Insanity + running

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josery1630
josery1630 Posts: 205 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Has anyone done Insanity and also incorporated some distance running? I've got a 5k coming up and am struggling to find the balance between Insanity and my running training. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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  • josery1630
    josery1630 Posts: 205 Member
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    bump
  • Nicktemt
    Nicktemt Posts: 35
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    I found that I couldn't do the whole week's worth of INSANITY workouts while running. In fact, the whole week of INSANITY for me is just too much cardio. I was eating probably 5k calories a day just to have enough energy to do the workouts. I would replace at least 3 of the workouts a week with running. And give yourself an extra recovery day. I could only do the first 30 days of INSANITY and that was enough. Right now I'm doing a P90X/INSANITY Hybrid program, and that is more like what I can handle. I'm still eating over 3K calories a day though.
  • bahacca
    bahacca Posts: 878 Member
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    If insanity is in any way like P90x, finding a balance is something I got a big fat FAIL in. I tried doing a run and then doing my P90 and while I was able to sustain for about 2 weeks, it was just WAY too much for me. If I were to do it again, I'd do my runs on like Tues/Thursday and do P90X on Monday, Friday and Sunday or something like that. Doing it all each and every day with only 1 day of rest will cause MAJOR burnout. I know skipping days in between breaks the whole routine of P90x(or Insanity-I think they are similar), but if you want to do both, you have to compromise somewhere. Hope that helps.
  • josery1630
    josery1630 Posts: 205 Member
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    The one day I did the treadmill and Insanity I was totally wiped the next day. I finally got my body used to running 5 miles at a stretch (which for me is HUGE...never been able to do that before) and I don't want to lose my progress. However I feel like a quitter if I don't do all of Insanity according to the schedule.
  • rachelrae215
    rachelrae215 Posts: 16
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    I tried Insanity and training for a half marathon at the same time and was falling asleep during the day when trying to take care of my kids. I think it's overkill. Moderation is key.
  • abby459
    abby459 Posts: 748 Member
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    I have also done p90x with running and I am currently doing Insanity while running. I am training for my first 1/2....so I usually run 4 days/week and do Insanity 3-4 days/week. And I did the same thing with p90x and got great results!!
  • geraldm55
    geraldm55 Posts: 130
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    Listen to your body. As you get in better shape it will allow you to do more. I started with insanity and after 2 weeks I've added the cardio abs after each day. if I would have tried that from the start I'd have probably died lol.

    I'd recommend 1 of 2 things reduce your running distance until your body adapts or reduce the number of insanity workouts until your body adapts.

    The other big thing is your diet if your going to push that hard you better have a diet that allows your body to do it or you will end up with an injury at the end of the day.

    Have a great time with it and have fun.

    God bless
    Gerald
  • Jenene88
    Jenene88 Posts: 281 Member
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    Insanity itself will wipe u out, listen to ur body and take the running easy. And for month 2, take running lightly again
  • Pappabacon
    Pappabacon Posts: 104 Member
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    Insanity, in and of itself, is going to help you with your 5k as it is building cardio endurance. You might try to run 1 long run a week on Thursday (which for me was the recovery day). I completed insanity but never tried running while doing it. I am now doing a P90x/Insanity hybrid and am running on the non cardio days. Good luck!
  • DorisR184
    DorisR184 Posts: 471 Member
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    I've completed 4 rounds of Insanity, doing it as recommended 6 days per week.. Insanity in itself is ALOT of cardio...You might want to incorporate some weights into the mix instead of more cardio. But that's just my opinion.

    I'm looking into ordering Les Mills Pump and doing a hybrid of the two this time around.
  • josery1630
    josery1630 Posts: 205 Member
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    Thanks for the advice everyone! While Insanity is great cardio, it's not the same as distance running. Your muscles and joints don't get the same stresses, which is what took me so long to build up to 5 miles at a time. That's my biggest concern.

    I will take all of your advice into consideration and I really appreciate you taking the time to respond. It helps to know I'm not alone! :)
  • shaekae81
    shaekae81 Posts: 12
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    I'm glad you posted this question....I was wondering the same thing.

    I am only on day 2 and have told a friend that I'd meet her at the gym...this will be a about 7 or 8 hours after my Insanity workout. I figured I'd just jog on the treadmill or elliptical for 30 minutes. But I don't want to over do it. And my husband was saying it's probably not a good idea because the program is set to work certain muscle groups heavier on certain days to allow healing. What are yall's thoughts on that aspect?
  • wannabfit34
    wannabfit34 Posts: 23 Member
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    Dead horse here, but only do it on your non run days, your calves will thank you!

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