ChaLean Extreme Ab Burner & Recharge
I had a slower workout tonight. I needed it following the brutal leg routines I did yesterday. I started with ChaLean Extreme’s Ab Burner and followed up with the Recharge routine.
I expected Chalene Johnson, also know as Chalene the Machine at my house, to be a little more challenging in her ab routine. Maybe…just maybe, my abdominal muscles are getting stronger in my quest for flatter abs. I have not tried any of her more advanced ab workouts, yet.
Prior to Beachbody, I tried just about every ab exerciser, machine and piece of equipment I could find in the gym. I have found that the variety of ab exercises in Beachbody workouts simply amazes me and I don’t need to go to the gym or buy any extra home gym stuff.
I think I would probabaly compare Ab Burner to either Ab Ripper 100 or Ab Ripper 200 in Power 90. It is not in the same burn level as the P90X Ab Ripper X. This a beginner level ab routine that lasts just over ten minutes. The next time I do abs, I think I will switch to Extreme Abs or I’ve Got Abs. Maybe I will alternate these two workouts with Extreme Core. I think Chalene has some challenging moves coming up in these workouts. I guess I should be happy that it is time for me to move on to a harder ab program.
Recharge was a short (less than 21 minutes) stretching and yoga combination. How could you not love that? This workout gave a lot of attention to stretching your back and hamstrings. I really enjoyed the stretch. It reminded me somewhat of P90X X Stretch. You know, that day when it just feels so good to work out? (I am not referencing the 92 minute P90X Yoga X. Now, that’s torture! A true love/hate relationship.)
The next time I do a stretching routine with ChaLean Extreme, I may try the Dynamic Flow Yoga. I can see myself staying with this one for a while though. It felt so good to have a nice slow full body stretch. The short duration of the workout also allowed me to fit in abs tonight.
The Recharge workout could be done by any fitness level, including beginner. Chalene does a great job demonstrating how to modify different moves and positions to make the stretch either more challenging or less intensive to fit your current capabilities. I enjoyed the stretch. I think you will, too!
10 Minute Trainer Cardio
My workout tonight consisted of a combination of Chalene Johnson and Tony Horton, two of my favorite Beachbody trainers. I started off with the ChaLean Extreme Burn Circuit 3 workout and followed it with Tony’s 10 Minute Trainer Cardio session.
I had really thought about doing some Brazil Butt Lift tonight but I guess I had forgotten how much the Burn Circuit 3 works your legs and butt. My lower body was wiped by the time I completed the ChaLean Extreme session. I was feeling pretty good though, so I turned to my 10 Minute Trainer series. This was one of Tony Horton’s programs in the years prior to P90X.
The basic 10 Minute Trainer series includes five workouts: Total Body, Lower Body, Abs, Cardio, and Yoga Flex. I knew Lower Body and Total Body were out! These ten minute workouts are good to have in your video collection for a many reasons. Here are some of my reasons:
1. You can use the 10 minute workouts individually if you are short on time. This is me in the morning before work! I like to do a little something to wake up, but I do not like doing a full workout in the morning.
2. You can use the workouts together to form a stand alone program to reach your fitness goals. In other words, you can do more than one workout in a day. Do them together or break them up throughout the day.
3. You can use a specific ten minute workout to supplement another workout which is what I did tonight.
4. If you are not feeling well physically or just can not seem to get yourself motivated, you can use a ten minute workout to brighten your attitude and promote well-being.
The girl in the Cardio workout uses a band fastened to a door to give her resistence in her running, jumping, and lunging moves. That looks like something interesting to try some time in the future, but I was a able to get a good cardio workout just using my own body’s resistence.
If you are not familiar with the 10 Minute Trainer series, it makes a good starter program for those new to fitness. I say this because each routine has a “trainer” track where Tony Horton talks a lot about form and how each exercise should be performed.
When you are not a novice any longer, keep the 10 Minute Trainer in your library. I think you will be surprised at how effective these workouts can be even though they are only ten minutes in length. Hey, we are talking about Tony Horton afterall. He would not dare let you out of the gym with a little sweat equity!
ChaLEAN Extreme Push Circuit 1
Hello phase II! ChaLEAN Extreme has three phases: Burn, Push, and Lean. In the Burn phase, we used a weight that put our muscles in failure at 10-12 reps. In the Push phase, we increase the weight and decrease the reps to a failure range of 6-8.
Push Circuit 1 focuses on biceps, triceps, glutes, and hamstrings. Unlike the Burn phase, Push concentrates on one muscle group at a time rather than stepping through a compound exercise which engages the lower and upper body at the same time.
An example of this is the standard bicep curl. Bicep curls were also used in the Burn phase but they were joined with a variation of squat to work on the lower body at the same time. If you think this makes the Push phase easier, think again! My triceps and biceps were shaking and burning by the end of this routine.
Chalene continues with the breakdown reps we came to know in the Burn phase. This time, however, she adds more of them to the routine. Muscle fibers twitch, your mind gets really focused, and you accomplish more than you thought possible. Cool.
Tony Horton uses the 6-8 rep range in P90X. There are at least three key differences between the two training styles though. In P90X, Tony uses a superset series. He moves through a series of three muscles groups (biceps, triceps, shoulders), takes a short break and repeats the set. The reps are done in good form but at a faster rate.
Chalene puts your focus on one muscle group (i.e. biceps). The reps are super slow which keeps your muscle engaged and working for a longer period of time. Then, when your muscle seems exhausted, you take about a ten second break and somehow find the engery to do a breakdown set of three ultra slow reps.
I think both methods bring results. One of the things I love about Beachbody workouts is the variety of training techniques. It is important to have variety in your routines.
I have read over and over about getting bored after doing a certain workout program week after week. That makes sense. As much as I love pizza, if that is all I ate meal after meal…day after day…I wouldn’t like pizza so much anymore.
I recommend starting with a Beachbody workout that sparks an interest for you and will help you stay committed. Then, add in something like Tony Horton’s One on One or 10 Minute Trainer workouts which will add variety and keep pushing play. Please feel free to contact me if you need help choosing your first program or a supplemental program.
Keep pressing play!
ChaLEAN Extreme Burn Circuit 2
Burn Circuit 2 of Chalene Johnson’s ChaLEAN Extreme workout program burns through nine compoud strenght training exercises. Since this workout is in the “burn” phase of the program, Chalene asks you to use the heaviest weight you can to reach failure between 10 and 12 reps. If you can make it pass 12 repetitions in an exercise, you didn’t lift heavy enough. If you couldn’t make it to 10 reps, you lifted too heavy.
Burn Circuit 2 works the entire body with a concentrates on triceps, back, and biceps. You’ll also hit your legs pretty good with sumo and bowler squats, dead lifts and lunges worked in conjunction with the upper body moves. You naturally work core and abs with this type of a workout, too. And, just so we don’t miss anything….Chalene ends the routine with triple threat push ups.
Triple threat push ups are actually three different forms of push ups done in sequence and repeated until failure. The first push up is a tricep push up. The second one is a stand push up with the hands should width apart. The third and final push up in the sequence is a spider push up where the legs are spread wide.
Triple threat push ups work the triceps, shoulders, chest, abdominals and core muscles. If you do this routine enough, you’ll learn to love push ups. Don’t worry ladies. Chalene allows you to do them on your knees if you need to modify but asks you to keep good form and push through what you can.
I like using the Bowflex SelecTec dumbbells because they don’t take up as much room. They’re also easy to go from one weight another. I’ve found, however, that I like putting my ChaLEAN Extreme (CLX) dvd in my computer rather than watching it on my television set. This makes it easier for me to select pause when I needed to change weights.
I got my SelecTec weights used from someone selling them on Craigslist. I believe you should always buy the best you can afford. When it comes to weights and gym equipment in general, used equipment is perfectly functional and fine as long as it is a quality product in the first place.
I’ve used a generic set of selectable weights in the past. They’re not worth it. The Bowflex brand is definitely the way to go. I don’t make a penny on the new or used sale of any Bowflex products, so this is a from the heart testimonial.
ChaLEAN Extreme moves quickly from one exercise to the next. While I used a standard set of dumbbells when I was doing Tony Horton’s P90X Extreme Home Fitness program, I like being able to adjust quickly in CLX.
I just watched an infomercial for Shaun T’s Insanity program. It looks amazing if you’re looking for high intensity cardio interval training. Let me tell you how you can save 25% on ChaLEAN Extreme, P90X, and Insanity. All you have to do is
Happy Holidays! Get in the best shape of your life in 2010. Shop at the Beachbody store to get started now.
ChaLEAN Extreme Burn Intervals
I’ve written about interval training in several articles on my website because all Beachbody fitness programs incorporate some form of interval training. Why? Because it’s effective at increasing your heart rate and metabolism and brings variety into your workout routine.
I was looking forward to the ChaLEAN Extreme Burn Intervals workout. I expected high intensity cardio intervals mixed with a lower intensity cardio interval to let me catch my breath and recover. Well, I was surprised…
Burn Intervals does use high intensity cardio intervals; however, the recovery interval is resistence training with a new twist. I’m used to doing either 6-8 repetitions with heavy weights or 10-12 with a slightly lighter (but still heavy) weight for resistence training. That’s the regimen for P90X and is the standard in most gyms.
Chalene’s Burn Circuit routines use a rep count of 10-12 with the heaviest weight you can use to get to failure in that range. The Burn Intervals takes you in the opposite direction. Chalene asks you to use a light weight. I used five pounders, and I’m glad I listened to her! My shoulders were screaming and my triceps were shaking because we did so many reps that we didn’t even count them.
By the time your muscles were really burning, it was time to go on to the next high intensity cardio interval. The cardio exercises are plyometric in nature and could easily fit into a P90X program. Both the P90X Extreme Home Fitness and ChaLEAN Extreme workouts put you in the mindset of training like an athlete.
One of the things I liked about Chalene’s program is only one round of each exercise is performed. Tony likes to do two rounds of each exercise, usually in a superset. I really like the variety, and I stay motivated to push a little harder because I know I’m only doing that exercise (no matter how difficult for the moment) one time. When it’s done, it’s done.
ChaLEAN is a positive trainer. Her attention to detail in form is very helpful. She is mindful of the need for proper nutrition and keeping your time, life, and emotional health in balance as well. I think most women will relate better to Chalene than Tony although both are champion trainers in my book.
ChaLEAN Extreme Burn It Off!
At the completion of week 1 of ChaLEAN Extreme, you’ll be introduced to a cardio workout called Burn It Off! Although the workout is only about 30 minutes long, it is comparable to the Plyometrics workout in P90X. Yes! It’s intense and involves jumping. You’ll be breathing hard and your heart will be pumping. I was sweating more than I thought I would with a 30 minute cardio session.
Chalene Johnson shows us a different type of aerobic conditioning with moves far different from her Turbo Jam series. You won’t see one punch, cross, jab, wheel, or kick in this workout. It’s different from the Cardio X and Kenpo X moves that Tony Horton uses in P90X. What is similar is the use of high intensity interval training to get your heart rate up in a short time.
This fitness workout starts with a warm up followed by five back to back exercises approxiamately two minutes each. At the end of the five exercises, you get a one minute break to rest and hydrate. Then, you’ll be back on the floor for six more exercises and a cool down.
This was an intense workout for me. I tried to push myself because I want to get the most out of my workouts. Chalene has two women in her group who perform modified versions of each exercise to demonstrate how to decrease the intensity or impact of a particular move. She also talks to you throughout the video and reminds you to push yourself but only to your level.
The best part about this workout was getting to the end! I mean that in a good way. This was a challenging workout for me. I made it to the end, so I’m thrilled about that. I know that I’m burning fat. I know I’m boosting my metabolism. I know that I made it a little closer to my goals today. Keep pushing play! It works.
Muscle Burns Fat ChaLEAN Extreme Day 1
As you’ve probably read in previous fitness articles in my Beachbody Workout reviews, I’ve been wanting to go throught the ChaLEAN Extreme program to compare the training differences between the two programs and trainers Chalene Johnson and Tony Horton. Last night, I started my 90 day fitness journey with ChaLEAN Extreme by pushing play on Burn Circuit 1.
Since I am a P90X graduate, I have high expectations for any program with the word “extreme” in its title or description. So far, I believe Chalene has earned the right to use that word. My posterior delts were burning by the time I got done with this 35 minute workout.
Chalene Johnson is a concerned trainer who keeps you inspired to keep pushing but reminds you of form throughout each exercise. Don’t be put off by the fact that this strength training routine is only 35 minutes while the P90X Extreme Home Fitness program averages an hour for each workout.
You can accomplish a lot in 35 minutes by using compound exercises, using slow reps, heavy weights, and a breakdown set. Each workout session consists of nine compound exercises that work 2-3 muscle groups at one time.
For P90X fans who love push ups, Chalene has her own version to add to all those varities Tony Horton punished us with. It’s a standard push up followed by a right leg raise from the plank pose. Then, you do another push up followed by a left leg raise from the plank pose. You continue until your form starts to falter. You’ll use your abs in this one!
I’ve also got to say that I love the warm up period because Chalene gets you moving and the blood pumping at a good pace before picking up weights. And, because she uses compound movements, the warm up doesn’t take up 15 minutes of the routine. As you know, if you’re going to do P90X, you’ve got to have a chunk of time available six days a week. With ChaLEAN Extreme, it looks like 35 minutes per workout and only five days a week.
Because I do like Tony Horton and the P90X exercises, I am a subscriber of Tony Horton’s One On One workouts. A new DVD comes to my door every month with Tony working out alone for 35-40 minutes. These routines are designed for P90X graduates. They’re not a break down of P90X sessions. They’re extreme workouts in Tony Horton style…and for a shorter duration than P90X.
I’m excited to take on the ChaLEAN Extreme challenge. Before I go, I want to point out one major difference between P90X and ChaLEAN Extreme (CLX)…CLX does not use a chin up bar ladies! You will not be struggling to do pull ups, but you will be working just as hard to get in the best shape of your life!
Burning Fat, Blasting Abs, Turbo Jam’s Ab Jam Workout
My abs were still burning from working out with Tony Horton’s a Core Ball Sandwich the other day, but I decided to put in Chalene Johnson’s 20 minute Ab Jam workout from her Turbo Jam series anyway. Half of this routine does standing ab exercises. The other half is performed on the floor.
What I really like about Beachbody workouts is each trainer has their own style for working out abs. I used to be one of those people who would go to the gym and walk by anything that looked like it might involve abs. I didn’t like working my abdominal muscles because it involved pain.
My neck and lower back always seemed to hurt when I did ab exercises. I didn’t know I needed a trainer to keep me motivated, correct my form, and give me options for getting my mid-section in shape.
The standing portion of Ab Jam feels a lot like the other Turbo Jam workouts. It’s a little bit punching and kicking combined with music and Chalene’s style of fun. It’s true that you forget you’re working out when you’ve got a Turbo Jam DVD playing.
Here’s a hint for Ab Jam…warm up with the 20 Minute Cardio session. You’ll get your cardio, have a great warm up and keep the fat burning while working your abs with Ab Jam.
I will say that when we moved to the floor session, I knew for sure we were focusing on abs! Some of the moves Chalene uses are killer on the obliques and not once did I feel pain in my neck or lower back.
She reminds you to lead with your shoulder (not your elbow) when you’re doing crunches to keep the pressure off your neck. When doing standing crunches, she’ll tell you to lift your “hip” not your knee when doing side crunches.
Form is everything folks! I can appreciate a trainer who knows the common mistakes we all make and gently educates us on how to make each move more effective while reducing the risk of injury.
I like to combine the 20 minute Turbo Jam cardio with the Ab Jam workout which is also 20 minutes in length. I think I need to give my abs some recovery time now. I feel like I just did Ab Ripper X or Yoga Belly from P90X. I think I need to go to the kitchen and refuel now. Mommy!
Turbo Jam: Ab Jam
When I first looked at this dvd, I thought twenty minutes was an incredibly long time to be working on my abs. I’ve got to tell you that the time just flew by. I’m not sure what it is about Turbo Jam or Chalene Johnson, but each workout is fun. Fun means you’ll keep doing it. Fun means you get through the workout before you realize you’re exercising…just kidding.
Keeping with the trademark of Beachbody workouts, Ab Jam uses cardio interval training to keep your heart pumping. You’re going to sweat, burn calories, melt fat, and pump up your metabolism.
The first half of the workout is standing. If you’re used to working your abs with crunches, a ball, or ab machines, you’ll be surprised at how many different ways you can work your abdominal muscles standing up.
You may not be comfortable doing standing ab exercises. Give it a chance and work through it. It’s probably just new to you. Some of the standing ab exercises are similar to those in Debbie Sieber’s Slim in 6. I also noticed some similarities with Tony Horton’s P90X Extreme Home Fitness System.
The second half of the workout moves to ab exercises on the floor. I learned some new moves. I was expecting something in between Slim in 6 and P90X’s Ab Ripper X or Yoga Belly 7. My favorite floor exercise in Ab Jam involves sitting on the floor with your hands on the floor behind you. Your knees are bent…feet off the floor. You then lean back and touch your knees to the left until they hit the floor. Then, your bring them to the right until they hit the floor, etc. This works the lower abs really good!
I’ve got a few more ab routines to review for you, so you’ll have plenty of information on how to get yourself a tight, flat set of abs. Still coming up: Turbo Jam Booty Sculpt & Abs, Tony Horton’s One on One Core Ball Sandwhich, and Brett Hoebel’s new 90 day ab solution Rev Abs.
Rev Abs isn’t available, yet. This Beachbody workout won’t be released until the fall; however, I have a preview dvd. It’s the first dvd in program. Getting free preview dvds of upcoming releases is one of the benefits of being a Beachbody Coach. Speaking of previews, I have an extra Tony Horton One on One Cardio Intervals dvd.
Here’s all you have to do to get it. Click here to sign up for a free Beachbody account. When you sign up for your free account, Beachbody will let me know that you signed up from this website. I will then send you an email to make arrangements to get the dvd to you. If you’re not the first to sign up, don’t worry. I will personally make sure you get a dvd for free just for visiting my site and signing up for your free account. (Of course I won’t be able to extend this offer forever. You must act by August 31st, 2009.)
Do you know the benefits of getting your free Beachbody account? They’re amazing…
1. Access to the WOWY (workout with you) online supergym. Here, you’ll be able to schedule workouts and track your progress. You’ll also be able to connect with other people in the supergym with you and be eligible to win cash and prizes of up to $1000 per day.
2. You can compete for the $25,000 grand prize in the Million Dollar Body Game.
3. Your own personal coach (me) to help guide you to the support, tools, and motivation you need to reach your goals.
4. Workout buddies to help keep you motivated.
5. Access to the Beachbody message boards and cool down chat room.
6. Weekly Beachbody newsletters where you’ll learn about nutrition, exercise, and more.
Go ahead, sign up here! You’ve got nothing to lose except all those extra pounds.
Turbo Jam: Punch, Kick & Jam
Chalene’s style of keeping it fun and keeping your eyes off the clock held true in her 48 minute Punch, Kick & Jam workout in the Turbo Jam program. As the name suggests, this workout packs a lot of punches – jab, cross, hook, uppercut – kicks from all sides and lots of jamming to upbeat music.
I added the Beachbody weighted gloves with this workout to increase the intensity a little. It was enough (.75 pounds for each glove) to increase the intensity but still allow me to work aerobically without going to the point of exhaustion. You can certainly get a good workout without the weighted gloves though.
Now that the workout is over, I can really tell that I worked my abs. I can especially feel my upper abs and obliques. I was dripping with sweat at the end of the workout but felt energized and stretched out at the same time.
The hardest part of this workout for me was the cooling down period when we did a lot of capoeira. I think this will get easier for me as I learn the moves in this section better. What’s nice about the capoeira section is that your body is stretching after a lot of punching and kicking. P90X didn’t have any capoeira moves, so this is totally new to me.
I’m thinking about jumping back over to P90X Yoga X for a day just to see how that workout feels after doing all these Turbo Jam jabs and kicks. I’m guessing that it’s going to be a lot easier than when I was going through 90 days of P90X. I still have a few Turbo Jam workouts to enjoy before I do that. And, I’m expecting my new Tony Horton One on One workout to arrive this week. It’s so fun having variety in my exercising routine.
I always like to tell you when I see something new in a program that I like. Toward the end of the workout, Chalene had us to pull out a resistance band. I totally wasn’t expecting that. It reminded me of the toning portion of Slim in 6. I thought I’d see similar moves, but we only did three moves and they were all different from the one we did in Slim in 6. By the way, if you need resistance bands, you can get them from the Beachbody store or shop for gym stuff where I often do because of the quality, prices, and free shipping. (Update – This website is currently unavailable, so I removed the link. I should have it repaired soon.)
First, we used the band in conjunction with uppercut punches. Then, we used it to put resistance on on jabs in a side-lunge position. That was cook because I could really feel it working the anterior (front) shoulder muscle with each jab. The last thing we did with the band was a series of side kicks to work the outer thighs and glutes.
I don’t think I’ve ever used resistance bands to work my legs. I liked the way we formed a loop with one handle of the band to make a stirrup for the foot. I’ve worked out plenty using cables and ankle attachments. I’ve even used a fancy foot attachment with my Bowflex Revolution, but this simple technique was just as effective, more comfortable, and less expensive.
I’ve got two more workouts to move through in the Turbo Jam program before I repeat any of them. I still haven’t experienced Ab Jam or Booty Sculpt & Abs. You’ll see me going back to Yoga Booty Ballet on occassion as well. I’m mixing up a few programs right now to take a break from following just one trainer. When I reach my current weight goal, I think I’ll go back to P90X for 90 days or workout with Tony Horton for 90 days with Power 90.
What’s the difference in the programs I’m doing now vs. P90X and Power 90? I’m focusing primarily on cardio and toning right now. P90X and Power 90 put more emphasis on strength training. As I’ve said in previous articles, it’s important to define your current fitness goals and then, support your goals with appropriate fitness routines. What are your current fitness goals?
If you’d like free coaching, sign up for your free Beachbody account. My job as a coach is to help people define and reach their fitness goals through fitness programs such as P90X, Slim in 6, Turbo Jam, and Insanity. If you have a passion for fitness, you can sign up as a coach yourself and start your own business helping others get fit. As a bonus, you’ll save 25% on your Beachbody orders. Stay fit. Keep pressing play!
