Georges St-Pierre 8 Week Ultimate Home Training Program

In all reality, there is no such thing as a "bad" workout video- if you are raising your heart rate for a sustained time, challenging your body, and breaking a sweat- you are doing yourself a world of good. Rushfit is not P90X and P90X is not Rushfit. Having done both, and to make this review more effective using a simple comparison- there are distinct advantages and disadvantages when comparing one to another- as there would be with any two trials. Rushfit is still total body but really gets at those lower abs in a way that P90X did not. However, you won't see the muscle building/sculpting that P90X gives. Biggest draw- the format with its 5 minute rounds in championship format (5 rounds) goes quickly so one is more likely to push the intensity and less likely to take those little breaks. It is over and done in no time. The warm-up is short effective and does just what it supposed to- warm you up for business. It repeats on each DVD- there is only one warm-up. Some want variety, I could not care less. Get me ready to go is all I need. The warm-up is a quick 10 minutes as well. For those with busy lives and full time jobs, Rushfit is a Godsend. I give P90X tons of credit for what it does, but I don't have an hour and half every night after work with a family to feed and manage. Since I actually cook my own food, from scratch and all organic/natural as best I can- I need to trim the workout. Rushfit gets me "in and out" and leaves me spent on the floor. One other distinction. All fitness is not the same. Some will help you get strong, some will make you "tough", and some do both- but the two are not necessarily hand in hand. Rushfit will get you both tough and strong because the moves are real in the sense that you are mimicking an actual "situation" instead of performing a series of "canned" movements. It's like the guy who does pull-ups versus the guy who chops wood for a living- the guy chopping wood is both strong and tough- the guy doing pull-ups will only achieve strength- this is a HUGE deal to me as an avid outdoorsman (hunting, hiking, biking, etc.) and guy who does all his own work around the home rather than call someone else. The tough guy beats the strong guy every time in my opinion. It's about muscular efficiency. Saving the best for last- with Rushfit...NO YOGA!!! Sorry. I know it's effective, but I can't stand it. Wife hates it, kids hate it, I hate it. I'll spare the soapbox, but suffice it to say- Yoga drives me insane. Even with the shortcoming that is the scheduled "on-your-own" cardio days, which might cause me to knock the review a full star, the omission of Yoga puts it right back. 4.5 stars and strong recommendation for its effectiveness, efficiency, and results. Bonus- learning to talk like Georges is kinda fun!

So let me start by saying I had no idea who Georges St. Pierre was when I bought this. Back in 2010 I had a Lap Band placed to lose weight. I lost 80lbs. but then got pregnant and after the baby the band does not work! So here I am with 60 extra pounds and a useless tool. I began researching exercise videos because I was getting real tired of running on my elliptical. Now you have to picture this - I was really fat, (like 240) I am 5'4" lost 8olbs really quick and have had 3 C-sections so my belly is REALLY floppy. I am horribly out of shape despite the fact that I can crank out 60 minutes on the elliptical like it's cool. I started this program with my daughter (my buddy, which I HIGHLY recommend, we keep each other honest) and we were dying by the end of the first workout. However, what was awesome is that they give you modified ways to do the exercise as they workout, so if you're not fit you can still do it- just modified. There is the token fit chick in the videos that I have to say is awesome also, because you see her doing a lot of the exercises modified - so you don't feel like a cheater. They also show George cheating a lot! It's pretty funny. So despite my floppy belly and out of shape self, we have been doing this for 3 weeks. We have modified our diets to be in line with what the guide suggests (think whole foods not processed or canned, and you get suggestions not a meal plan or grocery list) In 3 weeks I have lost 5 pounds but gone down a pants size and I am stronger. It's weird because I can do things I haven't been able to since I was a teen, like squat down and stand without any help getting back up. The program is an ass whopping to be sure, but WORTH EVERY PENNY. They constantly preach doing the exercise correctly, not reps. The want quality over quantity and to be honest if you're really out of shape like me, some stuff you're just not going to be able to do 100%, but I do what I can modified- and it still works. I also recommend doing the foundation moves before the workouts (do a week preview where you watch and do but don't count that week) and the fight conditioning workout is AWESOME but preview it and do the foundation moves first. Its 6 days a week with one day of rest and some Cardio days thrown in, but you get the Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced training schedule, so it's really 24 weeks if you want to cycle through that way. We bought some dumbbells and a floor mat (we have hardwood with an area rug - rug burn on the knees - made my husband laugh) so total cost was $100 with the extras, but that's it! You would spend tons more in the gym and not cover nearly as much as quick. I also recommend getting a poster board and taking your measurements and taking pictures of yourself (gross I know, I really resisted this part) however, you will thank yourself for it. You can't see the transformation as its happening but to be able to compare then and now and track your progress both visually and by numbers is such a self-esteem boost- it's worth it. They say you only get out of it what you put in, and it's a pain to do sometimes, your body hurts or your tired after work, but it's worth it in the end!

GSP Rushfit is a great workout if you are trying to get in shape and you are on a budget. It's significantly cheaper than P90x and insanity. The kind of body you get from it is the lean cut type, so if you are looking to bulk up go with P90x. There are 3 calendars to choose from, beginner,intermidiate and advanced. Personally I'd recommend starting out at the intermidiate level, the beginner workout should only be used if you are extremely out of shape. The workouts are about 50 minutes long, and the weighted workouts really kick your ass. If you lift heavy and are used to stopping after 6-8 reps this work puts will have you begging for mercy as they test your muscle endurance more than anything. The production value is high,the images are crisp and clear and there are no miscues. However it doesn't come with subtitles,so deaf people may have some problems following the instructions. Some people have complained that GSP is hard to understand, and he is,but he isn't the one leading the work out,so it doesn't matter. I'm on week 4 of the advanced program and I'm already seeing results. About the only problem I'd have with this series is that on cardio days,you are supposed to do cardio on your own. I don't have an issue with this as I run anyway or pop in an insanity DVD but some maybe turned off by this,specially when doing the beginner series or the intermidiate series there's a lot of cardio. Only the advanced workout has a significant amount of weighted workouts with less cardio. Overall not bad for less than 80. Just keep in mind you'll do cardio on your own and you'll be golden. UPDATE June 4 2012 Just finished my 8 weeks of the advanced calendar! boy I am in great shape. I'm a lot leaner now than when I started, although I still have some stubborn belly fat, but the volume of my belly is significantly lower than it was when I started. I'm guessing another 8 weeks would finally get rid of all of it. Overall I dropped 2 pant sizes and lost 15 pounds in 8 weeks,which is pretty amazing. However, the thing that impressed me about this program the most is how much muscle endurance I've gained. I went to the gym last night just for fun to work out with a friend of mine who is a hardcore gym rat. I was able to work out for longer than him (he has always been stronger than me),not only that, but I noticed that I had way more stability and balance than him, this is all due to the functional training offered by Rushfit. I've also noticed that when I work out next to other people, specially in body weight routines (like push ups), I have a lot more stability. My hips don't sag,my back doesn't bend, etc. I really hope there's a Rushfit 2 for people who graduated from the first 1 that will focus on more advanced, complex moves, and a "real" cardio routine instead of having to do cardio on your own.

I'm in my 50s and pretty fit, but bored of my exercise regime. I looked at the popular DVD-based exercise programs with an eye towards the intensity level and the chance of getting injured. To give an idea of my fitness level, I usually run 4 miles 3 times a week and do some weight work or pilates the other days. I picked Rushfit because it sounded reasonably intense, adaptable to different fitness levels, and not too time-consuming. Also, no equipment except for a couple pairs of dumbbells. I'm now halfway through the 8-week program, and happy with it so far. My strength, flexibility, and overall fitness have improved. Weight loss wasn't a goal, but I would like to lose a few a few pounds. Instead I've gained a pound or two. Strangely, it seems those pounds are muscle -- I haven't gained flab. Before the program started I had a few niggling issues, including a little sciatica on my left side. Now the sciatica is gone (great!), and the other issues are the same or not as bad. It was pretty easy to adapt Rushfit to my level. There are three overall levels for the program, which involves the 8-week program schedule, which days are rest days, which workout on which day, etc. Additionally, during the workouts alternative, easier versions of the tough exercises are shown. My minor complaints about the program: 1. The warm-up and cool-down portion of each workout is identical -- a little variety here would be better. 2. Each workout DVD contains a "foundations moves" section explaining the exercises of the workout. On some of the DVDs this section goes through the exercises much too quickly, especially the fight conditioning workout. 3. A few of the exercises seem a lot harder than the rest. For example: from a position of "standing" on the knees, jump up to standing normally on the feet. People with knee or back programs may want to stay away. I've been telling my wife about the exercises, and she says many would be too much for her knees. ---- Update: Just finished the 8-week program at the beginner level, and pleased with the outcome. My overall strength and fitness are better, I feel better, and my posture has improved. I can even feel the difference in my running. Plus, I've suffered no injuries. I'll take it a little easier for a week then plan to do the program again at the intermediate level. ---- Another update. I couldn't last a week and started the intermediate level a couple of days after finishing the beginner level. Still enjoying the program and getting fitter. A little irritation is that the trainer will say 'okay' to signal the end of an activity, but *also* when there are about 10 or 15 seconds left (as in "okay... 10 seconds to go"). Really annoying, especially if you're barely hanging in there. Another little issue is that my right wrist problems are flaring up a little with all the pushups and ground work in the program. Hoping I don't have to take a break.

This is a very nice work-out set requiring minimal equipment (light dumb bells) and your own body weight. I am 6 weeks into the program and here are my thoughts. DVD 1: Strength and Endurance - my favorite of the group with a good mix of movements and exercises. DVD 2 Abdominal Strength & Core Conditioning - a real belly buster but due to age and lack of flexibility I do an alternative set of exercises for the 5th set. It starts out with what we called an upside-down push-up back when I wrestled and that I had no problem doing - well not any more, and it goes down-hill from there. Maybe later. DVD 3: Fight Conditioning Workout - My Least Favorite and that may have to do with fact that the movements are very choreographed and I go slow to make sure I have the movements right that I do not get much of a work-out. Repetitions and practice will help but... DVD 4: Explosive Body Strength and Conditioning - have not gotten to yet. DVD 5: Full Body Strength and Conditioning - puts your whole body through it's paces DVD 6 Balance & Agility + Stretching - This is a great one for me and a struggle as I have never had a great sense of balance and over the years flexibility has declined. I see Improvements in both. So six weeks in and I physically feel better than I have in years and things are definitely tightening up. I have not bothered checking my weight because it will be what it will be and the main goal is improving my fitness. As other reviewers have said it would have been nice if the warm-up and cool-down sections had some variety between the DVD. I have also put my own work-out together using bits and pieces from the various DVDs and do it on the rest days now ( I am using the beginner calendar and do not feel like taking days off ). There are such a large variety of exercises and movements on the DVDs that I have put together a very interesting series of exercises that may end up being 3 times a week in a few weeks ( allow me to watch Northern Exposure/Arrested Development on the DVD player while sweating away) . So why a 5? 1) minimal investment required in equipment 2) Very good mix of movements and exercises 3) George St-Pierre is an engaging and not very polished trainer - very down to earth and sweats right along with you.

First – a little background. I am 58 years old and started working out with weights in 1969. I am in decent shape but got into bad eating habits which lasted from the age of 1 to 53! I pretty much ate what I wanted because I could. However, the older you get the less that is true. I started doing P90X five years ago and completely changed my eating habits. Lost the extra weight for several years but let it creep back up (sweets, sweets, sweets). No one ever thinks I am fat or even overweight. However, there is a big difference between 163 and 186. I have done P90X, P90X+, P90X2, and Insanity. I thoroughly enjoy them all. I did the Virgin Diet (which is really just eating correctly and eliminating foods to which you have little tolerance) and got back to my high school weight of 163. I looked at another “MMA” workout and it got poor reviews. So, I bought RushFit. I have been doing it for three weeks. Pros: - It is fun to do. - The workouts seem to take no time at all. - I sweat like a pig. - It is different (more or less) than P90X. You are continually doing something for five minutes straight, small rest, and then five more minutes. You do five “rounds”. - The up/down and full body movements are different than isolation moves. - If you do the routines you will lose weight. - Although they suggest 10 or 15 pound weights you might wish to increase that if you are in good shape. - The functional fitness aspect of the full body moves makes you feel great. Cons: - None yet as far as the workouts are concerned. - The quality of the sessions is not as “choreographed” as the BeachBody products. - The trainer and GSP always seem to be talking over one another. - GSP has a novel way of presenting some things due to the fact that English is not his native tongue. That being said, I cannot speak a lick of French. - GSP overdoes the stress that is being put upon him by the workouts. He acts like he is truly working hard. This from a guy who could probably go ten rounds with a bulldozer. It seems rather contrived at times. - I think that this would not be a good “first time” workout series for someone who is not in at least fair shape and could definitely be harmful to someone who is in really bad shape unless they really modified the routines. - There are a lot of squats and bending of the knees (as might be expected). My wife stopped doing it because she has knee problems. She felt she could not modify RushFit as easily as she does P90X. Recap It is a good product – it works. You will sweat and you will lose weight (if you eat sensibly). I recommend this workout.

I've done P90X, P90X+, Insanity, at home and a ton of boot camp/crossfit style classes at local gyms. I was looking for something new and chose Rushfit based on the reviews and price ( I was going back and forth betwen Rushfit and Les Mills Combat). After about two weeks I'm regretting not buy the Combat dads. No, I'm not a BB coach, but I really do like their programs. GSP is very repetitive so far, and I find the dialog super annoying. Yes, Tony Horton is campy and corny, but what he says makes sense, and he explains the exercises better. GSP spouts off random lines in broken english, and his trainer seems very uncomfortable talking on camera, which is a major negative for a dvd series. The workout themselves are ok, like most every other exercise program, you get out of it what you put into it. I can see myself losing interest in this series quickly. Doing the same workout twice a week isn't going to help that.

This review will be for people who have already completed P90X and are considering switching over to RushFit. This is not going to be super detailed; you can find detailed reviews of each program all over the place. I completed 4 rounds of P90X and I eventually got burned out. P90X is a great program and you will definitely see results if you stick to it. But the major drawback is that it's time consuming. Over an hour each workout. Six days per week. Ninety days total. I enjoy working out at home, so I decided to give another exercise program a try. I went with RushFit because it is about 45 minutes per day, 6 days per week, and it lasts two months. SUMMARY - RushFit is not as difficult as P90X. If I had to estimate, I would say that RushFit is about 70% as hard as P90X. RushFit will help you maintain the results you had with P90X, but you probably will not gain any more muscle. Overall, RushFit is a great way to build up to P90X, or it will serve as a nice break from P90X while helping you to remain active. WORKOUTS - RushFit focuses more on strength training and cardio. You use dumbbells with RushFit, but it's lower weight with higher reps. There are a couple of days with RushFit that it is up to you to do your own 30 minute cardio workout, such as going on a run, then a shorter 20 minute video will follow. P90X focuses on strength and cardio also, but relies much more on weights. You will build more muscle with P90X. EQUIPMENT - With RushFit, 10-20lb dumbbells will probably be sufficient for most people. For P90X, I use 5-50lb dumbbells, a pull up bar, and push up bars. TIME - RushFit takes about 45 minutes. On the days that you choose your own cardio, RushFit is closer to 55-60 minutes. P90X is usually 1 hour and 15 minutes; however, I frequently had to take breaks with P90X, either because I was tired or because I had to change the weights on my dumbbells between exercises. Either way, P90X is a more strenuous workout, and it frequently took 90 minutes total. FINAL THOUGHTS - I don't regret buying RushFit. It is a great workout program, although not quite as difficult as P90X. I will eventually go back to P90X, but in the meantime, RushFit is keeping me active. Also, I love to run, and RushFit allows two days out of the week to choose your own cardio. There are some RushFit workouts that are very similar to P90X workouts, such as the cardio kickboxing. There are some RushFit workouts that might actually be a little more difficult than P90X; however, because RushFit is shorter, it ends up being a more intense workout for a shorter amount of time.