Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Get Healthy Blog Hop - Insanity Work Out

When I read about the Get Healthy Blog Hop on Michael Di Gesu's blog, I had to join.  You see, two weeks ago, I decided to drink the kool-ade (and by kool-ade, I mean water) and do the Insanity workout. The system is expensive at $144.80 on Amazon, but lucky for me my friend owned it and let me borrow hers.

For those you who haven't spent hours watching the infomercial on the Insanity workout, here's a little bit about it.  It's a 60 day exercise program made up of 10 DVDs which you alternate through out your 2 months.  There is no special equipment required - just room enough to move. The fitness instructor is Sean T, who sometimes talks about himself in the third person, which is off-putting, but otherwise he's ok - not as annoying as some instructors. The system also includes a diet plan and a (disturbingly difficult) formula to calculate your caloric needs while on this program.  Surprisingly you must eat A LOT.  5 times a day, meals of around 300 calories (depending on your caloric needs) per meal.  Seriously, it's a lot to try and eat in one day.  In the first 4 weeks, you do 5 of the DVDs and in the second half of your 60 days, you do the other 5.


So day 1 of the Insanity tour is your Fit Test.  This is a series of 8 exercises you do for 1 minute each and you count the number of times you can do the move *with correct form*.  You do this every 2 weeks or so to show your progress.  The first time I did it, I was dying afterwards.  Dripping sweat head-to-toe, out of breath, but pleased with my results.  I was better than the guy but worse than the girl in the video.  So I figured I was average.  Warm up, cool down, exercises and water breaks all said added up to right around 30 minutes.  I could handle that!

Well, then day 2 came.  Cardio Power & Resistance.  It killed me.  It was 40 minutes of fast moving, barely enough time to catch your breath, HARD exercises.  I finished it, but I can't say I did it well.

Day 3 was Plyometrics Cardio Circuit, which is like interval training.  Only harder.  And insane.  My friend didn't give me this DVD, so I used Plyo disc from the month 2 set.  OMG HARD!  55 minutes of crazy hard jumping and squatting and more jumping...I was dead and had to keel over and stop the DVD with 20 minutes left to go.

Day 4 I was dead.  Dead tired.  I had no energy and was a walking zombie.  But I am nothing if not determined.  I was supposed to do Cardio Recovery, but the DVD labeled that actually played Cardio Power & Resistance and I was damned if I was doing that again!  I put in the Pure Cardio DVD (day 5's plan of action) and managed to rock it out.  It was very hard - no breaks here! - but I did my best and, as Sean T. says, "dug deeper".  I also managed to give myself shin splints.

Days 5, 6, and 7, I took off to rest my shins, which screamed in pain every time I took a step. 

Day 8, I was back into the swing of things and suddenly, the Plyo DVD wasn't so hard and I made it all the way through.   

So here I am, Day 17 and I completed my fit test for the second time last night.  I am amazed at the increase in my stamina and strength, so clearly this is working. I haven't lost weight (at all) but that is totally my fault. I mean, hello! Memorial Day weekend BBQs!  A girl only has so much will power.

I still have moments (ok, days) when I wonder why I'm doing this.  I keep my upcoming Costa Rica trip firmly in mind, but also the fact that, if nothing else, we learned in Legally Blonde that people who exercise don't kill their husbands.  They just don't.

24 comments:

  1. Nice tip. Funny addition with the Legally Blonde part at the end. I might do Insanity some day but need to work my way up. I'm not near fit, so it's going to be easier exercises, then probably p90x and if I can make it through that a couple times then Insanity. Nice to see a blog post about it working for someone and a good fitness approach for the blog hop.

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    1. Definitely work up to Insanity. I had been doing Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred before, so I did have some preparation, but it's still hard. I don't know if p90x is easier or harder - I just didn't want to have to buy a pull up bar and medicine balls and stuff. No equipment is great for me!

      Thanks for stopping by!

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  2. Congratulations for the perseverance and experiencing success. Exercise is not my forte, so I have been slowly working into a routine at the gym.

    I LOVE the clip at the end, sus.. love it! I need to watch that movie now, lol.

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    1. It is hard, but it's just 60 days...I can do it...

      Yay for Legally Blonde! That's one of my favorite quotes. :)

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  3. I know quite a few people doing this, but as a control freak, I like to be in charge of my own workouts... and I'm much harder on myself than I would be on anyone else. Enjoy the rest of the programme!

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    1. If left to my own devices, I won't push myself hard enough and I'll just do the same workouts over and over and never do the ones I don't like. This way I'm doing a little bit of everything.

      Thanks for the encouragement! It is greatly appreciated.

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  4. I'm exhausted just reading this! :)

    Good for you! I've heard of this but I know I'm not up to something like this. I'll stick with riding my bike for now.

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    1. It's exhausting just thinking about it, honestly. LOL Stick with your bike - I just needed a challenge.

      Thanks for stopping by!

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  5. Sounds like a bootcamp! Good for you to go for it. It's important to select a program that either kickstarts us or is something we can do all our lives.

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    1. I definitely can't do this for the rest of my life! A kickstart is all I ask for.

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  6. A couple of my friends purchased the Insanity workout and yes, they said it was difficult. So much so I think only one of them stuck with it.
    You can do it! Don't give up.
    Thanks for participating in our bloghop.

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    1. Thanks for the words of encouragement!! I really appreciate it.

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  7. Insanity is right...you wouldn't catch me doing that workout!

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    1. It's crazy, for sure, but if I can finally lose these 10 pounds that have been hanging on, it'll be worth it.

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  8. I've heard of Insanity. That's way more than I can physically do. I'll keep increasing my walking time on the rebounder. : )

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    1. It is not for everyone, definitely. It's starting to make my knees pop, but hopefully I'll come out of it without any injuries.

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  9. I've always wanted to buy this DVD set. I do P90X but could use a change of pace.

    Congrats! to you and thanks for participating in the Blog Hop!

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    1. Insanity is different since it's all cardio and there are no weights involved. The reviews on amazon said you won't bulk up from it, so do it depending on your goals and keep that in mind.

      Thanks for stopping by!

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  10. OMG I'm so glad you posted about Insanity! I just started the workouts myself (I'm on day 4!). I was so sore Tuesday after the fitness test I didn't think I was going to make it through day 2, lol! But it sounds like you're happy with it so far so I'm going to stick with it. Sorry to hear about your shins though. You did a good thing taking off those 3 days to rest. I'll have to watch out for that because on top of the Insanity workouts, I do track and field 3 times a week...I may be over doing it...

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    1. Yay, another insane person!!! My shins are my own fault. I knew my shoes were almost out of life and I hesitated (too long) on buying a new pair. Now that I have new sneakers, I am good to go.

      Stick with it through to the next fit test. I was losing faith until I did that. I have a very weak upper body and was thrilled at how many more jack pushups I could do. Keep me updated on how your progress goes!

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    2. Thanks Sus and those jack pushups are insane! (:

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  11. HI, Sus,

    I am SO GLAD I finally made it back to your blog to read your post. This is WONDERFUL... I love your step-by-step process and your WICKED sense of humor. IF we need ANYTHING we do need a sense of humor!

    COSTA RICA... NICE. You'll be fierce.. I just know it!

    Even though you haven't lost weight, you probably lost some fat and replaced it with muscle. Since muscle weighs more, YOUR probably lost twice the fat. YAY, YOU!

    Eating is SUPER important when working out. If you do both the results will be AMAZING. You still have a few more weeks to go ... Eat right and the pounds will truly DROP OFF!

    I am at the maintaining point in my life, but I miss the days of dropping weight. It's such an amazing high. I sometime drop a few pounds for fun, but I ALWAYS gain them back. My body just won't stay at my DESIRED weight. I guess it's not a healthy one for me that's why I keep putting back those three pounds. LOL.

    Anyway... KEEP GOING and thanks for joining the HOP!

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    1. Thanks for stopping by and for co-hosting this hop!

      A sense of humor is the only thing getting me through this. My diet is not that poor. Really. I don't drink soda. I don't eat refined grains. I shun most sugars. I eat low-fat. I eat good cards, good fats and good protein. I just cheat every once in a while and that seems to do more damage than anything else.

      Regardless of my diet, I am noticing that my legs are getting hard. Like muscular hard. Like almost grossing me out because they feel like non-hairy man legs hard. So that means I'm getting muscular, which is good. :)

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  12. Diversify your portfolio satta king

    satta king and make sure that you don't put all of your money in one basket. This will keep your risk.

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