men vs women insanity

emily_bird

Is it just me, or did anyone else think that there'd be more men doing Insanity in this groups? I'm not complaining : it's Girl Power!

rhoades716

Several guys joined the group, but I am not sure if they are actually doing it or not.

And for any guy out there that thinks this is just a girl workout, think again! This is a beast! You don't need to be lifting weights like in P90X to get a great workout, this is definitely cardio focused, but is definitely kicking my butt!

I am not ashamed to say I do Insanity and I am loving the workouts

steveinct

Well, let me share my thoughts about Insanity and maybe it will explain the lack of men who are active in the group. I am two weeks in to Insanity at this point and, while it still kicks my butt every day, I am making serious progress. On the other hand, I can visually see my lats and biceps getting smaller. I can also feel my entire back getting weaker because we only push and never pull in Insanity. In addition to that, I am 40 years old and after two weeks, I am starting to feel my knees aching. I do not want to do damage so I will monitor that a bit (I am not at the point of sharp pain or anything yet).

I love what Insanity is doing for my cardiovascular health and stamina. I am sure if I keep it up for 60 days, I will see some serious cutting of the fat. On the other hand, can I really get through 60 days without switching to a p90x/Insanity hybrid? For me, I doubt it. I have had rotator issues in the past and much of that has to do with instability in the joint. When we do a boatload of pushups in Insanity (anterior deltoid) and never do the opposite pulling motion like a row for the posterior deltoid, I could end up with shoulder issues again and I will not let that happen. Further, losing strength sucks so I might switch to a hybrid so I can keep my muscle!

So, to answer your question, I think a lot of guys use Insanity as an augmentation to their strength training instead of a stand alone program.

emily_bird

@Rhoades

Sorry if I sounded insulting ! I really didn't mean to. I'm actually surprised, because Insanity strikes me as a more stereotypical guy thing to do. I was expecting a lot more activity from the men.

@steveinct
Thanks for your POV! I found it really interesting, especially because you are a male with the ability to do a P90X comparison. Definitely do what is right for you and your body !

Insanity itself recommends that people with knee problems should avoid that. I never knew about the shoulder injury thing that you mentioned and appreciate you expanding my education on that.It helps to give a more objective POV and when others ask about it, be able to better inform for what program might be most suitable for them.

I wonder if because it's more heavily cardio as opposed to the muscle concentration of P90X, that the reason you could be losing muscle is because there are studies that show too much extended time periods of cardio make you reduce strength? I wonder if because you have done P90X and it is so intensive, that your body has to adjust to Insanity and then afterward you can build that strength back? By the way, I'm NOT telling you to not do a hybrid - I'm just trying to work this out. Seriously, if a hybrid will make you more comfortable, I can help you find some .


Good luck with whatever program that you plan to do !
P.S.
I have seen some guys who use Insanity videos for their cardio or as a supplement to their regime by picking videos.

micheleld73

I do Insanity with a couple of guys I work with during lunch. They go to the gym in the evenings to do weights to balance out their workout.

aj_31

I finally started it with my work group today. It was only me and 1 guy that had the balls to do it. I figure I'll go back to lifting weights 3x a week at night to balance things out. I took all of November off from lifting and I know I got weaker because of it. I need to build myself back up.