Like I said, sometimes you're better off just taking a day to rest and limiting your calorie intake, especially if your goal is partially or entirely weight loss. More seems like it would be better, but it isn't, it just hurts your recovery. Plyo will beat your ass, and if you're doing chest/back, arms/shoulders, legs/back at max effort, those are going to make you sore too. Core work thrown in (Ab Ripper X or whatever) 3/4 of those days is going to help.

If you're doing those 4x a week, you don't need extra cardio, the fat loss will come from diet. If you want to do P90x I'd recommend sticking with those workouts and eating right at calorie maintenance with 1g protein per pound of bodyweight, and on your rest days, eat 20% below your calorie maintenance needs, still doing 1g protein per pound. Remember that fat loss is 90% diet. The program is going to elevate metabolism somewhat, but not enough to make up for that cook out tray you wolfed down at 4 AM.

P90x is okay because you don't have to go to the gym, and you really can't go wrong with push ups, pull ups, and isolation movements. You're probably not going to get ripped but you'll build a pretty decent base of fitness, at which point you can decide which direction you want to go. For me that was barbell training.

3/5/2012 6:52:40 PM

Any runners try the yoga? I've got some tightness and weird aches that I can't stretch/roller out :/

3/6/2012 9:31:23 AM

Did half the Yoga this morning....not a fan. So I just finished up with the Stretch X instead. I can definitely tell I am making progress, even though it is only my 4th day. Definitely less sore this today, and I have tons of energy.

3/7/2012 12:11:18 PM

You gotta finish the Yoga. The first half is the hardest part. After about 45 minutes, it really slows down.

3/7/2012 1:16:58 PM

Quote :

"Personally, I wouldn't bother with the yoga/kenpo. Yes, it's hard, but you're better served by using that as a rest day and watching your calorie intake. Take what you can get from the pull ups/push ups/core workouts/plyo and try to improve weights/reps in those areas. If you complete the 90 days you'll be in a good position to move onto some better programs. "

Absolutely not. Take these out and your only working out 4 hours a week. If you have to take a day off during the week, these are prob the two to miss, IMO, but do not skip these if you dont have too. Kempo burns calories and uses muscles in your back you dont even know you have as well as works on balace and explosiveness. Yoga is all about balance, flexability, and controling posture using your entire body. If you dont get something out of these workouts, then your intesnsity level is just not where it should be and you need to up your game. For example, on Kenpo, I normally do max out punch reps and kicks at the end as well as ~10 additionals on each exercise during the program.

In terms of muscle confusion, these two are needed to complement the strength training or other cardio you might be getting. I skipped both of these alot during my first go around with P90x, but my second time, I've been hitting them and really see the improvements. If you can only do half of the yoga, do the first half...I dont get much out of the second half (flexability part) but the vinyassa stuff is necessary.

3/7/2012 1:32:54 PM

Quote :

"Take these out and your only working out 4 hours a week."

There's absolutely nothing wrong with that. More is not always better. If you're working hard 4 days a week, your muscles need time to recover. If your goal is fat loss (it usually is), at some point you need to be running a calorie deficit. The best time to run a calorie deficit is on a day where you're not lifting weights. If you're going 600 calories under maintenance, you are making progress towards your goals, even if you're not working out.

3/7/2012 2:13:12 PM

But fat loss is not the sole purpose of p90x. If you want to GAIN lean muscle, you've got to work hard and fuel up your body. If you just wanna lose fat/weight, just make sure intake is lower thanburned calories and don't bother w p90.

3/7/2012 4:32:00 PM

Right, and I'm saying to gain muscle, you don't need to work out 6 days a week.

3/7/2012 4:53:54 PM

If you want results in 90 days, you do. That's how the programs designed..

3/7/2012 5:06:19 PM

There's nothing magical about the program. If you're working hard 4 days a week and eating like you should be, you're going to see results in 90 days. It's possible to hinder muscle gains by overtraining.

3/7/2012 5:17:19 PM

I've never bothered to do the whole P90X since I am happy with my workout schedule and routine. However, my wife has done it twice so we have the DVDs. Since we dropped our gym membership last year in favor of the equipment we already had at home I haven't had a good setup for more gym oriented leg exercises, so I just do the Plyo X workouts for my leg nights. I've been pretty happy with it.

/cool story

3/7/2012 5:23:00 PM

^^im not debating that. Your assumption that doing the program as designed is detrimental to results what I disagree with.

3/7/2012 5:40:45 PM

The program is designed to prevent overtraining and still working 6until days a week. Other programs are designed for more days off (p90x2 for example) based on workload

3/7/2012 5:51:48 PM

Quote :

"There's nothing magical about the program. If you're working hard 4 days a week and eating like you should be, you're going to see results in 90 days. It's possible to hinder muscle gains by overtraining."

I'm not posting this to debate, I'm posting it for the people coming in a reading this because I think people need to see P90X for what it is.


There is nothing special about this program, at least not in regard to what exercise scientists, personal trainers, nutritionists, well informed workout enthusiasts, etc. know about this stuff. As whoever the guy above said, there's nothing magical about it. That being said, the program isn't really for the aforementioned people.

Before I ever even heard of P90X, i knew and understood it's building blocks. I see stuff like Body by Vi or whatever, and without really knowing much about it can tell you why it worked for whoever it I see posting on FB about how they lost weight using it and it's wonderful, magical, blah blah blah. They created a big calorie deficit by limiting the calories they consumed and burning calories by working (even simply running a bunch). If you do that... you'll lose weight.. every time, whether it's body by vi or body by Steve the guy with the creeper stache who hangs out on the corner.

P90X is mostly intended for people who don't really understand the foundations of nutrition and exercise science. It's "open a small booklet, read it, pop in a dvd, mimic it like a monkey, eat what the little book says... and you see results." And if you do those things, you will see results because the fundamentals are there. And don't get me wrong, it will work for anyone. But there may be little things here and there that someone very informed would do differently.. and that's OK. If you understand the fundamentals of what you're doing, making adjustments is not a big deal.

But if you don't, and the reason you're buying or using something like P90X is because you want to lose weight, get into better shape, etc. and haven't been successful with your own attempts (programs), you're not giving the program or yourself a fair shot by not following it. That's including saying "I don't really like the kenpo x, so I'll just skip it." If you don't like something, at least try to understand why it's in there and replace with something else.

If you follow just the diet, you'll see some results because the diet will help you create a calorie deficit.

If you do just the exercise part and not the diet, you'll see some results.

If you do only the lifting days and the diet, you'll see results.

and so on.

If you do the full program, and follow the nutrition guide... most people will see their best potential results without ever over training.


As for the over training bit... I mean, you could overtrain doing almost any routine if you don't know what you're doing. P90X is, for the most part, a 3 day weight lifting routine split across 6 days with cardio on the in-between days. That's not extremely likely to cause "over training" in the sense talked about here imo. The main goal of those non-lifting workouts are cardiovascular health and getting you to burn calories and create a calorie deficit so you cut that fat you want to get rid of.

I'm not saying that over training doesn't exist and isn't detrimental to reaching a goal... but I, personally, think over training is not a big risk with this program. Again, 3 days of lifting interspersed with 3 days of cardio/calisthenics/flexibility work Not exactly a crazy routine. Although, you should try to gain an understanding of your body and learn to tell if you're going to hard, need more rest, not pushing yourself hard enough, etc.

[Edited on March 7, 2012 at 6:38 PM. Reason : .]

3/7/2012 6:09:08 PM

Its a awesome work out..

3/7/2012 8:20:52 PM

duro982 I am not going to debate anything you said in your post because it is pretty much all true.

The one thing I will add is that, although P90X does create a calorie deficit, it really doesn't seem like it. I was eating over 3000 calories a day (per the nutrition guide) and I was constantly stuffed. I started out about 225 or so, and now I am right around 200, although I really "lost" much more than just 25 pounds because I gained so much muscle. So while a lot of beginners (hell, even not so beginners) think you have to be hungry to see results, that is not the case. You just have to use good fuel.

P90X really taught me what a good diet and exercise routine was all about. The biggest and most influential thing that got me started was seeing all the success stories and KNOWING that if I stuck with it, the program would work. So even if I didn't see results in the first week or month (I actually did), I was prepared to not be discouraged and stick the program out. That was over 3 years ago - I used my success in P90X to really springboard me into a life of fitness and health. I have completed the program 3 or 4 times, done Insanity a few times through, ran a couple half marathons, done long hikes, grueling mud races, etc.

Anyway, I am about halfway through P90X2. I am not a huge fan of this program - yet anyway. It seems kind of gimmicky and really focuses on doing awkward moves while balancing yourself. Some of them I really struggle with, not because I am not strong enough, but because I am nowhere near flexible enough to actually pull off the moves. The frustrating thing is, I feel like even if I was able to pull off these ridiculous moves, I don't know how much (if any) improvements I would see. I don't think my genetics have it in the cards for me to have some awesome 8 pack set of abs unless I really get crazy about my diet, which I do not want to do. I eat well, but I also like to occasionally treat myself and/or have a couple drinks.

I'll quit rambling. Here are a few of my most recent pics.







[Edited on March 7, 2012 at 9:53 PM. Reason : I suck.]

3/7/2012 9:52:05 PM

I think it is the structure that is most beneficial to me. I have never had any type of structured training, so in the past I would just go to the gym and kind of wing it. I feel confident that after finishing the 90 days I will have a much better idea how to structure my gym workouts moving forward.

3/8/2012 8:54:31 AM

^^ You are a 10week cut away from 6pack rippedness, if you followed a cyclic low carb diet + heavy strength training.

I had a similar physique, a little more pudgy and had great results following that method:

Before


After


I don't think you guys know what over training really is. The sense that is being used here is wrong.

To keep it simple, the reason p90x may limit muscle growth is that it has too many low-load reps, too frequently. This can mitigate strength and muscle gain; compounded even more when you are in a calorie deficit.

Remember the SAID principle. Specific Adaption to Imposed Demand. If you are doing lots of low load reps, your adaptation will be towards doing that more efficiently. You don't need strong muscle for that activity.

[Edited on March 8, 2012 at 11:10 AM. Reason : pics]

3/8/2012 11:06:30 AM

well im probably starting the first round again. tonight.

Im in your position^

im pudgy at 180 but not fat. looking to get 6 packed rippedness...but im sure you will tell me p90x isnt right for me??

i'll get some pics later.

3/12/2012 7:55:10 PM

Started week 2 yesterday and i am already down 5 lbs (probably mostly from the diet). But I can tell this week that I can do more without resting, which is a good sign of progress. Only 1 week in and I can already feel changes, so I am looking forward to the next several weeks.

3/13/2012 5:40:48 PM

Quote :

"Did half the Yoga this morning....not a fan. So I just finished up with the Stretch X instead. I can definitely tell I am making progress, even though it is only my 4th day. Definitely less sore this today, and I have tons of energy."

It has been a while since I've done the program, but isn't the 2nd half of Yoga pretty much the same thing as Stretch X? Thats the way I remember it. The first half sucked balls and then the second half was awesome stretching

3/13/2012 6:48:56 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UMdKSvwpaQ

Pretty amazing transformation from 426 pounds to 185 pounds.

4/26/2012 11:27:21 AM

^That's pretty cool. I am a sucker for those transformation videos.

4/26/2012 1:22:53 PM

So I started this yesterday (Yeah, I'm sore). I've been working out (lifting and cardio) pretty regularly over the past year, pretty much to maintain not being a fatass. I'm no way in great shape, but I keep active.

I do have a torn meniscus...and I have plyo tonight. Will this be possible?

My knee doesn't hurt too much except on extended runs, and sitting for extended periods of time.

5/9/2012 12:39:41 PM

the BEST thing you can do is go into it slow.

dont try and do all the reps they do...test out your knee and all.

but go slow, you will die if you dont and injure yourself since you are already injured.

5/9/2012 6:06:47 PM

So I did the Plyometrics without dying. There were only a couple of exercises that caused any discomfort . In those cases I just did the adjusted movements that "Pam the Blam" were doing.

I really focused on landing softly and not jumping as high on some of the exercises.

I am super sore today, it hurt to get out of bed.

5/10/2012 3:21:07 PM

Starting week 6 tomorrow. Weighed myself after a week and half and was down 2 lbs. Weighed myself a week later and had not lost any more weight. Weighed myself a couple days ago (after week 5) and was down 7 lbs.

So I've lost a total of 9 lbs and about an inch off the waist.

I'm kinda regretting not taking any measurements or pics at the beginning

6/17/2012 10:40:31 PM

^ take pictures now

6/17/2012 11:03:53 PM

^ Yep, just did after posting that. I'll try to take pictures after every 2 weeks, but not compare any until a month or so has passed.

6/17/2012 11:34:03 PM

only workout you'll ever need to know:


http://screen.yahoo.com/episode-4-the-burpee-30089722.html

7/26/2012 6:20:40 PM

Quote :

" I also don't do kenpo or yoga. I typically ride my bike, play basketball or some other aerobic activity on those days. Not sure how that will affect my results, but I have been happy enough with my progress so far. I may post the final results in here when we finish."

I wanted to skip Yoga, too. But it occured to me that if you skip any workout, you aren't doing P90x.

I am almost 30 days in and am completely blown away with my results so far. I could do 7 pull-ups at a time when I started...Now I can do 19.

I could do 22 push ups when I started. Now I can do 35.

I have dropped a pant size already, and though I have only lost 3 lbs, I am starting to become much more defined, especially in my stomach.


As far as the diet goes, I am trying to limit my portions and I have quit drinking soda (I used to drink at least 1-2 sodas a day). I also haven't had many sweets, though I have cheated occasionally and had a couple of mini-twix bars.

Can't wait to finish, then I'll post pictures.

1/28/2013 10:53:15 AM