Well, I guess it was bound to happen.

It did.

I missed a workout.

I suppose a 50 day streak is pretty good, but I was really hoping to push the entire way through.  I know it’s not the end of the world, but it’s hard to accept missing a workout.  Plus I have to reveal it here publicly to all of my readers!  I know you guys, and I know you will be supportive

The reason for missing the workout was two-fold.  The first and real reason was that I had a choice to go to our kids first soccer practice and meet the coach, or stay at home and exercise.  For my son, this was his first time.  He is supposed to be <ahem> 4 to play (although he isn’t “officially” 4 until June).  He even told me before we left “Dad, I am going to do great!”.  And of course he did!  So, I wasn’t going to miss being there for my kids.  There are some things that are even more important that Insanity!  By the time we got home and ate dinner it was 7:30pm.  This meant I couldn’t think of starting until after 9:00pm or so.

The second reason is that I think my knees are getting a tad worse.  It is not to the point where they are in constant pain, but I am noticing more and more how tender they are and how I am favoring them, especially my left.  Things like getting up off the floor, and climbing stairs, and even getting out of chairs has me noticing the tenderness.  I really don’t want to make them worse, so an extra rest day may not be a bad thing.  I did notice them hurting a bit during the workout yesterday too. It seems like a good percentage of people develop some sort of knee pain during Insanity judging by all of the people in the forums.  It is a strenuous program for sure and I suppose we really really need to make sure our form is perfect on some of these exercises.

So, those are the reasons that I missed the workout today.  I plan on jumping right back in tomorrow and pick up with the scheduled workout.  I am so close now that I have to finish strong!

Day 50 – Max Interval Circuit

I am pleased to announce that we have added a forum to our site!  The purpose of this forum is to give you all a place to discuss the Insanity workout program.

You are here on my blog reading these posts because you are either on the fence about trying Insanity, or are already in it digging deeper.  Please come join us and feel free to ask questions, share tips, post recipes, or share anything you would like with our great community.

I look forward to seeing you all there and getting to know you all a bit better!  Here is the link:

http://www.crazyworkoutblog.com/forum/

When you really look close at the Insanity Workout schedule, you realize that it is actually 63 days from start to finish (an even 9 weeks).  However, we all like to say it’s a 60 day program   With that said, I have officially reached the halfway point and I think it is a good time to show you my results.

I have to admit I am quite happy with the results so far!  I think the little bit of body fat I had is gone and has turned into muscle.  I am struggling to gain weight, but hopefully I can pack in more calories this month and continue to build muscle.

So here we go, here are some pictures of my progress!  Insanity DOES work if you stick to it.

Insanity Before and After Pictures Day 1 vs. Day 30

Thank you for following me this far on my Insanity Workout journey!  Here is my Insanity Workout Review for the first month of this incredible workout routine by Shaun T.

First off, let me say that so far I would rate this program 5 out of 5 stars!  It really is a complete program to me.  Mind you, I am not a fitness expert by any means, and this is just my opinion.  Insanity satisfies the goals of almost anyone looking for a workout routine.  Whether you are looking to lose weight, gain muscle, increase endurance, or just become better fit, this workout fits the bill.  My goals when starting this was to gain a few pounds of muscle and to get in the best shape of my life.  I feel confident that by the end of the second month I will be there!

By now you already know what each of the workouts are, if not please read my INSANITY Workout Daily Routines post which chronicles every day of the program.  You should then get a good idea of each and every day how I fared and what to expect.

So, here are my observations on all things Insanity after month 1!

Physical Observations

Before I started this, I didn’t consider myself out of shape, but I must admit I felt weak.  I have been running 2-3 times a week for many years (only about 3 miles per run) and that was the extent of my exercise.  So I felt that I had some cardio base to start from.  I never have done any weight training as I found that boring, but now realized that my muscles needed work as I was noticing that I was getting weaker with age.  Enter Insanity.

In the beginning it TOTALLY kicked my ass.  I had no idea I could be so sore!  For the first 3-4 days or so I was a walking 2×4, feeling stiff all around.  I considered this a good thing because it meant I was using muscles I hadn’t worked in years.   Beyond the muscle pain was the feeling of complete exhaustion.  I guess my little runs didn’t compare to max interval training!  After the first 2 days I felt nauseous and could do absolutely nothing for 30-60 minutes except think of if I was going to pass out.

That’s when you need to dig deeper!

The good news is this subsided by the end of week 1 and I now feel absolutely zero pain in my muscles minus a little soreness like you would feel from a good workout (for example, my shoulders feel like they have been worked).  I welcome that mild pain.  I also feel great right after the workouts.  My body has totally begun to transform over this month by: 1) the way it looks and 2) the way it is conditioned to handle this sort of exercise.

In the next few days I will post some pictures of me at the 30 day mark so you can compare and give me your honest feedback if I look any different.  One other thing I can say is that I feel stronger.  My core is tight and my whole body just feels like it is more powerful.  This makes me extremely happy as this was one of my main goals.

Another observation about this workout that I think gets glossed over when you might read other stories or see other pictures is the amount of work you put into your lower body.  There are some crazy squats and lunges and jumps that shape your legs and torso.  You always see pictures of the 6 pack abs on people, but so much of the power in these exercises start from the legs and core.  I feel like I can jump higher and tackle stairs much easier now.

Mental Observations

I came into the routine completely psyched up and ready to go.  I am a determined person and like to finish what I start, so that sort of mentality is helpful in the beginning.  Those first 2 days really forced me to look at myself and realize that I have a lot of work to do to get to my goals. I never let doubt enter my mind though and continued to push through.  There were definitely days where I asked myself why I was doing this, but you have to just brush them aside and keep going.  The other thing about these workouts for me is that even if I started it feeling crappy or unmotivated, but the second round of the warm up I had forgotten those thoughts and was focused on getting to the third round.  Once you start the third round there is no room for any other thoughts except pushing yourself to get to the stretches!

The hardest part mentally with this (as I think is anything in life) is simply taking the first step and getting started.  Once you take that first step, you have committed.  If you aren’t already doing Insanity, why not take the first step today and order Insanity!!!

Right now my mental state is great!  I feel good just about every day and sleep like a rock each night.  I am motivated now to push through month 2, even though I am a bit scared (shhh!).  I find it hard to imagine the workouts get harder, but they do!  “C’mon y’all . .  ..  let’s GOOOOOOO!”

Insanity Workout Review Summary

In summary, I really feel this is a great workout.  You will feel stronger, happier, and more confident as you progress through the routines.  I would recommend this to nearly anyone interested in improving their bodies.

Do you have any questions regarding the first month?  If so, please leave a comment and I will be sure to answer, or create a post about the question.  I have tried to provide as much insight as possible, but I am sure you all have questions I have not thought of. In the meantime, take that first step and go get Insanity today!

Today officially ends week 4 of the Insanity workout program.  It is my scheduled rest day which also happens to fall on Valentines Day.  It was a good day of rest too.  We did some family activities today and exchanged Valentines gifts and then I ate good all day long

For fun, here is what I ate today:

Breakfast: A three egg omlette with fresh garlic (I’m a garlic freak, more about that in another post) and 2% shredded cheese, whole grain bagel half with cream cheese, half with fresh ground peanut butter, two Morningstar bacon  strips, and a cup of coffee.

Snack: Protein Plus Power Bar – A nice 23g protein, 300 calorie snack!

Lunch: Leftover tortilla soup.  This is another excellent recipe from 101 Cookbooks.  All vegetarian and tastes soooo good!

Snack: We stopped at Arden’s Garden while out and about this afternoon and I got a custom smoothie packed with Power Fuel.  I have no idea how many calories was in this, but it was packed with some good stuff!

Dinner: We are so happy that Doc Chey’s has opened a new location that is right by our house.  So our Valentine’s dinner was doing some take out and watching a movie with the kids.   We split some fish tacos (I know, weird for a noodle house, but they were great!) and szechuan  veggies and brown rice. Yum! Oh yeah, then one piece of chocolate to top it all off.

Now off to watch some Olympics and gear up for another week.

Day 27 – The Last Cardio Circuit

Yesterday was a true rest day in every sense of the word!  It capped off the end of 3 weeks and marks my accomplishment of being 1/3 of the way done!  I am feeling great and am looking forward to pushing through week 4 strong and getting to the recovery week.

I started off the morning with a power breakfast of eggs, Morningstar strips, and a bagel, so the beginning of the day was pretty healthy.  I then had to eat lunch early as i volunteered at my daughter’s school to help beautify the teacher break room.  I ended up having to do a bit a moving, but not much, on my day off!  Lunch was some leftover (semi-healthy) pizza and a salad.

Then later that evening I went a friends house and watched the super bowl. That is where I fell off the nutritional wagon!  I skipped out on the smoked ribs (since I don’t eat meat) but had heaping portions of homemade macaroni and cheese, tater tots, garlic bread, collard greens, potato chips, and chocolate cake.  Talk about a carbo loading meal!  My stomach is paying for it today too . . .

Time to get back on track and drink lots of water and get ready for another double workout tonight.  Bring it on INSANITY!  I’m ready!

Day 20 – Insanity Plyometrics Cardio

Ahhhh, a day off!  I can proudly say I have finished the first week of INSANITY!  Today was the first official rest day. Seeing as how you only get one rest day a week it was greatly appreciated and well deserved.

So, what do you do on your day off of INSANITY? Eat and watch football of course!  I spent most of the day lounging around playing with the kids as it was a rainy day today.  Then I enjoyed watching both the AFC and NFC Championship games.  After today there is only one more football game left in the season (no we don’t count the Pro Bowl!).

Tonight I will get my rest and prepare to eat healthy tomorrow in anticipation of week 2!

Day 6 – Second Round of The Plyometric Cardio Circuit

Today is Day One!  On the first day of this program we do a Fit Test.  I will be performing the Fit Test in a couple of hours and I will post my results for you all to see.  Then we can all track the progress together.  The Fit Test is done every 2 weeks, and then once at the end of the 60 day Insanity program.

Now it is time to Dig Deep and get down to exercising!

Insanity Workout Blog

Hello everyone!  My name is Sean Cantkier and I am about to embark on the grueling mission of completing the entire Insanity Workout home fitness program.  From what I have read and seen so far, this could be the hardest workout ever put on DVD! Wish me luck and please subscribe to this blog to follow along day by day to see my progress.  Of course, let me know if you want to try it too!

What is the Insanity Workout?

The Insanity Workout is 60 day total body fitness program.  There are 10 different workout routines that are rotated throughout this program.  Shaun T, the man behind this program will push you to your limits every workout.  By the end of the program you are promised “mind-blowing results”.  I tend to believe it because I have taken a peek at the videos and have done 2 different workouts just to see.  Let me tell you, they are HARD!

What is the secret behind Insanity?

The main premises of the Insanity Workout is what is called Maximum Interval Training.  Maximum interval training is a method in which you perform long periods of max effort exercise with very short intervals in between each set.  This goes against conventional exercise methods in which you exercise moderately and then have a short burst of intense effort.  It is this method of training that pushes you to perform as much as you possibly can before keeling over, which builds muscle and burns fat more effectively.  Each interval consists of either killer cardio, Plyometrics, sports drills, resistance training, and core exercises.

Why am I doing this?

That’s a good question!  Seriously, the answer is that I want to be in the best shape of my life.  This is one of my goals for 2010 and I chose this route to get there.  I don’t consider myself out of shape really.  I actually am underweight if anything.  I normally run 2-3 times a week as it is and eat healthy.  For me, I actually want to gain some weight (muscle) along the way.  In the next day or 2 I will post a “before” picture so that we can compare at the end of 60 days.