insanity 60-Day Total Body Conditioning Program .

Level 1 Drills are a multi-stage movement that include upper body work, core work, and cardiovascular conditioning. As always, proper form is key to getting the most out of the movement. Even if you are really tired – and you WILL be during Insanity – do your best to get the most out of the movement by keeping your form as much as possible.

Military Might and Muscle compliments of Team Beachbody

Aaron Potts — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 14:43:52 +0000

I am 40-years old and I just SMOKED my entire Air Force Squadron in our annual physical fitness test, and I did it by getting in shape with Beachbody’s home fitness programs. I never set foot in a gym, and I didn’t spend thousands of dollars on fancy exercise equipment.

I stepped in front of my TV 5 or 6 days a week, I pushed Play on my DVD player, and the end result of my efforts is that I did better on the United States Air Force physical fitness test than every single person in my entire Squadron. Most of them are 10 to 15 years younger than me, too!

The only person who beat me on any of the events was a stellar young Airmen in his early 20′s, and he ran the 1 1/2 miles in 10 min and 5 seconds. I was right behind him coming in at 10 min and 25 seconds.

Yes, that is a 1 1/2 mile run in just over 10 minutes without a gym membership, and without a home treadmill or other cardio equipment. My exercise equipment is a set of dumbbells, a DVD player, and a water bottle.

My Final Scores on the Air Force Physical Fitness Test:

Number of push ups done in 1 minute: 62

Number of crunches done in 1 minute: 54

Time on the 1 1/2 mile run: 10 minutes and 25 seconds

Waist Circumference: 31.5 inches

Is your gym membership, your thousand-dollar treadmill, or the “miraculous” exercise device you bought from a late-night infomercial getting you those kind of results??

I am a Beachbody Coach, and I don’t use and recommend the Beachbody home workout programs because that’s my job – I recommend them because THEY WORK!

You buy the programs, you do your workouts at home, you get a free Fitness Coach to help you through the process, and you get RESULTS. It’s just that simple.

If you want fitness and weight loss results (or if you just want the satisfaction of showing up an entire squadron of young pups!), then click on through to check out P90X, Insanity, or RevABS. Those are the programs that I used, and at 40-years old I am in better shape than I have ever been, and my future is brighter than it has ever been as a result!

Insanity Before and After Pictures and Fit Test Results

Aaron Potts — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:41:55 +0000

Wow…I can’t believe it’s finally done! My wife Shanna and I just did our last Insanity workout, and we are officially done with the 60-day program. It was awesome!

Yes, I mean awesome in a “Wow, that is probably the hardest thing that I’ve ever done” kind of way, but awesome nonetheless!

See, that’s the thing with the home workout programs that Beachbody produces – they make you work hard! There is no such thing as a quick fix when it comes to attaining a high level of fitness, or in losing that extra bodyfat. If you want results, ya gotta do the work!

Work is exactly what Shanna and I have been doing for the past 60 days straight, and the results speak for themselves. Check out the Insanity before and after pictures below, and be sure to see the staggering Fit Test results as well.

Not only did we lose a bunch of bodyfat, but we are both in drastically better physical condition than we were when we first started the program. I most definitely recommend that you check out Insanity for yourself, and Shanna and I are both Beachbody Coaches, so we’d be happy to help you every step of the way – no charge!

Also, now that we have jacked up our cardiovascular and muscular endurance to previously unheard of levels, we are going to start a 2nd round of P90X.

Insanity Before and After Pictures Shanna
Click each picture to open a larger version in a new window

Insanity Before and After Pictures Aaron
Click each picture to open a larger version in a new window

Insanity Fit Test Results

Insanity Fit Test Exercise Definitions:

Switch Kicks – standing up straight and alternately kicking each leg out in front as high as you can.
Squat Jacks – jumping jacks, only in Squat Jacks you go down into a full squat at the end of every repetition.
Power Knees – standing up straight with your hands interlaced overhead, and then bringing 1 knee up at an angle across your body as many times as you can.
Power Jumps – down into a full squat and then leaping up into the air as far as you can.
Globe Jumps – one hop back, one hop to the right, one hop forward, and one hop to the left equals 1 repetition.
Suicide Jumps - from a standing position down into a plank position, then back to standing and then leap straight into the air.
Push Up Jacks – regular push ups, only you spread your feet wide apart and then bring them back together on every single repetition
Low Plank Obliques – from a plank position, keep your upper body totally still while alternatively bringing each knee up as close to your shoulders as possible.

Insanity Fit Test Results Shanna

MOVE	DAY 1	Day 60
Switch Kicks	72	150
Squat Jacks	30	66
Power Knees	60	116
Power Jumps	22	56
Globe Jumps	7	12
Suicide Jumps	12	22
Push Up Jacks	16	50
Low Plank Obliques	28	75

Insanity Fit Test Results Aaron

MOVE	DAY 1	Day 60
Switch Kicks	110	145
Squat Jacks	31	69
Power Knees	49	94
Power Jumps	25	41
Globe Jumps	6	13
Suicide Jumps	11	19
Push Up Jacks	22	42
Low Plank Obliques	28	67

As you can see in Shanna’s case as well as my own, most of the Fit Test results were as much as TWICE what we started with, and often times even more than that. I can’t emphasize enough how much your cardiovascular and muscular endurance gets enhanced by doing Insanity!

Conclusion

What can I say? Insanity rocks! It’s hard, and it will push you up to and then over any limits that you previously had, but that’s okay, because that is where the results are!

Shanna and I learned a lot about how to get the most out of the program, and we would be happy to share that information with anyone who is interested in getting some great results from Insanity.

If we would have known at the beginning what we know now, our results would have been even better than the great results that you just saw and read about.

If we do Insanity again in the future, we will certainly apply what we learned, and in the meantime, we are going to do P90X instead! We kick off on November 16th, so if you want to come along with us and get some GREAT results, we’d love to give you some free help along the way.

Grab your own copy of Insanity, or check out the P90X page for more info on that awesome program. Either way, ACT NOW to make the coming year your best health and fitness year ever!

Review of Insanity – Max Interval Plyo

Aaron Potts — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:37:49 +0000

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Insanity Before and After Pictures and Fit Test Results

In this on-going review of Insanity blog series, the truth behind the Insanity 60-day weight loss program is revealed with a play-by-play description of what the program is really like – and more importantly – if Insanity really works!

The Insanity Max Interval Plyo workout is a combination of hardcore cardiovascular training, resistance exercises, and, of course, plyometrics. Done properly, this workout hits you hard, and it keeps you directly on track for great results.

Insanity – Max Interval PlyoThe Max Interval Plyo routine is made up of two full interval sets, as well as one final set at the end of the workout that is shorter than the other two sets. Considering the raw intensity and challenge-level of the exercises in the first two interval sets, however, having that shorter set at the end of the workout does not in ANY way detract from the effectiveness of this routine.

Circuit #1

Each of the first two interval circuits in the Max Interval Plyo video contain 4 exercises that are done for 45 seconds each without a break, and then you get a 30-second break after doing all 4 exercises back to back. That 4 exercise/30-second break series is repeated three times during the circuit, and then a “bonus” exercise follows the third series, and it is done for 1 minute.

In the first circuit, you use your legs – especially your quadriceps (top of the legs) – during every single exercise. Most of the exercises include at least a squatting movement of some kind, if not a leap into the air as well.

If you’ve never done that type of plyometric training, the bottom line is that it is REALLY intense, it cranks your heart rate up quickly, and then keeps it there. That type of intensity really gets the job done when it comes to weight loss and cardiovascular fitness, however, so it is worth the effort.

Circuit #2

The consistently high heart rate continues during the second circuit, although the upper body is hit quite a bit harder in Circuit #2 than in Circuit #1. There are two push up exercises in Circuit #2 that will push the limits on anyone’s ability to keep going, even if they are really good at push ups.

Again, however, don’t let the intensity of it all scare you off. The RESULTS that people are looking for from Insanity come because of these types of high-tempo, high-intensity exercises. No one loses weight by kicking back and doing workouts that don’t challenge whatever their personal level of fitness is.

However, that being said, even during a program as challenging as Insanity, the responsibility to exercise at a proper level of intensity falls to each individual person. Anyone is capable of over-doing it or under-doing it, regardless of what the people in the exercise video are doing.

Get with your Beachbody Coach for some free advice if you’re not sure what to do.

Circuit #3

The final circuit in the Max Interval Plyo workout is a combination of 4 exercises that you only do one time. There are 2 exercises that are more geared towards muscular training, and 2 that are primarily going to keep your heart rate up in the fat-burning zone.

One cool thing about this circuit is that the first exercise is going to be brand-new to most people, so Shaun T takes a full minute or so to explain it. During that time you get to catch your breath, which – up to this point – you haven’t been able to do during the entire workout!

Conclusion

The Max Interval Plyo workout is basically “intensity personified”. It’s hard, it’s intense, and it pulls no punches. You are expected to work hard, and the layout of the routine gives you plenty of opportunity to put your money where you mouth is if you think you are in pretty good shape.

As with all of the Insanity workouts, you could slack off if you really wanted to, and no one would know but you. On the other hand, you could DIG DEEPER, as Shaun T is fond of saying, and you will see some amazing weight loss and physical fitness results.

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Review of Insanity – Max Cardio Conditioning

Aaron Potts — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:18:19 +0000

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Insanity Before and After Pictures and Fit Test Results

The Insanity Max Cardio Conditioning video is an awesome cardiovascular workout, with plenty of weight loss potential, and it really gives you the chance to both realize and extend the limits of your present level of physical fitness. The Insanity 60-day weight loss program is primarily a cardiovascular program overall, although it includes plenty of muscle building movements as well.

The Difference

Insanity – Max Cardio ConditioningThe difference between the cardio conditioning workouts and the other Insanity videos is primarily that all of the exercises are done back to back with very little rest in between. In the circuit training workouts, several exercises are done, a brief rest is given, and then the exercise session continues.

The Max Cardio Conditioning routine starts out with a full 11-minute warm up followed by a 5-minute stretch before diving into the rest of the workout. Take advantage of the warm up and the stretch, because once the stretch routine is done, it is NON-STOP work for the entire rest of this video!

The Exercises

There are a total of 21 different exercises that are included in the workout portion of the Max Cardio Conditioning routine, and all of them are done for a full 1 minute. During the Insanity circuit training videos, most of the exercises are only done for 45 seconds, so the additional 15 seconds per exercise in this video immediately cranks up the intensity.

In addition, there are several exercises that are done first on one side of the body, then on the other. This adds the benefit of not only having more total time spent burning through bodyfat, but the one-sided movements also help you to improve your balance and agility, even while you are extremely fatigued from the other exercises.

The hardest part about the Max Cardio Conditioning workout is not getting any real breaks to speak of once the warm up and stretching part of the video is done. The Insanity exercises are hard – that is beyond debate. They get your heart rate up, and you sweat profusely. It can be a challenge during this workout to keep on going without being able to take 30 seconds to wipe the sweat off your face, and to get a drink.

On the other hand, not taking a break is one of the reasons why the Max Cardio Conditioning workout is so effective for weight loss and increased physical fitness. If you took a break every few minutes, you wouldn’t get nearly as much out of it.

The best way to deal with the non-stop action during this workout is to simply grab a quick break whenever you truly need one, just as the video advises you to do. Don’t milk it, though! Grab a drink, wipe the sweat off, and then get back to work quickly.

Conclusion

The Max Cardio Conditioning routine is a very effective part of the overall Insanity program. It is challenging, it burns a lot of calories, and it enhances your fitness level and cardiovascular endurance, which means that you’ll be able to work harder, and ultimately see more weight loss.

In addition, the format of the workout is quite a bit different than the format of most of the other Insanity videos, and the break from the “norm” is a nice change of pace, but without sacrificing results in the process.

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Review of Insanity – Max Interval Circuit

Aaron Potts — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:42:31 +0000

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Insanity Before and After Pictures and Fit Test Results

The Insanity Max Interval Circuit workout is one of the hardest routines during Month 2 of the Insanity 60-day program, and considering that ALL of the workouts are hard, that is saying something!

Insanity Max Interval CircuitThe Max Interval Circuit routine is a full 60 minutes long, where most of the other Month 2 workouts are between 45 and 55 minutes. During those 60 minutes there are 3 complete circuits, each with 4 exercises. All 4 exercises are done, a 30-second break is taken, then all 4 exercises are done again, another 30-second break, and then you do all 4 exercises one more time before moving on to the next circuit.

The secret to the success of that type of circuit training is that you never actually get to catch your breath. Yes, you get a 30-second break in between each set of 4 exercises, but the intensity of the exercises means that in 30 seconds you aren’t even close to being fully rested. That is, of course, the entire philosophy behind the Insanity workout program as a whole – they call it “reverse interval training” and it certainly gets the job done!

Circuit #1

Each of the 3 circuits in the Max Interval Circuit routine is approximately 13 minutes long, taking into consideration 45 seconds for each exercise, a 30-second break after each set of 4 exercises, a one-off exercise that you do for 1 minute at the end of the circuit, and then a 30-second break.

The first circuit in this video seriously makes you wonder if you are even going to make it through 2 more complete circuits! Every single exercise uses your upper body AND your lower body, and even though the 11-minute warm up at the beginning of the video left you sweaty, that was nothing compared to how drenched you’ll be at the end of Circuit #1.

Example Exercise: Ski Abs/Push up Jacks/In and Out Abs/Oblique Push ups. No, those are NOT 4 different exercises! All 4 of those movements are done back to back with no rest and count as ONE of the four exercises that are included in Circuit #1.

Circuit #2

The second circuit is hard, but not quite as hard as Circuit #1. Your upper body is not pushed to the limit as much as it was in the earlier circuit, although it is still a part of every movement in Circuit #2. It is for the best, however, that the second circuit gives you a bit of a break (relatively speaking!), because Circuit #3 is every bit as challenging as Circuit #1 was.

Example Exercise: Floor Switch Kicks – much like the switch kicks that you do during the Fit Test, only you brace your body on the floor with your arms.

Circuit #3

This circuit starts out hard with a very challenging jumping movement, and it never gets easy after that. However, that being said, since this is the final circuit in the workout, you should really kick it into high gear and give it everything that you’ve got. The circuit is over in 13 minutes, so even if you feel like you can’t go on, do it anyway, and punch it through to the end - you’ll be glad that you did!

Example Exercise: Side Suicide Jumps – picture squatting down and then jumping as high as you can into the air over and over again for 45 seconds straight. Then add to that picture doing it all while twisting your upper body a good 30-degrees away from your lower body. Yeah – it hurts so good!

Cool Down and Stretch

As with all Insanity workouts, Shaun T and the gang cool down and stretch out for 3 or 4 minutes at the end. After this particular workout, the picture below says it all. The people in the video are laying around like a bomb went off because they are too exhausted to even get off the floor! What’s funny is that the screen tip says “Don’t Stop Moving”…

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Review of Insanity – Max Recovery

Aaron Potts — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 23:02:32 +0000

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Insanity Before and After Pictures and Fit Test Results

The Max Recovery workout – much like the Cardio Recovery workout – is intended to give your cardiovascular system a much-needed and well-deserved break, while still making good use of your daily exercise time to support your weight loss efforts. The workout is 47 minutes long, and includes 5 separate exercise segments, as well as the standard warm up and cool down portions.

Workout #1

Insanity Max RecoveryThe first workout on the Max Recovery DVD is also the longest – taking about 14 minutes. There are several spine and hamstring exercises for strengthening and injury prevention, and after that, this workout picks up steam pretty quick.

There are 3 sets of “military style” push ups (arms close to body/elbows back), and all 3 sets are done on a slow 4-count on the way down and on the way up. The push up segment is a serious challenge, especially during the final set.

There is also a butt lift/lunge combination that works the legs pretty well, and that is followed by a torso twist exercise that seriously challenges and grows the muscular endurance of your legs.

Workout #2

The next segment is 7 minutes long and despite all of the push up work in the first segment, there are even more push ups in Workout #2! In addition to the push ups, there are several movements done from the high or low plank position, including an exercise for the obliques (side of the abdominal wall).

At first this part of the video doesn’t seem very challenging, but most of the exercises are done for at least 8 to 16 repetitions on each side, and that actually becomes quite the challenge by the end of the segment.

Workout #3

This segment of the Max Recovery workout is – in a word – HARD! It is only one series of movements that last approximately 7 minutes, but you stay in roughly the same low plie squat position the entire time.

Once in the low plie squat, you do pulsing and twisting exercises to each side of your body, alternating with both feet on the ground, one heel off the ground, and both heels off the ground.

7 minutes is a LONG time to be in a squat position, and by the end of this segment, the word “relief” is not quite strong enough to cover how good it feels to be done!

Workout #4

This part of the workout gives your legs an almost total rest after the beating that they took in Workout #3, but now your arms and shoulders get hammered for the entire 6-minute segment.

During this segment, you alternate back and forth from low plank to high plank (low push up position to high push up position). Doing so does not sound that hard, and at first, it isn’t. However, all repetitions are started on one side for 16, 8, and then 4 repetitions, before repeating that sequence starting on the other side.

By the end of the 6 minutes, your shoulders are on fire, and your primary goal is to try not to face-plant on the floor if your arms give out before the segment finally ends!

Workout #5

This part of the video is simple by comparison to the rest of the Max Recovery workout, and it consists of only two abdominal exercises: Elbow-to-Knee and The Hammer, and it only lasts 3 minutes.

Elbow-to-Knee is just a side movement where you bring your knee up to your side to meet your elbow, working the side abdominal muscles. The Hammer is a movement where you start with your arms over your head and then bring them down on either side of your legs, which you kick up to hip level, alternating sides.

Cool down and Stretch

The cool down and stretch portion of this workout is 3 minutes long, and after the relatively easy 3-minutes during Workout #5, by the end of this video, you have cooled down for the most part, and your heart rate has dropped almost back to normal.

Overall, the Max Recovery workout does exactly what it is supposed to do, which is help you to recover from the intense cardiovascular workouts in the other videos. However, at the same time it helps you build your muscular strength and endurance, both of which are important to your overall weight loss and fitness efforts.

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Review of Insanity – Core Cardio and Balance

Aaron Potts — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:43:33 +0000

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Insanity Before and After Pictures and Fit Test Results

The Core Cardio and Balance workout is done during the “recovery” week of the Insanity 60-day program, which is actually Week 5 of the series. This DVD is meant to give you a decent workout during the recovery week so you don’t lose any ground after the first month of Insanity. There is a clear difference between the Month 1 Insanity workouts and the Month 2 workouts, and the Core Cardio and Balance series is used to help you recover from Month 1, while preparing for Month 2.

Insanity Core Cardio and BalanceThe Core Cardio and Balance routine is only 37 minutes long, so at face value it seems like it is going to be an easy workout, especially compared to the more intense Month 1 workouts that I have reviewed in this Review of Insanity series.

Warm-up

As with all Insanity workouts, this DVD starts out with exercises to get your heart rate and your core body temperature up in preparation for the workout. The warm-up during the Core Cardio and Balance routine is about 7 minutes long and includes some fun exercises that aren’t normally seen in the Insanity warm ups.

The length of each exercise during the warm up is a full minute, so your heart rate does indeed get elevated within just the first few exercises. Some of the unique movements include football shuffles and over the log hops, as well as some 2-exercise combination movements such as high knees/power jacks and fast feet/alternating hook punches.

Stretch Routine

The warm up is followed by a short stretching routine before jumping into the rest of the workout. The stretching routine is about 5 minutes long and includes mostly standard stretching and balance movements that were seen during Month 1 of Insanity.

Primary Workout

The main portion of the Core Cardio and Balance routine is about 16 minutes long, and flows quickly from one exercise to the next. Some of the exercises are more challenging than others, and as is always the case with Insanity exercises, you can modify the way that you do any given exercise in order to make it more or less difficult based on your present abilities.

Keep in mind, however, that by this point in the 60-day Insanity workout program, your cardiovascular and your muscular endurance should both be significantly higher than they were at the beginning. If you are not yet noticing both the weight loss and the physical fitness benefits of the program, then you are doing something wrong. Get with a Beachbody Coach from some free advice on how to get things on track.

During the primary workout portion of the Core Cardio and Balance routine, you are encouraged to take it somewhat easy since you are supposed to be in a recovery mode. However, at the same time you should listen to your body and recognize the difference between an acceptable recovery intensity level vs. simply slacking off.

Hip Flexor Burners and Oblique Movements

During the next 6 minutes of the workout things get a bit more challenging for a few minutes before cooling down with some fairly easy abdominal movements.

The “hip flexor burners” are a series of 3 exercises all done while standing on one leg while exercising the opposite leg. Each movement is 30 seconds long, and once you start the 2nd movement, you can’t put the working leg back on the floor until the 3-exercise series is done. It’s a challenge, but it feels great afterward.

The oblique exercise portion of this segment is a simple knee-t0-elbow movement that is a good exercise, although not terribly difficult. Your body gets a break during that portion so your heart rate can drop in preparation for the next segment.

Shoulder Burners

This segment of the Core Cardio and Balance routine will be the hardest part for most people. It is a series of five consecutive shoulder exercises, all done back to back while in the plie squat position.

It seems easy as you start out, but this segment really focuses on muscular endurance, and each movement targets the same muscles over and over, just from a different angle. At 30 seconds each movement, your arms are at or above shoulder level for almost 3 full minutes by the time you finally get to shake it out. It burns, but that’s where the results come from!

Cool Down and Stretch

The final 3 minutes or so are spent stretching out all of the muscles that were worked during the exercise routine, and letting your heart rate return to normal.

By the end of the workout, you feel accomplished, because it wasn’t a simple workout, but at the same time you don’t feel like you are about to pass out, as is often the case with the other Insanity DVD’s!

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