NUTRITION

Can You Get P90X2 Results Without Diet?

It seems like this is the first question that people have when considering a brand new fitness plan: do I have to change the way I eat? Well, if your current diet is top-notch, filled with high quality foods in proper portions, there is a small chance you won’t have to change anything. But because you are looking for a fitness plan in the first place, we know this isn’t likely. Instead, your diet could probably use some improvement and getting P90X2 results without diet changes is your last dream for a killer body without giving up the pizza, burgers and beer. Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen.

You could see some results without dietary changes.

Before you get too excited, notice the words “could” and “some” in the sentence above. If your existing diet is already generally good and you are willing to totally give the P90X2 workouts everything you’ve got, you could see some results without changing your diet. However, if you hope to achieve results like those you see on the infomercials or in the pages of your fitness guide—dietary changes are a must.

Dramatic results are based on total lifestyle changes.

The healthiest athletes out there eat right and workout like crazy. They aren’t likely to eat fast food 3-5 times a week or settle down with a few beers every single night. They don’t do these things because they know the effects of such eating and drinking habits on their bottom line. P90X2 results without diet changes offer the same conundrum. It doesn’t make much sense to change your activity level if you aren’t going to change the fuel that you are filling your body with.

P90X2 Nutrition makes dietary changes manageable.

If you used the P90X Nutrition Guide, you know the diet plan was pretty easy to follow. Sure, it required some adjustment (like any healthy eating style), but it was doable. The P90X2 Nutrition Guide is even better. Whether you are vegetarian, vegan, or eating a gluten-free diet, this guide will have solutions for you. You don’t have to be scared of the P90X2 diet plan; you simply have to make the commitment to change.

The bottom line is this: you may see some changes in your body composition without the diet. But getting any dramatic P90X2 results without diet changes is not likely at all. Diet and exercise must go together for total body fitness and for the jaw-dropping results you want to see.

 

Need Help in Creating Healthy Meals?

What's in your pantry?

Physical fitness depends on two things: a healthy diet and regular exercise. One without the other might make you feel like you are doing something, that you are making progress towards ultimate health. But the results you see with exercise alone, simply won’t measure up to those you could reach with both diet and exercise. Because of this, it’s important to know how to prepare healthy meals and how best to make food selections that line up with your desire to get fit and experience good health.

Healthy meals don’t have to be difficult to create. You don’t need to be a kitchen superstar to learn how to prepare some good eats. If you enjoy cooking, it’s definitely easier to adjust to a healthy eating lifestyle, the love of cooking is not a requirement. What is required is a desire to be healthy and a commitment to that end. Sheer dedication can help you reach your goals and makes the preparation of meals and snacks a whole lot easier.

The good thing about a great fitness program is that it includes healthy meals, recipes, grocery shopping lists, and tips. Programs like P90X, ChaLEAN Extreme, and Insanity Workout all include bonuses like this because the people at Beachbody know the importance of eating right.

Healthy meals don’t have to be boring meals. If you’re used to eating burgers and fries, eating healthy can be difficult at first. But what you’ll find in the end is that these meals have the potential to taste better than those overprocessed alternatives. Your tastes will change in time and you’ll see yourself choosing healthy meals over your old standbys out of preference rather than out of necessity.

Your first step in changing how you eat should be clearing your home of those bad-for-you foods. Get rid of the convenient and unhealthy snacks. Throw or give away the chips, candies, and other temptations. Sure you can keep a few things around (because everyone needs a treat now and then), but your main source of nutrition should not be in a shiny wrapper from now on.

When you stock your cabinets for healthy meals, stick with natural foods. Vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean proteins, and low fat dairy options are best. The rule of thumb is to stick to the outside aisles of your grocery store as much as possible. The boxes and packages in the inside aisles are where you’ll find the foods you want to steer clear of.

Eating good isn’t impossible but it does take a period of adjustment. Use the nutrition guide of a high quality workout program as your map and get started on a new you!

 

 

Can You Take Insanity Workout Cheat Days?

Why is it when we start a diet, one of the first things we want to know is when we can cheat a little? The whole idea of cheating on a diet plan is flawed from the start. Not because you don’t deserve to indulge a little bit but because the thought of cheating implies that this diet plan is temporary and not a long term change. If your eating and fitness plan only lasts a few months, you will soon find yourself right back where you started—out of shape and unhappy. Instead, whether you are on Insanity Workout or another plan, you’ve got to commit to changing your life first and foremost.

When you make a complete lifestyle change, you’ll find there really is no need for Insanity Workout cheat days, or at least you won’t refer to an occasional indulgence as “cheating” in the first place.

Insanity Workout is a 60 day tough fitness plan designed to radically change your body and your way of life. While simply going through the motions might give you some results, there’s a good chance you won’t make it through 2 months of Insanity without some serious dedication to making major life changes.

In order to shift your thought process and, in turn, create a healthy body for life, you need to have concrete goals and a good idea of what you hope to get out of the Insanity Workout system. Sure you might want to lose 10 pounds, but will you return to your old habits after this goal is achieved or do you also strive to maintain your weight loss and even possibly achieve more?

When you commit to changing your life and using this program as a tool in that greater cause, you’ll find that Insanity Workout cheat days are a non-issue. If you want to indulge in a craving, you will. And you’ll do it in moderation before going right back to your new healthy lifestyle. There will not be any more day-long “cheats”, where you are excused from caring about your body. Not because of guilt and not because of fear—but you will stick with what you’ve learned because you see the greater cause, a healthier and happier you.

Can you take Insanity Workout cheat days? Sure, you are an adult and can do whatever you’d like. But if you are approaching this system as a temporary solution to weight loss, as a diet and nothing more, you are selling yourself short and missing the point altogether.

 

 

Do I Have to Follow Insanity Workout Diet?

If you’re ready to start the Insanity Workout program and curious about the nutrition plan, we have just one thing to say—YES, you should do it! The Insanity Workout DVDs are only part of the Insanity equation. This program is designed for dramatic transformations but it can’t get you the amazing results if you aren’t fueling your body correctly. Sure, you would likely lose some weight if you did the Insanity workouts and not the Insanity Workout diet. But, those results would be multiplied many times over if you included the proper diet.

Most of the time, people don’t want to do the Insanity Workout diet because they worry it will be too restrictive and difficult to maintain. Rest assured, you will get enough to eat with this plan. It isn’t a starvation diet and it’s far more complex than just a “low calorie” diet. Taken straight from the Elite Nutrition guidebook, “In this plan you’ll learn about healthy food basics and the proper balance of nutrients you need each day.” Definitely no gimmicks here.

This isn’t about cutting back drastically on your food intake. Afterall, with the Insanity Workout, you’ll be challenging your body like never before and will need the extra fuel! It’s about eating the right things and providing your body with proper fuel.

“The Elite Nutrition guide is designed to power your body through the most intense workouts of your life.”

The Insanity Workout Diet makes it simple. In month one, for instance, you are given five separate meal lists, each with 10 different options. You simply select one meal from each list to make up your five daily meals. While each meal has about 300 calories, the program will help you determine if you need slightly more and how to go about adding them in a smart manner.

When you first look at the Elite Nutrition book, you’ll see this Insanity Workout diet is designed to make things as easy as possible. The book is filled with simple meal ideas and facts to help you understand why you’re eating the way you are and how your body is changing. They’ll recommend supplements and talk to you about nutrition basics.

We know that as an adult, your decision to follow the Insanity Workout diet is yours alone. But we also know the Insanity program isn’t the same without the knowledge within the Elite Nutrition pages. For this reason, we highly recommend you follow the nutrition plan in order to get the very best result

Eating Right on a Time Budget

We’re all pressed for time. It seems like the most popular excuse for everything from missing an appointment to failure on a diet plan is lack of time. Interestingly, however, we all have the same twenty-four hours and others with similarly busy schedules have no problems adjusting their hectic lifestyle to accommodate their healthy diet and their personal time. So how do they manage to eat right on such a time budget? While it can be tricky, there’s really nothing to it.

The key to eating right on limited time is planning ahead. If you anticipate that you won’t have time to make a healthy meal, you plan ahead! Simple, right?

 

It’s sad that many of us are guilty of sabotaging our fitness goals. That’s right—we are so accustomed to being unhealthy or satisfying for less than great eating habits, we wait until the last possible moment to plan a meal, only to realize that we don’t have time for something truly healthy. This happens even when we knew far in advance that we wouldn’t have the time necessary to prepare a meal. When you plan ahead, you are prepared for quick healthy meals every single day.

Eating right on a time budget starts with having a kitchen stocked with easy, healthy foods. Many fresh fruits and vegetables are crucial to staying on the right track. When your fridge is empty, you are far more likely to resort to the drive-thru. Ensuring you have healthy snacks and meal items on hand every single week should be a serious priority.

Another hint is to cook ahead. Make a big pot of vegetable soup over the weekend, for instance, for eating throughout the week. Soups are great because they are easily frozen and defrosted in the microwave. Make enough to freeze half the batch for a few weeks down the road. Other things that can be cooked ahead of time and kept in the refrigerator for quick and convenient meals include salads, grilled chicken breast pieces, brown rice, and breakfast foods like oatmeal. I personally cook a big pot of oatmeal and one of brown rice every weekend. Then I have two whole grain options that easily pair with any meal throughout the week.

There’s no excuse for not planning ahead. It’s not like you don’t already know you are a busy person. Preparing ahead of time for those days when you don’t have a minute to spare will make it easy to stick with your diet plan no matter what fitness program you are following.

Your Personalized List of Protein Snacks

In an effort to stay fit no matter the situation, most of us take little steps to maintain motivation and to make good decisions easier. From stocking your fridge with healthy foods to laying out your workout clothes the night before; these sort of “tricks” are excellent ways to make pursuing a healthy lifestyle second nature. When it comes to nutrition, healthy choices must be convenient in order for your lifestyle to be maintainable. When it comes to increasing protein consumption, having a handy list of protein snacks can make choosing the right foods much easier and can make you less likely to grab a paper sack of chicken nuggets rather than a chicken breast wrap.

Your personalized list of protein snacks will just be a guide that you can hang on your fridge. It will be there when hunger hits as a simple reminder of healthy choices that won’t derail all of your hard work. Take some time and think of all the protein rich snacks you enjoy. Here are some suggestions for your list of protein snacks:

Peak Performance Protein Bars

• String Cheese

• Apples and Peanut Butter

Whey Protein Shakes

• Grilled Chicken Breast Strips

• Hummus

• Black Bean Dip with Crudités

• Cottage Cheese

• Beef Jerky

• Boiled Eggs

• Tuna

• Yogurt

Protein is crucial in building muscle and recovering after a workout. It encourages fat loss by delivering more nutritional oomph per calorie and keeping you full for longer periods. Professional athletes and fitness novies alike work on keeping their protein intake high with the use of good protein snacks.

A list of protein snacks kept in a prominent place will curtail your occasionally diet blunders. When you get hungry and head to the fridge, you’ll see that list of protein snacks and think twice about grabbing a beer and chips. (It helps if you don’t keep those sort of things around anyways!)

The Benefits of Snacks High In Protein

Protein bars, protein shakes, even protein water—what’s with all the protein snacks these days? Well, many people are learning the benefits of eating (and drinking) snacks high in protein. Whether they have major fitness goals or are just interested in maintaining a certain weight, protein is a valuable nutrient necessary to our optimal health in many ways. Let’s talk about how snacks high in protein can boost your fitness results and what sort of snacks are best.

When you exercise and especially when you weight train, your muscles experience trauma. Tiny tears in the muscle tissue is called catabolism and the repairs of these tissues is called anabolism. In most cases, the body uses proteins to sort of patch up the tears, strengthening the muscle tissue and even causing muscle growth. Increased protein consumption can only assist this process and this is where snacks high in protein come in.

In addition to assisting with muscle repairs, snack high in protein are often lower in calories and fat. Protein is likewise said to keep you fuller longer, allowing you to avoid the munchies in between meals that can spell disaster to your diet plan. A protein rich snack midmorning and one in the afternoon can keep you away from the vending machines at work and away from the value meals at a lunchtime drivethru.

Snacks high in protein can be found on your grocers shelf or even here at ExtremeBody Workout. We carry Peak Performance Protein bars and Whey Protein Powders, both containing high quality proteins and nutritional compounds. Throw one of the bars in your car or in your purse so that when hunger strikes, you are prepared. Likewise, take a protein shake to-go in the mornings for a great protein rich breakfast during your commute.

Many people mistakenly think that they will have to increase meat consumption to get snacks high in protein and this simply isn’t true. Nuts are a great source of protein, as are eggs and dairy products. Bean products like hummus are an excellent way to get more protein without tiring of the same old solutions. Get creative with your protein snacks and be sure to share your ideas here with us in the comment section!

Looking For Some 100 Calorie Protein Snacks?

Being prepared for when hunger strikes is crucial in achieving long term fitness success. It’s on those days when you don’t have anything nearby that you are more likely to hit the vending machine or the drive-thru. But not all snacks are created equally. You may be working on P90X or Insanity Workout, both of which require more protein than the average person is used to eating. For that reason, just any old 100 calorie snack pack won’t work. You need to get creative and come up with your own 100 calorie protein snacks.

When it comes to 100 calorie protein snacks, the key is finding things that will take the edge off your hunger until it’s time for a meal. If you’re used to overeating, the amount of food in these snacks won’t likely impress you. But remember, you are working on achieving something bigger than stomach satisfaction—you’re working on achieving the body of your dreams!

I found some great 100 calorie protein snacks ideas on WebMD. Here are a few:

• 3 whole wheat crackers with 3 oz. cottage cheese

• 2 large graham crackers with 1 T. peanut butter

• 6 oz. Yogurt

• 10 Almonds or Cashews

• Half an apple with 2 T. peanut butter

• 2 oz. lean roast beef

If your calorie intake is a little more flexible than 100 calorie protein snacks, this article from Fitsugar has some additional ideas. Remember that boiled eggs are always a superior option—perhaps the best 100 calorie protein snacks.

Keep your snacks handy—in your pocketbook, desk drawer, or frig at work. Plan ahead to ensure you won’t be out and about with nothing on hand when hunger strikes. Convenient 100 calorie protein snacks can make a huge difference in the success of your new nutrition plan.