Product Review - P90X

P90X, or Power 90 Extreme is a 90 day workout system.  As with all Beachbody programs I have ordered, there is a diet guide and recommended supplements.  You also require something to allow you to do resistance exercises (bands or dumbbells) and to do pull ups (again bands or a pull up bar)  I have done P90X numerous times and could not say that I have mastered any of it.  Well, maybe Kenpo.  After one round of P90X I had to really up the intensity of Kenpo to feel like I was getting a workout.  On some sets Tony is doing 30 reps and I’m doing anywhere from 60-90 to feel some kind of burn.  I did do some martial arts when I was a kid so maybe that has something to do with it.

P90X has a “standard” week comprising 3 resistance days (Mon., Wed., Fri.), one cardio (or Plyo) day (Tues.), one day of Yoga (Thurs.) and Kenpo to finish of the week.  I used to dislike the Yoga but now I am a fan although shorter would be better.  If Tony would have cut some of the chit chat and sped up the transitions later in the program it could probably save 15-20 minutes.  Actually I have been known to do Yoga by memory and had great workouts and saved that 20 minutes.  The resistance days never really get easier.  If a resistance exercise gets too easy you just up your weight.  Perhaps that is not the case if you are really good at push ups.  I myself struggle with push ups so I have never gotten to the point where a P90X chest workout was easy.  P90X uses different resistance sets at different stages of the 90 days to introduce muscle confusion.  This muscle confusion is in turn supposed to increase the rate of change/improvement.  P90X is not a body building program but it will make you stronger and improve your overall fitness and should provide you with a challenge for a long time.  Get ready for every muscle in your body to ache!

If you get tired of Tony’s jokes there is the option to play the program without having to listen to him speaking other than the prompts as you go from one exercise to the next.  I use that option a lot.  Some of the jokes get a little tired after 100 times …