Beachbody P90X DVD Workout Base Kit, Home Gym Bodyweight Exercise Program, No Workout Equipment Needed, Nutrition Guide Included, 12 Fitness DVDs

I'm in week 6 of the p90x cycle and so far am very happy with the product and with the results that I've seen. I'm somebody who was already in shape and decided to replace my previous gym routine with p90x. I have a tall and skinny build (about 6'1, 175 lbs), and have been able to notice budding ab muscles along with some improvements in my chest and legs. The workouts are hard, and the first time through each of them can be very frustrating, but if you stick with it you'll find that each time you do a routine, you get better at it. I don't follow the diet plan, but I have been eating protein bars and have cut down on snack food since I began the program. Here is my breakdown of each routine.1) Chest and back: You do this routine on day 1 of weeks 1,2,3,9,11, and it is almost all pull-ups and push-ups. When I began p90x, I could do about 1 to 2 pull-ups, and now I can do about 6 to 7 at a time, depending on the type (you use different grips for each exercise). There are about 5 types of push-ups and pull-ups which you alternate between, and then the whole routine is repeated. This is definitely one of the harder routines, and at the end you can barely lift your arms. You need a pull-up bar for this routine. I also use push-up bars which helps my wrists and improves my form.2) Plyometrics: You do this routine on day 2 of weeks 1,2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,12. This is the hardest of all of the routines, as you are constantly jumping and squatting. There are 5 sets of exercises which each have three 30 second exercises followed by one 60 second (easier) exercise. There is one additional sports set at the end which is easier than the other five. This is definitely the most draining workout, and the first time through, I had to pause it multiple times. Now, I can do it with almost no pauses, but it completely wipes me out by the end. If you have hard floors like I do, I recommend a workout mat. Mine slides around a bit, so I have to pin it under the couch in my apartment.3) Arms and shoulders: You do this routine on day 3 of weeks 1,2,3,9,11. This routine is mostly focused around lifting either weights or using resistance bands. There is always one person in the video using bands, so you can use either and not worry about not knowing what to do. I use resistance bands since they are less expensive. During this routine, you do multiple sets of lifting exercises: biceps, followed by shoulders, followed by triceps. While it is less grueling than days 1 and 2, it still makes your arms very tired by the end.4) Yoga: You do this routine on day 4 of weeks 1,2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,12, and on days 1 and 6 of weeks 4,8,13. This workout is longer than any of the other workouts (about 90 minutes). The first half of the workout is very intense and is mostly different "warrior" poses. Most of these poses involve being in a lunge stance for a few minutes at a time and really make you balance while working leg muscles. This part of the routine is as hard as anything else you do in p90x. The second half of the routine is much easier and you mostly do different balance postures and stretches. I've been splitting this workout up and doing the second half after work, which I prefer doing so that I don't have to wake up as early. Overall, this workout (especially the first half) is very difficult, and it takes work to master each pose. You need a yoga mat for this one.5) Legs and back: You do this routine on day 5 of weeks 1,2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,12. It consists of sets of 2 leg exercises (squats or lunges) followed by one round of pull-ups. The wall squats and one legged wall squats are the most difficult exercises and really make your legs burn. Overall, it is not as intense on your legs as the plyometrics day, but it is still very difficult. The people in the video hold weights during most of the leg exercises, but I don't own them, so I just do the exercises without them which is hard enough. The pull-ups are similar to the ones from chest and back.6) Kenpo: You do this routine on day 6 of weeks 1,2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,12 and day 3 of weeks 4,8,13. This routine is a bit easier than the others, but still gives you a good workout. You throw a lot of kicks and punches during a short period of time, without a lot of breaks. It is good cardio and is the most fun routine to do.7) Stretching: You do this routine on day 7 of every week, and also on day 4 of weeks 4,8,13. During this routine you stretch out muscles of each part of the body. Most of these exercises are from the warmups of other routines or are from the second half of the yoga routine. It's important to give your body a rest and stretching can make you better at the other routines. I try to do it each week and have only skipped it once so far. I find this routine very relaxing. This is also a good day to do the Cardio X routine as well since it is not very difficult, and I don't feel like I get enough cardio with only two days each week devoted to it.8) Core: You do this routine during days 2 and 5 of weeks 4,8,13. You do a hybrid of exercises which work different muscle groups. Some of the exercises work abs, while there are also push-up exercises for your chest, and others for your legs and back. While not as hard as some of the routines you do other weeks, this not an easy workout.9) Chest, triceps, shoulders: You do this routine during day 1 of weeks 5,6,7,10,12. This is one of the hardest routines of the program, and after you finish, you will barely be able to move your arms. The push-ups from this routine are much harder than the ones from other days, and some (such as one arm push-ups) are still too hard for me to do. The triceps and shoulder exercises are similar to the ones you do during the other weeks, but doing them on the same day as the push-ups makes them much more difficult.10) Biceps and back: You do this routine during day 3 of weeks 5,6,7,10,12. While this is not the hardest workout in the program, your arms will feel sore by the end, as you do a lot of bicep curls and pull-ups. It is slightly shorter than the other routines, which makes it go by quickly.11) Abs: You do this routine on days 1,3,5 of weeks 1,2,3,5,6,7,9,10,11,12 at the end of the other routines each day. The ab workout is maybe the best workout of the package and gives the most visible results. It is 15 minutes long, and is hard work. The first few times through, I couldn't get through the entire routine, and my abs hurt afterward, but I've improved since, and have noticed the most results from this workout.12) Cardio X: I did this workout a few times during the rest week (4,8,13). It starts out with some of the "warrior" yoga moves, followed by some kenpo, then some plyo, and finally some of the core exercises from other days. This workout isn't to difficult and is a good supplement if you have some extra time to burn off additional calories, especially since you only do cardio twice a week usually.Overall, I'm very happy with the program. The dvd's are good quality (although they aren't wide-screen which is annoying since the black bars on the sides of the screen are becoming visible when I watch other things on TV). I also like that during each workout there is a status bar at the bottom of the screen which tells you how much longer the workout is as well as how long you have left in the current exercise (although the status bar has also burned into my screen a little bit). The casing that holds the DVDs is pretty bad, so you might want to put them in a jewel case instead so that they don't get scratched up, as I've seen a few people complaining about this in the comments. Tony is a bit cheesy at times, but I don't mind that. Some people complain that he talks too much between exercises, but he has to in order to give you enough time to rest between each exercise. The only thing which I find annoying is that he advertises the recovery drink during each routine. He's pretty good at describing the exercises, but the first time through, you might want to watch how to do some of them. I was already going to a gym and running each day for a half an hour, so the time commitment isn't too much worse for me than before and I don't have to leave my apartment. It is definitely for people who are already in shape, so I recommend if you haven't worked out in a while that you should probably ease into it with the cardio x, stretching, and kenpo routines before getting into the others. As I said above, I don't do the diet plan, but I've made an effort to eat healthier foods and more protein, which I think is good enough. I also end up getting drinks with friends each week, so I try to make up for it by either running a little extra on those days or doing Cardio X in addition to my other routine. When I do go out, I also try to stay away from mixed drinks which contain a lot of sugar. A few times I've been away for a weekend and had to skip a day, but I made up for it by pushing everything back and then doing stretching on the same day as Kenpo to catch up. p90x is definitely a much more fun and more motivating way to work out, and if you work hard enough, you will get results.

In the last decade I've burned my way through a lot of workout DVDs and exercise equipment. At first all of them helped me to lose some weight and gain a certain level of fitness, but over time they became repetitive and I felt like I was in a rut. I decided that I needed a comprehensive exercise program that would guide me to a higher state of fitness and give me the tools to maintain it. A couple of months ago I came across the P90X infomercial on cable TV, and despite some trepidation I decided to man up and go for the gusto. Although it wasn't easy, P90X wasn't too hard for me and it changed my lifeI was a bit nervous about ordering anything directly from BeachBody, so I went through Amazon instead. I soon received a box with the BeachBody logo containing the twelve-workout P90X program (the How to Bring it introductory DVD also contains a bonus of two workouts from Tony Horton's Power 90 program), a fitness guidebook, a nutrition plan, a calendar, and a quick start guide. However, keep in mind that ordering directly from BeachBody can get you some additional goodies such as a "professional grade" exercise band (NOTE: I'm not affiliated with BeachBody, nor am I a coach).Once the program came in the mail I spent some time looking it over and gathering the required equipment. When I felt ready I began P90X on March 14, 2012. After a lot of sweat and effort I finally finished the last workout on June 11, 2012. I'm satisfied with my results, despite the fact that they weren't as visually dramatic as the featured infomercial players. Even so, I'm much fitter now than when I started P90X, and I feel like I can competently maintain my results, especially since BeachBody, the company behind P90X, has many other exercise programs and a large online support community that will keep me on the path to holistic fitness and wellness.Anyway, as part of my preparation I watched the How to Bring It DVD, a short P90X tutorial featuring program creator and workout leader Tony Horton, and leafed through the fitness book. Mr. Horton provides three different 90-day paths to glory: 1) P90X Classic, the standard program; 2) P90X Lean, a slightly easier variation with more cardio focus; and 3) P90X Doubles, which is Classic with additional morning cardio workouts. All three options follow a six day on/one day off cycle within a three phase plan that changes things up to maximize muscle confusion in order to prevent the plateau effect, which according to Mr. Horton is the bane of most fitness programs because it stops fitness growth and leads to fatigue and discouragement.To keep things lively and interesting, P90X consists of twelve different workouts - most are an hour long, with YogaX running 90 minutes and the add-on Ab Ripper X routine clocking in at about sixteen minutes. You'll need some equipment to maximize your results: a pull-up bar, yoga block, exercise mat, exercise bands, push-up stands, and dumbbells. If necessary, you can use the exercise bands in lieu of the dumbbells and pull-up bar. Of course, you will need the right kind of doorway for the pull-up bar (or get a free-standing one) and a place to attach the bands. BeachBody sells all of these items, but I got mine from local sporting goods and exercise stores.I chose the P90X Classic option and jumped right in. One thing I quickly discovered was the difference between the infomercial's rah-rah marketing focus and the actual program's disclaimer. The infomercial showcases morbidly obese or out-of-shape people doing P90X and obtaining dramatic results, but the DVD and guidebook warnings state that P90X is only for people who are already fit and injury-free, and recommends that everyone take and pass the included fitness test before attempting the program. At this point I was already committed, so I skipped the test and went for it.Tony Horton is the front man for all of the workouts and is assisted by a rotating cast of P90X graduates (some more likeable than others, as you'll discover) who demonstrate the exercises and their variations. Mr. Horton's quite the talkative extrovert, and "the kids" also act as the straight man for his constant stream of good-natured and humorous banter. After the first workout I was beat to crap, but thankfully Mr. Horton stresses modifications and breaks as needed for beginners like myself. As time went on I gained confidence and felt better, especially as I got more sleep, added supplements, and improved my diet.Speaking of nutrition, P90X comes with a comprehensive nutrition plan that, like the exercise program, is broken down into three phases: 1) Fat Shredder; 2) Energy Booster; and 3) Endurance Maximizer that are designed to provide the fuel needed to get fit and obtain muscular definition. As stated in the program and on the website, the diet is a KEY factor of P90X, especially if you're aiming for six-pack abs. Although I significantly altered my diet to include smaller portions of healthier foods and added some supplements, I didn't religiously follow the diet plan and therefore did not get the bufftastic results that some folks in my support group achieved.Indeed, the message board support group on the BeachBody website was a big help to me. After lurking in the P90X section for awhile I found a like-minded bunch of people who started about the same time I did, along with a solid coach who kept us on track, answered questions, and even used "tough love" to bust excuses and keep us pushing play. However, be aware that it's pretty easy to become a BeachBody coach, and as a result their quality varies wildly. But ours was one of the good ones, and I got a lot out of interacting with him and my other P90X newbies on a daily basis.By the time I reached the third phase of P90X I had made significant fitness gains and was able to keep up with most of the exercises. I lost some fat, gained some muscle, my clothes fit better, I looked good, and I felt more energetic. As with any exercise program, I enjoyed some workouts more than others. Since I'm a martial artist I liked KenpoX the best and felt that Core Synergistics provided a good all-around workout. And like many others, I struggled with YogaX's difficulty and 90-minute length and had a love/hate relationship with Ab Ripper X. But every time I completed a routine I felt like I had accomplished something, and that was a huge motivator.I became so invested in completing P90X that I did the last week while on vacation in Hawaii (I even planned my trip so that air travel to and from O'ahu fell on my recovery days). Making it through the program without missing a workout gave me a great sense of accomplishment, especially after it morphed into more than just a one-and-done deal. P90X made superior fitness a habit, prompting me to continue tweaking my diet for the better and take on another 90-day hybrid program of two other BeachBody workouts: P90X Plus and Les Mills Pump. And my support group is still in place, even though many of us are doing different programs this time around.Caveats? Well, P90X requires a significant time commitment to realize its full potential. You'll be working out six days a week for at least an hour (longer on YogaX and Ab Ripper X days). None of the routines are a cakewalk, and there is plenty of injury potential if you're careless or have preexisting health conditions. Plus, if you want optimal results you'll have to follow the nutrition plan, which can be expensive if you get the supplements and difficult if you hate cooking, like coffee and alcohol, or are on a special diet because of issues such as diabetes. In addition, the equipment listed above isn't cheap, especially if you have to buy it all from scratch. Finally, the DVDs seem to be prone to damage - a couple people in my group had problems with freezing discs, and getting replacements from BeachBody can be tough without the proper documentation.In the end, I'm glad that I did P90X because the good results I achieved even without strict adherence to the nutrition plan and despite the obstacles listed in the previous paragraph. Some people fall in love with P90X and go through two or more cycles in a row, but I'd rather do some other exercise packages in order to avoid burnout. I advise checking out the BeachBody website, particularly the message boards, to see if P90X (or another of their many programs) is right for you. As for me, I can truly say that P90X has changed my life for the better, and therefore it gets my highest recommendation.