Insanity Day 1

For those of you who have never used this workout series the basic format is 43 minutes total workout with 5 minutes of stretching followed by 35 minutes of intense exercise and ending with 3 minutes of cool down stretching.

The particular dvd that I did was called Plyometric Cardio Circuit exercise.  Plyometrics is a method of training elastic muscles using explosive moves, like jumping.  The workout included mountain climbers, squat jumps, burpee type push-ups, high knees and more.  This workout was grouped into series of 3-4 exercises.  The first set in the series starts off at a moderate pace.  Once that set is completed, the pace increases and then the final set is done at a very rapid pace.

One thing that I really appreciated about this workout is that they give you 30 second rest breaks between series.  I'm used to having no rest interval when I do a similar workout.

So was it intense?  Well, yeah I suppose it was.  By the time I finished I was dripping in sweat- as in actually dripping. There were moments when I had to stop to take a quick breath but I finished the whole dvd and was able to complete all of the exercises in good form.  At the end of the workout I felt good.  It felt like I had done 30minutes of heavy cardio and I recovered pretty quickly.

Overall, I thought it was a good workout.  The Insanity series is a great addition to any workout routine.  If you've never exercised before it's going to be challenging for you.  If you exercise regularly it's a great way to mix up your routine although it may not be enough on it's own.  The regimen is to do the dvds 6 days a week and rest on Sundays.  I imagine that 6 days of this in a row would be pretty exhausting!  At this point though I can't say for sure if I believe it to be a well rounded routine that could be followed to achieve the ultimate physique.

So that's my first thoughts.  Since I already have an established routine I won't be doing the Insanity as my sole source of exercise but I intend to do 3 or 4 more videos this week.  Plus, tomorrow I start the 30 day Ab Challenge by Strong Like Susan that I mentioned in my last post.  Is anyone joining me?