Does P90x work as well as it says?

[Missy]

My hubby recently bought the P90x system and wants me to try it.. has anyone here had good results with it?? Just curious, thanks

[chairohkey]

If by good results you mean skinny and weak, then yes. Tell your hubby P90X = man aerobics and then get him under a barbell quick.

[EmCee]

Depends on what you want out of it. I lost a lot of weight using P90x... I wasn't in it to strengthen at that time. Now I use some of the workouts in my gym routine (chest and back is actually killer) and they kick my booty. It honestly depends on what you're after and how willing you are to strive for a harder workout every time.

[Vegemighty]

My dad followed the plan and he got seriously ripped from it. He was already pretty strong, but now he's stronger and the muscles are more defined

[Corbab]

P90X is great if you want to look good (and you define good as "skinny with some weird muscle-ish things.") I've had a few friends start it, and all of them quit within the first month. A barbell would have you (and him) looking better with the added bonus of being able to toss the P90Xers around the beach like a frisbee.

I'll pull out the old Mark Twight quote: "Appearance is the consequence of fitness." Get some strength, and you'll never look better.

[Titanium Bulwark]

I had pretty good luck with it. My problem with it was the time commitment and not being able to do it during my lunch hour (when I usually work out, in a gym, rather than at home).

The good part about it, is that you really don't need a whole lot of equipment. A few dumbbells and a place to do pull ups/chin ups and you're set. It was also the first yoga I ever did, and that really helped my flexibility. It was also good in that I knew what workout I had to do that day. Most of the time I'd do the same stuff when I went to the gym, and I'd NEVER work my legs. P90X at least forced me to get out of my comfort zone.

Granted, the workouts are not all compound movements (like many of the good folks suggest on these boards) but it is mostly free weights/bodyweight exercises. I still do the Kempo and Yoga on occasion.

The bad part: listening to Tony Horton. Every day. For at least an hour. His jokes get really old quickly.

You really need to track your progress each time you do a workout and try to do "one more" each time. Otherwise, I found that I just coasted through.

Good luck to the both of you, let us know how it goes!

[EmCee]

The bad part: listening to Tony Horton. Every day. For at least an hour. His jokes get really old quickly.

Once I got the movements down, I muted him and played music. I hate during Kenpo when he tells the redhead "You're tight and smooth and clean and gorgeous!" O.O

[Slovien]

I think P90X and Insanity and anything else like that is great if you're bad at making and sticking to your own workout. If you can stick to the program and do it every day that you're supposed to and eat right, you'll do great. If you skip around with food and workouts then it'll be like anything else, you won't get the results you want. But if you already have it might as well try it out!

[DoogieT]

I tried P90X for a while but gave up because I had almost zero strength and couldn't keep up with them. I was also completely exhausted after finishing a workout (like, dead) and this always ruined my day. Things might be different if I were to try it again now, though.

Also, the women have bad technique in the karate section. Most of them would break their wrists if they tried to punch anything for real.

[Photobrandon]

P90X isn't a bad program, but I think a proper lifting routine with aerobics on off days will accomplish more in less time. The advantage to P90X is you don't really need to think about the program all that much, just push play and go with it. It is important to work on progression as you go through the program, because it is possible to just stagnate if you don't push yourself. If you do try it, remember that diet will still be 80% of your success, and I think a huge factor in the before/after photos (besides posing/lighting) is people eating right for 90 days.

The main downside to the program, as mentioned above, is the huge time commitment. 60-90 minutes 6 days a week is a lot. I have the DVD's and had decent success with the program, but just couldn't keep to the schedule after a while. I think 3 45 minute lifting sessions on a proven program (Starting strength, 5x5, 5-3-1, whatever) with one or two HIIT sessions on off days will do just as well, if not better, at half the time commitment. That said, I do still use the Yoga routine occasionally on an off day, since for me that is the hardest and the one I least enjoy doing...as its the one that works my weaknesses the most. Plyometrics is still a great workout too.

[Jcannon98188]

My brother-in-law did it twice a day everyday when he was in Afghanistan. He was of course already pretty strong before starting it, and got even stronger/bigger. Any excercise program that you stick to following will work pretty much.

[Daffy]

It's a good program for losing weight and gaining strength too. Not the same kind of strength you get from weightlifting, but anyone who can finish a p90x workout is certainly stronger than most people.

It does take a lot of time... time which could possibly be spent doing a more effective workout routine, as Photobrandon mentioned above.

[drsloomis]

I've never understood the disdain some have for the program--if you follow the plan and eat right, you'll get results. I was at a point where it was exactly what I needed when I started it, and by the end I had dropped 30 lbs, gained some descent definition, and felt better than I had in years. Could I have done that with another program? Sure. Could I have done following my own program? Probably not. Now I lift on my own, though I'll still fall back on some of the P90X routines when I need to. It's a great starting point, and one that definitely gets results if you stick with it.

[Waldo]

I never did the full program but I've done the Yoga workout every week since Feb. I love the Yoga workout, it works everything a strength and cardio program misses. It has helped me in a lot of ways; balance, focus, mobility, flexibilty, and core strength.

Getting bigger or smaller is a function of your diet. The greatest program in the world isn't going to do anything if you don't feed it right, even the worst programs give results when diet is in-line.

And 'eh, barbells are overrated. Easier but not better. Resistance is resistance, no resistance is better than others. Provide stimulus and feed your muscles and they will grow.

[smazzon1]

I tried in high school but stopped after a month. I would be out of breath all the time but it was due to the fact that I still wasn't lifting at the time. I'm not too strong yet but as others have said I'd probably be a lot better at it now. I definitely recommend lifting and building strength first if you want to stick with it.

But the Ab Ripper X is an awesome workout. When I can I still use it.

[Caution]

I lost ~30 lbs when I did it. Of course, I stuck to the diet with 50/30/20 (protein, carbs, fats) and around 1800 calories. It worked because I was doing something every day and keeping my diet in line. I didn't gain much muscle and I probably could have been in much better shape afterwards if I joined up with a PT, a gym membership, and went 6 days a week for an hour a day to the gym but I could do this at home and it gave me something to follow. I also stuck with it for 90 days because someone bet me that I couldn't. I still do use some of the cardio workouts, like plyo, because it does get my heart rate up. Well, that and I paid 100 bucks for it, granted that was 2 years ago.

[CyningaDena]

Once I got the movements down, I muted him and played music. I hate during Kenpo when he tells the redhead "You're tight and smooth and clean and gorgeous!" O.O

Isn't that a quote from To Wong Foo?

[Scorpion1674]

The thing about P90X is that it takes anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour and a half to complete. The key is to do what you can... on both ends. If you think what they're doing is weak, increase the weight. Drop reps. You can tailor it to your needs. It's convenient as the routine is already made for you. Me? I don't have that kind of time. I tried and made it 1 month. Plus I am too strong for some of those exercises with the weights I have at home. AND it didn't address my particular weakness: running. I did, however, find myself able to perform over 300 pushups in one workout, so I did get some results.

I think it's incredibly shallow and narrow-minded to dismiss a program altogether just because you don't like it. I say try it. If you don't like it, there are NUMEROUS alternatives available here.

[EmCee]

Isn't that a quote from To Wong Foo?

I had no idea what you were talking about until I googled... totes downloading and watching STAT.