P90X is a tough fitness program that pushed my muscles to the nth degree! I was sore in all sorts of new places from the P90X workouts and the X Stretch was a welcome relief! In the P90X 90-day at home fitness program, you have a choice on day 7 – Rest or X Stretch. I chose X Stretch every time and I am glad I did!
X Stretch is a very comprehensive stretching routine that lasts for about 60 minutes. You may wonder, how much stretching can a person do? Well, X Stretch takes care of stretching out your muscles, from your head to your toes! All I can say is that I felt great after every P90X X Stretch day. After putting my best efforts into my P90X routine, the stretching helped me a lot improve my flexibility.
More important, it helped other problem areas of my body. You see I work on a computer all day so I always end up with a host of problems, like: shoulder impingements, sore hands (carpel tunnel), forward shoulders, tense neck and shoulders, tight hip flexors, and more – you get the idea! Working at a computer can wreck your body!
X Stretch was designed to help prevent injuries when doing P90X. Yes, that is true but it also helped me with my work related issues. Tony does a great job of stretching out all the neck and upper back muscles, what a relief! I also love the wrist-forearm and Dreya forearm stretches. These stretches alone helped release the tightness in my hands from working at a computer keyboard and mouse all day.
X Stretch works down the body systematically. The back stretches are wonderful! My lower back is usually a wreck from sitting in a chair all day and these stretch exercises were perfect for stretching my lower back in the opposite direction.
X Stretch gets two thumbs up from me! I frequently do it more than one time per week. After doing X Stretch for 5 months now, my overall flexibility is awesome! My hands don’t hurt anymore, in fact they feel stronger. My neck and upper back are much more relaxed too. Best of all, I feel very relaxed but energized at the same time after doing P90X X Stretch.
If you are doing P90X, don’t skip the X Stretch! Do not miss the amazing benefits you will get from stretching.
Have you ever met a cat that did not stretch? Ever wonder why cats are so great at turning and twisting in mid-air to land on their feet every time or why cats are so relaxed? Cats stretch and so should you!
>> Buy P90X at Team Beachbody and pay less for shipping >> You also get me as YOUR free Coach to help you reach your fitness goals!
You have seen the P90X infomercials, or maybe your friend told you about it and you are ready to get going! But wait. Ask yourself: is P90X really for you? Why not find out before you plunk down $120 plus tax and shipping? Don’t worry, if you are not quite ready for P90X, I will give you some tips on how to prepare.
P90X is an extreme fitness program (that is what the X stands for). You need to be honest about your fitness level and ability before starting P90X. If you are not ready to start P90X, but do it anyway, a number of things can happen including getting hurt or losing interest because the exercises or intensity level are out of reach for you. P90X will kick your butt so play it safe and make sure you are up for the challenge.
Beachbody provides guidelines in the form of a Fit Test to determine if P90X is for you. If you can perform the Beachbody P90X Fit Test, go forth and get crushed! If you cannot perform the minimum requirements, you can do another Beachbody program to get yourself to the required fitness level.
Let’s get to the Fit Test and then I will tell you about some of the other great programs that will also give you great results and prepare you for P90X.
The P90X Fit Test takes 40 minutes or so to complete. Click here to download the Fit Test. The instructions are included with the Fit Test. Here are some things you will need before starting:
- Heart rate monitor
- Tape measure
- Partner to help record data (optional)
- Pull-up bar
- Timer (stopwatch or watch with second hand)
- Running shoes
- Towel
- Water
- Your “Bring It” game face
If you can perform the Fit Test, well, come back in 90 days and show off your P90X results!
If you cannot perform the P90X Fit Test, take a look at Power 90® or Slim in 6®.
Power 90 is another awesome Tony Horton 90-day fitness program that will give you great results! Slim in 6 is a Debbie Siebers 6-week program that is more basic than Power 90.
When you finish either of these programs, take the P90X Fit Test again. I am confident that you will be well prepared and ready to Bring it! See you in 90 days!
Buy P90X (and other programs) at the Team Beachbody store and pay less for shipping >> PLUS – exclusive to Team Beachbody, you get 2 FREE P90X One on One DVDS.
Wow. I was starting P90X Lean program Phase 2 and was still interested! I felt a great sense of accomplishment on completing the first 30 days of Phase 1 and saw results. Sixty days to go and I couldn’t wait!
Phase 1 was about getting my body accustomed to doing the movements and learning how to complete each movement with good form. In P90X Phase 2, it was time to focus on repetitions and failure, and start increasing the weights I was using.
One mistake I made during this phase was not eating enough. In addition to P90X, I was hiking, trail running, and walking dogs at the shelter for several hours. Tony Horton reminds us during workout sessions to make sure we eat enough. I finally had to increase the number of calories I was taking in – all good, healthy food of course.
I started increasing the weights for all exercises. I went from the five-pound weights for shoulder presses to eight pound weights by the end of Phase 2. For triceps kickbacks, I used three-pound weights and increaded to five-pound weights. Don’t laugh! These weights may sound light to you, but they were sure weren’t for me!
When I first started doing the push-up routines in Phase 1, I could barely do five, even though I was on my knees! By the end of Phase 2, I was doing 12 on my knees and could see big differences in my chest muscles.
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Kenpo X, one of my favorite exercise routines in P90X, was fun, fun, fun! My kicks were getting higher and I had better control over the movements.
Overall, I saw real gains during this phase. The P90X workout was still interesting and fun. On the weekends, I looked forward to rising at 6:30 am and pushing play! I felt great, was working hard, and seeing results. What could be better than that? P90X was like a wake up call for my whole body.
One thing I did not enjoy so much was that the Ab Ripper X workout followed a workout like legs and back. After doing a rigorous workout, I was pretty burned out. Instead, I modified the order of things by doing Ab Ripper X a few hours later or the next day. But I got it done!
As I mentioned in Phase 1 of my P90X review, each phase is divided into 4 weeks. The fourth week is a “recovery” week. By recovery week, I was ready to ease up a little on the workouts – my body was definitely tired. In recovery week, you get to do these exercises, repeating a couple of them to complete 7 days:
- Yoga X
- Core Synergistics
- Kenpo X
- X Stretch
- Cardio X
I love the Core Synergistics, a total body workout with cardio, stretching, and resistance. I was not a big fan of the Yoga X because it is 90 minutes. Although I had done lots of Yoga in classes and at home, I was never of fan of the 90-minute yoga classes. But I must admit, the yoga poses did wonders for my body, especially my back.
By the end of P90X Phase 2, I could see my muscle tone taking shape even more, the results of my hard work and Tony Horton’s muscle confusion training methods. I can’t emphasize enough, you get out of P90X what you put into it.
Stay tuned for P90X Phase 3, where I talk about my experience in the last phase of P90X.
As you read this P90X review, keep in mind that P90X may or may not be for you. If it is, go forth and Bring It! If not, there are many other Beachbody programs for you to choose from. Here’s to healthy, fit living!
Click here to buy P90X (pay less for shipping)
P.S. Team Beachbody™ Club members save 10% on product cost and Coaches save even more (25%)!
When I heard about P90X, an extreme 90-day fitness program, I knew it was the fitness program for me. Besides, I love a good challenge. I was already very fit and healthy, focusing mostly on outdoor activities like hiking and some at-home pilates and yoga. I stopped going to the gym a couple of years ago because it was crowded all the time and stinky.
It was no surprise then that my upper body lost strength and tone. I felt weak, my back hurt, my posture suffered, and I really wanted some nice looking, toned arms before Spring!
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The day my P90X package arrived, I couldn’t wait to get started. I made a commitment to myself to complete P90X according to the plan outlined in the included book. No matter what! That meant devoting at least 1 hour per day to my P90X workout.
Let’s get started with the basics. What’s in the P90X box?
- P90X “How to Bring it” DVD
- 12 Workout DVDs
- P90X Fitness Guide
- P90X Nutrition Guide
- P90X Calendar
Read through the material before starting! There is important information you should know about before starting an extreme fitness program. After reading everything, I decided that P90X Lean was for me and matched my 90 day goal of getting that nicely toned look!
I officially started P90X on January 2, 2009. What a great way to start the new year!
P90X offers three fitness programs that all use the same set of DVDs:
- P90X Classic:
- P90X Doubles: Adds extra cardiovascular exercise
- P90X Lean: More cardio and less resistance for lean body mass goals.
Before starting, it’s important to take the Fit Test that is included in the Fitness Guide. You should do this test a few days before you start the program. The Fit Test will give you an indication of the improvements you will make during the 90 days of P90X and, more important, let you know if you are even ready to do P90X. It is not for everyone, in which case you may want to try a different Beachbody program to prepare yourself for P90X.
P90X also includes a eating plan. Do not toss this guide aside. It will show you what types of foods to eat to achieve maximum results. You can work out forever but if you do not eat properly you will not get the results you desire. That is just a fact of life. Food is fuel.
Each program (Classic, Doubles, Lean) consists of three phases:
- Adaptive
- Mastery
- Recovery
Each phase is divided in to four weeks that include three weeks of intense training and one week of recovery. The recovery week in the P90X Lean program was still tough, consisting of core muscle strengthening and intense cardio routines.
My first week was a real energy lifter. I used muscles that I did not use on a regular basis and boy, did I feel it! I could barely sit down for a few days because P90X literally kicked my butt! I could feel all my muscles waking up and it felt great!
Each week requires that you workout at least 6 days in a row. On the seventh day, you have a choice of rest or the Stretch X routine. I always did the Stretch X routine because it just topped off the other 6 days of exercise so nicely. I love it! It felt great, was much needed after P90Xing for an intense 6 days, and helped increase my flexibility.
In Phase 1, I started out using little three-pound weights for shoulder presses due to a weak upper body. By the end of the Adaptive Phase 1, I moved up to five-pound weights. The first time I did Kenpo X, I was quite uncoordinated and had a difficult time balancing well enough to throw kicks. By the end of Phase 1, my coordination and balance improved a great deal. I definitely started seeing the changes in my body by the end of 30 days.
I purchased some heavier 12-pound weights in anticipation of being able to use them in Phase 3, Mastery. I also purchased B-lines before starting for the back exercises.
I really enjoy Tony Horton’s sense of humor and the way he leads the routines. Tony Horton kept me inspired, and more important, kept me honest. What do I mean by honest? Well, you get out of this program what you put into it. You can play the DVD and not put your best effort into it or you can do your very best. Tony is great at encouraging everyone to do their best. He has real people in the DVDs that are working as hard as we are to complete the exercises too.
Tony includes stretching exercises before and after every workout. I had been a “stretching slacker” for a long time and the stretching became one of my favorites in every workout and made a big difference in how I felt.
By the end of Phase 1, I can honestly say that P90X is unlike any fitness program I have experienced. My body was continually challenged by the variety of different workouts and I developed coordination that I didn’t have when I started. I had a great sense of accomplishment. I saw great improvements in my flexibility and was standing up straighter due to strengthened back muscles, which also helped my chest open up. And, my arms were starting to look more toned.
I was excited to start Phase 2, where I could focus more on reps and failure, and start increasing the weights. Stay tuned for Part 2, where I talk about my experience in Phase 2 of P90X! Bring it!
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