Comments on: Why the P90X Exercise Program is Overrated

By: brandon

brandon — Mon, 07 May 2012 17:04:41 +0000

Vin,

I think you have some valuable points here. I have been working out intensely for about 13 years now and am in pretty good shape. I started P90X about two months ago. My wife started it as well. She has lost a tremendous amount of body fat, however, that is probably due to a healthier diet and burning more calories than she is taking in.

You have an excellent way of responding to people politely and non agressively. I agree with you about plyometrics, cardio x, and kenpo x. I think P90X will lead to ALOT of overtraining and over use injuries.

On the other hand, P90X is extremely convenient. I often do it on business trips when I do no have access to a gym.

Thanks so much for your honest opinion. I look forward to seeing more articles from you!

Brandon

By: dae-dae

dae-dae — Mon, 07 May 2012 10:58:17 +0000

a lot of good points in this thread! to put it all in a nut shell…to each his/her own. Its not for everyone. btw, where’s Vin?
before I saw the comments and replies, I was inclined to say that Vin was a puss, that did not have the nerve to even try P90X before he bashed it. But reading lets me know that the OP is not ignorant to physical fitness. BUT I would like to say that one of the most important aspects of any regiment is WILL-POWER, dedication… however you want to look at it. In other words, you will only be able to accomplish what your mind allows you to. I, myself, am a “go hard or go home” type of person but I also know that everyone is different; with different capabilities, different requirements, different genetics. Anyone who knows of P90X, knows what the “X” stands for. If you think that P90X is going to help you find your soul-mate, then, you will be very disappointed. If you are that shallow to think that a “beach body” will fill whatever void that lies within, then you WILL be disappointed. Some people like the attention. Some people like the finish line/accomplishment. Some people like the challenge.
Personally or IMO, P90X is not a weight loss plan. It’s for those that need that extreme physical and mental punishment in order to gain any rewarding results. For some like myself, ordinary daily excercise will not suffice; there is no gain other than stamina. I Hve to be pushed to my physical and mental limits and that is where I find my reward!!! If I was extremely overweight and out of shape, I would still get off pushing myself to the limit, although, that doesn’t make much sense.

Vin has started a very healthy thread here, and I understand that the main idea is to live a ‘life-long’ healthy lifestyle without all the demanding requirements of P90X. But, hey, if you got time and energy for P90X, then you can mow the lawn/and the neighbor’s, play with the kids, plan/prepare healthy meals, change a light bulb, vacuum the floor, wash the car, make babies, get up and get your own glass of water, take the stairs, correct your posture, use your off-hand, and whether or not you believe this one…do some yoga. I know I may sound retarded but you’d be surprised what all the small things can do.

And I must emphasize how non-bias knowledgeable, well mannered, and kind the OP was/is with all of his replies.

@Vin
when you start your own regiment for the world to partake of, I am sure it will be one that can be exercised through-out many gens. Thanks!

By: Chris

Chris — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 01:42:43 +0000

Vin,
First time reader of your blog, and have read a couple different topics. My wife kept telling me, “P90X is too much, you don’t have to do all that.” I kept ignoring her and went through with the program. After my first round (3 years ago), I was in tremendous shape, better than when I went through US Army basic training and the police academy. I followed the diet plan to a ‘T’, and the exercise routine. I was doing over 60 push ups and over 20 pull ups a set! I was a true believer. Fast forward to today. I started another round of P90X, this time using weights instead of resistance bands. My results were getting better than the first time I had done it. This time I followed my own diet plan because the P90X one just didn’t feel right for me. I just eat from all four food groups and make the servings well rounded and the proportions sized right (and sometimes throw in a little junk food every now and then for good measure, just to give myself a reason a to work harder).
I woke up one morning with numbness in my right hand and sensitivity in my right elbow, in my ulnar nerve. I waited a few days, it didn’t go away. Went to a doctor. He said rest it for 2 weeks, take motrin, etc. I did that, and it didn’t help. I didn’t work out at all during that time. 3 months later, I still have the problem, and now I have to get surgey to prevent permanent nerve damage. Doc said it could have been anything that triggered it, but couldn’t pin point the reason it happened because I didn’t feel it happen. I believe I overworked myself doing P90X. I was a firm believer in the program, until now. And your blog has helped me see that although it does have its good points, for some people it’s just not the right program. I’ve decided to give that book by Paul Chek a try and see if I can change my lifestyle. I’ve already started with a healthier diet (although I do have an unsatiable sweet tooth). I’ve always lacked the ability to come up with my own exercise routine/program, and have never slept well, so I’m always dreading that work out after a 10 hour shift. I guess I just want to say thanks for posting this, it’s helped me make a decision to stop using P90X (on a regular basis anyway) and to try to find something more suitable for me…that’s not going to cause me to get surgery.

By: Darrell

Darrell — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 00:09:43 +0000

Jeff,
I have lower back issues and need to be careful. While the ab ripper’s first three can be hard, I’ve found adjusting them to address those issues isn’t a problem and as I’ve gotten stronger, so has my lower back. You should try sticking the full 90 days out. It can be tedious but like most things, it’s worth it to finish. I’m finishing a second round but only do 5 days a week. 6 just takes too much time.

By: Jeff Lagemann

Jeff Lagemann — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 16:56:01 +0000

I always compare p90x era to cross fiters. They have a cult like mentality and get pretty put off if you date say something negative about their programs. The workouts are ok the first time through, but trust me they become majorly tedious and boring. I have never been about to complete the whole90 days because by the end of phase 2 I am ready to kill tony horton. an ripper is also a night mare for anyone with back pain. The original article looks almost likes a commercial for what I’m doing now which is new rules of lifting abs. Great program.

By: Arun

Arun — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 22:58:16 +0000

Thanks Vin. Your comments were neutral and replies the posts were very mature. I was looking for a neutral opinion, not the posts by P90X folks who were trying to sell the product, on the pros and cons of the workout and your article is spot on. Regardless, I am starting my P90X program tomorrow because the program is structured well and the ease of doing the program with few equipments. I am going to take some of your advise to stay injury free and hoping complete the program.

By: Romie Bourne

Romie Bourne — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 16:10:03 +0000

Michelle,

I must agree on all points. And I did the program and other high intensity TBB programs and yes I did get ripped and everyone LOVED the way I looked. And so did I. I was also underweight, rebounded in my eating to craving lots of “bad” foods, suffered minor injury after injury. And I KNOW what I am doing. I was a personal trainer, and a professional athlete. I thought it all would pass and it didn’t. I deconditioned to the point that now I can only do low impact, low weight workouts, PIlates and yoga and some dance workouts. Yes, they warn you and tell you to modify and when needed I did modify. But I was not a newbie to hard workouts. Nonetheless, I see in my experience that a lot of people return P90X. P90X2 is not 6 days a week. I think they learned their lesson on that. And Les Mills Pump is 3 days a week. Plus they added a Tai Chi type workout called Tai Cheng. I am going to explore that. If all your are seeking is the perfect, ripped body, then I believe you need to do some inner work first. You are already perfect. And beating yourself into submission will do nothing for your longevity. I think TBB does some other wonderful things and has other terrific workouts. But as long as there are so many overweight folks who are up late at night watching the infomercials with a promise of looking like a god, then this and other TBB elite programs will have their audience. But at what price and outcome?

By: Andrew

Andrew — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 18:01:19 +0000

Thanks for your comment Michelle, I enjoyed reading your comments. I am in Week 9 of P90X, and I can speak from my experience that the program “works.” But, I see P90X as more of buffet approach to exercising and training. As an individual, I extract good elements from P90X and explore other ways to do better.

To begin, I ignore P90X nutrition program completely: there is no need to replace vegetables, fruits, nuts, and tuna with protein shakes. I also do my own cardio workouts (ultimate frisbee and cycling mainly).

Being a man, I enjoy working on my “vanity muscles” too feed my vanity, and so far P90X has been the only one that I could follow. But I am more interested in lean, toned muscles than bulky muscles and I wonder about better options (I will look into HIIT you mentioned).

I agree with you that some exercises (Kepo, in particular and maybe Plyo) have too many rests. For this, they did better job with P90 Cardio 3-4 IMO. But for many resistance exercises (e.g., pull ups), I have to pause the video to get extra rests.

Overall, P90X is a great place to start, but I agree that P90X is not the “best” to follow religiously. For some, like you Michelle, I can see how bypassing the program can give you a better result. On this note, do you have recommendations on good Yoga? I love Lilias. I actually enjoy P90X Yoga (it improved my downward dog like no other program).. but I would like to improve my breathing and relaxation… Tony isn’t really into that.

By: Bibba

Bibba — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 16:04:52 +0000

Starting P90X as soon as I get it.

In a way I agree with you Vin in terms of the way P90X advertises itself on the television. Being fit is more than just obtaining muscles; maintaining a healthy lifestyle is even more important than just getting to it. I believe P90X is more of a workout that will accelerate to where you want to be, and after you get there you can maintain your appearance with whichever workout you please. There are people who opt for continuing the workouts, and there are others that would much rather move to either going to the gym or following any low intensity program. I don’t believe P90X is meaning to ill advertise, but targeting those who have gone to the gym, done other exercises, followed both diets and ‘whole foods’ and saw absolutely no results. I’m sure what you suggest may not either appeal or work for others; At the end of the day, it’s what works for the individual.

By: MIchelle

MIchelle — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 15:18:47 +0000

There’s way too much support for P90X and not enough criticism, which I think it deserves. I know, I know, it WORKS. That’s what the staunch supporters say, and perhaps they’re right. The question is: is it the BEST way to get those results? I believe the answer is “no.” It’s almost setting people up for failure because it’s based on old-school concepts, and isn’t a sustainable fitness routine. I’m sorry, but the vast majority of people are not going to keep up such a routine for the rest of their lives. And the goal of fitness is to make it a habit. It should never be a quick-fix, which is pretty much what this is geared for.

I don’t fall for fitness trends easily, but they hype for this program finally got to me and I ordered it a few weeks ago. Got it in the mail a few days later, and after checking out the dvd’s, decided to send it back.

Here are my problems with it:

- Way too much time spent working out “vanity muscles” (chest and arms.) It’s important to workout all muscle groups, but the arm dvd’s take up half of the total fitness program. I’d prefer a routine dedicated to total body fitness and that spends more time focusing on legs and midsection, which is where the real calorie burn comes from.

- Way too much talking and standing around in between sets. I know some people are okay with that, and others may not mind fast-forwarding through it, but I personally can’t stand how it halts my workout. Every time I’m just getting into it and getting my blood flowing, I have to stop, grab the remote, fast-forward, and then get back into it. If he were to just go through the workout with shorter rests between sets and routines, the dvd would be half as long and twice as effective.

- Over an hour a day, seven days a week, for ninety days in a row or more? Okay, so when the supporters hear that complaint, they think to themselves “this person obviously just wants a quick-fix or doesn’t want to work that hard.” But that’s not true. I want to work hard, but I also know that if a workout is intense, it should only be done every other day. Either P90X isn’t that intense, or Tony Horton is misleading people by telling them they need to use it every day to get results. Also, it’s simply not a sustainable fitness routine. Unless you have some kind of special dietary requirements, nobody needs to completely restrict their diet. There’s too much evidence that supports variety, moderation, and the so-called “cheat meals.” The cheat meals actually amp up your body’s metabolism and boost your “feel-good” hormones, aiding in a holistic approach to fitness. Highly restricted diets aren’t something most people can maintain over the course of their life. You’re better off eating sensibly and splurging once in a while, which is STILL not always easy, though much easier to maintain. Same goes for the actual workouts. Most people will not be able to keep up such a routine throughout their lives. You want to create a healthy habit of exercise, and to do that you need to START with a healthy habit. An hour a day, 3-4 times a week, with a variety of workouts, including: HIIT, endurance, strength training, and yoga (Not P90X yoga, but just basic stretching/breathing yoga. It should be a part of everyone’s routine because of the health benefits you get from stretching and the breathing techniques, which transport oxygen to all the muscles and relaxes the mind.)

- Not sure about Tony Horton’s qualifications as a trainer. There’s one stretch he does where he has you bent over with your head hanging down. I was surprised to see that, because from what I read you should always keep your head above your heart while working out.

-Costs way too much money. I bought other dvd’s that cost half as much and worked way better… And you only need to do those routines every other day. (3-4 times per week.) They also don’t force you on as strict a diet because the workouts actually burn calories and build muscle. Youtube also offers free HIIT routines, and those feel like much better workouts (but don’t do them daily or you’ll risk adrenal fatigue.)

To me, it’s just a waste of time and money when there are so many programs out there that are more effective and just healthier, in general.