Rushfit vs. TapouT XT - My review/opinion/observation.

Ohhhhh I am so glad you said that Sean about them struggling. They do that on Asylum and THAT'S when you feel like you're part of it. Even Shaun T was mumbling at one point how he kicked his own backside. lol I really like that!
Sounds like they are both something I should invest in.

I should also ask if you found any people in these programs 'annoying'. I don't do well with that.

I think the big thing about Rushfit is that the instructor leading it didn't let GSP (Georges St. Pierre, the MMA fighting champion who is heavily featured here) do modified versions of any of the exercises. Whereas the other people in the studio were allowed to modify to continue on when they got fatigued, he wasn't. So when he reached a point where he would have to modify to continue, he just had to suck it up and keep going in a way that makes you feel good about yourself because fairly often it is in an area where you wouldn't have as much trouble.

I didn't find either of them in any way annoying, although I did find the instructor for Rip 60 to be just a little bit annoying.

Not that I have a lot to add BUT I would say the only annoying part of RushFit for me, is the fact that the warm up & cooldown are exactly the same for every workout. They are technically sound, they just become a little repetitive, other than that I think the system is sound & a lot of fun & I have been singing its praises for the last three weeks. Previously I have completed P90X & X2 & I think they helped prepare me but I really like the "focus" of RushFit, in that I am not stopping to switch weights or grab a different piece of equipment. As for me I didn't like what I have read about TapouT(other sites) it seems to be a MMA P90X rip off with too much cardio emphasis, just my thoughts

Russ

You're right about TapouT XT. That's exactly my point that I've brought up numerous times about the schedule. The individual workouts are sound and great unto themselves, its just the schedule thats the problem. I highly recommend TapouT XT to anyone who has gained enough knowledge in their personal fitness evolution to be able to recognize its weaknesses and put together their own program using the individual workouts. But if this isn't you, and you need a calendar/schedule to hold your hand along the way, I'd say TapouT XT is not ideal for you.

thanks for the review! I saw the tapoutxt commercial and it looked like a lot of fun, but after getting pumped for insanity:asylum (which i ended up hating) im leery of any hyped up program with a big brand name (i feel like asylum rode insanitys wave of popularity without having to make a good program). Im also glad to hear its ab-centered, ive done killer abs, cardio abs, tummy tuck, and ab ripper x and i always feel like they put too much focus on one part (all upper, all obliques, all lower) so you have to do 3 or more ab workouts for the whole midsection to "feel it". I think i may look more into tapoutxt now!

I think you'll like it a lot. Just remember you'll get the best results if you mix it up and don't follow the schedule to the letter. Make your own And don't worry about the 15 minute ab workout DVD. It's pointless with how much core intensive training you get just going through the normal workout.

Contingencypl - I'm not sure why you dislike the schedule for TapouT so much and keep telling everyone to do the workouts the way they want to. I personally haven't found anything wrong with it yet (but I'm only on week 3). I think it focuses on core one day, then upper body the next and then lower body after that, etc., etc. Just my opinion of course.

As someone who has studied exercise science (albeit not in a school setting) for years now, I have grown to learn more and more about how the addition of ab-specific workouts is, in most cases, overdone, because when the exercise itself is more of a compound movement than an isolation movement (meaning it integrates many muscle groups rather than focusing on one single muscle) that is sufficient core activation to merit a proper core workout. Most professional bodybuilders and powerlifters do not do any exercises that target the core specifically for this reason. When doing deadlifts, squats, overhead presses, and other compound movements, the core activation they get needed to power through those compound movements is all the core workout they need to get the ripped six packs they have in competition season. Very few ever do a single core-specific movement.

P90X was justified in adding a dedicated ab workout after its strength training days because most of the workouts they did were isolation movements rather than compound movements. Due to its success, however, many other workout programs feel the need to copy its overall scheduling format, even though the style of workouts they revolve around (as in TapouT XT) does not call for that. Functional training revolves around functional movements, which integrate the core into the strength moves you do as well as other muscle groups. You're never isolating a single muscle group. You may not feel it being killed, but I can assure you it is being targeted sufficiently. Murdering yourself to where you can't move anymore does not necessarily imply a better workout.

Will you see results following the schedule? Sure you will. But you can see results that are just as good, if not better, if you closely analyze the strengths and weaknesses inherent in the overall scheduling format and where it unnecessarily borrowed from P90X. Why do extra work when you're not getting any better of workout? Sometimes it's a case of work smart, not hard. I do not do anything workout related without studying it extensively and learning the science behind it. More people should be this way too.

I am considering getting TAPOUT XT. My question to you guys is can I keep going to the gym for a weightlifting routine to maintain my size but use this video as a morning cardio workout?

Yes, you most certainly can! My suggestion would be to use a few specific DVDs from the series (specifically Cross Core Combat, Cardio, Ripped Conditioning, Plyo XT, Competition Core, Strike Training, and Muay Thai as cardio/core workouts on days when you don't do your heavy lifting. Do not do the other DVDs in the series when combining it with heavy lifting.

Did Rushfit's Abdominal Strength & Core Conditioning workout last night. Had to modify two of the moves they have you do for reasons involving my poor balance which was a little bit discouraging because the "modified" version didn't hit my muscles the way they needed to be hit. Anyway...

I really liked this program. You actually did very little in the way of dedicated ab exercises, because they train their core the way real athletes do: Full body and compound exercises. So it's actually more of a total body workout than a "core" workout. Which translates to also being a great core workout. I love it.