Are You Insane Enough to Do the Insanity Workout?

Dear Fitness Coach,

My boyfriend’s sister lost weight and looks awesome after doing the Insanity Beachbody home workout for just a month. I am thinking about buying it and doing it with my mom. I am 23 and she is 44, and we both got some serious pounds to lose!

Angelica

Dear Angelica,

The Insanity workout is hard... and that is why you can achieve maximum results in a minimum of time. It is probably one of the most strenuous cardio-based workouts out there. The program is based on “max interval training”: 3 minutes of all-out effort followed by 30 seconds of recovery. This is a total-body, circuit-style training workout using only your body weight as resistance. The specific movements in themselves are not difficult: jumping jacks, air squats, sprints – typical high school gym class type exercises. It is the pace and the number of repetitions that make each workout so intense. If you are looking to put on muscle mass and gain strength, this workout is not for you. However, if you want to lean out and get muscle definition – whether it’s in your arms, abs or legs – this kind of high-intensity workout will help you achieve your goals.

If I haven’t scared you off yet, you now need to determine whether you and your mom will be able to do the workouts. If you are extremely unfit, have orthopedic issues or any chronic metabolic diseases, you should probably start off with something less intense. If you like to sweat, have a baseline level of physical fitness and have a desire to be pushed, you will see fast results if you are self-motivated enough to complete the entire program!

Gold's Gym is now an Insanity^®-certified training facility. With a live certified instructor, sessions start June 1st and run through July 1st, 3x a week: Mon/Weds 7–7:30 pm and Saturdays 8–8:30 am.