(I write about non-fitness topics on my main blog, The Clive at Five Post. That blog contains nerdy ramblings inappropriate for F1t-N3rd, but for those interested, I will post short previews of some articles of potential interest.)
GTA is on a cold streak, IMO. San Andreas was filled with bloat... working out, hair-dos, tattoos, gang territory, and don't even get me started on the jet-pack. Senseless gimmickry and filler. And I'm gonna say it... I was pretty disappointed in GTA IV. Niko was a snore. The "acting" was forced. The story was incredibly disjointed. The "villains" were not well established. Overall, it was just too big for its own good.
(Read More....)
Monday, November 7, 2011
ChaLEAN Extreme, Month 1 (BURN Phase) in Review
(I have more reviews to post from past workouts, but I figured I'd put this one out there while it's still fresh and finish up the rest later.)
Hey, nerds,
So, as you may know, I recently started ChaLEAN Extreme, and I thought I'd let you know how it was going.
ChaLEAN Extreme is a fusion of Weight Training and Cardio. The program is about 90-days, broken up into three 4-week sections (BURN phase, PUSH phase, & LEAN phase). Each week is comprised of three days of weight-training, one day of Cardio + Abs, and one day of Cardio + pseudo-yoga. That means you get TWO DAYS OFF per week! This last part was enough to convince me to jump happily aboard. I hate commitment since I'm a busy guy, but when I can rearrange my workouts to match my schedule, I'm a happy nerd.
Since Weight Training is a core aspect of this regimen, you will need some form of resistence. This could be free weights, adjustable dumbells, or resistance bands. For simplicity's sake, I think the adjustable weights are probably the ideal solution, but most people don't have $300+ to spend on a nice pair of adjustables -- especially when you just spent ~$100 on a DVD workout regimen, amirite?
Now, the workouts: The Weight Training routines last about 35 minutes. So far, in the burn month, they aren't too intense. I mean, my muscles get fatigued after a set of reps, but it's nothing like doing the all-out cardio of Insanity. I actually finish feeling rather relaxed. The cardio + abs workout, on the other hand, is INTENSE. Not like Insanity intense, but there's just enough weight training to fatigue your muscles... then you have to DO CARDIO on your spent limbs! It's actually fairly cruel. The abs workout is challenging in that it utilizes weights in some of the moves. I was unable to modify this with resistance bands, but luckily, I had a couple of 5lb dumbbells I could use. The cardio + pseudo-yoga is pretty un-rewarding in my honest opinion, and I have occassionally replaced the yoga portion with an abs workout depending on my mood.
So far, so good, overall. Chalene's voice is a *little* grating, and she's almost too perky at points... but I'm a guy and I don't really go for perky. I can certainly look past it and it doesn't detract from the content of the workout.
Catch you guys soon with another update!
(Check out the Month 2 (PUSH Phase) Review)
(Check out the Month 3 (LEAN Phase) Review)
-Clive
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