Insanity Workout Program questions

I want to ask questions to those who have started or completed the insanity workout program. For instance, when doing your workout routines, are you allowed to rest like if you're extremely tired and then go back to whatever workout you were previously or go onto your next workout? I'm not talking about rest days though.

 

First off, are you trying to gain muscle or loose fat?

Typically you're not suppose to take a rest, you can slow the rate at which you do things but they don't want you to rest, especially for insanity, you're suppose to be working hard to fasten your metabolism.

 

yeah i know but maybe for a quick 5 sec rest and yeah.. 1 min rest you know. eventually after days of doing insanity, you'll build up more endurance .. duhh

 

I've finished Insanity before, it's probably the best workout if you're looking to lose fat, however you will definitely lose muscle and you can potentially be burnt out.

I think I know what you're question is, basically you're asking during the like 3-5min interval of working out if you can rest, well basically what I did and what you must do is that if you do rest, you rest after maximum efforts/failure

E.g. its like 3minutes of activity vs 30 second rest (when you're supposed to), if you rest in that 3 min period of working out, you make sure that you put your best efforts in and that you worked till failure, then after a brief period of time you get back into it and repeat that until you're actually supposed to rest.

It's hard to explain, but basically what I can tell you right now is that it comes down to mentality, it's that mental willpower that's going to keep you going, if you rest for 1 minute in that 3 min burst of activity you're kidding yourself, just go until failure, I was pretty athletic when I did it so when I worked till failure, I only had like 5-10 sec rest before I pushed it out, and the black guy's voice also motivates you, so s'all good

 

Well yea, there's already rests incorporated into the workout though.

A suggestion to your "loosing muscle" - Once you finish Insanity, start P90X. I personally have not done this because i don't want nor need muscle but plenty of girls and guys i know who have done it show remarkable results.

 

Yes you can take breaks. Any form of movement burns calories, rests will just make you burn less. If you take a break, eat 50 less calories that day, its all about calories in vs. Calories out for weight loss.

 

I did Insanity a good year or 2 ago, the main reason you get into insanity is for the fat loss, i'm just saying to any bodybuilders that are going to be attempting it to be cautious of losing the muscle they initially gained

 

I could lose muscle from doing insanity? lol

 

Essentially, yes. The workout is primarily focused for fat burning, not muscle gaining. It has the same concept of running on a treadmill for cardio oppose to lifting weights, if you're not training your muscles you're not going to gain.

 

Well, I'm fairly skinny. I feel like I have fat build up around me if just by my appearance. After insanity, i'll probably do p90x and get ripped off their program. As of now, i'm currently weighing 130lbs and finished day 1 yesterday. my legs and upper body feel sore and I felt like throwing up but I didn't.

 

How tall are you? If you are taller than 5'4" stop cutting and begin to bulk. You will not like the way you look if you lose more weight than now. Your physique will be 100 times better if you put on muscle first then cut back the fat.

 

I'm trying to lose enough body fat so my face slims down. I don't know why but every time I try to bulk as in eat a lot of food in one day, my body feels different and my mind goes insane that its telling me to cut and start eating less. I rarely eat fast food but when I do, its only on special occasions and I try to avoid fatty foods that are like billions of calories and saturated fats and trans fat you know what I mean.

I just finished day 2 and its pretty damn crazy. Started the program 2 hrs before I ate and felt like I was going to throw up during the workout. Maybe next time, i'll wait 3 1/2 hrs or longer before going onto my 3rd day.

Height : 5''7 ( measured in sophomore year )

I don't know what you mean by cutting but here is my " NORMAL " eating habits.

Mornings ( 7-9am ) : 2 to 2 1/2 cups of oatmeal and a spoonful of all natural peanut butter. 2 glass of water

Lunch : salad & chicken with light Cesar dressing or popcorn chicken or rice & orange chicken or anything with chicken but always with some sort of sauce on top.

dinner : rice and chicken and vegetables or sometimes rice and salmon, chicken, vegetables. mostly meat and fish at dinner time.

Every meal consists of water only. No soda, try to keep dairy free foods sometimes I eat a little with dairy, gluten free , i rarely do gluten free but it helps my system cos i have gerd/reflux whatever it is called.

 

You're 5'7 and 130lb? You're definitely skinny man, check your BMI you will fall underweight I'm pretty sure, if anything you want to bulk with a good weight training program..

 

pretty much.. yeah i am underweight. you are definitely correct.

does that mean my body fat is low? or i can still be skinny with high body fat

 

I did Insanity and lost muscle mass. I played college baseball for a year and got up to 205lbs and I am 6'1". When I finished insanity I got down to 190. I have worked out all of my life during sports and stuff and I guess it kept my weight under control. From April till now (after I tore my Rotator cuff and started working) I have ballooned up to 220.....sad I know I love to eat.

That being said, I think you need to muscle up a little bit. I wouldn't suggest doing Insanity. Right now I think you should develop a workout plan in a local gym or your home to gain some muscle. If you really want to do insanity, you should use a Insanity/P90x hybrid schedule to keep the muscle. That is what I am doing. A buddy of mine had some amazing results with this.

Best of luck in whatever you decide to do. I don't know how old you are but if you are under 17, your face will slim out as you grow into it. Don't worry about it.

 

I could do p90x and Insanity but then i'll just finish insanity first then do p90x.

As for the recovery drinks, should I just drink sugar free chocolate milk?

I found that I can just add sugar free which is fat free if you check the nutrition label and 2% milk would work as a recovery drink after every workout.

 

i used to do it 5-6 times a week and rest once sometimes twice a week and then go on aggain