Fitness Your Way

Turbo Jam: Cardio Party

Where did that 45 minutes go? Once again, Chalene kept my mind off working out and just having fun. I’m sitting here dripping in sweat after completing my first Cardio Party workout in the Turbo Jam program. I’m not a dancer, so trying to move like some of the gals wasn’t pretty. The important thing is to keep moving. Afterall, you are in your living room not under a spinning ball on the dance floor!

I noticed that in this routine, the Wheel reminded me of the low side crunches in Slim in 6. The difference here is the Wheel is a much wider and flowing exercise. It stretches the whole body while working the oblique abdominal muscles.

The kicking and punching in Cardio Party remind me of Tony Horton’s P90X Kenpo X workout. I was already familiar with the basic moves from P90X, so I was really comfortable with them. If you haven’t done kicks or punches, you’ll probably have a similar experience as I did when I first did the Kenpo X DVD. I was elated. Somehow, it was empowering and didn’t feel at all like exercising. Kicking, punching, and blocking help me focus my mind and relieve stress.

I think this workout is absolutely an ab ripping routine. Well, I’m beginning to think that all the Turbo Jam routines work the abs. Hmmm. Maybe that’s why Chalene has hard abs. Come to the party. Are you ready to lose weight, boost your metabolism, burn fat, increase your energy…and have fun doing it?

Turbo Jam 20 Minute Workout

I did my first Turbo Jam workout tonight. Trainer Chalene Johnson combines kickboxing and dance moves to upbeat or shall I say jamming music.

Tonight, I went through the Learn & Burn segment to learn Chalene’s “Elite 11″ moves which form the foundation of all the Turbo Jam routines. Here’s the Elite 11 exercises for Turbo Jam:

After going through the Learn & Burn, I moved on to the 20 Minute Workout. The 20 Minute Workout was enough to ease me into a new routine yet let me break a little sweat. This is a perfect workout for beginners. It’s also a good choice for a quick cardio workout when you’re short on time. It has some full body stretching type moves such as the Row, Wheel, and Capoeira Step. The combination of cardio, stretching, abs, and a shorter routine also makes it a great morning workout in my book… (Read more.)

Burn It Up Exercise List

Phase III of Debbie Sieber’s slim training workout, Burn It Up, is about 59 minutes in length. After you’ve done this routine several times, you can anticipate what exercise is coming up. I think this program is lacking in one area. It doesn’t have a list of the exercises in writing, so you can follow along, and it doesn’t put the names of the upcoming exercise on the screen.

I guess I was kind of spoiled with the P90X Extreme Training Fitness Guide. Each workout had it’s own section where each exercise was not only listed but a brief description was included. When you had a DVD playing, the bottom of the screen would tell you what exercise to expect next. As you learned the names of the exercises, it was easier to develop a comfortable routine as a member of the class.

I was thinking about this because I did Tony Horton’s July One on One: Cardio Intervals DVD last week. I didn’t have a list of exercises, but Tony had one taped to the mirror in his gym. That kept him on track. He would announce the exercise that we were doing next, but I didn’t have a list anywhere and the screen didn’t provide that information either…read more

One on One: Cardio Intervals

I’m really hooked on Tony Horton and the P90X Extreme Training System. After going through this grueling 90 day program, I decided to take a break from building muscle and focus on losing a little weight. To accomplish this task, I turned to Debbie Siebers and her Slim in 6 workouts to burn fat.

I still have the P90X bug though, so when Beachbody offered the July DVD of Tony Horton’s One on One: Cardio Intervals for one penny, I had to get it! I figured that it was a cardio program so it would support my current fitness goal of dropping 15 pounds. I knew it would be good because it was Tony’s workout.

This is how the One on One program works. Each month a new workout is automatically sent to you. Previous programs have names such as Diamond Delts and Core Ball Sandwhich. The workouts are between 20 and 40 minutes in lenth. If you’ve ever worked out with a P90X video, you know that this is a short workout for Tony. The P90X workouts are about an hour long with the exception of Yoga X which is a heart-pounding 92 minutes. (Yes, you do sweat doing yoga with P90X.)

Anyway, I got the program and just stared at it with a grin. Welcome back Tony! Bring it! I put on my workout clothes, got out the mat and prepared myself for a 40 minute workout. The One on One workouts are also different from P90x because Tony Horton is the only one in the gym, so it’s like you getting a personal workout with Tony. Mason, the camera guy is quite entertaining as well.

So how is the One on One workout like P90X besides having one of the greatest trainers of all time? In almost all of Tony’s P90X workouts he reminds you that “you can do anything for 30 seconds”. He used interval training to keep you moving and motivated. Some of his P90X routines used a series of exercises that were repeated once you made it through the first round.

In Cardio Intervals, Tony uses a set of 20 exercises. Each exercise is 30 seconds in length. He actually holds a stop watch to keep us on pace. After the first round of 20 exercises is completed, the set is repeated for round two. The rest periods between exercises is really short, so you might have to hit pause or take quick small drinks to keep up with him. I sure got my heart rate up doing this routine.

The other thing you’ll notice is that many of the exercises are variations of P90X exercises…but with a twist or a jump or something else that makes it unique to Cardio Intervals. You’ll also find a lot of new moves to keep it interesting. Here’s a list of the exercises that Tony does in this One on One:

As you can see, this workout builds on exercises from several P90X workout routines. If you’re a P90X graduate, you’ll recognize a combination of Core Synergistics, Plyometrics, Kenpo X, Cardio X moves. It’s a great way to wrap up your P90X program, revisit P90X or supplement your current fitness program.

By the way, my 1 cent July special also included a free DVD wallet that can hold twelve months of DVDs. I’m looking forward to shaking up one routine each month. Whether it’s focusing hard on my back, legs, shoulders or another muscle group, I plan on using One on One to supplement my fitness routines.

If you’re curious about the One on One program, now’s the time to try it. If you order it during the month of July, you’ll get the 1 cent deal, too. There’s a 30 day money back guarantee, so if you don’t like it just cancel your subscription. Otherwise, you’ll get a fresh Tony Horton routine every 30 days.

Kenpo Karate Kicks Tips

Kenpo X is a favorite routine for many who are undergoing the challenging extreme home fitness program, P90X – a Beachbody workout with trainer Tony Horton. What’s not to love? Jabs, cross, hook, upercut…kicks, blocks, something different from the usual grueling workouts. That doesn’t mean this workout is for beginners. The kicks alone can make your hips and butt hurt for a couple of days.

I enjoy this workout as much as any other fan of P90X, but I struggled with the back kick. It just didn’t seem right when I attempted this move. For weeks, I just kept trying. I kept doing my best. I kept moving. I focused on this move because it was hard for me.

Then, Tony’s words just hit me one day. He used the phrase “mule kick.” It hit me! The form should be more like the kick of a horse, donkey, cow, or mule. The form should feel more like the kick back machine at the gym that is designed to work the glutes. The difference is the back kick should drive with the heel of the foot. I’m sure if I made contact with anything or anyone, the ball of my foot or toes would be what was hitting.

I gave this some thought and realized that I was doing the same thing on my front kick. I’d certainly break a toe the way I was kicking! I felt silly envisioning myself kicking someone and then, falling to the ground because I’d either broken a toe or had been flipped by my opponent because I threw such a pansy, soft kick.

The key to kicks in Kenpo Karate and is driving with the heel. Lead with the heel. Focus on what it will feel like to make contact. It’s an movement outward from the body, not upward. Watch Wesley on the Kenpo X DVD. He leads with the heel of his foot. He makes it look easy. When I tried kicks this way, I was amazed at how much easier they were for me too. It almost makes me want to get a body bag so I can make contact with my kicks.

Speaking of Wesley, observe how he leans away from the direction of the kick. The further you lean your body away from your kick, the higher you can get your kick. The fitness manual for P90X observes that the “real weapon is not the fist or the foot, but the whole body.” When you learn to use your whole body, not only does the form feel better, you also get a great workout. I’ve never participated in any form of karate as a fitness routine, but I can really get my heart rate up with this workout and still have fun.

This workout is about cardiovascular fitness, flexibility, balance, strenth training, toning, and focusing. The routine starts out slowly and builds momentum as you learn the moves. It’s just under 56 minutes, including the warm up and cool down. And, I’ve read nothing but positive comments from men and women on this routine. Hats off Tony! This is one of our favorites!