Today I decided to do the Insanity Max Interval Sports Training workout with Shaun T from the original deluxe version of Insanity. After finishing the workout, it was exactly the same way that I had remembered it from the first time that I tried it – fucking tough. Although it is meant to serve as a more advanced replacement for Day 29 of Insanity: Core Cardio and Balance, it is definitely a LOT MORE INTENSE than that particular workout… In fact, it is so much more intense that they are not really even comparable. There were times during this workout that were straight up wicked and to be completely honest, this is a way more badass routine than most people will expect.
One of the best Insanity workouts...
I don’t know why the hell it would be a substitute for Core Cardio and Balance because this is way harder; it’s not really close. You need to be ready to get it in and do the damn thing. Although I didn’t really take any breaks and was able to keep up with Team Insanity no problem, it was by no means easy. I am still in great shape after finishing Day 30 of The Asylum and this was far from a cakewalk. I really liked how Shaun had organized this workout though and how he had the exercises spaced out. The total time of Max Interval Sports Training was almost a full hour and we covered sports like boxing, track and field, basketball, and football.
I decided that since I didn’t yet write up a thorough Max Interval Sports Training review that I was going to do the workout today and let you know what to expect. As usual I am going to do a breakdown of each of the exercises and let you know which moves were toughest, which were easier, and discuss what I most enjoyed about the workout. Before you read my review, just know that this workout is beastly – definitely something that will kick your ass no matter how good of shape you think you’re in!
At one point, I considered this to be the hardest Insanity workout, but since it is only in the deluxe version, many people with the regular edition had no clue what I was talking about. If you have the regular version, hopefully you can borrow this DVD from a friend or something to try out because it is awesome. Oh and just to clear up any confusion, this is not the same as the Insanity Fast and Furious 20 Minute workout which is a routine that must be purchased separately.
Insanity Max Interval Sports Training Review
Warm Up: First Set
- Jump Rope – You don’t need a jump rope for this move, but you do the invisible jump rope to engage your muscles and get your body ready for the workout. I was tempted to use my rope from The Asylum, but I just followed Shaun T’s lead.
- Switch Heels – You continue the jump rope action in place but lift your heels off the floor. You are also supposed to land on your heels, but make sure you have good balance.
- Switch Heels (Higher) – For this you get your legs up higher than the original “switch heels” and you continue the jump rope.
- Jump Rope Side to Side – You continue to move your arms while jumping side to side with your feet together.
- Cross Jacks – I absolutely love the cross jacks because they are cool, a lot of fun, and just feel good. They keep your core tight and really warm up your entire body. These are like regular jumping jacks except you cross your feet with each jack and switch arms above your head (only one at a time).
- Knee Pulls (High) – This is another move that I really liked because it gets your entire core going when you squeeze. You basically have both arms overhead and you pull down your arms while squeezing and lifting your left knee so that it meets your elbows in your midsection. Then you go back down and continue with the same leg for the allotted time.
- Knee Pulls (Low) – The low knee pulls are harder than the high ones and really engage your core and opposite supporting leg. You stay with the same leg that you were using for the high knee pulls and the motion is the same, except you are more bent down and are reaching out in front of your body instead of above it.
- Knee Pulls (Hand to the Floor) – This is where shit gets real and your supporting leg will start to burn. You put one hand on the floor and continue moving the same leg that you were working on the previous two exercises.
Second Set (Repeat)
For the second set of the warm up, you repeat all of the moves that you just did. However, on the knee pulls, you use your opposite leg. So if you used your left leg in the first round, you use your right leg for the second. The second time through the warm up will make sure that you are ready to go for the intense sports action that you are about to do.
- Jump Rope – This time through Shaun T gets a little bit more intense because you have already made it through the first round. You are still in the warm up, but you should still be focused.
- Switch Heels – Once again you alternate heels to the floor and continue the jump rope. You should be feeling it in your biceps, arms, and core.
- Switch Heels (Higher) – This time you should pick it up and really get yourself moving at a good pace.
- Jump Rope Side to Side – You continue to maintain the jump rope while hopping side to side. This second round you should be getting pretty damn warmed up.
- Cross Jacks – This time Shaun wants you to use more power and more intensity for the cross jacks. Do what you need to do to get in the zone.
- Knee Pulls (High) – Here is where you need to be focused and ready to work the opposite leg of the first round. Your abs should be working the entire time.
- Knee Pulls (Low) – When you duck down low and pull from the front with your leg back. Once again, you should be feeling the burn and powering through these.
- Knee Pulls (Hand on the Floor) – When you put your hand to the floor, you really need to fight and pull with the other hand that is available while driving your leg forward. This is the last move of the warm up, so make sure that you do your best.
Water Break – Shaun T gives you about 30 seconds to grab a quick swig of water before boxing.
Insanity Max Interval Sports Training Workout
Two thumbs up after... bomb workout rightchea
Round #1: Boxing
- Jab Across – For this you do a jab punch while turning your body and punching across to the opposite side. You need to keep your abs and core tight for this and be pretty intense so that you get the burn to your body as soon as possible. Be sure to keep your opposite hand up for protection so that Shaun T doesn’t punch through your screen and knock you out…haha Make sure you are focused on punching hard and are looking at your target. With that said, make sure you don’t hyperextend your elbow or anything because that would certainly not be good.
- Jab Across 2 & 2 – For this, you continue doing the same move that you just did, but you punch twice on each side before switching to the other side.
- Jab Across 4 & 4 – This is the same as what you just did except now you punch 4 times on each side before switching.
- Jab Across 8 & 8 – For the final set of these, you punch your target in the head 8 times on each side before switching to the other side with your other arm.
- Uppercuts – This time you stay in the same position that you were in while doing jabs, but instead of jabbing, you are uppercutting. In case you don’t know what an uppercut is, you basically bend your knees, get low, and punch from low to high as you would if you were trying to hit someone underneath their chin. For these you really need to bend your knees and make sure that you are using your strength and power so that you actually could knock someone out if you were in a fight.
- Uppercuts 2 & 2 – Just like the jab sequence, you uppercut twice on each side before switching to the other side.
- Uppercuts 4 & 4 – As expected, you do 4 uppercuts on each side before switching. Your core should be in it and you should be still using plenty of power.
- Uppercuts 8 & 8 – Eight uppercuts per side can get a little bit redundant, but you need to focus and make sure that you are pushing hard until the very end. Get down low and come up with each punch.
Water Break – I suggest taking advantage of the water break that is given because you will regret it if you don’t. I got water for myself and was ready to continue boxing.
- 8 Jabs / 8 Power Jumps – Really my only beef with these is that Shaun T goes at a very rapid pace. I was able to keep up and do them all, but the final 2 sets were pretty fucking crazy. A traditional power jump requires that you get down low, use your core, and arms to propel yourself up while touching your knees at the peak of your jump – that’s what I was doing. I had to speed them up considerably though because Shaun was calling out reps at a rapid-fire pace. Anyways, you do jabs (right arm, left arm, etc.) for a total of 8, and then do 8 power jumps. You continue to do 8 jabs, 8 power jumps, for as long as Shaun T tells you to go. I honestly don’t think that the entire Team Insanity was able to do all of these to the exact speed that Shaun was demanding. In case you were wondering how many sets you do… you do a total of eight. That makes for a total of 64 jabs and 64 power jumps.
Water Break – You earned your break after that insane move you just did. I made sure I got my fluids before moving onto the next sport.
Round #2: Football Training
- Football Drills – You start with a sprint, and when Shaun T yells “hit it” you drop down into low plank like Spiderman for eight movements to the right side. Then you get back up and listen to Shaun T as he continues to yell “hit it” and you do the same thing to the other direction. These can get pretty tough if you are doing them properly in the low plank.
- Tricep Pulses – You get back into a low plank position with your elbows close to your body and wide legs. You pulse your arms for the time limit and man these are pretty wicked. I had a tough time making it through these because the burn was super intense in my triceps.
- Tackle – For the tackle, you get into low squat, and hop to the right 4 times while in low squat, followed by 4 hops to the left, and repeat. With each of the 4 hops though, you also add your arms which go from being out wide to center with each jump like you are bear hugging someone each time you hop. These are not as easy as they look if you are getting low in your squat and doing the full range of motion with your arms.
- Offensive Line Elbow – You stay in the squat position that you were just in for the tackle, but instead of “tackling” someone, you use your elbows. For each of your 4 hops to the right, you use your right elbow to throw almost an elbow block or punch at an imaginary opponent. You do the same thing while moving back to the left throwing your left elbow.
Water Break – When you are done with the football drills, you get a nice long water break to replenish your body. I definitely got some water here because I needed it.
Round #3: Basketball Training
- 3 Point Shot (Run) – For these you shoot 3 pointers by getting down into squat and jumping really high and following through with each basketball shot. After you shoot 8 times on one side, you “run” with quick feet for 8 seconds around the outside of the 3 point line and you shoot 8 shots from the other side. You then repeat the sequence until the time runs out.
- Guard Drills – For these you need to act like you are a guard and someone is trying to shoot the ball over you. You want to block two people one from each side as well as a third person behind you. So what you do is get low into the squat position, hold your arms straight out to the side, and back your butt up into anyone behind you. After you have done 4 hops back, you do a quick 180 degree spin and do 4 hops the other direction. You continue the sequence once again until the time runs out.
- Suicide Drills – Suicide drills involve running from side to side after doing basically mini sprints from side to side. When you reach one side after about four steps, you touch the ground with the same hand as the outside foot of the side you are on. Then you sprint back to the other side and continue the process. At this point in the workout, these should really kick your ass. I had the endurance to go hard and push through these, but these will mess you up. You have to do them for 2 minutes straight right here – trust me, these will kick your ass if you are truly pushing yourself. Shaun yells at Johnny here because he takes a break and is not representing for Team Insanity with his water break…haha
- Basketball Dribble – I honestly wish that I had a real basketball for these… I think I might get one to use for the next time because I think it would help with control and be beneficial. I think it would have been cool if Shaun would have taken out an actual basketball to show his control on this one. Basically these are like doing alternating split jumps, but you use an imaginary basketball to dribble between your legs each time you do a lunge. The lower that you get for these, the more burn you will get. If you aren’t getting down low, you probably won’t feel much of a burn in your legs.
Water Break – You get 1 minute to rest and get some water and results and recovery formula in your body. Shaun T leeches off of Ana’s results and recovery formula… just a sip…haha
Round #4: Gymnastics Training
- Pike Jump – You start out in basically a pike position which is halfway between high plank and the position that you would be in for a V-push up. Anyways, you keep your hands on the ground and do a jump with your legs only. As you come up for your jump, you straighten your legs out and try to go for height. I had a tough time with these near the end because my core was on fire and I really wasn’t getting much height. When you land you bend your knees and you just crank out as many of these as you can.
- Pendulum – This is an oblique exercise and these are luckily easier than the pike jump. You start out in the same position you were in for pike jumps, but instead of jumping up, you swing one leg up to the side while the other one swings to the middle on the ground for support. Then you swing the leg that was in the air back to the middle and your other leg swings up to the side. You should kind of look like a human pendulum if you are doing these properly…haha These were still pretty damn tough for me but I survived.
Gymnastics Abs
- 6 Inches – I just did these yesterday in the insane abs routine as well as the next couple moves too. Feel free to check out my Insanity Insane Abs Review for more information. Anyways, for these, you go into the C-Sit position and raise your legs so that they are 6 inches off the ground. You hold them while keeping your chest and head up to engage your abs.
- Flutter Kicks – You stay in the same position that you are already in and do light flutter kicks up and down. These should engage your abs even more than the 6 inch holds.
- Scissor Kicks – Another familiar move from the insane abs workout and one of my favorites. You stay sitting and instead of fluttering with your legs held up, you cross one over the other (side to side) and then switch.
- 6 Inches – Yeah, you do another round of the three exercises so that you really maximize the burn in your core.
- Flutter Kicks – Some more flutter kicks will have you digging deeper than the first round.
- Scissor Kicks – The scissor kicks here are pretty tough, but you should do your best to fight through the burn.
More Exercises…
- V-Push Ups – You should already know what a V-push up is if you have been doing Insanity and if you own this workout. You turn your hands in; walk your feet inwards so that your body looks like an upside down “V” shape. Anyways, you do a push up so that your head comes down to the floor and go back up. Shaun T has you do a total of 20 and trust me, my abs were feeling it more than my arms after those abdominal exercises that we just did.
- Bronco Jumps – These are arguably one of the hardest exercises in this entire workout as well as one of the most insane I have ever seen. With that said, these are a personal favorite because they are something different and I liked being able to kick up like a bronco…haha Anyways, what you do here is fall forwards onto your hands, and kick your back legs up as high as possible so that only your hands are on the floor. Then you land on your feet, pop back up, and do 3 quick hops. After your 3 hops, you do another bronco. When all is said and done, you have to crank out a total of 20 broncos at a pretty mean pace – I struggled to keep up, but made sure I didn’t miss a beat. The first time that I did this workout (last year) I vividly remember not being able to keep up with the crew; this time was different though – I am in better shape.
Water Break – Broncos need water too…haha. Seriously you will want to make sure you have plenty of water for the breaks in this workout because you will need it!
Round #5: Track & Field Training
I think this final round is beastly because it kind of reminds me of the start of the 1 Mile Run on Day 11 of The Asylum: Game Day workout. Although I would say that the 1 mile run is harder, this is no joke and you need to be focused. In fact, this is one of the toughest sets of exercises that you will have done in this entire workout. Even though it basically is running/sprinting in place, the sheer intensity and amount of time that you do it for will make you tired by the time this is one. Even though these ladders are not the last exercise, they are the last difficult exercise. The final exercise is basically like an activity to help slow things down.
Sprinting Ladders
- Ladders 15 Seconds – You start out in a mad 15 second sprint and you need to be going all out for maximum benefit.
- (Rest)
- Ladders 30 Seconds – Make sure that you are getting your knees up for all of these sprints. This time you are in a mad dash for 30 seconds and you need to pick up the pace.
- (Rest)
- Ladders 45 Seconds – After the short rest, you are right back in it for a 45 second sprint in place and you are definitely feeling how tough these ladders can be.
- (Rest)
- Ladders 60 Seconds – Oh snap, you have got to be in it for a full minute. Shaun recommends jogging for a little bit, but when you are down to your final 30 seconds, you should pick it up and be sprinting.
- (Rest)
- Ladders 45 Seconds – Team Insanity has some members that clearly do NOT get their knees up (e.g. many people they zoom in on) and are not using good form. Yes they are moving quickly, but they are not really getting their knees up like Shaun recommends.
- (Rest)
- Ladders 30 Seconds – If you want to feel the burn for yourself, you need to be going full out sprinting here with knees up and arms up really giving it every last ounce of energy.
- (Rest)
- Ladders 15 Seconds – This is really the final 15 seconds of the ladder, so don’t think about slacking off here, you’re almost done! Dig deeper and kick some ass on the track.
Long Jump – This is the final exercise in the Max Interval Sports Training workout. You start out jogging, then when Shaun says “pick it up” or “sprint” you start running with your knees up. After you have been running he will say 3-2-1 and you power off of one leg for a long jump straight forward. You use the same leg to push off for the first half and then switch your push of leg for the final half of the reps.
Cool Down Stretches
You will want to make sure that you get a good cool down stretch here because your body needs it. I really pushed myself to the limit today and during the sprints one of my calves was felt like it was getting slightly tight. By the end of the workout it was fine, but there was no way I was going to skip the cool down stretches. Your body needs stretching when you are done with a workout way more than it needs stretching before a workout. Do yourself a favor and do not skip these.
- Inhale / Exhale – You do some inhales and exhales as Shaun T always does… I love these though. If you don’t like these, you must not like breathing….haha
- Hip Flexor Stretch – You do hip flexor stretches to each side and they feel good to stretch out your leg muscles.
- Split Leg Hamstring Stretch – This is always a good stretch to loosen up your hamstrings. My hamstrings were not tight, but I always do these cool down stretches.
- Lunges – You lunge to each side and these really open up your groin.
- Core Contractions – You put your hands on your knees round your back as you exhale. These are good for your core as well as your spine.
Insanity Max Interval Sports Training Review (Conclusion)
If you are thinking about getting the deluxe version of Insanity, I would highly recommend it for this workout alone. Although you only get two bonus workouts, it is worth the extra money because without this Max Interval Sports Training workout and Insane Abs workout you will be eternally curious as to what you are missing out on. Trust me when I say that this is among the hardest workouts that Shaun T came up with in the entire Insanity series. Making the statement that it is a replacement for “core cardio and balance” is laughable. Why? Because this is so much harder that it should really be a replacement for one of the main workouts in Month #2.
Too intense to substitute for Core Cardio and Balance
I’m pretty sure that the people deciding the substitutions on the calendar really underestimated the intensity of this workout if it really is meant to be subbed in for “core cardio and balance.” I personally would NOT recommend substituting it in even if you do own the deluxe version because it will be too much for your body to handle. I guarantee that you will be better off if you do the “core cardio and balance” routine instead of this because it will give your body a chance to recuperate from some of the more intense workouts.
Max Interval Sports Training vs. Game Day: Which is harder?
The way that this workout is structured, it kind of reminded me of the beta version of Game Day from The Asylum (for more information, read The Asylum Review). It is nowhere near as tough, but it is structured in a similar format and still does have some pretty wicked moves. The 8 Jabs / 8 Power Jumps, Bronco Jumps, Ladders, 2 Minute Suicide Drills, Pike Jumps, and Pendulums were some of the hardest exercises in this routine. This workout is kick ass and has the perfect amount of “rest” in between exercises as well as water breaks when you need to stay hydrated.
You need to order the deluxe edition to get this workout
When I wrote up my original Insanity Review, I forgot to mention that there were two more workouts for owners of the deluxe edition. When I bought my copy, I only got the standard version. Fortunately when my brother got his, he ordered the deluxe and was nice enough to let me borrow the two extra workouts that I missed! Since he doesn’t really workout much I plan on keeping them in my stash. Anyways, this is really one of the best workouts that I have ever done on DVD and will remain a personal favorite – I love it. I highly recommend giving it a shot if you haven’t already!
My kickass recovery drink
After the workout ended, I made sure that I stayed hydrated with water and got some recovery drink in my system. I had a little bit of protein recovery powder (vanilla flavor) but mostly enjoyed my Bolthouse Farms Green Goodness smoothie recovery drink which contains 8 servings of fruits and vegetables per bottle (no powder and water mixing). And in case you were wondering, I did NOT drink the full thing… it is really thick and powerful but tastes great. Well enough is enough, tonight I plan on watching DWTS, Tigers vs. Rangers (ALCS), Tosh.O, and Workaholics. Should be a good rest of the day after this solid sports workout.