Category: Reviews
I have been a P90X user since late November 2007, which puts me at near 8 months of using the beach body systems. (This was written on 6/9/2008) I became a coach on 2/25/2008, and since then have spent my time working out, getting my friends motivated, and working with Smurf to get our fitness Blog off the ground. (Ok, there has been a lot of partying, drinking, karaoke, seeing friends, and other life related events)
Now for the comment that you guys may have been expecting,
Move over Rub my Duckie Bondage, Smurf has a new favorite toy– It’s the Nike+ attachment for iPod Nano! I’m hoping it will scratch all the itches that PodFitness did, for a fraction of the price. ($29.99)
I took it out for a 3 minute test run today, and am really excited to take it out for it’s first (and MY first) major outing- a 6 mile timed run through SF on Sunday.
The basics: You attach a chip to your shoe (doesn’t have to be a Nike shoe- thanks to Rob for busting out a needle and thread and making me a little pouch out of an old knee brace) and it measures your ditance. It syncs up with your iPod to track your time. There is a voice that pops in over what you are listening to to guide your workout- for example, if you want to run at a 10-minute-mile pace, it will let you know if you should slow down or speed up. Then, when you plug your iPod back in, it takes all the info and puts it up on the site where you can track your progress.
I feel an addiction coming on!
I finished my first session of bootcamp about 2 weeks ago, and went straight into session two. I wanted to wait to do the fitness test with Rob and Heather last weekend as well as my own version of the Slim in 6 diet (which, let’s face it, is only different in that I drank some alcohol) before I posted my results.
But before I do that, I want to make this post a bit more personal and give some background story…
Sports Basement
610 Mason St
San Francisco, CA 94129
(415) 437-0100
www.sportsbasement.com
Categories: Sports Wear , Men’s Clothing , Women’s Clothing , Outdoor Gear , Shoe Stores
Now that I’ve turned into this big jock, in addition to suffering through date rape jokes from my HIGHLARIOUS friends, I also find myself having to purchase jock clothing and jock accessories. New running shoes, in particular, since attempting to run up the hills and over the dales of Golden Gate park on three-year-old crosstrainers was just plain stupid.
Be sure to check out the rest of the site. There are a TON of great posts about general fitness and P90X! Use either side par to find the P90X posts! Also see my Beach Body Coaches page for more info! http://beachbodycoach.com/fitlifesfrob
We are currently on week 7 of the new work out program created by Beach Body and Tony Horton. P90X Plus is exactly what it claims to be, a more intense and extreme workout for people who have completed at least one cycle of P90X . (You actually need the original P90X disks to do the overall workout program)
For the record, it is hard and you will sweat loads. And now for the review.
Well this is going to be an interesting update, as many of you may be put off by the images I am going to link here. (Too many friends find my pics “Creepy“) For those who can look past my typical ego-maniacal nature, the reality of these pics is that I have dedicated the last 170 days to getting stronger, more fit, and much more durable. In the past I would have picked a 30-60 day, daily training routine to augment my normal gym schedule. This would mean that no matter what else I did (soccer, volleyball, gym, whatever) I would also spend an additional hour each day training in some form of martial arts. [forms, fighting, self defense, kicks, hand techniques, weapons, whatever] Always a great way to get my ass back to tip top shape, and in the past I had the time and the space to do this. (When I lived in Rochester NY, the last place I lived was a 2 bed room loft that was about 1600 sq ft)
Currently I live in a great apartment in SF which is a little over 900 sq FT, and though there is enough space to work out, there is not enough space to practice martial arts. (Well not without risking damaging my stuff, or having to move the car out of the garage every time I want to train. An option, but also an annoyance)
So, as I have mentioned before, instead of driving to a gym every day, I work out at home using Beach Body’s P90X. The daily ritual has been to move the coffee table, roll up the rug, move the couch back 4 feet, and then get busy! I can’t say they I have worked out every day for the last 170, but I have worked out 120 out of the last 170 days as I am tracking it on WOWY. (Daily work out tracking) I keep saying it, I am very happy with the results. I am way more solid, my core has seen major improvements, and I have gained several steps back on the soccer field.
This isn’t so much a commentary of the gains of I got from committing P90X, more so it is about what anyone can do when they apply themselves to being fit. And I can’t say that it does not come without changes in routine and even lifestyle. (I work out for somewhere around 1 to 1.5 hrs a day. Most days it is about an hour AND I don’t have to drive to the gym, find parking, pay dues, etc.) Though the way I have decided to structure my “fitness routine” is more around working out hard so I can enjoy the things I love. I am proof that you can be fit, and still indulge in good food and great drink. [Granted, I have had to adjust my diet and sleep schedule to sustain the workouts. 8hrs of sleep is almost mandatory to recover, and I have been craving healthier foods to keep my body going.]
Now for the pics: And I think the proof is visible.
[Front Shots] (roll over for date)
[Back Shots]
[Fun Shots]
Ok. I have exposed all. But am very happy with the results that half a year of dedication has given, and I can’t wait to see what I look like after 1 year. If this is what is happening to me, what would happen to you? This site is about just that; “What would happen to you?” My challenge to you, all of you is to give it 90 days, and if you like what is happening, give it another 90 days. (and so on) We are here to help, the Fit Life Team, the readers, and all our friends. Let’s see what we can accomplish together!
-Rob
1336 Polk @ Pine
415-67-FUNKY
My favorite Yelp review on Funky Door Yoga went something like this, “Funky is the smell of the dude’s sweaty ass next to you and Door is where you’ll want to stand so you don’t pass out from the heat.”
Funky Door has two locations in San Francisco and one in Berkeley. I took classes at the one on Polk Street occasionally, but I was a regular for about a year at the one on 2nd and Howard, but it has closed. There is only one thing more awesome than sweating your ass off in 117 degree heat, and that is doing it in a swimsuit with your leg in the air five feet from a wall of windows overlooking the sidewal where all your coworkers are walking to BART.
I’ll start by saying that I am kind of torn on Bikram Yoga as a whole. For starters, I have a big issue with the cultishness. First, this guy Bikram Choudhury decides he is going to try to trademark yoga poses and basically say you need to pay him a license to do poses that have existed for thousands of years in a room above a certain temperature? What a crock of shit. Then, when you get into it, you realize that Bikram people are ONLY Bikram people, whereas most practitioners of other styles of yoga switch between them. And, to keep your instructor status, you have to do 2 classes a day (3 hours total). And, there is a secret-ish invite-only advanced class that only special people can go to. It’s kind of Scientology-esque in some ways- like you need to get to a certain point before they let you in on their secrets.
The classes are pretty mind-numbing. 26 poses, done in the same order, to the exact same instructor script, every single class with no music. “Your body is like a Japanese ham sandwich!”
Specific to Funky Door Yoga (which, to be fair, is the only place I’ve ever done Bikram), the instructors can be very combative with students, essentially cajoling them into doing poses even after the student has explained that they have a health problem keeping them from doing it. The only time I have heard a teacher accept that a student couldn’t do something was when I was practicing with a fractured arm. As a student, it was uncomfortable to be in the room while some teachers were calling out students and berating them.
The information you find on the internet will tell you that Bikram Yoga is done in a 105 degree room. The instructors at Funky Door, apparently, believe that more is more. An instructor once brought a thermometer into the room and we got up to 117 degrees. Funky Door is somewhat notorious for packing students into the rooms, mat-over-mat, so prepare to get dripped on and have your space invaded.
Funky Door has an introductory offer that is appealing, but keep in mind that classes after that are about $16 each.
Despite all the negatives, though, I really enjoyed doing Bikram at Funky Door when I was injured and couldn’t do “real yoga.” (Bikram has no poses that involve bearing weight on the arms, like Down Dog or Crow, so it was a godsend when I had a broken arm.) It also gave me quite a glow for several hours afterwards and a general feeling of calm and health. But, MAN, getting though those classes was an exercise in mind-over-heat/stink/sweat/douchebags!
THE FINAL WORD: Funky Door is great for a healthy glow and low-impact workout, but prepare to be brainwashed, basted, broiled, berated and, possibly, broke.
THE VERDICT: 
848 Folsom St. – San Francisco, CA – 94107
415.543-1970
I discovered It’s Yoga about 2 years ago when working a few blocks away. What a gem. First, the studio is lovely- a huge warehouse space that looks like it used to be a garage or something. It is very minimal – the kind of yoga studio where go to work, not the kind of yoga studio where you go to let your nails dry while soaking your toes in a lavender-scented fizzy-bath. There are no locker rooms, so change before you get there or change in one of the bathrooms. If you don’t have a mat, they have them, but some are of questionable olfactory suitability. The studio is carpeted and can get a little wet-dog smelling when it’s warm out, but you won’t notice it once the practice starts.
With the exception of a few Ashtanga primary series and conditioning classes, all of the classes offered are Rocket series, which was created by the studio’s owner, Larry Schultz, and draws from Ashtanga. It is a very vigorous practice, and a testament to the intensity is the large percentage of men in the classes. The practice includes loads of handstands, headstands, arm balances and backbends… the kind of poses that make you wish there were a class photographer just so you can show all your friends the crazy shit you did.
Larry is a phenomenal teacher, as are all of the teachers at the studio. Reid and Marie are great, and the community of knowledgeable yogis and yoginis are very down-to-Earth and always ready with help and encouragement.
In a refreshing change from other SF studios I’ve been to, they don’t hit you over the head with the spiritual side of the practice- granted the practice itself is spiritual, so there is really no way to take that OUT of the practice. They allude to it, and it’s there, but you definitely don’t feel like you’re standing on your head during mass at Grace Cathedral.
The studio also offers a wonderful teacher training program, so there are always practitioners from around the world coming to learn the way of the Rocket.
Check out the website for their beginner’s student special; It’s a great deal at $180 for 3 months unlimited. If you want to experience It’s Yoga in all its glory, you really need to go to the 4:30 Friday Happy Hour class- just arrive early to get a place for your mat against the wall if your handstands aren’t rock solid… You’ll be doing about 20 of them.
THE FINAL WORD: A true gem among a multitude of SF yoga studios. I regret that I’m not able to get to the studio as often as I’d like, but it’s comforting to know the crew at It’s Yoga will be there when I am able to make it back.
Ps. They also have a Rocket 2 dvd available, which I have ordered and will be reviewing soon.
THE VERDICT: Smurf loves it!
Yoga Booty Ballet Live: Cardio Cabaret Burlesque Style!
Normally, I’d start a review of a Beachbody product with a reminder that Rob is a coach and you should buy your products through him because he can give you a discount. But, that point is moot in this case, because you can get this undulating eyesore for only $3 used on Amazon.
I have actually heard good things about the Yoga Booty Ballet line of products, but, let me tell you— Cardio Cabaret is nearly unbearable.
First: The instructors. I’d take a scoop of what they are having and sip it through a straw… up my nose… if this weren’t a health and fitness blog. They are so busy heaving and hamming for the camera that they give nary a real instruction. Luckily, I have a background in dance, so was able to flail my way through most of it on cue, otherwise, I’d surely have pulled something. Here’s hoping I wasn’t supposed to perform any move in any certain way for the sake of safety or conditioning.
Second: I was please to see Ravi Drums, an old pal from the Metreon/Project Ahimsa days, in the video. But they hardly made use of him as anything but a set dressing. And, tablas and burlesque? Huh?
Third: There is nothing burlesque about this workout, at all. I think there is may be one move they toss in where they reference a stocking and one spot where they have you shimmy. If they would have written the title more appropriately, it would have been: Booty Live: Ballet Yoga! Cabaret Burlesque Style. It’s a shame to see such an obvious attempt to squeeze as many trendy buzzwords into one title, when it really speaks to none of them well.
Fourth: Intensity. I was able to push myself enough to feel like I’d gone for a brisk walk. It was an OK way to get my heartrate up for a little while (though 34 minutes of it hardly counts as a full cardio day for me.)
THE FINAL WORD: For me, doing this workout again would be like watching Two Girls, One Cup a second time. You’d have to be nuts to know what’s coming and still subject yourself to it.
THE VERDICT: 