New Year Fitness Program Review

[Komick]

I have done P90X, P90X2, P90X3, Insanity, and Body Beast.  

The most effective one was the original P90X, but MAN does Tony Horton's mannerisms get annoying.  Thank goodness for the mute option.  

What has worked best for you?  

I was wondering if anyone has used a book fitness program.  Thoughts?

[slysam]

You might like RushFit GPS, it isn't as tough as the ones you mention but the level of challenge can increase with heavier weights, doing more reps, etc. It is good overall conditioning, I think inspired by conditioning someone might do for MMA. The exercises are largely body weight with some added weight. It is  a pretty well done program and the workouts are not that long (I think about 45 minutes if I recall). If I recall, the guide does suggest doing your own cardio 1-2 times a week. For books, I like the Big Book of (Mens exercise or Womens exercise--they are pretty similar just different gendered models and a couple of the routines are different. The women's has a prenatal routine, for example. Probably 3/4 or more of the content is the same other than the pronouns and model). Core Performance has some good progressive series too, they are not as tough as the workouts you mention, they are intended to prevent sports and other injuries so they focus on building strength in the core, hips, shoulders and back --I think. They are full body with lots of compound exercises. But it isn't exactly adrenalin party in a box, if that makes sense.

[Nick17]

One of the programs that I like due to its simplicity as well as consistency in exercises is Escalating Density Training developed by Charles Staley.  It focuses on the total amount of WORK done  in a session as opposed to sets and reps and it is a structured program.  What I dislike about programs like P90X and Insanity is that they lack structure and consistently pick different exercises which doesn't factor in overload or progression.  It's much easier to track progress if you follow a program of the same exercises over a mesocycle as opposed to a "workout of the day" which may or may not pertain to your fitness goals.

Using EDT, my strength and endurance has really shot up during a 6-8 week mesocycle.  I then switch to a 4-6 week strength program and then cycle back to EDT to allow for recovery.

[Algenon]

My most effective fitness workout has been using an elliptical and increases the levels.  I know this is not really a program, but it keeps me focused while I watch TV.  I lost 75 pounds so far....only 19 to go. 

[divedragon]

Glad you asked the question.  Backgroud:  I'm a male, 57 years old who's led a sedentary lifestyle the last 6 years and put on about 40 lbs while loosing muscle mass.  I travel extensively for work.  My first tendancy is to cut calories and work out to loose weight, but I'm having second thoughts now. 

I'm thinking of maintaining my current caloric intake and focus on building muscle for at least 6 months and then cutting the calories to loose weight.  Even a 5 lb gain in muscle can help significantly in the fat burning.  Another option is to loose 10 - 15 lbs initially, then work to gain muscle before going for the rest of the fat loss.  I'm not looking to have a six pack anymore, just a reasonably toned body at a healthy weight. 

At this point, I'm leaning towards the initial weight loss followed by muscle building.  Most of my exercise will be resistence training regardless.  Any thoughts?

[Dominique]

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@Nick17 wrote:

One of the programs that I like due to its simplicity as well as consistency in exercises is Escalating Density Training developed by Charles Staley.

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Thanks for the tip, @Nick17! EDT looks interesting. Did you use the printed book, or a web site that summarized the method?

[Nick17]

@Dominique  I did buy the e-book, but there are also quite a few articles on the web that outline EDT.  Some of the articles are on T-Nation and others on breakingmuscle.com.  It's a simple, yet challenging and effective program, but what I like the most about it is you can pick your OWN exercises to use, rather than adopting a cookie-cutter template like some other programs.   Don't be afraid to experiment with EDT.  You can even use 10 minute or 20 minute PR zones...adapt it to your own needs.