For the last 60 days I’ve been going through what many people would call HELL – and I would not disagree with them.
That said, it was worth every single drop of sweat because now I can easily say that thanks to Insanity, I’m in the best shape of my life.
We did it!
60 days ago, I had written a post announcing that I was “going insane“, primarily because I was losing the great shape and high energy I once had after previously finishing P90X, a 90-day at home fitness program from the same company.
When I finished P90X nine months ago, I wrote a post sharing my results that inspired a lot of people to change their lives and give P90x a shot too. I even convinced one of my idols, Yaro Starak from Entrepreneur’s Journey, to finish his first 90 days too, as you can see here.
After my first round, I started over, and after 4 weeks I gave up.
A few weeks later, disappointed, I started over again – only to give up just 2 weeks after that.
I couldn’t believe it.
And not only was I letting myself down, I felt like I was letting all of you down too – everyone who followed me on my 90-day life changing journey that was slowly changing back to the way it used to be: minimal exercise (if any), making poor food decisions, and putting things off until tomorrow.
Thinking Positively
After a few months, I wanted to try again.
But, instead of thinking about why I had failed over and over again, I began to think about why I was so successful the first time through. (I’m pasting what I wrote in my “I’m Going Insane” post for you below, because these are extremely vital):
- It was my first time going through the program, so it was always new and exciting to me.
- I had clear goals that I was working towards, like specific body fat and weight loss, as well as numbers that I wanted to reach for particular exercises (e.g. 20 pull-ups).
- I was writing down everything and tracking my progress every single day, which is recommended in the program.
- I had a lot of people holding me accountable, since I mentioned it on the blog and to a number of my friends. I did not want to fail those who were watching me.
That’s when I got Insanity and started to take things seriously.
What Insanity is Like
The program is called Insanity for a reason.
All of the workouts are very cardio-based, which is the main difference between Insanity and P90X.
With P90x – some days you do a cardio workout, other days you might do weights, stretching, yoga, etc. With Insanity – all of the workouts are heavy on the cardio, and it’s a lot more intense in my opinion. After the warmups, I’m dripping sweat.
If you want more info on how these two products compare, feel free to ask me in the comments of this post.
Why I Like Insanity
I like Insanity a lot for a number of reasons:
First, the workouts feel relatively short. In the first 30-days, they range from 35 to 45 minutes per day, and in the last 60 days, a DVD never goes over an hour. Plus, because you’re moving so fast and hardly have any time to think, it goes by even quicker.
Secondly, you don’t need any equipment beyond what you would need to run around the block. No pull up bars, no weights – nothing. It’s all you and gravity – that’s it!
Thirdly, you can rest, and you don’t feel bad doing so. During the videos, you’re actually encouraged to rest if you feel the need to (and your form is going bad), and trust me – in the beginning, I took a lot of breaks. Plus, the people behind the instructor also take a lot of breaks too, which is very encouraging because it makes them seem like normal people who get tired, just like me.
And lastly, it gave me great results…
The Fit Test
With P90X, you take a fit test on day 1 and another on day 90 to see how much you’ve progressed. With Insanity, you take one every 2 weeks.
Here are the results of my bi-weekly fit test, which comprises of doing the following 8 exercises as many times as possible, for 60 seconds (with a 1 minute break in between each):
1. Switch Kicks
A front kick, alternating legs, above the waistline.
- Day 01: 119
- Day 15: 142
- Day 36: 145
- Day 50: 162
- Day 63: 166
2. Power Jacks
A jumping jack, except when your arms come down you include a squat.
- Day 01: 48
- Day 15: 65
- Day 36: 72
- Day 50: 77
- Day 63: 84
3. Power Knees
Start with your hands together over your head, and simultaneously bring your hands down while bringing one of your knees up to touch. Repeat as many times as you can.
- Day 01: 100
- Day 15: 126
- Day 36: 128
- Day 50: 150
- Day 63: 156
4. Power Jumps
I hate these! Jump in the air, bring your knees towards your chest and slap your hands to your knees. When you land, squat and repeat.
- Day 01: 30
- Day 15: 55
- Day 36: 100
- Day 50: 110
- Day 63: 105
5. Globe Jumps
Jump to the right reaching for the sky, then squat and touch the ground. Do the same backwards, to the left, and then forward to complete one rotation. One rotation counts for 1 rep.
- Day 01: 6
- Day 15: 11
- Day 36: 13
- Day 50: 14
- Day 63: 13
6. Suicide Jumps
From a standing position, put your hands on the floor in front of your feet, jump your feet back so you’re in a pushup position. Then, reverse. Bring your feet in, and jump from the bottom and reach for the sky.
- Day 01: 12
- Day 15: 20
- Day 36: 22
- Day 50: 23
- Day 63: 30
7. Push-Up Jacks
These, I love. In a push-up position, you simultaneously speak your feet wide while you go down for a push-up, and then reverse. It’s like you’re doing jumping jacks with your feet every time you do a push-up.
- Day 01: 25
- Day 15: 30
- Day 36: 35
- Day 50: 45
- Day 63: 45
8. Low Plank Obliques
In a push-up position (except with your elbows resting on the ground and hand clasped) you take one of your legs and lift it to the side and forward towards the shoulder on the same side. Repeat with other leg.
- Day 01: 51
- Day 15: 70
- Day 36: 90
- Day 50: 102
- Day 63: 121
Although I dreaded fit-test day, I always felt so great afterwards. Keeping track of your progress like this in anything is a great way to stay motivated.
My weight is virtually the same as it was before, which was my goal: to lose fat and gain muscle – but maintain the same weight.
As far as body fat percentage, I know I lost a lot, but I have yet to get a true reading because my at-home BF scale is very unreliable. I’m hoping to get a professional to measure for me in the next few days (at the local gym).
My Biggest Motivations
Besides trying to prove to myself that my first round of P90X was not a fluke, and wanting to get back into the shape I was in before, I had two major things that really kept me going throughout this entire 60-day journey, which I did want to quit several times.
First, there’s all of you, the fans of SPI. Some of you even emailed me and sent me tweets to check on my progress, which is just awesome.
Thank you for holding me accountable. I did not want to let you down!
Secondly, and most importantly, there’s my wife. My wife, April, participated in the 60 days of Insanity with me, the entire time, and she rocked it!
April even performed better than I did on several parts of the fit test. She was my biggest motivator and always picked me up when I was too lazy to workout, and she always encouraged me to keep going when all I wanted to do was stop.
She’s the most amazing wife and mother. I’m so blessed.
Diet
Diet is hugely important, and many say that it’s actually more important than any exercising that you do – and I agree. Generally speaking, if a person wants to lose weight, he or she must be smart about what they eat. If you want to bulk up – then you’ve got to also be smart about what you eat – but in a different way.
I’ve learned so much about diet since starting P90X, and both programs come with a nutritional guide that will definitely educate you if you need it.
I forgot where I learned this analogy from, but it helps me to remember to eat well, especially when I’m working out a lot. The analogy is that your body is like a car. If you have a high-performance vehicle (sports car, muscle car, etc.) and you want to take good care of it, you’re going to need to give it good, clean, and powerful fuel. Feed it crappy fuel, and the car isn’t going to perform like it should, or even perform at all.
I’ve been following the Slow Carb Diet outlined by Tim Ferriss in his latest book, The 4-Hour Body, which I won’t talk about in detail here in this post – but it works, and there is one thing about the diet I’d like to mention.
The coolest part about this particular diet is that one day a week (just one!), you can eat whatever you want. Like, seriously – anything you want.
Saturday was my “cheat day”, and during the 60 days, I ate/drank pizza, In-N-Out burgers, taco bell, lots of buffalo wings, chocolate shakes, flaming hot cheeto puffs, beer, donuts, frappe mochas, and a lot of other things you wouldn’t normally eat when on a diet.
It sounds like the dumbest thing in the world, but the science behind it in Tim’s book is great.
Insanity + 4 Hour Body = win
What’s Next?
Last time, I gave up on P90X the 2nd and 3rd time around because I was bored with it.
Insanity is faster-paced and I think I could go another round or two with it without getting bored, but luckily there’s a new program out there that I have already purchased.
It’s called Insanity Asylum, and it’s the next step for those who graduated Insanity and want more. It’s only a 30-day program, but it’s supposed to be the toughest at-home fitness program ever – and if you look up “Insanity Asylum” on YouTube, you’ll see why.
I was actually recently challenged by a good friend of mine, Tony DiLorenzo from FitMarriage.com, to a little competition. Tony is in week 4 of Insanity right now, but once he’s finished, we’re both going to do Asylum at the same time and at the end of the 30 days, we’re going hold a little fitness and strength competition at a local park or rec center.
We’re going to see if anyone else in the San Diego area would like to join us, and it might turn into this fun little social meetup / competition thing. I’m really pumped about it!
So Tony, if you’re reading this – it’s on buddy!
If You’re Interested…
I’m now signed up as a BeachBody coach, which means that I can help you if you’re interested in getting started with Insanity or P90X, or any other type of BeachBody product. I could have done that anyways, but really what this means is that now I earn a 25% commission from affiliate sales for these products, instead of 5-6% from Amazon.com’s affiliate program.
I just wanted to be honest about the links in this post, so feel free to go through my affiliate links for Insanity if you’re interested. I won’t hold it against you if you don’t, but of course I’d be forever thankful if you did.
If you do purchase through my link, let me know if you need some motivation to get started or someone to hold you accountable during your program, and I’ll do my best to make sure you get where you want to be.
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Hi Pat,
You’re looking good, Pat Thanks for sharing.
I like being fit myself, I like how it feels after a workout, it let’s me know a process is worthwhile in a very palpable way. Overall it keeps the journey light while earthbound by gravitational forces
Hey Pat, looks like you’re tearing it up!
The one thing that really helped me get into better shape was adding a set number of push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups on a daily basis on top of whatever workout I already had planned. I got my inspiration for this method by reading about Herschel Walker’s daily routine:
-http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1125982/index.htm
Not saying this is something you need to do, but if you’re looking for an extra challenge, it could definitely give you a boost… and make your current workouts tougher!!!
Brent
Sheesh, Pat, I’m all tired out just looking at the Fit Test for this – Insanity is a great name for the program. Congratulations on your accomplishment: a big change in 60 days! While I can’t say much for the exercise gear, fashion-wise
but you’re looking mighty fine. You must be feeling a whole lot more energy, too?
Congrats, sounds awesome. I need something for when I travel so dunno about the DVDs. Maybe I should just get jump rope!
Thanks Pat for this awesome notification… I love your steps and I hope to achieve more as I will always strife to be the best in my niche. Thanks for all your supporting articles and others.
Hey Pat,
Good fitness post, alot of people don’t put enough into their fitness. You do look a little insane on Day 60, LOL.
Dwight Anthony
Financially Elite blog Dot Com
Pat – I finally had the chance to look at your 1st Fit Test and compared it to mine. We were even in half of them and the other half either you did better or I did. Our Asylum Duel is going to be awesome if we are this close!
Recovery week and then the second half. I’ll come back to check my Fit Test compared to yours when I do it again.
I will check to see if I can use it myself. As a lady, I have literally ballooned up in the last few years. It’s now a constant struggle losing some pounds.
Helen — I took Pat’s Niche Site class in January and ended up creating a website for people who have put on weight and not been able to lose it. It uses the Slow Carb Diet that Pat was on when he did this jagunda workout routine. Check it out — this thing really works!
Well done Pat on your success. It is really important to keep fit and you have demonstrated that if you put your mind to it you can reach a level of fitness that really benefits every part of your life. Your mind will be really sharp now, I am guessing you will be earning about $100,000 per month soon.
Pat,
Full disclosure: I completed a round of P90X several years ago. I currently cannot imagine hearing Tony Horton’s voice again, or listening to his inane jokes. However, it is not only my aversion to his voice that makes me not want to do another P90X round, it is because I want more from my physical activity. Completing more pushups, pullups, crunches, leg kicks etc. is not, and in my opinion should not be the end goal of being active, but should be preparing you for some sort of sport.
I believe it is dangerous for your long term health and sanity to do these at home workout routines. Insanity and P90X are great for initially getting into shape and feeling better about your body, but not for maintaining that hard fought for body. Here is why:
1. The novelty wears off, most people don’t find enough value in improving number of reps. How many rounds of Insanity and P90X can one person do?
2. Frustration over gaining weight and losing those muscles.
3. Should not be a diet or workout routine, but instead a lifestyle change. Incorporate working out into your life as something you love to do because it makes you feel and look great.
4. Have a sport you are working out for. Take up soccer, basketball, volleyball, baseball, racquetball running or any other competitive sport that you can train for, and which will keep you motivated to do those hard workouts. participating in some organized sport can be extremely rewarding.
Can you see yourself endlessly doing these at home workout routines to maintain your the gains? If so, then I wish you the best.
Good stuff my man!
i know this program takes a lot of hard work and determination to complete and show great results in fitness levels, but i find these types of workout programs to be too catabolic (muscle wasting) this is a bad thing even if your only looking to burn fat and not pack on muscle.
If your interested in making a big change to your physique rather than your cardiovascular conditioning i suggest you try a program called max-ot.
I found max-ot to be the most efficient and effective program for packing on muscle and burning fat at the same time, however it will require you to sign up to a gym rather than workout at home and also a change in diet, but the results are worth it mate trust me!
Im going to leave it there as this is starting to sound like a sales pitch but if your interested on learning more about the program just Google max-ot and you should find the download within the first couple of results (don’t worry,it’s for free)
note: the program was put together by a supplement company (AST sport science) and in program they suggest you will need there supplements and at this point you will start to think its nothing but an advertising campaign for there sups. Dont worry the program is legit, you cant blame them for trying to make a buck out of it. If you do buy supplements dont feel you need to buy the exact product they suggest, shop around and do research on your supplements and workout programs. The time you put in for the research will be more valuable than the time you put in at the gym.
Wow this post has gone wayyyyy too long lol, just thought i would try and help you out like you have helped the rest of us. Good luck with it brother and keep up the hard work!
I started the insanity workout 6 weeks ago because I have developed the dreaded plantar fasciitis. I have been a long distance runner for close to 37 years. I have ran over 12,000 foot mountain passes.
After doing Insanity, I can honestly say that the over all workout is much better because we are working our entire body. The muscles in my toes and fingers were sore after the first workout!
I was 184 lbs when I started and I am still at 184. However, my body is much harder. It’s hard to put a price tag on this product. I bought a “copy” and did not feel right. Today, I bought a legal un-opened box-this baby is sealed and legal. I used to pay $1200 a year for club and it did not do the same.
Kudos to you!
Mark
This is so inspirational. I NEED to get off my butt and start exercising. Aaaah. I don’t do it enough.
Pat,
I admire you for not only putting up your income reports but also your before and after pictures. I’ve thought about copying your idea about posting income reports, but I don’t think I’ll ever do the picture thing. I’m hoping my “after” picture looks like your “before” picture! Then again you’re a lot younger than I am, apparently. Let’s check back in after your 3rd or 4th child! Great job! Truly Insane.
Hey Rich… I love your “I’m hoping my “after” picture looks like your “before” picture!” Made me smile… And if you haven’t checked out Tim Ferriss ideas about weight loss and working out — check his blog or his 4-Hour Body book. I’m 68 and have followed his ideas with great success…
I made it through 30 days and hurt my back. Had been driving a lot and running and it was too much at once. Lost 30lbs though and a year later I’m back on track. Absolutely love Insanity but I don’t get very far in on the workouts.
Cool to see another online marketing person into this workout. Still at it?
Pat I just started my Insanity workout today thanks to you! I may need some encouragement just like in the Niche coaching. Wish me luck!
Hey Pat or anyone else who wants to reply!
I have a question: I am a beachbody coach now as well and in my fourth week of insanity (almost to hit recovery week, woohoo). Before signing up for beachbody I was strictly a 4 hour body follower and very successful with it losing about 25 lbs, however I hit a lengthy plateau and wanting to accelerate weight loss before my wedding I added in Insanity about a 3 weeks ago. Did you stick strictly to 4HB or do you veer a little? I’ve noticed my muscles not recovering very fast and have had very low energy (previously not a problem). I was going to try to add in just the beachbody results and recovery formula right after, but it does have quite a bit of sugar and carbs from the ingredients they use. Do you think that this will ruin the principles of 4HB? Congrats on your results! I’m really enjoying the workouts and although not dropping a ton of lbs yet, I am dropping inches and my overall fitness is improving!
Followed Pat with P90X. You can see my results at http://money-cake.com/2011/10/getting-back-in-shape-with-p90x/
hi i want to start insanity , what is one
round ? 30 days or 60 days
One round of Insanity is 63 days. It goes by quick too.
thank you , i am going to start now . another question , i want to lose weight , i eat healthy most of the time and not much , i have lost already 80 pounds in 8 months and now i am in a plateau , 25 pounds more to lose i started boxing and light weight training to tone , they say eat more cause you train ,but on the scale the numbers are going up !!! i m not losing ! i get discorage! now i want to go back to insanity that i did part time . i want to commit to something now to lose those last 25 pounds and be toned cause i think i lost the pound to fast , saggy arms! what should i do?
I purchased the Insanity DVDs over the weekend and Monday is the first day for me and a friend to start this. About to head to the store and get my first week of fuel (food). I have a wedding to prep for after all. Haha.
Thanks for this encouraging post!
Insanity is definitely crazier than p90x, although neither are a walk in the park. I’m sure Asylum is ridiculous…
I just started a blog to document my journey with insanity. I’m in week one and loving every minute of it! http://insanityordietrying.blogspot.com/
I just started yesterday! I’m 46, so it’s kicking my ass completely and I can’t even keep going during the workout, but I already feel it big time in my legs and abs. Great to see your results – thanks for sharing!
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