With all of the fitness infomercials on TV today, it can be hard to tell which one is right for you. Some may seem like they are created for people who are already in great shape, and some can seem like they wouldn’t do much of anything. Even trying to decide between all of the Beachbody programs out there can be difficult because each one is unique. Choosing a home workout can be tough so here are a few tips to help you break down your choices.

First, you should determine the time commitment you would like to make. 30 days, 60 days or 90 days. Then see how much time each day you have available to workout. The figure out what your goals are and finally, what types of exercise you enjoy doing. Or at least can tolerate! Here is a list of the top workouts with duration, daily time commitment and the type of exercises each program offers.

Program                  Duration                  Daily Time            Type

P90X                        90 Days                  60-90 Minutes          Extreme – mix

P90X2                      90 Days                  60-90 Minutes          Extreme x 10 – mix

Insanity                    60 Days                 45 Minutes                 Extreme Cardio

ChaLEAN                 90 Days                 30-45 Minutes           Resistance w/ dumbbell

Turbo Fire               90 Days                 30-60 Minutes           Dance Cardio

Rev Abs                    90 Days                 30-45 Minutes            Ab Resistance/Cardio

Slim in 6                  6 Weeks                 30 Minutes                 Light Cardio

10 Minute Trainer                                 10-30 Minutes            Resistance/Cardio

Power 90                 90 Days                30-45 Minutes             Resistance/Cardio

Choosing the right home workout program can help you to stick to you workout and meet your goals. Trying to complete a program that is too difficult of too much of a time commitment will only lead to failure. Make sure you look at all of your options and choose what is right for you.

Before purchasing a P90X, most people wonder what equipment they will need to successfully complete the program. Mainly, is it necessary to have a pull up bar for the p90x? The short answer is no, the chin-up bar is not a requirement, but you may find that you actually want it after you start the program and here is why:

During some of the resistance workouts you will see that Tony and his gang are using the chin-up bar and there will be one person using the bands. The person using the bands is showing you a modified version of the chin-up exercises. Modified chin-ups are great for those who may not have the upper strength to do chin-ups or for those who may not have a place for the chin-up bar in their home. So if you are wondering is it necessary to have a pull up bar for the P90X, this could depend on the individual.

For those of you who maybe struggle to do chin-ups but can maybe pull one or two off and are really looking for great results, the pull up bar would be the best option. Just because using the bands is a modified move and with modified moves, you are using less strength and fewer muscles. Modified moves are supposed to be a little easier so the affect on you body isn’t completely the same. In my opinion, and I have used the bar and the bands, using the chin-up bar will give you greater results because instead of maxing out with a 50 pound band, you are using your entire body weight as resistance.

Is it necessary to have a pull up bar for the P90X? No, but if you want greater results and you are willing to struggle at first to successfully using the bar, then I would highly recommend using the P90X Chin-Up Bar.

So many freshman have fallen victim to that first year weight gain, and for many reasons. One is that they are now on their own in terms of meals and nutrition. Mom or dad is no longer cooking them healthy meals and you tend to buy cheaper pre-packaged meals which are not as healthy. You may be drinking more alcohol than before and those late night parties always lead to late night snacks. It can also be hard to find the time for exercise. Most colleges and universities have a fitness center that is at the student’s disposal, but not everyone feels they have the time or the motivation to go. No one likes to come home for the summer and visit with old friends 15 pounds heavier! Here are some tips to help you avoid gaining weight during your first year of college:

1. Set a workout schedule that you can stick to. If you are normally not into working out, don’t say you are going to hit the gym every morning at 8am cuz it aint gonna happen! Be realistic and start off with three days a week. It might not be the same time each one of those days because of classes, homework and that part time job you might have. Think of a time where you are finding yourself bored most often and schedule an hour gym sessions then.

2. If possible, try not to stay up all night. Stay on top of your homework and studies so you don’t have to have a late night cram session. This always leads to cramming snacks and soda or coffee down your throat. Not only do you need your sleep to think clearly, you also need your sleep for energy. If you are feeling drained, guess what, you aren’t going to want to work out.

3. Try, try, try to plan your meals! This may be very difficult in college, but try! Take a Sunday afternoon to shop for healthy options and plan out each meal of the week so you don’t have to resort to quick convenience foods at the last minute. Energy from “real” food is long lasting unlike the quick spikes of energy you will get from fast food and junk.

4. Drink water always. I know there will be some weekends that you will be drinking other beverages, but besides that, drink water. Why get calories from juice or soda? Soda always makes me feel gross and as you get older, you will start to feel that as well. Also, if you carry water with you at all times, this will help to curb cravings as sometimes we confuse thirst for hunger.

5. Don’t go overboard with the alcohol. As a freshman, most students aren’t even old enough to drink, but it doesn’t happen more often than not. So let’s be real here. Alcoholic beverages are high in calories and considering the snacking you might to during that party and the foods you will eat to get over the hangover, brings the calorie count higher than you might think. Drink water in between beers. This can not only reduce the amount of alcohol you drink for the night, it can also help lessen the effects of a hangover.

Side Note: Drinking the P90X Recovery Drink after a night of drinking can help cure your hangover the next morning!

We can’t all be perfect, especially in a time of transition so start small and do what you can to avoid those extra pounds. Taking these relatively small steps to avoid that freshman 15 can lead you into a lifetime of good habits. Need some motivation? Get a workout buddy, start a blog or just think of how hot you looked in your prom dress and how funny it would be to try it on again the summer after your freshman year!

When doing your P90X exercises, good form is very important. Good form can not only save you from injury, it can also give you better results. Bad form can mean going too far in a lunge and hanging your knee over you ankle, banging your joints while performing your kenpo routine, over extending past the point of discomfort during Yoga X, using you neck muscles during ab work, and so on.

P90X is a high impact workout. This means there is a lot of pressure on the body and especially the joints while performing the P90X exercises. Having good form will help protect your joints such as the knees, ankles and shoulders. You have to be stable and controlled at all times. Losing stability during your resistance workouts can mean big trouble for your joints as well as your muscles. Pulling a muscle can put a damper on your 90 day workout goals.

Good form can also increase your results because you have to have control and having that control means that you are using your muscles more and working harder. People who just go through the motions of the P90X exercises without engaging the muscles will not get great results.

Not everyone can have perfect form but it is important to have good form. If your form is not great in the beginning of your workout journey, take the time to improve your movements before you move on. P90X exercises are not to be taken lightly and good form is the key to great results, injury free!

The USDA has recently unveiled a new campaign to advance and promote dietary guidance for our overweight society. Obesity is a well known problem in our country and it’s nice to know that the government is looking out for our health. This new campaign is called “My Plate,” sort of the new food pyramid.

This new approach seems to simplify nutrition and gives us an easy way to eat healthier. Not just by the colorful diagram of an actual dinner plate, but the plethora of information on their website laid out in plan and simple English. We are not all nutrition experts the simple layout of the website really makes it easy to figure out whether or not we are eating healthy enough.

There are no fad diet tips on this website, this is the government after all. You will find charts that display serving amounts based on age and gender, special sections or pregnancy and breastfeeding mothers, sections for kids and tips for weight loss. There are even interactive tools that can help you to analyze  your eating and activity habits and even give you an eating plan to help you lose weight. Just type in your weight, height, gender and estimated daily activity level and boom! A chart pops up on the next page telling you exactly how much of each food group you should eat to get to and maintain a healthy weight.

This website can be great for those who are just looking to eat healthier without having to buy gimmicky foods that promise weight loss or who are in between workout programs. This is an every day guide to healthy eating, which is something we should all use.

For those of you interested in purchasing the P90X program but aren’t sure if the equipment is necessary, this post is for you. So first of all, what kinds of equipment are we talking about? There is the chin-up bar, push-up stands, resistance bands, yoga or plyo mat, yoga blocks and dumbbells. Is all of this P90X equipment necessary?

Just to go through the program a little, you will start of with a workout called Chest and Back. During this workout, you will be doing quite a bit of push-ups and chin-ups. So for this workout a chin-up bar is necessary, but you can do push-ups without the stands. You do however have another P90X equipment option. The resistance bands can be attached to your door hinge so that you can do the same chin-up exercises with your bands. There will always be someone on the video demonstrating this. What if you didn’t have either? You would miss out on half of the workout.

Another example would be Plyometrics. A ploy mat is recommended for this workout to absorb shock and protect you joints while jumping, but can you do this without P90X equipment? Yes. If you do have the plyo mat, this can also be used when doing Yoga X. You can do yoga without a mat, but it is not recommended because you could slip out of a pose and hurt yourself. Yoga blocks can help you hold poses that you may not be flexible enough to hold on your own, but you can still complete the workout without them.

Shoulders and Arms and the other upper body workouts are examples of where you have to have either a set of dumbbells or some resistance bands. Unless you want to curl some cans you have in your cabinet, some P90X equipment is needed here.

Is ALL of the P90X equipment necessary? No, but you will need something to do the chin-up exercises with and you will need either dumbbells or the resistance bands. A yoga or plyo mat is recommended for your safety. If you want to get away with the bare minimum, I recommend getting a set of bands, the band upgrade kit and either a yoga or ploy mat.

Following the Nutrition Plan, more specifically the meal plan approach, as a vegetarian can be difficult. Finding meatless sources of protein can be a challenge as it is, but even more so to fit them into recipe already created. As a P90X vegetarian, you may have difficulty following the meal plan, so a good alternative would be to use the portions approach.

The portions approach is essentially a list of approved foods that you create your own meals with by following the servings chart. On the portions approach approved foods lists, you will find things like veggie burgers, veggie dogs, soy cheese and soy milk. Theses foods are all great, but what about a meatless alternative to use in an entrée? Tofu is ok, but Tempeh is a healthier and much tastier alternative. Tempeh can be used in any dish, just like tofu. A grain like Quinoa is also a great source of protein (about 8 grams per serving) and can be used as a healthier alternative to rice and another source of protein. If you are a vegan and do not eat eggs or dairy, the portion approach gives you soy alternatives to work with.

Because the P90X Nutrition plan does not provide that many options for the vegetarian, you may have to search elsewhere to find meal ideas. I came across this wonderful website that has some great recipes and also a list of stores where you can buy their foods. The P90X vegetarian has to be resourceful and creative in order to make the Nutrition Plan work for them. Here is a great place to start:

http://www.lightlife.com/index.jsp

LightLife is a brand of vegetarian food products that can be found in grocery and natural food stores nation wide. Their website gives you great insight to the vegetarian lifestyle and the benefits to your health and the planet it can bring. A great place for a P90X vegetarian to find tips and advice from vegetarian experts.