Can You Lose Weight on the P90 System?

Can You Lose Weight on the P90 System?
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The P90X system is a 12-week program that was designed by trainer Tony Horton. It consists of an aggressive at-home exercise training program and nutritional plan designed to help you lose weight and increase your muscle mass. Because P90X utilizes both weight loss techniques of exercise and healthy eating, you can lose a significant amount of weight with the P90X system.

Losing Weight

A comprehensive weight loss program consists of both healthy eating habits and participation in regular exercise. This is because, to lose weight, you must burn more calories than you consume. According to the American Council on Exercise, each time you burn 3,500 more calories than you take in, you will lose a pound of body fat. Therefore, exercise is recommended because it increases the number of calories that you burn, and eating healthy is recommended because it ensures that you're consuming an appropriate number of calories to support weight loss.

P90X Nutrition Plan

The P90X nutrition plan features three phases. Phase one is a higher protein diet in order to support both body fat loss and lean muscle building. Phase two focuses on properly fueling your body by mixing carbohydrates and proteins. Phase three features more complex carbohydrates and lean protein to support your physical performance, which coincides with the increase in workout intensity of the exercise program. The program is customizable so that it can fit in with your own lifestyle. All of the phases are designed so that you're consuming an appropriate number of calories to support weight loss.

P90X Exercise Program

The P90X exercise program lasts 12 weeks, with the workout sessions consisting of both cardiovascular exercise that are designed to cause you to burn a significant number of calories, and strength training workouts, which will cause you to put on lean muscle mass and thus increase your overall metabolic rate. The exercise sessions are about 60 minutes each; you will work out six days per week.

Considerations

The P90X program is designed to challenge even the fittest individual, so beginners may have a hard time keeping up with the workouts and implementing drastic nutritional changes. Follow the program as closely as you can, but also make adjustments as necessary. If you're unable to complete all of the assigned repetitions in the workouts, do as many as you can and allow yourself to progressively increase your fitness.

References

Article reviewed by Libby Swope Wiersema Last updated on: Jun 14, 2011

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