Insanity?

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LilMissRaptr
LilMissRaptr Posts: 37 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Going to start insanity tomorrow and wanted to hear peoples stories about it. *Nervous*

5'2"
143.5 lbs

Replies

  • missiontofitness
    missiontofitness Posts: 4,074 Member
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    I've never done it, but I'm wondering if it fits its name!
  • becclesbecca
    becclesbecca Posts: 68 Member
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    I am on day 3. It IS hard but it is lots of fun. Lots of people seem to have got some great results from it. Go for it!
  • debraran1
    debraran1 Posts: 521 Member
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    A coworker of mine got an Insanity Pure Cardio/Abs from a friend, said they do rest a lot in the 40 or so minutes she did. She mentioned a long yoga/stretch after the warmup (which is a mini-workout in itself) which she FF a bit because it was 6 minutes or so? Then she commented there were water breaks and many times you are encouraged to stop and rest or rehydrate and get back in.
    She found T25 a bit harder because there weren't any breaks or long stretching. Was this just because she only had 1 DVD and they vary a lot?
    I see a lot of them separate on EBAY and wondered which were best for a good cardio workout.
  • maasha81
    maasha81 Posts: 733 Member
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    A coworker of mine got an Insanity Pure Cardio/Abs from a friend, said they do rest a lot in the 40 or so minutes she did. She mentioned a long yoga/stretch after the warmup (which is a mini-workout in itself) which she FF a bit because it was 6 minutes or so? Then she commented there were water breaks and many times you are encouraged to stop and rest or rehydrate and get back in.
    She found T25 a bit harder because there weren't any breaks or long stretching. Was this just because she only had 1 DVD and they vary a lot?
    I see a lot of them separate on EBAY and wondered which were best for a good cardio workout.

    It's really a suite of programs. He does cardio to warm up the body and then does stretches. Easier to stretch when the body is warm and the stretching prevents injury and preps you for some of the exercise moves as they claim. You build up your endurance and take less breaks as you improve. It's a great program but if your form is not correct as with most exercises, you will injure yourself. It can be intense on your joints.

    As for my personal experience, I didn't have much to lose but Insanity really built my endurance and tighten my body quite nicely. The length of workouts range from 45 mins - 55 mins ..month 2 is longer. I do enjoy Shaun T's style a lot and think he's a great coach. He constantly reminds you of form over speed and keep that core tight.

    T25 is a great program but after doing insanity ...it's not as tough. I do enjoy the gamma portion of T25 because it incorporates weights. I usually do those workouts or P90X3 when I'm short on time.
  • debraran1
    debraran1 Posts: 521 Member
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    I have T25 now and bought Gamma on Ebay. I like the short strength workouts too. I really feel I had a good workout when I'm done.
    She is loaning me her DVD, She said without the stretching and cool down (she sometimes walks a bit to instead) it's 30 minutes, but longer of course if you do it all. She loves the warmup although it's repetitive, it's challenging to see if you can do it faster each time. She modifies as I would with some knee moves but still keeps her heart rate up well.

    Variety is important to your muscles and to my brain, so I will give it a whirl. ; )
  • coaoalo
    coaoalo Posts: 104 Member
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    It's hard. Like really hard. If you've not done exercise in a while then you MIGHT not be up for it. It's pretty easy to injure yourself during it if you don't know your own limits. If you're careful to listen to your own body and not injure yourself you'll be fine. If you can't walk properly after the first one you're doing it right. If you can't walk properly after the end of week 1 then it's too much for you.

    I'm on week 2 but I'm taking it a bit slower since I'm pretty unfit. I'm doing it for 4 days and then having 1-2 days off. So, I'm doing 2 weeks of the program in 3 weeks (about). In addition to it I've been swimming 2-3 times a week and going for more walks in the evening. So, all in I've been exercising for about 3 weeks and eating better for just over a month. In this time I feel so much better. My bf says I look much "tighter" and smaller and I've lost an inch from my waist and hips, and half an inch from my neck. I feel like I have much more energy even though I'm eating less (mostly) and feel for the first time in my life like I could stick to this. I think if I did Insanity 6 days a week I would be burning out by now. The extra rest days are important for someone as unfit as me.

    Oh, one last thing- it is essentially pure cardio the whole way (first month at least). There's very mild resistance training but if you're looking to build muscles it's not gonna work out. It's more that it defines the muscles you already have while helping you to lose weight. I'm sorry for the sprawling mess that is this reply. I hope it's slightly helpful :)
  • jadejames171
    jadejames171 Posts: 26 Member
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    Insanity is hard - but it gets easier as you build your fitness levels up. Ive just started the 2nd month (when the workouts get longer and more intense) and they are exactly as the title - Insane!!. Ive lost a total of 22 pounds so far, and a good few inches off everything, and my fitness levels have gotten so much better. I couldn't even do a push up when I first started, and now I can do at least 10 before collapsing :)

    Start off slow, only do what you can do and take breaks as often as you need. Drink plenty of water during and after the workouts and be ready to ache when you first start working out. Once you get more workouts in, your body gets used to the shock and it doesn't hurt as much! ALWAYS follow the stretch routines - they will help with muscle pain after and preventing injury during the work out.

    The one thing I found hard was getting my calories right - I ate too little and couldn't get through the workouts, ate too much and felt dumpy and lethargic and didn't want to move around so much.

    I hope this helps - and good luck!
  • SMKean90
    SMKean90 Posts: 55
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    Did well for the first 20-25 days, back started to hurt badly (i had severe damage done to me years ago) got so bad on my back i had to stop
  • Butrovich
    Butrovich Posts: 410 Member
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    I did Insanity last year and thought it improved endurance significantly. The joke is Shaun T's warm ups are more intense than a lot of other DVD's workouts, and there is some truth to that.

    There is virtually no weight training in this series, which is why it was not my favorite Beachbody program. I much prefer P90X3 and Body Beast. If you are a runner, though, I would recommend Insanity to build up your endurance.
  • sarabee0405
    sarabee0405 Posts: 25 Member
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    I LOVE Insanity! For me, it's what got me started and kept me on track. I've done the program once in its entirety, and another 2 times here and there. I tend to fall off in month 2 because it is HARD. Right now I'm doing a hybrid of running, lifting, and Insanity. Overall, I've lost 63lbs, 40 of which I attribute to Insanity.

    I didn't follow the nutrition plan. I started out eating around 1300 calories, upped it to 1400, and by month two, upped it 1500. Looking back, that may have still been kind of low, but it worked for me.

    Sometimes now I wonder how in the world I continued on after day one. I just did an Insanity workout on Sunday and my legs are *still* sore :cry:
  • abibubble
    abibubble Posts: 6
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    I've never really been a fan of workouts in general, I do swimming and belly dancing and running instead... But Insanity switches things up so much, and Shaun is such a great motivator that it doesn't feel like a boring workout. I'm on week 2 of it now, having done a week of it previously and had to stop due to a foot injury. It's tough, no doubt about that, but even if you're tired and aching to begin with, you'll finish the workout feeling on top of the world. I find the pattern it sets out woks well for me, although I started my Insanity on a Sunday so I get Saturdays as my rest day (I work an 11 hour shift at a pub every Saturday), but the rest day always feels slightly empty without Insanity. I tend to go running on my rest day, to keep myself going.

    Definitely worth trying Insanity, but you can't just do the same workout over and over, you need the full set. I personally love Insanity, I'd say its the best money I've ever spent, and most worthwhile thing I do with my time. It makes me feel amazing afterwards, and during, I know I'm getting fitter. You can see results after as little as 3 days, I can lift things I never thought I'd be able to lift now, and my abs have already tightened up
  • NattySchmatty
    NattySchmatty Posts: 103 Member
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    I don't like to work out. I won't try and pretend that I do. Now, I am only on day 3 of Insanity but I feel like I want to stick with it. It offers the cardio I was looking for and the moves are simple enough I don't feel like I should have taken dance classes before I started. It can be fun at moments which is something other programs lacked for me. I have to stop frequently and there are some moves I can't do. I am not strong enough yet. When those parts pop up, I do a move that I enjoy for the duration they are doing the one I can't do. It's a tough workout, but it definitely fun and I feel good about myself when I am done. I recommend it.
  • debraran1
    debraran1 Posts: 521 Member
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    That's what I like about T25..I sent Turbo Fire back, didn't want to do all those moves, but Shaun does more athletic moves, which I can do much easier so I get a better workout. He can be repetitive in some of his DVD's but I found from doing so many, ways to change moves a little to make it more interesting.
  • LilMissRaptr
    LilMissRaptr Posts: 37 Member
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    UPDATE: So I just finished day 1, the fit test and I feel like I'm dying, but in a good way. If I can get myself through the first week I know I'll stick with it. omg soooooo hard though -_-

    tumblr_n7qlx6qol71ss8abco1_500.jpg
  • Tmoseley2
    Tmoseley2 Posts: 7 Member
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    I did 4 rounds a few years ago and pretty much ruined my knees from all the jumping.

    I love the workouts but just can't deal with the knee pain.
  • CCSavage88
    CCSavage88 Posts: 191
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    I liked it but you have to be ready for it, if you haven't been very active its not for you...and CONSULT a doctor first the programs are designed with INTENSITY! Actual weight loss was not huge for me but the change in my body was drastic
  • Stacjsteinert5
    Stacjsteinert5 Posts: 82 Member
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    I love Insanity, I have finished 4 weeks of it, and currently in the recovery week. In that amount of time I have lost 12 pounds and several inches. I take measurements again on Monday and cant wait to see how many inches have disappeared! I'm most definitely not in great shape, and this workout has built so much muscle on my body. I see major muscle definition in my legs now, and the abs are shaping up nicely :) Give it a try!
  • theoden524
    theoden524 Posts: 26
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    Definitely give it a try! I'm restarting Month 2 tomorrow (shifting work schedule threw me off) and so far have lost 14 lbs from it and eating better in general. Don't forget to check your measurements and record the Fit Test results, they really help motivate and show what you've accomplished!

    - Matt
  • IsaackGMOON
    IsaackGMOON Posts: 3,358 Member
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    I was doing Insanity and I'm currently on day(had an injury, starting back up in 2 days!) and it's really good. If you're not physically fit - I wasn't. You will probably find it a challenge but don't let that put you off... you see your fitness shoot up and physical changes.

    Shaun T gets a little annoying... "dig deeper"... but it's not that bad. The workouts involve a lot of plyometric's, so you have to land softly. It's quite hard on the knees, and if you've just come out of not exercising, you could get an injury because of the increased stress on muscles and bones.

    Overall, it's a great program and you should definitely try it! Add me if you want to know more about it!
  • honey_bee_keysha
    honey_bee_keysha Posts: 773 Member
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    I did Insanity but ended up injuring my knee so I had to stop for a while. But, I will restart it again after I finish my second round of Focus T-25.

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