As I mentioned in my P90X2 recap, I wanted to try something a little different after the many weeks of P90X2 workouts. Just as I did in February 2011, after a round of P90X, I am switching to the similar-but-different workouts found in Tony Horton’s book Bring It! Last time, I did the Striver Level workouts (that’s the “medium” difficulty level). Now I’m ready to go for the Warrior Level, which are supposed to be the most difficult workouts in the book. Let’s see if P90X and P90X2 have prepared me for this!
All the workouts follow the same schedule, which seems pretty simple by P90X standards:
Days 1, 3, and 5: Resistance
Days 2 and 4: Cardio
Day 6: Yoga
Day 7: Rest, and/or a fun activity
I tried to find how many weeks Tony recommends for each phase, but I couldn’t. I think it’s four weeks, or maybe six. Anyway, since workouts don’t change much from day to day, I will be updating my progress weekly.
My first week was interesting, because it was like going back in time to the P90X days. I used the good old Shoulders and Arms DVD for the warm up and cool down on resistance days, since Tony’s recommendations for the Bring It! workouts are very similar. I used the P90X Plyometrics DVD for the cardio days. No foam roller, no newfangled stretches or stability ball, just to see how I liked it.
I want to incorporate some of the techniques I have learned from P90X2 into the resistance workouts. This week, I experimented with some one-legged Bicep Curls, and Straight-Arm Posterior Delt Flies using the stability ball. I want to increase the weight I am lifting compared to P90X2, so I have to be careful. I am trying to maintain my balance and stability improvements while working on my strength.
The Warrior Phase 1 Resistance workout is a pretty standard combination of pull ups, curls, tricep extensions, push ups, and other exercises familiar to P90X fans. As with previous Bring It! workouts, there are two sets of plyometric squats, and a set of bicycle crunches thrown in for fun. For extra credit, there’s a bonus round of seven exercises, if you have the time and energy.
There is only one long circuit (compared to two circuits in the lower level workouts), but the circuit is repeated twice (in theory). I did not make it to the second time through. It’s a tough workout, of course; but I did not have time enough to complete two entire circuits, let alone the bonus round. It took me an hour and 15 minutes to do one circuit plus the bonus round! I’ll use that as my excuse for now to shorten the workout. I would love to see Tony do these as a One on One video, so he can show us how to do it in the recommended 55 minutes.
In contrast, the Warrior Phase 1 Cardio seems much more realistic as a one hour workout. There are two circuits of five or six exercises, repeated twice each. I’m not crazy about the emphasis on karate kicks and fighter-stance punches and squats, but I will play along for now. I am already considering substituting one day of P90X2 Plyocide, which seems like a more well-balanced cardio workout. Of course, Tony and the team hadn’t invented it when this book came out, right?
I almost forgot to mention that the Fast Feet Football Drill is included in the cardio workout, in a simplified form: Squat to the start position, jump up and stamp your feet five times, then squat again and repeat for 20 repetitions. I would rather follow along with Tony and the Kids in Plyocide for that one.
I didn’t do any yoga this week. It was Easter weekend, I was away from home, yadda yadda yadda… I did a cardio workout in the hotel exercise room instead. I plan to use the P90X2 Yoga DVD at my earliest convenience. Given the choice, it’s a lot easier than following a very similar set of exercises printed in a book. Yoga is hard enough for me to follow!
I would love to hear from anyone who has done the Bring It! workouts. What do you think? Are they a good addition to P90X? Are they good for people who are just starting out?
Bring It! Warrior Tip: Work your way through the exercises at your own pace. Don’t worry about finishing the entire workout on the first day. It’s supposed to be a challenge!
