Review: If you don't exercise, start with this - if you do exercise, add this!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 07 18, 2013
To clarify a point in my review title, when I say if you don't exercise, start with this, I mean that for someone who is out of shape, this is an ideal way to start getting into shape. You can do anything for one or two minutes. So, start with this and if you want to do more, just add it to your base. I did it the other way around. I had a base exercise program, but I added this to it. And it's worked well for me.UPDATE 9/17/13I have now been doing this 7 days a week 10x daily for just over 13 weeks. I feel that I've continued to build strength and improved my endurance. I've kept off the 7 pounds I lost and dropped a pants size in misses (from a 4 to a 2). I continue to eat "clean" and am finding that I really don't want to eat any other way. "Regular" restaurant food is almost unpalatable. I also continue "regular" high intensity interval training. I talked my 75 year old mother into giving this book a shot. She said she can't do push ups, and I pointed out that she can do them from her knees. I still have my jar of 10 pennies I dump on the counter each morning, and I hope I stay healthy enough to continue doing this for the better part of the rest of my life.UPDATE 8/7/13I can't say enough good stuff about this approach. I had gained 15 or 20 pounds after my illness. I lost all but 5 pounds of the weight gain through HIIT exercise and "clean" eating. I started these sets of 10 throughout the day 6 weeks ago yesterday. Today I weighed myself and not only have the last 5 lbs come off, I lost 2 more, for a total of 7 lbs in the last 6 weeks! And I had been stuck (at 124) for weeks and weeks. I don't rely on the scale too much bc I exercise a lot and tend to weigh more than I look like I do, so I go more by clothing size, but every once in awhile I weigh myself to verify that I'm not gaining weight. My clothing has been kind of loose, but still I expected to get on the scale today and see 124. Imagine my surprise to see 117. The only thing that has changed in my life in the last 6 weeks is that I added this system to my day, so I give it total credit. I'd give the book 10 stars if I could.ORIGINAL REVIEW (7/18/2013)I was skeptical, to say the least, about the premise of this book. I was a runner for 20 years, and as I aged I wanted to try some different things. I decided HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) was the way for me to change things up a bit and settled on Shaun T's Insanity workouts. I quickly became TOTALLY hooked on the workouts. I started Insanity in 2011 when I was 48 and saw results within 2 months. (Of course I also monitored my food intake - switching to a "clean" diet.) If you just want to get to the part that tells you how this book is helpful, skip the next couple paragraphs...I'm relating background to my personal experience in discovering this book.Ten days before my 50th birthday (Mar 2 this year was my 50th), I suffered a hemorrhagic stroke and was airvacked to a trauma hospital and had to undergo a craniotomy (i.e., brain surgery). My neurosurgeon said if I wasn't in such good shape I probably would have died, as the area my hemorrhage occurred has only a 50% survival rate WITH surgery. I spent a couple weeks in the hospital and had to start physical therapy and speech therapy before I was even discharged.On my follow up appt with the neurosurgeon I asked him when I could resume exercise. He said "Not less than 90 days and that's only if I clear you. In the meantime, walk." So I walked daily. When I had my follow up 60 days after surgery he said still no "vigorous" exercise for 30 days. After 30 days, I started Insanity workouts again. Three weeks before my 30 days was up, I started Bob Harmon's "Jump Start to Skinny", a 21 day program. I thought it would get me in shape for Insanity, and it sort of did. I struggled badly when I started the Insanity workouts.This is the part where this book comes into play. I read it about 4 weeks ago, and thought I'd incorporate it into my day along with my regular workouts. I started with the squats and push ups and quickly incorporated the plank and now have added 25 crunches. I do the reps 10 times a day. I have a small decorative jar that I keep 10 pennies in and every morning I dump them on the counter beside the jar and at the end of the day, putting one penny back for each rep, I make sure all 10 pennies are back in the jar.  I have been doing that for 3 weeks. I am now into my first week of Month 2 of Insanity and doing OK. I am AMAZED at the difference in my core strength my repeating these reps hourly. Parts of the Insanity workout I used to struggle with (e.g., "walking planks") and now I'm doing them with ease. Plus, my "love handles" have practically disappeared. I am 2 years older than the first couple times I did Insanity, and I think I am better this time around than the first 2. My neurologist (that's who you "graduate" to after a neurosurgeon) says I "rebound" faster than any patient he's ever seen. I have another follow up in August and I can't wait to go!