Extremely fit people enjoy an extreme fitness regimen; the sort that makes regular people turn pale with fear and look for Pop Tarts in search of comfort. Two extreme workouts by Beachbody are routinely pitted against each other by fans who have tried them both and, in fact, every other Beachbody workout. Which one comes out on top? There might not be a clear winner, but you will find out below.

What is the P90X3?

In only half an hour each day you can renovate your body. This is the latest version of Tom Horton’s P90 long-lived series, incorporating cardio moves, abdominal training, yoga, and more. The P90X3 program differs from its predecessors in various ways.

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For one thing, it is great for all levels. Though the work is hard and you need free weights to workout thoroughly, it can be adapted for anyone. You only need 30 minutes to get great results in a few weeks but it takes 90 days to finish the entire cycle. Customers receive a calendar to help them keep track.

Horton coaches you through the moves and they don’t become boring because of the intervals and there is plenty of strength training involved. It is not just Beachbody followers or Horton fans who love this workout: trainers are impressed too and it works quickly. Anyone who tried the earlier P90 and found it too long will like the latest version which condenses moves, so you don’t have a chance to get bored and give up.

Available at Amazon.com

Insanity Max:30

Shaun T. of Beachbody designed a workout that is divided into weeks and months just like the one above: a whole calendar of planning so that fitness will fit in with real life. The Beachbody Insanity Max:30 program is fast moving and grueling but it is also made for everyone, even people who have never worked out before.

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You divide the plan according to where you are in the program so the first five-day regimen involves cardio, intervals, something called Tabata Power, Tabata Strength, and a Friday Night Fight. That’s month one. During the second month you follow Max Out Cardio, Max Out Sweat, Max Out Power, Max Out Strength, then another Friday Night Fight. There are bonuses like abs and a meal plan too. Mostly low impact moves are guided carefully, so anyone can do them.

Check it out at Amazon.com

Compare two Systems

Both workouts require a 90-day commitment to be fully effective and are both just half an hour long. Each one mixes up the schedule so you don’t get bored and incorporates multiple disciplines. Interval training is incorporated, but Shaun T. gets really specific with a Japanese style known as Tabata. This is defined as a very fast-moving, scientifically structured system of intervals lasting only 20 seconds each. Horton uses interval training in his video too.

The biggest difference is perhaps the fighting part: one looks to be boxing and the other is related to Kenpo. Ultimately, they follow the same routine in many respects, blending yoga, Pilates, strength training, and cardio, just presenting them in different ways. No matter what you call the fight portion, you throw punches into the air either way.

How Will You Choose a DVD Set?

How are you going to decide which of these workouts will satisfy your needs best?

Get your friend to buy one; you buy the other. After 90 days with a rest in between, swap the DVDs. You will discover that your preferred disc is the one with the trainer you like more. Shaun T. or Tom Horton: who is a better motivator? Is Shaun T. too talkative? Does Horton motivate too hard?

You can’t lose with either one or their carefully constructed meal plans to accompany the workout. Follow the whole three-month system to the letter and you could look like one of these two trainers in the end (or, if you are a woman, you could resemble one of the insanely fit female participants on the videos.)