Today I decided to do the infamous P90X Kenpo X workout routine with Tony Horton, Vanessa, Tony Lattimore, and Wesley Idol. Since my workout regimen has gotten somewhat boring lately, I decided to do a whole week of nothing but the P90X series. In case you were wondering, I have completed the full 90 day routine twice (check the P90X archives), but that was back during 2009 and 2010. The entire 2011 I have been doing a mash up of different workouts and always like to keep my muscles confused. However, this past week I had an urge to get more P90X back in the mix so this week I rolled with all “X” workouts. Really the only cardio that I got this week up until today was from the P90X Plyometrics workout, so I was ready to work hard and get my heart rate up for some Kenpo.
Byaaaah: Byah Byah Byah
It had literally been over a year since I last did Kenpo X and I honestly had forgotten most of the exercises. I did remember the cast as well as the punching and kicking moves, but I totally forgot that it was actually a fairly long routine. Additionally in my mind I was left with a lasting impression that this routine was too easy. Upon completing it today, I would classify it as being of moderate difficulty, but certainly on the easier side if you are making a direct comparison to Plyometrics. Although it may not be insanely challenging or as extreme as you may have wanted, I think a lot of people fail to recognize the fact that this is actually a very solid full body cardio workout.
It works your arms, your legs, your core, and gets your heart rate up with some pretty damn fun exercises – so what more could you ask for? Having personally experienced maximum intensity cardio routines from both Insanity and The Asylum, I can effectively judge and gauge the difficulty of cardiovascular workouts. What a lot of people fail to realize is that although Kenpo X may not be insanely intense, it can be intensified and made tougher with a little bit of improvisation and personal effort. Additionally if you are doing the exercises properly, this workout will help you maintain your current muscle and burn fat – despite the fact that it may not be as tough as the others.
P90X Kenpo X Workout Review
The P90X crew on Kenpo X consists of Vanessa (the ginger), Tony Lattimore, and Wesley Idol (the martial arts expert / Kenpo master). As I have already mentioned before, I think that Wesley Idol is a major slacker – I used to spell his name Wesley Idle, but I have respect and know that he could probably open a can of Kenpo whoop ass on me. Judging by how hard he tries in this routine though, I would say that Vanessa could probably take him down.
But then again, who knows what’s up with her because we all know she experiences actual DNA removal…haha. I’m cool with the cast on this workout; I just think that Wesley could have tried a little bit harder since he helped design the routine. Vanessa seems to work hard the entire time and Tony Lattimore seems to work the hardest, plus he actually looks like he could kick some ass.
This routine is structured into 5 Rounds with a variety of exercises including punches, kicks, and blocks. Perhaps the most disappointing round is the one dedicated to blocks, but as a whole this is still a pretty solid workout. The actual time you spend working out is about 45 minutes and when you are done with this routine, you should be covered in sweat. There are four 1 minute water breaks built into this routine, but I wouldn’t recommend taking them if you want maximum burn. Instead read below for some recommendations that I have such as doing maximum rep pull ups. Below is my Kenpo X review, so read up and see what you think.
P90X Kenpo X Workout Routine
Tip of the day: “Don’t bang your joints!” (Extend your limbs, but don’t hyperextend your joints).
Warm Up
The warm up in this routine is ridiculously long and probably goes a little bit overboard with the stretching. With that said, you do want to make sure you are loosened up because you will be throwing punches, and badass kicks, so do what you need to do. This warm up seems like a continuation of the yoga session from 2 days ago though.
- Saunders Cycle – Separate your feet wider than shoulder width, reach your right arm straight up overhead. While it is overhead fully extended, grab your right wrist with your left hand and pull your arm and torso to the side. As you turn to the side, go into flat back and as you are down in flat back, move your arms from left to right. Once you have reached the right side of your body, reach back up and do the exact same thing, but drop down even lower on the second run through so that your fingers are almost touching the floor as you turn (or cycle) from left to right. After you have finished doing this by pulling the right arm, you reach the left arm up, grab the left wrist with the right arm, and turn to the right – pulling across from right to left. You should feel as though this cycle loosens up your core, arms, and especially your hamstrings.
- Deep Prayer Seat Rockers – These are cool because you go down into a deep prayer seat or squat by dropping your butt down, bringing your hands together in prayer (center) and pressing your elbows against your knees. You really want to open up your legs here so that you feel your groins and thighs getting a nice stretch. Rock back and forth gently so that you start to loosen up your lower body. Eventually you come up on one of your toes, kick your opposite leg out to the side so that you feel a little burn. Then turn over the leg that you extended out to the side, put your hands on the floor and do a hamstring stretch. After you have done one side, you do some more rockers, and do the same thing on the other side (kicking out the other leg).
- Runners Pose – After you have done the deep prayer seated rockers, you go into runners pose. This position involves having one knee bent aligned with your ankle, and your other leg straight back like you are getting ready to run a race. You can really drop down low if you want more of a stretch in your thigh, groin, and hip flexors.
- Crescent Pose – You get a little taste of Yoga X which may be very vivid in the back of your mind from a couple days ago (if you are doing P90X in proper order). I actually did do Yoga two days ago so it was definitely still fresh in my mind. Although this is a yoga pose, it does a great job of stretching out your body and keeping your body loose as a goose.
- Prayer Twist – After you are in the Crescent Pose, you turn to the side and bring your hands together in prayer. Your bottom elbow rests on your knee in the runners stretch position and your top elbow is pointed towards the sky. If you want you can do the advanced version where you put your hand on the ground and extend your other hand to the sky, but there’s really no need – this is just the warm up.
- Rockers – You do some standing rockers which involve keeping your legs straight, folding your arms, and bending over at the waist. You hang down, rock side to side, and get a light hamstring stretch.
- Lying Hamstring Stretch – For this particular stretch, you lie on your back, keep one leg bent with your foot on the floor, and keep your other leg extended straight up to the sky. You pull on your leg so that you get a little bit more of a hamstring stretch. After the standard stretch for about 10 seconds, you go into a more advanced stretch which involves grabbing the toe (if you are flexible enough). Finally, you straighten your bent leg, and pull the leg that was extended to the sky out to the side of your body for a slightly different stretch. Do this series of stretches with both of your legs to gear up for the Kenpo routine.
- Pigeon – Kick one leg straight back, and bend the other leg so that the portion of your leg from knee to foot is horizontal in front of your body. You then drive your butt to the ground and lean forward if you are already very loose. Be careful not to overstretch here – if you feel any discomfort whatsoever; don’t try to go deeper in the stretch.
- Kenpo Quad Stretch – From the Pigeon position, bend your front leg back so that your foot is now under your butt and lean forward. Your back leg then bends at the knee and you grab your ankle and pull it towards your butt to engage your quadriceps. You do this stretch on both sides of your body like all the others.
- Frog Stretch – This is a stretch that everyone knows from Yoga X. You open up your hips by dropping on the ground and making your body look like a frog. This really stretches out your groins. Put your forearms on the floor, keep your butt back, and place the sides of your shins wider than shoulder width on the floor as well. Your toes should be pointed out to the sides while you are in this stretch.
- Cobra – Come up to the Cobra position which involves both hands being placed on the floor, opening up your chest, and keeping your head to the sky. This stretches out your chest and gives your legs a minor stretch.
- Downward Dog – You should know downward dog because you do it in a lot of the P90X workouts. Put your hands on the floor, kick the feet back, and bend one knee at a time so that you stretch out your calves.
Kenpo X Workout Exercises
Round #1: Kenpo X
Twist and Pivot
The Kenpo X workout starts with a basic move called Twist and Pivot which is pretty self-explanatory. You turn your body so that your left side is facing Tony and the crew (so your left leg is in front of your body and your right leg is in back). Bring your elbows into the sides of your body and keep your hands up by your face like you are in a fight and trying to block punches. To do one rep of the Twist and Pivot, you simply “twist” your waist and hips while pivoting your feet. You want to really get a good twist here while swinging your arms (keeping them close to your body) like you are trying to injure someone with your forearm blocks. You do 25 reps on one side, then flip your body position so that your opposite leg is facing the front and do 25 more reps on that side.
Knuckles going hammer: Bammer bammer bammer
Twist & Pivot with Hook & Uppercut
Instead of just Twisting and Pivoting to block punches, now you are twisting and pivoting to knock someone out. This time with each twist and pivot of your body, you add a hook and an uppercut. The hook is thrown by the arm on the same side of the foot that is forward, and the uppercut is thrown by the opposite hand. Although you don’t want to hyperextend your joints, that doesn’t mean you should throw hooks and uppercuts like a pansy.
You should be hooking and punching like you are involved in a serious battle. You do 25 reps of this combination on one side, then flip just like you already did and do 25 more on the other side. At this point you should feel your heart rate climbing. I actually really like the start to this routine a lot because it gets the blood flowing and is pretty damn fun.
Jabs
Here’s part of the routine that I thought could have been better. You get your heart rate really going with the Twist & Pivot with Hook & Uppercut, why stop the momentum. To do these Jabs, you simply keep your body turned to the side like you have been doing, and throw a jab forward with your hand that’s out in front of your body. The other hand stays up by your face for protection with the elbow tucked in by your ribcage. You do a total of 20 jabs and 10 doubles (quick double jabs) on each side. These are pretty cool and may make you feel like you’re a boxing superstar or something, but they definitely slow down the heart rate a little bit from the previous move. My tip for you during these is to keep your core tight and engaged the entire time.
Jab Cross
I like Jab Cross a lot more than standard Jabs because it engages more of your muscles and makes you work harder. You still do the standard Jabs like you just did, but this time you add a Cross (a punch with your other hand from back to front) and turn it into a combo. Still swing the Jab with your front hand and then use the hand that’s in back to throw a punch straight forward across your body for the “Cross.” You do a total of 25 reps per side here as well, but feel free to do more if you finish early and have extra energy. Just so you know, each combo of “Jab Cross” counts as a single rep.
Jab Cross Hook
Now we’re heating back up again by adding a Hook to the combination. You do the Jab Cross just like the previous exercise, but this time you add a Hook after the Cross. So immediately after you throw the Cross with the arm that’s in back, you throw a Hook with the same arm that threw the initial Jab. When you throw your Hook, you want to keep it close and tight to your body like you are really trying to knock someone out. Once again each combo of these three moves equals one rep and you do a total of 25 Jab Cross Hook’s per side.
Jab Cross Hook Uppercut
Tony continues to build up this fighting combo so that if you’re ever in a street fight, you will have some badass moves from Kenpo to fall back on…haha. Anyways, here you throw a Jab Cross Hook, and add an Uppercut from the same hand that threw the Cross. So you are basically throwing 4 different punches here (2 with each hand).
Since this is a longer combo of moves and each combo counts as one rep, it will probably take longer to complete, but it definitely gets the heart rate up. You do 25 reps per side and by the end of this badboy you should be sweating (if you’re not, you aren’t pushing yourself hard enough). I wish Tony would have kept building on this combo for a couple more rounds to make it a 5 or 6 move combo. With that said, this is one of the better moves during this routine.
Water Break – During your 1 minute break, I don’t recommend actually taking a break if you find this routine easy. I would either go for pull ups (max reps), push ups (max reps), or sprint in place with high knees. I even sometimes do some Hit the Floor’s from Insanity here as fast as possible just to keep the heart rate up. During the last 3 seconds of these breaks I always take a quick sip of water and get right back to the routine. Of course if you think this is a good workout, stay with Tony and the crew by doing High Knees, Jump Rope, Jumping Jacks, and X Jacks.
Round #2: Kenpo X
Step Drag Punch High & Low
The second round of Kenpo X starts out with some punching combos that I always enjoy. You keep your body turned to the side like most moves in this routine, keep your feet together, then “step” your front foot forward, and as you “drag” your back foot forward, you fire a punch high with your front hand, and punch low with the hand in back. So basically you are punching someone in the face or neck, and then either in the gut or family jewels.
Like Wu Tang said... "Protect ya neck"
Then you step back and repeat the entire sequence. Your punches should be thrown with force and your step drag should be of decent distance. You do a total of 20 standard Step Drag Punch High Low’s and then 10 doubles (throwing both the high and low punch at the same time and adding sound) for a total of 30 reps per side.
Jab Cross Switch
These are cool because they keep you “movin and groovin” just like Tony promises. You do the Jab Cross just like you did earlier, but after each rep, you do a 180 jump so that your opposite side is facing front. Then you repeat the combo and do another 180 hop and repeat the sequence. I like that he added the “Switch” or jumps here because they intensify the move, however, I am a little disappointed that he dropped down to 20 reps instead of 30.
Hook Uppercut Switch
Just like the Jab Cross Switch, here we have the Hook Uppercut Switch. I have no clue why Tony didn’t just repeat the Jab Cross Hook, then do the Jab Cross Hook Uppercut for longer combos here on the switch because I think it would have made it more intense. Anyways, here you are just throwing a Hook with your front hand, then an Uppercut with your other hand, and jumping 180 degrees for the switch. Once again you do a total of 20 reps (Hook Uppercut Switch) before moving on to the next move. I did more than 20 reps here today because I finished before the crew and wanted to keep things intense.
Knee Kicks
To do Knee Kicks you keep your body positioned to the side, and you reach with both hands in front of your body like you are grabbing someone by their neck (or collar). Then imagine that you are pulling them down and giving them a hard knee kick right to their chest. So you bring your back leg forward and drive your knee forward. You are basically trying to shatter your imaginary opponent’s ribcage with your knee (I know sounds violent, but the guy you are fighting is invisible…haha). Anyways, you do 20 standard knee kicks and 10 more with added sound for a total of 30 reps per side. I really like the Knee Kicks because they really force you to engage your core and I could imagine someone actually using this move in a real life fight.
Ball Kicks (Front Kicks)
The routine really slows down with these Ball Kicks because they just aren’t very intense. To do Ball Kicks, you keep your hands up and elbows tucked just like you have for all the other moves to protect yourself. As usual you start out with one side of your body facing forward, you twist your hips, pivot your feet, and throw a kick of medium height with your back foot. Then you step back and continue throwing kicks with the same foot for a total of 30 reps per side. This time you do 15 standard reps and 15 with higher intensity and sound.
Side Kicks
Side Kicks are undoubtedly one of the hardest exercises in Kenpo X if you do them properly and push yourself. It is during this move that I always push myself to do more reps because I know it will intensify the burn and give me a better workout. To do the Side Kicks, you start out in Horse Stance (feet wider than shoulder width) and you keep your hands up as usual. Then you bring your back foot in and do a little hop so that your front foot throws a fairly high kick to the side of your body.
When you throw your kick with the front foot, your upper body should be leaning back and you should have good balance on your back foot. Then you step back to horse stance position, transfer your weight, and repeat the sequence so that you end up throwing 30 Side Kicks per side. You do 15 at normal speed and 15 with sound at a more intense pace. I recommend doing more than 30 reps here and going for maximum speed with good form if you want to really get your heart rate up.
Water Break – You may think that this is the perfect time for a break since you just did a wicked batch of Side Kicks, but I would have liked that round to continue without a break. Anyways, since there are several water breaks, I usually spontaneously decide what I want to do to keep my heart rate up during each one. Today during my second break I did military push ups with my push up stands and then did Hit the Floors from Insanity. I also made sure I did some Jumping Jacks and 10 X Jacks like the rest of the crew.
Round #3: Kenpo X
Back Kicks
You start off the third round of Kenpo X with some Back Kicks. Think of these as kicks that a horse would throw if you were standing behind one. Side note: Don’t ever stand behind a horse. Anyways, to do the Back Kicks, you lean forward, look back, and kick back and up with the foot that’s closest to the back. Here you are expected to do a total of 25 reps and keep your eyes on your target with each kick. Make sure your hands are in good position when you come out of each kick and make sure you are pushing yourself here. I ended up doing over 30 reps per side (over 15 with sound) just because I don’t mess around. Tony calls this a “mule kick” and wants you to make sure that you don’t make a Side Kick because this is a “Back Kick” (which is easier than a Side Kick).
Three Direction Kicks
At least Tony keeps it moving with the 3 Direction Kicks at this point in the workout. You do a Front Kick (Ball Kick), Side Kick, and then a Back Kick to cover the three directions. You do a total of 8 cycles or combinations per side, which equates to 24 total kicks per side. Then you switch feet and repeat the 8 cycles using your other foot for the next 24 kicks. This isn’t a super challenging move, but you can move at a quick pace and keep yourself sweating and your heart rate up. Do more reps if you find this move too easy or slow. Tony Lattimore does these without his foot touching the ground for a more advanced version, but I don’t know if that version so you could try that too if you want to try something different.
High Sword Low Hammer
This is the infamous Side Lunge Sword Hammer that I love because it’s another badass move that makes me feel extra cool…haha. Anyways to do this exercise, you knuckle up to protect your face as usual, keep your feet close together and you do a side lunge with your front foot. As you take your step for the side lunge, you throw a Sword (basically a side chop with a flat hand) at neck height, and then with the same hand, make a fist after Sword and pound down low for the Hammer. You repeat this sequence for a total of 15 reps per side. I usually try to get in 20 reps, but the crew moves at a pretty fast pace so I’m not always able to get 20. Just do your best to beat up your imaginary target and have some fun here. I was surprised that Tony settled for a measly 15 reps per side with this move because it’s not too difficult.
Step Drag Claw Low Punch
After you are done with your swords and hammers, you are back to the Step Drag sequence that you did earlier. For this combo, you step with the front foot while reaching and grabbing someone by the mid-shoulder for the “Claw.” Immediately after you pull someone in with the “Claw” you need to hit them with your other hand down low with a Hammer punch as you drag your back foot up to meet the front one. At least the rep count is back up to 25 reps per side with this combo. The final 10 reps on each side are done with greater intensity and sound. I recommend making sure that you are engaging your core and keep up the intensity the entire time.
Water Break – This is your third break, so if you’re tired get some water. If you want to push yourself though (and are one of those people that think this routine is easy) here is where you need to do something crazy. If you need something to do, try doing Suicide Drills the entire time (run three steps to the right, touch the floor, then three steps to the left, touch the floor, and repeat). I did a variety of exercises during my third break including more military push ups.
Round #4: Kenpo X
High Blocks
The entire Block Sequence during Kenpo X is where your heart rate will plummet. I like some of the Blocks here, but even if you are down low in your Horse Stance and are using weights in your hand to intensify and/or doing more reps, you still won’t really feel much of a burn. I understand that there aren’t unlimited moves to choose from, but even some blocks with kicks and punches would have been better than just individual block moves.
Weights for blocks
Anyways, the first move of the fourth round is High Blocks. You get down into Horse Stance (a wide squat with your butt back) and pretend like you are blocking hard punches that are flying in above your head or near your face. The blocks are done with your forearms and you only block with one arm at a time. So to do the High Blocks, keep one arm down by your waist, and forcefully bring the other near the crown of your head. Then you bring the arm down that just blocked a punch, and bring your other arm up. You do a total of 30 High Blocks before moving onto the next set. I used 5 lb. dumbbells in each hand during this entire round and the extra weight did a nice job of engaging my arms more.
Inward Blocks
While staying in Horse Stance, you do Inward Blocks which involve one arm at a time swinging across your chest with an iron fist. If someone was throwing a punch at your chest and you didn’t have much time to react, you would clench your fist and (hopefully) swing your flexed arm on the inside of your body to block the punch with your forearm. Tony says to envision yourself “stabbing the corner of the room” – but instead of stabbing outward, you stab inward with each hand coming across the body on the inside. These actually got pretty tough at the end of the 30 reps with my dumbbells still in hand.
Outward Blocks
These are just like the Inward Blocks, but instead of stabbing the corner of the room inwards, you stab the corner of the room outwards. To do the Outward Blocks, you keep your arm muscles engaged, make a fist, and stab towards the outside so that you could block a punch with your forearm. Imagine that you are getting attacked from each side and that your forearm is the only hope you have of protection. The 30 reps here were even tougher for me because my arms were tired of carrying the dumbbells, but I knew that the weights are one of the only ways to intensify things during this sequence.
Downward Blocks
Downward Blocks are one of the easiest moves in this entire workout. To do these Downward Blocks, you cycle your arm so that you are stabbing down and away from your body. During this move it honestly looks like Wesley Idol is pulling string or something, but I guess he wants to keep it as legit as possible. Tony Lattimore looks like he’s in a full out battle and is working really hard, so try to follow his lead. The added weight made these 30 reps tougher for me and my forearms were so tired, I decided to set them down for the final set of blocks.
Star Blocks
These Star Blocks are pretty legit because they combine everything that you just learn in one combination. So you start out with a High Block, then do an Inward Block, an Outward Block, and finally a Downward Block – all with the same arm. Immediately after your first combo, you rotate your body and do the entire combo sequence again using your other arm. You do 2 passes forward with each arm, then 2 passes backwards for a total of 16 blocks. These may be confusing the first time that you do this routine, but you’ll get the hang of it if you focus on doing one block at a time.
Other 2.5 lb'ers for blocks
Water Break – In my opinion, the Block Sequence was pretty much a “break” in itself despite the fact that my arms got worked and my legs felt some action down in horse stance. I think I did a full out high knee sprint the entire time because I was thinking of the Ladders from the Insanity Max Interval Sports Training routine. I still did the 10 X Jacks at the end of this break, but I sprinted all out with high knees for about a minute to get my heart rate back up.
Round #5: Kenpo X
High Block Low Punch
Turn your body to the side once again, and prepare to get the “Step Drag” action going again. Step forward with your front foot, throw a High Block with your front forearm, and then as you drag your back foot forward, throw a Low Punch with your back hand. Then step back, reposition your body and repeat for 25 reps on each side. Once you reach the fifteenth rep on each side, you throw the High Block and Low Punch at the same time, so you need to be ready to move at a faster pace. Oh and don’t forget to add sound by yelling “hut.”
Knee / Back Kick
The second move of the fifth round involves the Knee (or Knee Kick from earlier) where you reach out, grab someone by the collar, pull them in, and knee them with your back leg. After you have thrown your Knee, you simply step back to position and throw a Back Kick (the same way that you did earlier as well). You throw your knee out in front of your body and then with the same leg that knee’d the target in front, you throw the back kick. For some reason Tony decides to settle on 15 reps per side – I would have liked a higher number of reps, so I added 5 and did 20 per side for the extra work. My tip for you with this move is to make sure that you keep your balance under control the entire time partly through using your core.
Back Knuckle / Ball Kick / Back Kick
While you are sideways, you throw your knuckles (both front and back at the same time). So extend your arms like you are punching someone in front of you and behind you at the same time. One hand hits the guy in front with your knuckles and the other smashes the guy in back. Then as if that’s not enough, you do a front kick (ball kick) to hit the guy in front again, and immediately after that, you turn around and throw a back kick to hit the guy in back. You repeat this entire combination for a total of 10 reps per side. Once again I thought the rep count was a little bit low per side, but I guess since each combo is considered one rep and there are 3 moves per combo, you still are still getting some burn. If you want to do a more advanced version of this move, you can try to keep your foot in the air while transitioning from front kick to back kick instead of tapping it on the ground.
Hook Uppercut Low Side Kick
You do the same Hook Uppercut combo that you did in an earlier round of this workout, but you also add a Side Kick. I recommend adding just a regular or high Side Kick instead of a “low side kick” because it will make the move tougher. Anyways throw the hook with your front hand, uppercut with the hand that’s in back, and then do the side kick towards the side of the hand that throws the uppercut. So if you throw the uppercut with your left hand, do a left side kick. You do a total of 10 combo reps per side and then switch. These actually got me feeling like I was burning calories again because the Side Kicks are one of the most intense moves if you push yourself.
Elbow Series
The Elbow Series basically involves a series of elbow punches up, down, and side to side. To do the Elbow Series, you get down in horse stance, and start by lifting one of your elbows up high like you are reaching to scratch your back – this is the high elbow. Then you bring your elbow back down like you are hitting someone down low. After you bring your elbow down, you reach across your chest at shoulder height and throw your elbow, then pull your elbow across your chest for the side elbow.
In other words you should have made a cross after you are done with one of these combos. Think: Up, Down, Across, and Back. Then you let the arm that just made it through one combination chill by your side and you use your opposite elbow for the same series. You alternate elbows each time until you have completed a total of 30 reps. I recommend doing extra reps here, but make sure you are getting full range of motion and that you are down low in your horse stance for the leg burn.
Vertical Punches
The final exercise in the Kenpo X workout is Vertical Punches. These aren’t very difficult, but you can work up a good final burn if you challenge yourself and use good form. First make sure you are down low in horse stance – you want your legs to feel the burn. After you are down low in horse stance, keep your head and chest up, and alternate throwing punches at head-height in front of you.
The P90X crew starts these at a pretty slow pace and their goal is to throw 100 total punches, but you should easily be able to get over 100 if you are in decent shape. Obviously make sure you are using good form and your body positioning is okay, but I would try to do 200 reps if you can. Today I was pretty tired by the end of these, but I managed to do 250 vertical punches (which is actually more than I’ve ever done but I wanted to push hard).
Cool Down
- Jog – Do a light jog in place just to help your body cool down if needed.
- Shake it Out – Thank yourself for working so damn hard and realize that there was no “spray on” here, rather it was actual DNA removal (especially from Vanessa)…haha.
- Jump Rope – Do some light jump rope to help lower your heart rate.
- Huggers – Just hug yourself while taking some light steps here. I laugh when Tony asks the people their heart rate and says, “You should be out of your zone, are you out of your zone?” and she barely nods like umm not really, but I’ll say that I am just to make Tony happy…haha.
- March and Kick – Take some steps and do a little March and Kick at the top of each step to cool down. To be honest, it looks like Wesley Idol is working just as hard in this move of the cool down as the entire routine…haha classic.
- Hanging Hamstring Stretch – You did this stretch in the warm up where you keep your legs straight, bend at the waist, and rock side to side. If you look at Wesley here he really shows off, but Tony calls him out on it and I laughed. You can fold your arms and rock side to side if you want something different.
- Downward Dog – Just like you did in the beginning, do Downward Dog again and alternate bending your knees so you feel a stretch in your hamstrings.
- Quad Stretch – Stand up tall, and balance on one leg while grabbing the ankle of your other leg. Pull it towards your butt to feel the quadriceps stretch and then switch legs.
- Kenpo Ritual – Finally make sure you do the little Kenpo master ritual at the end so that you look ultra badass like the rest of the P90X clique!
P90X Kenpo X Review (Conclusion)
I personally HATE when people rip on Kenpo X for being “too easy” and not extreme enough. The thing is that it’s not meant to be insanely tough, but it is meant to give you a healthy dose of cardio – which it exactly what it does. A lot of people assume that since they are doing a 90 day extreme routine that their cardio needs to be really extreme on the day that they have Kenpo X. Although Kenpo is meant to get your heart rate up and get you working hard, it really doesn’t need to be as tough as you think for it to still be a very effective workout. It will get your heart rate up for over 40 minutes and engages all your muscles.
What if Kenpo X is too easy?
There are always skeptics that want to judge the effectiveness of a routine like Kenpo X. I have read about people saying that they’d rather go for a run because it’s tougher than this workout. There are some key differences though between Kenpo X and going for a run. The first major difference is that Kenpo will actually work your arms, legs, and core. Literally all the moves involve working your core muscles. Since you are working literally your entire body in the Kenpo X routine, you are working a lot more muscles than you would if you simply went for a run. Therefore, I personally wouldn’t recommend substituting a “run” for this routine just because you think it’s tougher in terms of cardio.
Recommended Alternatives:
- Interval X Plus – I honestly think that this routine is a phenomenal alternative to Kenpo X because it is tougher and also works your entire body. Think of this routine as like a younger brother to Plyometrics – it’s not quite as tough but will work you a lot harder than Kenpo.
- Kenpo Cardio Plus – If you own the P90X+ Plus series, you could also substitute in the Kenpo routine from that series in place of Kenpo X. With that said, I don’t think it’s much more intense than this workout – it’s just something different and there are a couple really cool exercises.
- Insanity – If you want more of a challenge than anything in P90X to really amp up your heart rate and want to feel like you’re ready to roll into a grave after you’re done, you could also substitute in an Insanity routine. If you are familiar with Insanity, I would recommend choosing a workout from Month 1 as your substitute like Pure Cardio. If you are a total cardio freak, you could even consider a routine from The Asylum.
- Super Cardio – If you want a workout that is something new and different, but about the same overall intensity as Kenpo X, you could try Super Cardio. I personally think Kenpo X is more intense than Super Cardio, but if you feel like you need to mix it up, you could try this routine.
A lot of people simply don’t understand how P90X was designed or why there would be a routine of moderate intensity like Kenpo X included in an “extreme” workout series. Well the truth is that your body doesn’t always need maximum intensity cardio every day to get into good shape. If you overdo cardio in terms of length and intensity you may have a tough time building up strength because you are burning so many calories.
How to make Kenpo X harder
A lot of people assume that they need to always follow Tony and company verbatim and move at the exact same pace as the P90X crew. If the crew is going at too slow of a pace, not doing enough reps, or isn’t intense enough for you, why would you stick with them? You can always intensify these exercises to get more of a burn and a better workout if you want. If I followed even the most intense crew member during this workout every time, I wouldn’t get the burn that I know I’m capable of getting. Below is a list of suggestions that I have found help make the Kenpo X routine tougher so that you can get the most out of this workout.
- Engage your core – I’m actually a little bit surprised that Tony didn’t mention the fact that you should engage your core muscles during this routine. Many of the moves force you to engage, but some don’t and I think if you make a conscious effort to keep your core nice and tight, you’ll get better results. If you are familiar with Shaun T’s cardio routines, he always preaches “engage the core,” which I have found really helpful at maximizing results. Make sure you try to keep your core tight and focus on engaging your stomach muscles during this routine.
- Do extra reps – If you finish before the other crew members at any of the exercises, you can always do more reps. If they do 20 reps, I usually always go for 30 just because I know it will push me more. Some exercises the crew moves at a pretty quick pace, so you may not be able to get in more reps, but do your best. On the Side Kicks, I guarantee that you will be able to get in more reps if you start right away. Pushing for maximum reps with good form is key if you want to make this routine tougher.
- Move at a faster pace – I don’t recommend moving at a faster pace if you are compromising form or half assing the moves, but if you know what you’re doing and know how to get the full range of motion at a fast speed, go all out. There is no reason you should be holding anything back in a workout like Kenpo.
- Add push ups / pull ups – Sometimes I’ll actually add push ups and/or pull ups to this routine if I finish a move before the crew and/or during the breaks instead of running in place, I’ll go for maximum rep pull ups and/or push ups just for something different.
- High knee sprints – Another thing you can do is to do high knee sprints instead of high knee jogs during the “Water Breaks.” I always recommend getting a sip of water if you feel thirsty because you don’t want to dehydrate yourself, but actually run sprints with high knees instead of lollygagging during your breaks.
- Add weights during blocks – During the block sequences, I recommend adding light weights so that you feel more burn in your arms. Although the block sequences really screw up the cardio (due to lack of movement) and lower your heart rate, you can add weights for a little strength action. Don’t add something too heavy though because you won’t be able to use good form during the reps. I would recommend either 5 lbs. per hand or 2.5 lbs. per hand. Today I did the workout with 5 lb. dumbbells in each hand during the block sequence and it did a nice job of intensifying it, but it was almost too heavy near the end. My recommendation no matter how strong you are, don’t use more than 5 lbs. per hand.
- Add a punching bag or dummy – There are many places that sell punching bags and dummies that you can beat up on if you want. I think that this routine would be even more fun if you added a dummy to the mix and had a target to hit instead of just imagining. For a very long time I have thought about using the punching bag that I have for this workout, but I don’t have a hanger for it so I didn’t set it up. If you have one set up, you may want to see if it makes your Kenpo tougher and/or more fun.
Final thoughts: Kenpo X is just what you need
I do want to mention the fact that I think people get the impression that Kenpo X is supposed to be insanely difficult based on the fact that Tony really hypes it up. At the same time, he also mentions the fact that it is “fun fun fun” so hopefully you realize that although it is still a good workout, it’s not going to be as tough as Plyo X. I’m a fan of hardcore workouts, but I’m just as much a fan of moderate workouts that are highly effective. This is one of those moderate routines that is highly effective if you know how to get the most out of it. I always have fun with Kenpo X and think that you will too.