If followed correctly, does this program work? With my type of job (train conductor) I can’t always make it to the gym as I’d like.
Without knowing your fitness level and your goals…through my research I can tell you that this program as well as many others definately has benefits. I am trying to follow it myself (but not following their nutritional plan). My fitness level is really bad and past injuries sure don’t help. This program is tough if followed. With that being said…I enjoy it. It’s almost as if each session is some sort of challenge. If you search P90X you will find some testimonials of members. Good Luck
Also…you can legitamately use bands with this program…very easy to travel with.
I didn’t think it would work before trying it. However, a guy on my department started it and within a couple of weeks I noticed a change in him (he was much bigger). I started it and did two cycles of it. I wouldn’t say I “swear” by it, but it does work. The key to getting results is STICK WITH IT!! I didn’t follow their diet plan but I eat “healthy” as it is. The only difference in my diet was I noticed I was cooking A LOT more chicken. I was hungry often. Good luck!
Work is a very subjective term. Will it improve your conditioning? Probably. Will increase your strength? Maybe. Will you lose fat? What does you diet look like.
It worked for me. You will lose a ton of fat if you follow the program (diet is probably the key). I started at 185 and was down to 168 after 2 months. I play hockey, too and noticed an increase in my stamina and energy on the ice. The diet probably helped, here.
I don’t think there are any secrets to it, though. They work you hard for 1 hr/day 6 days a week and control your diet to healthy food. No beer or pizza is on the list.
Faults I found with it are the legs and chest portion seemed weak compared to what you do for arms and back. I also had to take the routine to the gym as I needed heavier weights for the back and arms exercises than what I had at the house. I didn’t want to invest tons of money in a bunch of dumb bells when I had a gym membership and they had all the weights you could shake a stick at.
I’ll also give a positive review for P90x. I went from 232lbs down to 187lbs… I’ve settled around 194lbs.
I didn’t follow the diet, but I did focus on a high protein / low carb diet.
P90x is tough, just do your best and I’m sure you’ll see some results.
Just a heads up that P90x2 is out, but I would start with the original.
-batsoff
Yes it works.
ANY exercise and diet program will work.
It all comes down to what you enjoy.
If your goal is to lose weight, you don’t need to be a math major: Calories In - Calories out = Net Caloric Intake/Outtake
3,500 calories is a pound. Figure out your daily net number and you can figure out how long it will take to get to your ideal weight.
BTW: I’m a big fan of P90X because the cheese factor of Tony Horton keeps me interested.
I’ve seen countless people post about how p90x helped them lose weight, but I’m on the other side. Before starting p90x, I weighed a measly 135lbs (I’m 5’10") and after completing one round of p90x, I was up to 150lbs. One thing that bothers me is that I see so many people say they don’t bother to follow the nutrition plan. You don’t necessarily have to follow the p90x nutrition plan, but the way you eat is THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTOR, whether your goal is to gain or lose weight. I would say it’s 60% diet and 40% exercise.
Although there are many programs out there that will definitely help, p90x is great in that it’s the closest thing to a personal trainer (with quite a bit of motivation during workouts) that won’t break your bank. Tony will push you through tough workouts and you will see results very quickly. You’ll be VERY sore the first couple weeks, but don’t give up! You will be glad you finished at the end of the program!
You bring a good point in that most people are equate losing weight with losing fat. And that is not true.
You were pretty slight at 5’10" and 135lb. I bet you put on a lot of muscle which weighs more than fat.
Many people that look to programs like P90X want to lose body fat and talk as though losing weight is the same thing.
Instead think in of terms losing fat but being aware that your weight may not drop too much if yo are putting on muscle weight.
I would fall in the same category as batsoff in that I carry too much body and would lose fat if I started a high energy program. For a skinny person on the same program and comparable diet, this would not be the case.
Not only that, but on average it’s 4xs heavier.
Also… WHAT you’re eating may be inline, but HOW you’re eating likely isn’t. Sequencing the intake, getting the proper F/P/C intake ratios at the right times, the timing of your intake ALL is important when creating a proper diet.
Read some of the links I posted earlier in this thread if you haven’t already. You will see significantly better gains if you get this right then if you take supplements.
P90x works if you stick with it. Check out there forum it proves much more information and pictures from actual users.
They recommend that you take their “Fit Test” to see if you should do P90X. They are serious about that!!! Don’t worry if you can’t pass the test they have a less intense version (actually I think it is the original) which is call P90. After I got injured I couldn’t do P90X so I got P90 and did that for a cycle to get my strength back after not being able to do any thing for 4.5 months (had a breath at your own pace and distance profile)
I hit 190 real fast from not doing anything, but after a month and a half I was back down to 170. Just my .02
As with anything else, you get out what you put in. I am a reasonably fit person but decided to try P90X to see what all the hub-bub was about.
You can definitely get a great workout especially if you scale the exercises to fit varying levels of intensity. For example, instead of using 25 lb dumbbells, substitute 35 lb DBs. Instead of pull-ups, do weighted pull-ups or clapping pulls-ups. The hardest part of any “designer” workout is sticking with it as programmed. Between work and family, I have to squeeze workouts in whenever and where ever I can. As with many people, I typically don’t have the luxury of dedicating 45 mins to an hour to work out in front of the television. I take what I can get and run with it, both literally and figuratively.
For any fitness program, a person needs to determine what their goals are first and foremost. A professional football player has a much different set of physical fitness criteria to meet than a gymnast, downhill skier or tactical operator. Do you want to build strength? Speed? Endurance? Do you want or need muscular hypertrophy (muscle mass), muscular endurance or explosive strength? Most people default by saying “I want all of it” and they end up in programs like Crossfit. While I am not a big Crossfit advocate, that’s a program worth exploring as well. Anything will definitely give you noticeable results if you are starting with a relatively low fitness baseline.
Just keep in mind that diet is at least as important as your workout regimen.
For sure,tough to follow.
I’ve done it twice for 2.5 months each time and followed the nutrition plan 99%. I looked completely different after 2 months. YMMV…
I had good results with it at the beginning of last year. It is a tough program but will work if followed. A lot harder than it looks. Diet is definitely the most important part and the hardest for me.
Make sure you get a good set of bands if using it while traveling.
I went from 210lbs to 179 while gaining strength and muscle. I have since gained quite a bit of fat back since letting my diet and workout schedule slip.
Like someone else said check out the beachbody ( company that produces p90x) there are some good before and after pictures.
BTW make sure you do the log to track your progress… It helped my motivation a ton.
Riddle me this for those who are saying it, but how exactly does a pound of fat weigh less than a pound of muscle?
Muscle is a more dense/compact and efficient tissue (that can take up less space in the body depending on development), but it does not weigh more.
Explain a pound of feathers…
A pound is a pound. However a liter of blubber will weigh less than a liter of muscle.
Yes. Liters are a measurement of volume, not weight.