Beachbody (BOD) cross-training programs

Herding_Cats

DIS Veteran
Joined
Aug 3, 2017
I did a search and can see that there are quite a few in here that are or have used BOD programs for cross-training. Which one(s) have been your favorite?

I'm about 4.5 weeks from finishing 80DO and am trying to get a plan together for which program to do next and incorporate running. I need something that has a cardio aspect to it since I really don't enjoy running all that much, but I don't want to lose all of the strength gains I have made with 80day.

I have previously done almost all of p90x (9 years ago??), a full round of p90x3 (7 years ago) multiple partial round of it since. (I was doing c3 on mute by the end because tony was just way too obnoxious)

2 summers ago I did a month of x3, a month of t25, and then a full round of 80day, then got pregnant and had a baby. Since then I did 21df (just the workouts and loosely sticking to the nutrition), little obsessed, and am most of the way through 80do.
 
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I did a search and can see that there are quite a few in here that are or have used BOD programs for cross-training. Which one(s) have been your favorite?

I'm about 4.5 weeks from finishing 80DO and am trying to get a plan together for which program to do next and incorporate running. I need something that has a cardio aspect to it since I really don't enjoy running all that much, but I don't want to lose all of the strength gains I have made with 80day.

I've done 21DF, 80DO (x3), LIIFT4, and am currently doing Yoga Retreat. Each of the three times I did 80DO, I edited the plan based on my running/cycling routine. I think I like LIIFT4 the best so far. I spread the workouts to 3x per week instead of 4x per week. It's a nice mix of strength work and cardio (but not too much cardio that it infringes on my ability to run later in the day). I feel like you get quite a bit of lifting in a shorter period of time than 80DO. It also didn't require any extra equipment above and beyond 80DO (actually less, as no bands or sliders). Might be worth looking in to, but also might not be enough cardio for what you're looking for.
 
I will say that a few years ago, 21 Day Fix is what helped me get better at nutrition. It's been a few years, so I can't actually remember much about the workouts, but it did really help me with my eating. I also did P90X back in the day before I started running, but my eating wasn't great then and I didn't follow the nutrition plan so didn't get great results. I found the 21 Day Fix nutrition plan easy to follow which is what helped.
Not really an answer to your question, but maybe helpful for someone else???
 
P90X - probably the most professional grade workout program that you can do at home. Professional athletes of pretty much every sport swear by it. It completely changed my body.
 


I did Beachbody workout programs in the years before demand and I have a number of DVD sets: P90X, P90X2, P90X3, P90X+, Master & Chisel, Body Beast, Insanity, Asylum (and the sequel), HardCorps, T25 (?correct name). I feel like I'm probably missing one in there.

To be up front, I didn't do the nutrition programs with any of them, because that wasn't my objective.

Honestly, P90X is probably the best all-around program for building strength, especially if you want to use dumbbells or bands rather than barbells. It has a good variety of time-tested moves that don't require a lot of coordination. P90X Legs is an absolutely killer workout and P90X Chest + Back is awesome. You use a stability ball in some parts, which is a good investment. The main downside to it is that the workouts are long. Usually they are just under an hour and if you follow their directions, you'll follow it up immediately with Ab Ripper X, which is another 20 minutes. Maybe you have the time for this - if not, adapt the program to what you want. By the time I did a few rounds of P90X (this was 10+ years ago), I could do 100+ full push-ups and dozens (yes!) of unassisted pull-ups in the Chest + Back workout - basic strength work gets it done.

P90X2 is a great follow-up to P90X, but it's definitely more complicated, because there are a lot more balance moves. For almost every strength workout (i.e., bicep curls), you are standing on one foot or something similar. At the time I bought it, if you got one of the upgrades, you got one or two medicine balls - I use two in the workouts and putting those in for stability work is amazing. You also continue to use the stability ball. It's billed as being more aimed at athletes, and it is definitely a worthy sequel. It's also about the same time commitment as P90X. The only drawback in my mind is that there is no "legs" workout - they only do plyo.

P90X3 is a nice program that is also well-rounded. It is purposely designed to have shorter workouts, about 35-min each with more for an ab workout. But with the short workout, it's not as effective, which is something to keep in mind.

All of the P90* workouts feature Tony Horton. I like him and his corny humor. Master & Chisel has Amber from 80DO and Sagi from BodyBeast. Each workout is lead by one of them or the other. These are also very good workouts and hit all the body parts in a good way. I don't use these workouts as often because I find some of the moves, especially in Amber's workouts, to require more coordination and complicated motion than I care for. The workouts are usually 45 - 50 minutes, so shorter than P90X.

If you can use a barbell set, BodyBeast would be really good. It uses traditional moves that are more effective with a barbell than dumbbells. I have a barbell set that I can change weights on, but the workouts don't give you enough time for the weight changes, and so you have to pause and then the workouts take much longer. Annoying.

Insanity and Asylum (and its sequel, forget the name) are almost entirely cardio. There's really no need for this if you're a runner, but it will certainly keep up cardio fitness during a period when you can't run. Asylum also has an agility ladder (at least with the DVD set) and the agility workouts are a lot of fun - I liked to think that they helped my tennis footwork. These workouts are led by Shaun T, and my impression is that he's not always careful about form (such as for jumping lunges, or with ab work) and seems to push going longer rather than being safe, so you need to self-monitor.

HardCorps is supposed to be military style, with Tony Horton, but he's getting old enough by the time these were made that he didn't do the exercises himself. The workouts are only 22 minutes long. There are some interesting moves, but I feel like it's too short to be that effective. Better than nothing if you are short on time.

T25 is by Shaun T. I don't remember it much, because I didn't care for it. Again, basically all cardio and totally on overdrive-kill-yourself mode with more dancy moves that I am not coordinated enough for. :)

Once my teaching semester ends, assuming we still are stay-at-home here, I'm going to pull out P90X and do a rotation with a subset of the workouts.

If you are looking for something to start with, I'd suggest P90X or P90X3, depending on the time you have to devote to it. And adapt the schedule as you see fit.
 
I should probably edit my original post with everything I’ve done, but these are good suggestions. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to reply. 👍
 
I am on my second round of LIIFT4. But, I find it to be a good complement to running and wouldn't use it as my only form of cardio, which seems to be what you want.

I like it for the strength aspect - I had such good results after the first round that I took a week off and started the second. And it's short at 30-40 minutes and doesn't wear out my cardio reserves, so I can still do a 3-4 mile run on the same day.
 


I really like insanity. I have done two rounds of it, once in 2014, and once last year (I think I was two weeks short from finishing on the 2019 one). The first time I did it it took a bunch of time off of my 5K times. I didn't race any last year so I can't speak to how it impacted my running times. I wouldn't try running at the same time though, I think for me personally that would end in injury.

Great workout though.
 
I'm in my 7th week of LIIFT 4 and really like it. Not sure what I'm going to next but I have enjoyed it. Plus its nice to see the strength gains. I've done 21 day fix and I liked it but I like having a few days off with LIIFT 4.
 

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