Focus T25 Final Results and Beta Review

I finished T25 Beta and as promised here is my review and my final results.  First off I just want to say I AM DONE!!!!  10 weeks of T25 complete, 10 weeks of burpee madness, core work, fast moves, something that looks like dancing, and A LOT of sweat.  It is hard to believe that 10 weeks has gone by already.  That was really quick, and it just reminds me that even if I am not working towards my health and fitness goals - time will pass anyway.  Time does not care if I am working out every day, time does not care if I am eating healthy and drinking my Shakeology.  Time will march on with or without me and I have to choose if I want to be better over time or if I just want to let time take its toll.  I am really glad I decided 10 weeks ago to take on the T25 program and to not let time pass me by.

On to the review.  If you would like to see my review from Alpha Phase, you can find it here.  Beta Phase is laid out basically the same way as Alpha, but the DVD's are different.  You do one 25 minute workout 4 days a week, a double day on Friday (so two 25 minute workouts), and a 25 minute stretch on Sunday.  If you aren't up to the double you can do one workout on Friday and one on Saturday to split it up.  Tania is the modifier for this phase as well, and she still sweats and gets a great workout just like everyone else.  The workouts are  Core Cardio, Speed 2.0, Rip't Circuit, Dynamic Core, and Upper Focus.  The first week happens in that order but over the course of the 5 weeks of Beta phase, these workouts will rotate and you will do different DVDs on different days with different doubles on Friday.  No 2 weeks are the same which is nice.  Even though you are rotating through the same 5 workouts each week, it doesn't get boring because you change the order each week.  Also, since the workouts are only 25 minutes it goes by so fast you don't have time to get bored.  However, there are cool downs after each workout which run between 2 and 3.5 minutes as well as a disclaimer at the beginning of each DVD that you can't skip through. When all is said and done you actually put in close to 30 minutes. 

CORE CARDIO

This workout is another series of progressive moves starting with switch kicks - low, double, high; then uppercuts stationary and jack feet.  Throw in some twisting "x" lunges starting high and working all the way to the floor with a few sets of squats for good measure and by the time the first 7 minutes are done you will be a sweaty mess.  Then things get crazy with some air plank jumps right before heading into the "burnout". The super fast repetition of all the hardest moves you just did.  

After the first burnout you have about 8 minutes of hopping, twisting, kicking, shuffling, squatting..... and oh yeah - burpees!  Like you'd get away without those.  Some planking is thrown in for good measure before the second burnout.  The workout ends with some floor sprints and then up to full body sprints.  This was another great workout and I felt like I was in Beta Phase.  The Alpha phase was a good base and definitely helped prepare me for this Beta cardio.  Not my favorite of all the workouts in Beta but a good one.

SPEED 2.0

This is by far my favorite workout of all the workouts so far.  It makes me excited to see what Speed 3.0 will be like in Gamma.  This workout consists of 2 levels with about 8 moves in each level.  You repeat the 2 levels 3 times each, and then you go through the entire workout from the top twice increasing speed and decreasing the number of times for each move.  I love the music, I love the moves, I love that Shaun T sing songs everything while he is doing the moves in time to the music.  This workout just gets me motivated!  Some of the moves include switch kicks, zigzags, squat hops, uppercuts, knee raises.... the list goes on.  There is quite a bit of fast footwork in this workout and my calves and sometimes feet would feel like they were going to catch fire.  Maybe I love this one so much because there are NO BURPEES!!!

RIP'T CIRCUIT

I was very afraid of this workout.  I mean, just look what it is called.  I figured if it was worse than Total Body Circuit from Alpha phase I was in big trouble.  The one thing that I was looking forward to though was the use of weights (finally)!  I love strength training and after 5 weeks without any weights I was ready to pump some iron!  I used 8 pound weights and trust me, for me that was plenty.  If you don't have weights that is ok because the program comes with a resistance band.  

You can get results with the band just like you can with the weights (if you look closely you can see Andy the band guy in the back row).  This is a total body workout, some cardio, some upper body, some lower body and some ab work.  Pretty much in that order.  Probably the best thing about this workout is no burnout and the worst thing about this workout is the air plank to single leg burpees..... WHAT IS THIS MADNESS??

I didn't hate this workout as much as I hated Alpha Total Body Circuit, maybe because of the weights or maybe because of the lack of one thousand burpees.  Overall this was great and didn't make me dread seeing it come up on the calendar each week - even the 3 times I had to do it in week 5.

DYNAMIC CORE

 The above picture is from the warm up for this DVD.  It starts with a brief cardio warm up and then moves into standing ab work mixed with cardio including some twists, kicks, and tuck jumps.  The focus is to keep your abs tight throughout all the standing work.  Close to halfway in to the workout you move to the floor work.  This includes crunches, planks, V holds, hip ups... the list goes on.  This was HARD.  I had to take several breaks during some of the V hold work.  But, so did this guy so I didn't fell so bad.

Notice how he is gripping the mat, Shaun T even let him have a second or two break.  The end of this workout was what Shaun T calls a plank walk squat pyramid.... yeah those are BURPEES!!!  Again with the tricky names.  A burpee by any other name is still a burpee Shaun T.  I definitely felt this workout later in the day.  I kept thinking maybe I was getting sick, a stomach bug or something but then I remembered - no it is just my abs burning like the fire of the sun.

UPPER FOCUS

The opposite of Alpha's Lower Focus comes the Beta round's Upper Focus.  Again, weights or bands are involved with this workout which makes me love it.  This workout was accurately named as the majority of the DVD included upper body work.  Some cardio was involved in the warm up and a few other moves spaced throughout the workout.  The upper focus included standing work such as shoulder presses, front and lateral raises, jabs, and upright rows.  Floor work included chest flys, tricep dips, and hip ups.  This workout was probably the easiest of all the DVDs, that's not saying it was easy though.  I definitely felt this later in the day and even the next day.  Both bands and weights can be used.

All workouts end with a 2-3 minute stretch depending on the day.  A Stretch DVD is also included to be done on Sunday.  25 minutes of well deserved relaxing and recovering the body.  This workout can be done  more than just 1 day if you feel you need more of a cool down or stretch. 

I really liked Beta phase of T25.  As I said I am a huge fan of strength training and I had missed it for the first 5 weeks of Alpha phase.  I didn't necessarily feel Beta was that much harder than Alpha.  My guess is because Alpha was such a shock to my system and it really did give me a great foundation for Beta.  I still felt like I got a great workout in only 25 minutes.  Here are my results for the total program: in 10 weeks, using the T25 program, drinking Shakeology, and making an effort to follow my weekly meal plan...... I lost 10 pounds and 14.25 inches!  

I am really super happy with those results.  I mean 25 minutes a day?  10 weeks, 10 pounds and 14+ inches??  It goes to show that you really CAN get results in just 25 minutes a day.  I am also really proud of myself for actually completing the workout.  So what's next?  Gamma phase!  Four more weeks of 25 minutes a day with Shaun T and even more strength training.  I can't wait!

If you would like to try T25 and join my next fitness and healthy eating accountability group, leave a comment below or visit www.beachbodycoach.com/ashleywrobbins to have me assigned as your coach so we can start creating a customized fitness program to meet your needs!  If you have more questions, email me at fitfamilyrobbins@beachbodycoach.com - I'd love to help you reach your goals!

Focus T25 Results - Alpha Phase

I gave you some information about T25 a few weeks ago and I promised to give you some results and a review.  We finished up the Alpha phase this past Friday and did our weighing and measuring on "STAT"urday.  I have to say I am really pleased with the outcome, and although Beta phase scares me - I am really looking forward to the next 5 weeks!

So on to the review.  There are 5 discs to follow in Alpha phase.  Cardio, Speed 1.0, Total Body Circuit, Ab Intervals, and Lower Focus.  The first week happens in that order - Monday, Cardio; Tuesday, Speed 1.0; and so on until you get to Friday.  Here is where it gets tricky.  Friday is a double day, so you actually do Cardio again, and also Lower Focus.  Fridays are 50 minutes unless you chose to do 1 workout on Friday and 1 workout on Saturday.  Over the course of the 5 weeks of Alpha phase, these workouts will rotate and you will do different DVDs on different days with different doubles on Friday.  No 2 weeks are the same which is nice.  Even though you are rotating through the same 5 workouts each week, it doesn't get boring because you change the order each week.  Also, since the workouts are only 25 minutes it goes by so fast you don't have time to get bored.  However, there are cool downs after each workout which run between 2 and 3.5 minutes as well as a disclaimer at the beginning of each DVD that you can't skip through. When all is said and done you actually put in close to 30 minutes.  

CARDIO

 

This workout consists of a series of progressive moves.  In the beginning you do a run progression, this is nice as a warm up of sorts as well.  You start with an alternating knee lift and progress through several moves ending in a high knee jog.  Next come the jumping jacks.  You start with just your feet, then double feet, then double feet and arms, and end with a regular jumping jack.  Lunges up after that starting with a regular step lunge and end with lunges with your hand touching the floor.

Lateral moves and heel taps and jumps follow with the final exercise of this progression being a half tuck jump.  This takes you to about the 15 minute mark and that's when you get to experience your first Burn Out.  You go through a mixture of some of the moves you have already done, but this is where you speed up and push harder.  After this burn out comes a squat series, a sprint series, a kick series, and some speed and agility work.

The last 5 minutes consist of your second burn out where you again do a faster, harder version of most of the moves you just finished doing over the last 10 minutes.  The workout ends with a cool down that is just over 2 minutes long.  

This was a great workout and I got a serious sweat going even though I had to follow the modifier (Tania, she is in the blue T25 t-shirt in the pics) for quite a few of the moves.  The first time I did the video I did have to stop a few times to figure out exactly what I was supposed to be doing.  By the end of the 5 weeks though I was able to keep up with the majority of the workout.  

SPEED 1.0

This is probably my favorite workout of all the Alpha phase exercise DVDs.  I felt like I was in some kind of hip hop dance video.  Trust me, I can't dance but the music was great and by the end I felt like maybe I could one day be a "fly girl".  This is another fast paced cardio DVD that focuses on speed, stretching, and stability.  Tania is the modifier and even though she is doing everything low impact, she has got some moves! Along with the dance moves, you also get some stretching and balance work.  Don't think this is not a workout though, there is also punching, kicking, an extended  burn out, and yes..... burpees.  There is a cool down at the end as well.  

                TOTAL BODY CIRCUIT

So if Speed 1.0 was my dream workout, Total Body Circuit was my nemesis.  This workout has a special place in Dante's Inferno..... Oh it starts out innocent enough, very similar to the Cardio DVD.  Then within the first 5 minutes we hit the floor and that's when the fun really starts.  Shoulder taps, shoulder taps with push ups, more push ups, more shoulder taps..... I'm done - what do you mean there's still 18 minutes to go?  Back up off the floor for lunges, squats, and jabs.  Back to the floor for planks, plank walks, planks with in and out abs.  In and out WHAT???  Shaun T... those are BURPEES!  I don't care what he called them, I know a burpee when I do one.  Does this look like a burpee to you?

Back up again for some sprints and squats, then back down for pike ups, then back up for more squats and more burpees, then back down for a series of push ups.  Crazy push ups, spider push ups, plank push ups, push ups on your push ups.  If this wasn't bad enough we still have a burn out to go.  I am already dying - as I said earlier I was done after the first 7 minutes.  This workout made me sweat like nothing I have ever done before.  The tops of my hands were sweating, I know because I spent so much time on the floor looking at them!  After the burn out comes a full body run for the last minute.  I'm sure I look like some kind of drenched rag doll throwing my body around and flinging sweat all over the place.  Then thankfully it is over!  There is a cool down that lasts a little over 3 minutes.  This was never enough for me, I had to walk around and continue to cool down for a while after.

AB INTERVALS

25 minutes of abs as the only exercise for the day?  Well, as I soon found out it wasn't only abs.  This was Ab Intervals.  Abs, cardio, abs, cardio, abs...... you get the picture.  

You work the upper abs, lower abs, obliques - and as Shaun T says ...... the back abs???  What?  I really liked this part of the workout the best because I got to lie on my stomach for a few minutes.  Again in this workout, towards the end are these things that look suspiciously like burpees.  I think those must be Shaun T's favorite exercise.  I'm pretty sure he sneaks them into every workout, he just calls them by different names to confuse you.  A cool down that runs about 3.5 minutes follows the end of this workout.

LOWER FOCUS

The last workout to review is Lower Focus, this one is to "strengthen and sculpt muscles from the waist down."  That is no joke.  During the course of this DVD Shaun T only refers to your upper body twice and that is to just make sure you are straight and holding it still.  The first 5 minutes or so are really similar to some of the other moves learned throughout the week, run progression, jack feet, squats.  

Next you get into some calf work with a lot of hopping around which produced a pretty good burn.  This was nothing compared to the burn that happened next.  Lunges and more lunges.  I thought my calves were going to catch fire.  I had to stand up several times and look around to make sure the carpet wasn't burning.  So what is next?  What's that you say Shaun T?  The burn out?  Are you kidding me??  Another round of burn inducing moves like before except faster.  It's like a SAUNA up in here Shaun T!  After the burn out is some adductor work, some dance moves, and some hamstring work.  Then, I'm not believing this... ANOTHER burn out!  This almost takes you to the end of the workout, you finish up with some hip flexor work.  A cool down of just over 3 minutes follows.  

A Stretch DVD is also included to be done on Sunday.  25 minutes of well deserved relaxing and recovering the body.  This workout can be done  more than just 1 day if you feel you need more of a cool down or stretch.  

Overall I really loved T25 Alpha phase.  I felt like I got a great workout in only 25 minutes.  I questioned how well I could do working out only 25 minutes a day 4 days a week - don't forget the double on Fridays (and that is truly all I did for the last 5 weeks, no other exercise except T25) since I am used to working out for at least 30 minutes and usually closer to an hour.  Here are my results (which is probably what you really wanted to see all along - so thanks for hanging in there).  In 5 weeks, using the T25 program, drinking Shakeology, and making an effort to follow my weekly meal plan...... I lost 7 pounds and 8 inches!  I am really pleased with that.  It goes to show that you really CAN get results in just 25 minutes a day.

Top row before; Bottom row after

T25 really puts a nail in the coffin of that last excuse we tend to cling to when talking about exercise - I don't have time.....

 If you are interested in trying T25, or joining my next health and fitness accountability group just leave me a note.  I would love to help you get results in just 25 minutes a day.