Failing insanity??

I've done Insanity....and I have lots of trouble with it as well. My advice is keep going. I promise it gets easier and you will be able to go longer. I had to stop when I got to month 2 because my heart rate was getting high...and I need to restart from month 1. Keep with it...it's a pretty awesome program!

Replying to subscribe, because I was going to start Insanity tomorrow.

My suggestion is to not expect to master it the first time. Do your absolute best, keep track of your progress and push yourself to do more each time at a higher intensity. Even if you can't do everything the first 90 days keep going. A great quote I read is 'no matter how slow you go you are still lapping everyone on the couch'. Anything is better than nothing and you will get stronger and have more endurance each week!

When I started Insanity, the fitness test (day 1) almost made me lose my lunch. Wow! I was not in bad shape, but I was not ready for the intensity. So...
>>Weeks 1 & 2 - I did it every other day.
>>Week 3 - I did it 5 days and added other workouts on the off days
>>Week 4 - I will start the 3rd week of Insanity (according to Insanity Calendar) but it will actually be the 4th week after starting the series. I am now ready to do it 6 days a week.

ALSO - hit the pause button until you have a chance to recover. This is super important.

I am in week 7 of Insanity. I run 3 days a week, so I do insanity on the other 4 days, so it is not a pure program. I skip the rest day and a run on the recovery day, so I actually get 4 of the 5 regular workouts in each week. In any event, I could not get through the warm up the first week. I also have terrible upper body strength, so all of the pushups and plank position exercises are very difficult for me. I set my own pace and my own goals. For example, for level 1 and level 2 drills, I do the first two with proper form and then the rest on my knees and/ or I skip the jump up. for the exercises that make me too winded (e.g. plank runs) - i set a goal like "I will do at least 15 or 25 and then rest." You may not look like th folks in the video, but will see your personal gains in the fit tests. So yes, listen to Tony and "Do your best and forget the rest!" It is not failure if you do what you can and get better at it.

I will say that the second phase is a whole 'nother ball game. I was not expecting it to be so much harder, but it is. And, just last week I started to feel like a failure too. But I plan to finish and already I am doing more than I could last week! Good luck!

i failed insanity. it's a workout for people who are in some sort of shape already (i think so, you or others may differ). I'd recommend starting the 30 day shred. It's tough but you feel good after. My plan is to go back to insanity after I complete the 30 day shred!!

I quit after 6 weeks of month 1. Really don't see the need for 45-55 mins. of HIIT. The first month was great, but.....If you want to consider that failing, you may, but, IMO you don't HAVE to do the full program.

I love cardio workouts! Really makes me feel as if i have done something good for my body. Thought that Insanity would be great, bought it and after a few workouts, I sold it. Way too much jumping for me! Just "Jumping"! I got Zumba almost 2 years ago and I absolutely love it! If you like to dance, this is definitely the workout. I have "graduated" to my 6th video and still go back a couple. I bought the 5 disc workout last and it has everything. Cardio, scuplting, abs, 20 min express. I incorporated the body bar workout into my routine for more dimension! Just love it!

I got Insanity for Christmas and was so excited about it. I had done it a few times before with friends, so I knew what I was getting into. I love it. It's an amazing workout. It's HARD! I think that anyone can start with it, even the most out of shape person. You just have to modify the moves to your ability, do what you can, and work up to what they are doing in the DVD. The problem that I have with Insanity is that it is the SAME THING EVERY SINGLE DAY. Even though there are so many DVD's, the exercises in each are relatively similar. If you're anything like me, you'll get sick of it REALLY FAST. I still do it once or twice a week, but I do other things on other days to keep me interested. Don't consider yourself a failure for not following the program exactly. It is hard for even the people in the DVD who are in great shape! Just keep working at it and you will notice improvements in your strength and endurance!

Like you, I have just started. I already knew going into it that I wouldn't be able to keep up enough to do the 60 day challenge. I simply resolved to do what I can. I performed only three days last week and was getting around very carefully due to the soreness. The scale reflects my efforts beacause I'm down three lbs. It's was a good feeling to know that I am doing something that works! I haven't worked out regularly for some time now. I need to 'dig deep' to rebuild my attitude about getting back on track. Sitting around making excuses for the way I feel was not working for me anymore. I say keep at it. Good luck on your journey.

And, some of the fans are a little "cultish", IYKWIM

I quit as well due to boredom (doing same thing over and over got old quick) and it was hard. I breeze through P90X and I love it, get great burns, I do all the jillian michaels workouts and love them and get an awesome burn in short period of time too, but I can only handle insanity in small doses.

I might try it again someday but for now I'll do other things and once in awhile I'll pop in and insanity video for a change of pace but I don't enjoy it as my main day to day program.

I felt like a failure too at first but now I realize not every video is made for every person and I have plenty that I do love so I'll just keep going doing what works for me.

I did the first month, but stopped after that. I have a lot of issues with my feet/ankles, and the second month of insanity was too much and caused me a lot of problems.

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Insanity is a very intense and high-impact workout. I got through it, but looking back, I don't think I'd do it again. I feel like it may have put too much stress on my body.

You may want to consider something like T25. It's similar to Insanity in some ways (Shaun T - I do love him!!, some similar moves). But, I think it's a better and well-rounded program (Shorter time, 2nd month has more of a strength focus, modified moves for every workout, less very high impact moves).

I'm doing a program called Tapout XT right now... while it's still intense, there isn't as much jumping or high impact activity. There's a variety of DVDs like for Insanity, but only one is really plyo based (so yeah, this one is a killer... but it's not like that every day at least). There is a nice variety like yoga, upper body, etc.

Hope that helps.. I really don't think Insanity is for everyone. If you decide to continue with it, I think it's smart to go at your own pace and do what you can do. A good way to measure your progress is how you improve throughout the DVDs...remember, the people in the DVD are (at least mostly) paid professionals. They also may be taking multiple breaks between moves for all we know