Best Home Workout Videos and DVDs

Am I ready for P90X?

They don’t say this in the infomercial, but P90X is not really for complete beginners or serious couch potatoes that want to start a program.

Aren’t sure you’re in shape for P90X? Maybe you should start with Power 90 or Power 90 Master Series. Bottom line is if you’re young ~20s or 30s and used to be in decent shape, you might be able to get away with starting with P90X. If it’s been awhile since you’ve done any serious exercising of any kind, it might be a good idea to set your sights on getting to the P90X starting level.

According to the P90X manual

We ask that you complete the equivalent of Power 90 or Slim in 6 before you begin”… “If you can’t do what is listed below, you’ll see better results by doing another exercise program before you take on P90X.”

I would agree. You can “keep pushing pause” on P90X, keep doing the modified, but to get the most out of the program without first killing yourself or worse getting disgusted and quitting or injuring yourself, you should at least be able to do:

• 3 pull-ups if male, 1 pull-up if female. Many people can’t do any when they start, but you will get the most out of the program if you can at least do a couple then use a chair for assist and modified.
• Vertical Leap 5 inches if male, 3 inches if female.
• Push-ups 15 if male, 3 female or 15 on your knees if female. There are push-ups in almost every routine. You won’t be able to do Yoga if you can’t do push-ups. Push-ups are everywhere in this program, Tony LOVES push-ups! If you can’t do at ten start with Power 90 or Power 90 Master. Plenty of push-ups and plenty of time to get in shape to be able to attack P90X the right way.
• The Heart Rate Maximizer part of the fitness test checks your max heart rate and how quickly you recover. The test is jumping jacks for 2 minutes at a quick pace. During the final 30 seconds go as fast as you can. Then measure your heart rate. If you can’t do jumping jacks for two minutes you don’t have a chance in the Cardio X or some of the other routines. Power 90 has cardio every other day and you start out easy and work your way to longer routines in Sweat 3-4 and 5-6.

Tony says he’s a big fan of the pause button, but if your hour workout becomes two hours, that’s a lot of time commitment not everyone can do. If you burn out during the warm up, the rest of the workout isn’t going to be any fun and you might give up too soon.

Here are a few ideas if you can’t do P90X (yet).

Power 90 In Home Boot Camp: Great place to start. I went from doing 3 push-ups to 20. Basic push-ups, dumbbell presses, curls, squats. Cardio that is called Sweat for a reason. P90 will get you up to the P90X minimum level so you can P90X without passing out or calling 911.

Power 90 Master Series: If you’re in decent shape but not quite at the P90X level, Power 90 Master was produced after P90X as a step in-between P0wer 90 and P90X. There are a lot of the same or similiar routines in Power 90 Master as P90X, no pull-ups, but plenty of push-ups of all kinds, cardio, yoga and core routines.

10 Minute Trainer: It’s not really publicized much but it will get you used to using the bands and cardio. The workouts don’t have to be over in ten minutes, if you have more time, do two or three for a great 30 minute workout.

Slim in 6: The P90X manual recommends starting with this one. It’s in my library and on the list to be reviewed, but haven’t done it yet. But it looks like it might be worthwhile and oriented more toward women then the Power 90 series.

Chalean Extreme: I’ve got a review on this later, it looks like a great program, but for the cost, especially if you already bought P90X another $100+ program might be too much. At $60, Power 90 or Power 90 Master is the way to go if you already spent money on P90X. But that’s just me.

All of the Power 90 workouts are excellent, you can’t go wrong with any of them. If you absolutely hate them, Beachbody has a money back guareentee but only if you buy direct from Beachbody. They’re not going to give a refund on DVDs you got from eBay or Craigslist. See our Discounts page for more info.

Power 90 is a lifestyle. You’re not going to put away the DVDs after your 90 days. You’re going to want to keep “pushing play” and the more variety in your workout, the more you’ll enjoy doing it. Some people get tired of Tony’s goofiness, but turn down the sound, pump up the tunes. Or choose another program for your variety, either way, keep pushing play!

Links:
Power 90 In Home Boot Camp
Power 90 Master Series
10 Minute Trainer
Slim in 6

10-Minute Trainer is another workout video from Tony Horton and Beachbody. These workout videos are designed for busy people who think they don’t have time to workout. In ten minutes a day you can workout, lose weight on the diet plan, look and feel great. Unlike P90X programs there is no specified time limit. No where does it say you’re going to lose a bunch of weight and bulk up after 90 days for only ten minutes a day. It’s meant to be an ongoing exercise program to get you off the couch and doing something. But if you’re actually busy you wouldn’t be sitting on the couch. People have to prioritize their lives. Exercising must be a higher priority than watching a TV show and anyone can schedule ten minutes, wake up ten minutes early.

The actual program is really 10 minutes, but there is a two minute warm up and two minutes of cooling down after the workout. On the DVD you can choose to warm up or not. This way if you do more than one 10 minute workout you won’t waste time warming up between each one if you have more than 10 minutes you want to devote to exercising.

The routines are only ten minutes, but if you haven’t worked out in awhile, you won’t be able to make it through one of the routines. Even the sculpting workouts are going to make you sweat and burn calories. The cardio can be tough if you’re not used to it.

10-Minute Trainer comes with two bands, one set of handles and a door attachment so you can loop the band through it makes any door into a gym. You also receive a diet guide, a tape measure, a workout calendar and 8 workouts on three DVDs.  A Ten-minute meal book to prepare good healthy meals in ten minutes and the guide book to 10-Minute Trainer. Plus, On-the-go workout cards so if you’re traveling you don’t need to take the DVDs.

Part of the program is before and after pictures and measurements. As you mark off the workouts on your workout calendar you can see where you were and that motivates you to keep doing it and if you’ve committed to yourself to do this, documenting every things keeps you accountable to yourself.

This is a good workout, if you do it for ten minutes, two for twenty or if you do three workouts for thirty minutes it’s a great workout. The workout is tailor made to use with bands. You couldn’t substitute weights even if you wanted to on most of the exercises. The cardio is a great workout for ten minutes and if you’re that great, add a band and the waist attachment and add resistance to your cardio workout. This plan is awesome for someone that doesn’t want to invest a lot of time or a lot of money in equipment.

If you’re always traveling, this makes a great workout to take along in any carry-on case and  can be done in any hotel room. Even if the room doesn’t have a DVD player, you have the travel cards so you know what routines to do.

There is also a Trainer Track for each workout where Tony gives specific advice on how best to do each exercise. The normal tracks are more motivational and you’re working out with Tony or with Tony and his partner, while the trainer tracks are for questions you may have on technique that you only need to hear once in a while.

Want a discount on 10-Minute Trainer? See how on our Discounts page.

Tony Horton’s 10 Minute Trainer – The Workout Program for the Busiest People