INSANITY Workout by Beachbody

ARE YOU READY TO DIG DEEP!?
This is the modest motto of the INSANITY workout by fitness company (and infomercial giant) Beachbody.com. The motto is extremely accurate for this workout program. The "hardcore" fitness regimen promises "the most insane body in 60 days." I'm not sure what constitutes an "insane body," but I'm under the impression that it's a good thing.

The INSANITY set contains an impressive 10 workout dvds averaging about 45 minutes of INSANITY. With the dvds you also get miscellaneous materials to help you on your muscle quest. There's a nutrition guide, a snazzy workout calendar, and a fitness guide. The calendar just relays the order in which to use the dvds. The fitness guide is a booklet of warnings, introductions to and explanations of interval training, and useless drivel. The nutrition guide is a drawn out explanation of eating right, with some lame recipes which are supposed to constitute all of the food you ever eat. A more effective supplment would have been a temporary tattoo that reads, "EAT GOOD CARBS, PROTEIN, AND SOME FIBER. DON'T EAT SUGAR AND FAT, DUMMY!" That way at least you'd have a fun constant reminder when you're about to buy McDonald's again, instead of an oversized coaster mocking you with, "INSANE Nutrition Guide" on the front. In addition to the practically useless print materials there is an online support agent, which I am not allowed to participate in because I'm not INSANE.

The actual workouts are based on interval training, which is a fantastic workout structure that I'll gladly swear by. The INSANITY spin is pumping up the intervals to outrageous proportions. You are meant to preform each exercise throughout the workouts at your "MAX" ability. One of the warnings repeated a few times is to check with your doctor before starting the program. I actually heeded this advice and got the okay to proceed based on the fact that I cycle and walk regularly and appear to be in average physical shape. Nowhere on the INSANITY materials does it say anything about having a professional athlete fitness level before starting.

My beef with the program, starting right from the first workout dvd, is that you are constantly encouraged to push yourself. On occasion your INSANE instructor, Shaun T., will tell you to rest if you're dying or to never compromise your form, but then he'll encourage you to dig deeper and assure you know that he knows you can do it. It may be a fault of hubris, but I cannot reasonably back down from such encouragement until I'm literally falling off of my feet.

Within the first week I woke up feeling like I had pulled a groin muscle. Sure enough, I had over-exerted myself and "shocked" my muscles a bit (according to a PT friend of mine, thanks again btw). I know all about warming up, stretching, and cooling down, but I had simply over done it, and at the encouragement of INSANITY. After more than a week off and another week of conditioning I tried to get back on the INSANITY bandwagon. Again, after less than a week I blew out my lower back by over exerting myself. With no limit being drawn on exertion, and only occasional "don't push yourself too hard" messages I found it impossible to achieve the correct amount of workout. Either this workout program really is meant for professional athletes only, or there needs to be a more stringent set of guidelines for newbies and fatties to get into the program safely.

I will say that the workouts are good, and fun. There is a good amount of variation from day to day, with most of the explanations on the fly, wasting minimal time with unnecessary instructions. The exercises are individually easy to get the hang of. There are only bodyweight and cardio exercises as well, so no additional equipment is needed. I had no problem settling into the pace of the workouts, at times feeling like a lump compared to the desired pace of Shaun T. Fortunately, the seemingly fit backup people on the screen appeared to be having as much trouble as me keeping up at times, so I didn't feel like a total lump. Any workout that has the trainer declaring "This s*** is BANANAS" should be an indication of it's difficulty. Also, I found the stretching sections to be insufficient to really warm me up or cool me down, but a quick pause is easy enough to manage.

I'm certain that you would get "the most insane body in 60 days" if you followed the program and the nutrition guide to a t, however, that's basically impossible for any human being. The workouts are outrageous if you take Shaun T's encouragement to heart, and the meal plan is unrealistic for anyone to follow every day.
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The skinny:
* Pros: fun interval workouts, no equipment required, actually challenging
* Cons: too expensive, frivolous supplemental materials, INSANITY

Make an Assessment:
I neither attempted to follow the meal plan, or finish the full 60 day program. I'm not INSANE enough I guess. I will continue using the workout program, as I see fit, to continue the obviously beneficial interval training. I would not recommend that anybody expect to achieve any specific results of the "insane body" variety. I wouldn't even recommend that anybody spend their hard earned money on this product. While I can see obvious benefits of this type of program, the product just doesn't support the amount of money you have to shell out to purchase it. I believe the going rate is something like $140. For a program with minimal hand-holding, that actually caused me to injure myself, there isn't any valid justification for that price tag.

Overall Review Score:
* Grade: C-
* Score: 65%
* If it were a movie: ★★½
* My Feelings: "I want an exercise that doesn't break my crotch, kthx."

Nike LunarTrainer+ Shoes

Shoes can be extremely fun and fashionable, but first and foremost they serve a purpose. Some shoes take you where you want to go, some shoes broadcast your personal ideals to the world, and some shoes help you to perform specific athletic tasks.

So here are my new athletic performers in all their glory (tadaaaaaaa!)

I'll be the first to admit that my new Nike's are ugly Ronald MacDonald moon shoes, but they are the absolute #1 on my list of shoes that fulfill their intended purpose. The purpose of my bright red Nike LunarTrainers is training; training my mind to not wimp out in the face of exhaustion, training my spirit to continue pushing onward through fatigue, and most importantly training my fat to get the hell out. Some people just call it cross-training, but more specifically the brand of hardcore masochism I try to practice is interval training.

Basically my application requires a shoe that is supportive heel-to-toe, with lots of ball cushion, and plenty of lateral support. I do a lot of shuffling and side-to-side movement, so cushioning the sides of my feet and keeping my ankles from rolling is extremely important. The Nike LunarTrainer+ completely fits the bill.

In trying out dozens of pairs of shoes I found that running specific shoes just don't cut the mustard for lateral support. They generally have very little support for the ankles, especially for side-to-side movement. Most of the training specific shoes I tried out felt rigid, heavy, or clunky. I had just started realizing that providing ample stability in a training shoe means sacrificing lightness and comfort, but then I came across these guys. I tried them on and within about 20 seconds I was sold. They are extremely light, extremely wide, extremely supportive, and doing a couple of side-steps with them on felt totally natural.

As an aside, imagine me busting "the heisman" in the middle of the store with bright red moon shoes on. It was apparently awesome enough to turn some heads.

One added bonus is the super-comfortable upper. They have a lightweight and breathable mesh body with a sockliner-like set of straps sewn in to fit snugly without choking or chafing the top of the foot. Another bonus (that I'll never utilize for any reason) is reflective detailing scattered around the shoe in a tasteful but probably ineffective way. For those with an iPod, iPhone, or desire to purchase an iWristband-thing there is also the option for use with the Nike+ system which I've never used. I'm not certain of the purpose, but I understand it to monitor your movement and send all of your data to the interwebs so that dweebs at Nike Headquarters can laugh at you for "jogging" from your house to MacDonald's and the general public can join in the fun by logging onto your Nike+ page to see that you've run a total of .6 miles this month.

I think it's fair and important to mention that I tried these shoes on head-to-head against other shoes from various brands ranging from $40-$140 retail, and these ones (originally $100 MSRP, on clearance for $60) were by far the most comfortable and easy to maneuver in. I'd say that if they stand the test of time they'll easily be worth the full $100 MSRP, and I would definitely try on any newer incarnations with great expectations. Also, from what I've read online these are widely available in a variety of colorways so it shouldn't be difficult to get this great shoe and avoid the firetruck-foot look.

I've never been a fan of Nike. I've never thought that as a brand they were comfortable, stylish, or well-made enough to justify their prices. I've owned a couple of pairs of hand-me-downs and clearance rack Nikes, and I've never been blown away by them. When I set out to find a new pair of trainers I expected that I'd likely end up with a pair of NewBalance, Under Armour or Adidas runners. I know that cross-training isn't as popular as it was when Dan Cortese was still hosting MTV Sports, so I didn't expect to find a shoe designed specifically for me. I was kind of blown away when these shoes felt so good and performed so well.

My main concern with these shoes when I bought them was durability. They seem light enough and the "Lunar" foam sole seems like it might wear out quickly. I've read reports of runners getting anywhere from 300+ up to 600 miles out of them, so my fears have somewhat subsided. After using them for the past few weeks I feel confident that they'll last me for at least 6 months, if not a year, before blowing out. If they fail me sooner I'll post an update defaming and cursing Nike back into the sneaker d league in my mind whence they came.
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The skinny:
* Pros: Comfortable, Perfect for Conditioning/Training
* Cons: Uggo, My Cat Dislikes Them

Make an Assessment:
So far I have nothing bad to say about these shoes. Going from a beloved pair of haggard, blown-out Reebok Classics to these has given my feet good reason to praise. I am really happy with these shoes and my outlook on Nike has changed tremendously because of them. If you do any cross-training, or even general gym training I would recommend these highly. My research has led me to believe that a lot of people like them as runners too, but personally I'd go with a more dedicated pair of running shoes if I were doing any distance.

Overall Review Score (I haven't figured out how I want to do this yet):
* Grade: A
* Score: 95%
* If it were a movie: ★★★★★
* My Feelings: "I hate exercising even in these sweet shoes...damn you to hell vanity...come on muscles, I know you're in there somewhere...can I quit yet?...I'm eating like 5 Clif Bars when this is over."