Insanity and Bodyrock

Hi friends! 🙂 How’s your morning? Hope you’re having a wonderful day <3

I’ve found a pretty good dinner method for the nights that I teach. Teaching on a superfull belly is no picnic, so I’ll usually have a smoothie or protein ice cream before class:

ice cream 

(1 C almond milk, 1 C organic strawberries and raspberries, 2 scoops protein, cacao powder, some GF oats for texture)

and the rest of my dinner after:

dinner

(Organic chicken with Dijon maple sauce, steamed broccolini and two slices of brown rice toast)

The chicken monster threatened to get scrappy with her bird again if I wouldn’t share any with her. Lucky for her, when I baked the chicken a couple of days ago, I made a special plain piece with her name on it 😉

bella

So I’ve received quite a few questions about Insanity and Bodyrock via Twitter and the comments section. Last spring/summer, I completed Insanity (you can check out the final recap *here*), and absolutely loved the program. Since then, I’ve also done TurboFire (probably my fave out of the Beachbody workouts), and just recently started tinkering with Bodyrock as a way to shake things up. It’s been extremely convenient on days that I work early and won’t have time to make it to the gym.

insane

Since Bodyrock is *kinda* similar to Insanity, I thought it would be fun to do a side-by-side comparison for those who are interested.

interval

Bodyrock vs. Insanity:

  Bodyrock Insanity
Accessibility Bodyrock workouts are found at bodyrock.tv, along with recipes, meal ideas, and other fun stuff Purchased through Beachbody, or Amazon
Workout variety Workouts change everyday Alternate between 10 workout DVDS
Motivation All your own! Shaun T. will push you through the workouts
Instructor Hot superfit girl (Zuzana) Hot superfit guy (Shaun T.)
Equipment Interval timer, dip stand, chin-up bar, sandbag, jump rope (about $200-300 total) No equipment required- all you need is your own body weight
Cost FREE! around $140
Beginner and modification-friendly Yes- Zuzana gives alternate exercises and many modifications No- this program is for people who are already athletic and have no injuries or physical limitations
Intensity As intense are YOU make it Same
Frequency I wouldn’t recommend doing these workouts everyday Can be done everyday if following the program

More thoughts:

As you can see, Insanity and Bodyrock are pretty much equals are far as potential for a killer workout goes. Like almost all workouts, it’s up to you and how hard you want to push yourself to get the results you’re looking for. I find that for the Bodyrock workouts, I have to motivate myself to finish them, instead of depending on Shaun T, but it’s also nice to have the variety of constantly changing workouts. I’ll watch the Bodyrock video, blast some music (usually the Muse station on Pandora) and get er done. With Insanity, by the end, I could tell you everything Shaun T was going to say during the DVD- they get a little redundant after a while.

He’s always very nice to look at, though 😉

shaunt

I love how convenient both of the exercises are. They can be done at home, or while traveling with minimal equipment. This weekend I’ll be traveling, so I’ll stash a jump rope and my interval timer in my suitcase in case I feel like cranking out a Bodyrock workout.

The reason why I don’t recommend doing the Bodyrock workouts everyday is because they’re High Intensity interval workouts, which take your heart rate to the max for a short burst of time and then you recover and repeat. This is an amazing method for fat loss and quick calorie burn, however, you’ll get better results in the long term if you don’t do this style of training everyday. Insanity is MAX interval training, which means that you spike your heart rate up and sustain it for much longer, with a short recovery time. The program does a pretty excellent job of alternating between interval and steady state or toning (strength training) days.

All in all, I give both programs two almond butter covered thumbs up. Always research workout programs to see if they’re a good *fit* for you, and check with a doc before starting anything new 🙂

I’m off to breakfast with my mom and nana <3

Have a lovely day!
xoxo

Gina

Something to read:

Healthiest fast food breakfasts

Fun alternates to Girl Scout cookies

7 Body Barre moves

Post Navigation:

88 Comments

  1. Cassie @ A Very Busy Mind on February 22, 2011 at 7:23 pm

    What a timely post. Text message convo with a friend yesterday…

    Friend: Just stoppped to check my phone mid-Insanity stretch. Loved your msg!

    Me: Ah Insanity. I was watching an informercial on it the other day and wishing my knee wasn’t effed. And that Shaun T was my boyfriend.

    🙂

    • Fitnessista on February 22, 2011 at 7:44 pm

      hahaha i love it!

  2. Lauren on February 22, 2011 at 7:38 pm

    Thanks for this review! I’m currently doing the Insanity and LOVE it!!! I’m not really following it religiously, just using it as a supplement but they are some killer workouts. I’ve never heard of Bodyrock but I’m definitely going to check it out now.

    Thanks again!

  3. Christin@purplebirdblog on February 22, 2011 at 9:29 pm

    Broccolini totally rules!

  4. andrenna on February 22, 2011 at 9:42 pm

    One thing you didn’t mention is the amount of time each takes! Bodyrock workouts are short and intense, while Insanity can run up to 60 minutes+ per workout. I’m sure that time factors into a lot of busy schedules.

  5. Michelle @ Give Me the Almond Butter on February 22, 2011 at 9:52 pm

    Great reviews! I haven’t heard of body rock and have always been interested in Insanity.

  6. Rachel @ Healthy Teacher on February 23, 2011 at 12:56 am

    I did insanity last summer, and it was TOUGH. In a good way. You’re right, though. You really must be in some kind of shape to even get through the fit test.

  7. Angie on February 23, 2011 at 2:31 am

    Ahh I love your comparisons. But I do love TurboFire and Insanity! Cant wait to get home and start them up again…my body is craving the workouts. I’ve been running out here but it does get old.

    Have you heard that Shaun T is releasing an Insanity Part 2 called Insanity Asylum.
    It actually should be out in the next week. I am looking forward to it.

    • Fitnessista on February 23, 2011 at 9:40 am

      yes! i can’t wait to try it 🙂

  8. Chelsea @ One Healthy Munchkin on February 23, 2011 at 8:09 am

    Bodyrock is free?! I had no idea! Now I definitely want to check it out!

  9. To Kiss the Cook on April 7, 2011 at 12:39 pm

    Thank you SO much for this. I’m about to start Insanity and this was just the confirmation I needed. It’s going to be really hard- I work out but would not consider myself athletic- but I’ve hear a lot of good things and this sounds like the motivation I need.

  10. lala on August 13, 2011 at 6:14 pm

    Hi, i was just looking for an article about doing bodyrock everyday (don’ t think i’m retarded, but i’m not english, so i make mistakes).
    Your article is very interesting.
    I’ve been doing bodyrock 6 days in a row this week, because i was not working, and neither will i work for the whole month, so while i’ll be looking for another job, i really felt the need to move my body, otherwise i get crazy.

    I’ve been looking for older workouts and found some with no interval trainings, so i decided to do one day “interval” and the other “time challenge”.
    What do you think? At least i stay active everyday for about 30 minutes ( i add some cardio as she suggested).

    • Fitnessista on August 13, 2011 at 7:44 pm

      hi lala!
      i think that sounds like a great way to do it, if you’re doing to do it everyday. 🙂

  11. YAW on April 14, 2012 at 11:23 pm

    If you use these workouts mixed with longer rest periods than they offer, you will see max results.
    Everyone wants an insanity body in 60 days but through experience doing it fast in 60 (which is actually 70 days) and slow at my own pace I have discovered that slow has better results, you ultimately need rest which includes some yoga and jogging in there too on off days, which should be according to your own body. I take 3 on 3 off. Results come so much quicker. 3 insanity, 2 run+yoga. One weight lift so I get strength but no size.
    Thoughts?
    Love your site!

  12. Lauren L. on February 4, 2013 at 5:03 pm

    I have been thinking about doing both of them maybe one in the morning and one in the evening. Too much?

    • Fitnessista on February 4, 2013 at 5:47 pm

      definitely too much.

Leave a Comment





This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.