I’ve made it!! The nine weeks of Insanity Training are now behind me! What a blast. It has taken a tremendous effort for me to get through it, particularly as I haven’t exercised very much or with any consistency for the last ten years of my life. A week’s snowboarding once every year, some horse riding once in a while and maybe a spate of jogging for a few weeks every couple of years and that’s been about all. It’s terrible to admit to, but until Insanity kicked in I’ve been physically inactive for the majority of the last ten years or more.
Once I used to be a gym rat, focused on fueling my body, making it work through free weight sessions and employing lots of tricks and tips to make it recover and grow for me. That was a time long ago, but Insanity Training has triggered me back into caring about my physique and getting my neglected pencil neck frame back into shape.
And what a crazy time I had, particularly in the physical agony that was month two, including a shaky few days where I hit an odd injury and thought I would have to abandon it all. Dark days indeed.
When I completed month 1 of Insanity Training I was elated. I think I actually punched the air and got a little excited. It was different in month 2, I was just happy to have got through it. Insanity training for me was tough. It was a challenge like no other that I’ve ever undertaken. I’m very pleased to have taken it on and completed the full 63 days.
The Results
As I was fairly slim before I started, I didn’t notice any weight loss. I gained a couple of kilos throughout, but what I did notice was a strengthening of my body and whereas before I was ‘skinny fat’, I now feel a lot more toned. I’m now lean rather than skinny. It’s hard to describe, but I feel a lot more purposeful as I walk around. I just feel more switched on.
If you’re looking for a programme that bulks you up then Insanity is not for you. If you’re looking for something to ease yourself back into training then Insanity is not for you. If you want something that you can dip in and out of then Insanity is not for you.
However, if you’re serious about making gains and you want a lean athletic physique in just 63 short days, and if you can commit and grit your teeth, then Insanity is definitely worth your time. Make sure you push yourself, but you’ve got to keep your form, otherwise there’s a good chance you’re going to get injured.
Insanity won’t make you big, but it will change your body. Will power, determination and a commitment to eating the right foods and the right amounts is probably 60% to 70% of the battle. Do this and it’s likely you will succeed.
Now I just need to go and bag myself my t-shirt! I’ve earned it.
The Problem With Insanity?
Here’s the thing. What am I going to do next? Insanity has been a huge part of my life for the last nine weeks. It’s made me feel elated, smashed me into the ground, had me nearly in tears and pumped me up so much that I was buzzing. I‘ve had comments from a few of my friends that I’m looking good on it too, which is the icing on the cake.
But where do I go from here?
Insanity for me was a test. I wanted to see whether I could do something that is considered one of the toughest training programmes out there. I’m the kind of person who needs to push themselves to achieve. I’m not satisfied with just plodding along, so Insanity was perfect for my obsessive nature.
And now I’m looking to slap some extra muscle on my frame. I’m getting the urge to get back into lifting weights, like I used to in the 1990s. But I’m thinking that the DVD route could be the way forward again. I’ve seen another programme from Beachbody which I’m going to give a shot: Body Beast with Sagi Kalev. I like the Beachbody format, plus, using the DVDs means that each time I have the same amount of rest between sets, so I can gauge my improvements a lot more accurately than if I was in a gym, with the inevitable queuing for a machine
Body Beast looks to be my way forward. I’ll let you know how I get on with it and will review my progress on this blog.
And here’s the thing. I’ve been reading a lot about exercise physiology and how the body recalibrates itself once you move from a sedentary lifestyle into active fitness. It turns out that a lot of sources that I’ve been studying are saying that cardio is the surefire way to build strong foundations for a fitter future, whether you’re planning on staying with cardio or moving on to weights.
So even if your goal is to get big, you can build from a more solid base if you start with a cardio-specific routine first. It jolts your body into growth and retrains metabolic and neurological pathways faster than just diving straight into a free weights regimen. It’s definitely worth thinking about if you’re like me and haven’t seriously exercised in a long while.
So What Actually Were My Insanity Results?
I’m not competing with anyone else, just myself. I’ve seen a lot of progress across the 63 days and I’m proud of that. As long as you progress yourself – which you definitely should – then you’re pushing yourself and you’re getting stronger. If you’ve already been training prior to getting into Insanity then I bet you’re going to blow my scores out of the water. Or you may coming back to exercise after a long layoff, so may be hitting my levels or perhaps even a little less. Either way it doesn’t matter.
What matters is you dig deeper and improve your performance every time. Give it all you’ve got and get into the best shape of your life with Shaun T and Insanity Crew. And make sure that you eat properly while you’re doing it.
Here are all my fit tests.
| MOVE | FIT TEST 1 | FIT TEST 2 | FIT TEST 3 | FIT TEST 4 | FIT TEST 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Switch Kicks | 50 | 54 | 58 | 64 | 70 |
| Power Jacks | 26 | 56 | 54 | 56 | 60 |
| Power Knees | 62 | 66 | 76 | 81 | 98 |
| Power Jumps | 24 | 31 | 30 | 36 | 45 |
| Globe Jumps | 8 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| Suicide Jumps | 11 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 17 |
| Push-Up Jacks | 16 | 21 | 24 | 27 | 30 |
| Low Plank Obliques | 23 | 40 | 46 | 56 | 67 |