P90X2 Phase 1 Reveiw

In this P90X2 Phase 1 Review I am only going to cover Phase 1, or the “foundation” Phase, since I believe you cant write a completely accurate and knowledgeable review of a full program unless you have completed that program in its entirety. So you are going to see plenty of people publishing a “P90X2 review”, but pay close attention to make sure the author knows by experience what the heck they are talking about.

I have personally spent the last 4 weeks in P90X2 Phase 1 and WOW!!! If you are coming into this expecting it to be anything like the original P90X – Then you are going to be sorely disappointed or overwhelmed with joy! There are a lot of mixed opinions with the P90X2 Foundation Phase ranging from, “these are the most challenging workouts I have ever done” to, “This is nowhere near as difficult as P90X”. The most frequently express opinion I have heard though is that people were expecting something more challenging, but what these people are forgetting is that P90X2 was designed to improve your neuromuscular efficiency with the moves. Translation: The improvement in your muscular recruitment will make you a much better athlete. You need to build and perfect your foundation in order to be successful in the strength phase and into the performance phase. The focus is no longer on weight loss and taking a fat guy and getting him ripped. P90X2 is about taking someone who is fit and transforming them into a well oiled machine designed to outperform the competition. Before I get into my personal P90X2 review of Phase 1, lets take a closer look at what Phase 1 is all about. So all the complaints about “not feeling the burn like P90X” need to be taken with a grain of salt, because there is a lot of science that has gone into P90X2 and Phase-1 is just as important as the rest, hence the name “Foundation”…It supports all the workouts!

 

Overview of P90X2 Foundation Phase – P90X2 Phase 1 Review

I believe that the co-creator of P90X2, Steve Edwards gives the best description of P90X2 Phase 1. In his blog, “The Straight Dope“, Steve writes,

“Not foundation as in “base training” but as in your attachment to the earth. Working on the “you can’t shoot a canon from a canoe” philosophy the aim of this program is to build you from the ground up. You may think you have a good base from P90X but, I assure you, we are going to find some weak areas and improve them. The two major areas of weakness in the human body, which leads to probably 90% of sports injuries, are shoulder and hip instability. Solve this and non-contact injuries will virtually disappear.”

Steve Edwards is exactly right! P90X2 Phase 1 is going to focus on your weaknesses, and those weaknesses are primarily going to be balance and stability for most people, which involves your core. That is why you see so many new pieces of equipment used in P90X2, like the medicine balls, and stability ball. All of these tools along with brand new moves that you have never tried are absolutely going to challenge the crap out of you! Every single workout in P90X2 Phase 1 will force you to engage your core and focus on keeping your balance during the move. This core strength and stability that you are developing in the foundation phase is crucial for your success in the strength phase and especially in the performance phase.

With workouts like X2 Core that focus on core strength while doing moves that create instability, you are going to get an incredible workout. And you also have X2 Balance & Power which will focus on your balance during resistance moves. For example; doing bicep curls and tricep extensions in a warrior 3 position. And for those of you who arent yoga-savy…warrior 3 is done on one leg with your torso parallel to the floor. Its difficult, lol.

 

My Experience – P90X2 Phase 1 Review

Now let me tell you my own personal experience with P90X2 Phase 1. I came into this program not knowing what to expect. I kept hearing all this chatter about PAP and science based muscle confusion and really didnt know what I was getting myself into, nor did I know what to expect. What I got was much more than I was prepared for! P90X2 Phase 1, just like Steve Edwards and Tony Horton intended, honed in on my weaknesses: core strength and stability. I had gained a lot of strength in P90X, but my core and stability were just nowhere near being on par with what you would want to see in an athlete.

Week 1 was difficult for me. I was used to knowing all the moves from P90X and could do them with my eyes shut and still keep up with the cast members in the workouts. Going from expert to fumbling idiot who has to hit rewind every 30 seconds to see how to do a move was very humbling. Not only was I humbled, but I was exhausted! Because of my lack of core strength, balance, and stability; I found myself pressing pause from being winded! Now I am pretty decent shape and for this 3 time P90X grad to be winded so much so that the pause button needs pushed…thats a program I will fall in love with! I can say though that by the end of week 4 in P90X2 Phase 1, my core strength and stability are better than they have ever been! I can pretty much remodel an entire home while standing on one leg now. As the weeks progressed, with each jump, with each rep and reach, I could feel my core engage more confidently and I found myself stumbling less because my balance was developing so well.

All in all, P90X2 Phase 1 is perfectly described: Foundation. Everything I do in phase 2 is going to take from what I have developed in phase 1. Not only was I surprised at how quick and effective these workouts were in building my core strength, balance, and stability; but I was also surprised at the results! I had just came off my P90X mass gain and had put on some expected body fat. That body fat is quickly vanishing! You can check out my P90X2 Phase 1 Results HERE.

 

When Should I switch to Phase 2? – P90X2 Phase 1 Reveiw

I know this question of when to switch to Phase 2 is going to come up, so I wanted to share with you guys the criteria that I used to determine if I was ready to switch to Phase 2.

#1 Balance improved – Ability to do all balance moves with MINIMAL stumbling or touch downs to regain balance

#2 Reps have increased – You are consistently increasing your rep count as you gain strength

#3 Weights have increased – Another indicator that you are gaining strength

#4 Form has improved – This is extremely important! If you cant do the move with proper form, then you cant do the move!

#5 Modifying moves – You find it necessary to modify to ADD difficulty

I hope this P90X2 Phase 1 Review can help you guys out, but as always; leave your questions or comments below so I can get back to you as quickly as possible. In the mean time, keep pushin play BRINGIN IT with P90X2! If you would like to join the rest of the RIPPEDCLUB crew in doing P90X2, just click HERE to sign up for FREE with me, Coach Todd, to help you along your journey to maximize your results!