So you hate Yoga huh? Or perhaps you haven’t tried it, but are thinking to yourself, “Ain’t no way I’m gonna do that weird Yoga voodoo!”. Well, whatever your reason for not liking Yoga, lets just get to the question.
Skipping Yoga On P90x – Will It Ruin Everything If I Skip Yoga X?
P90x is a well thought out home fitness program formulated to give you the complete package. Each workout targets a different area or aspect of fitness. So in short, you will be slapping Tony Horton in the face (and you’ll make him cry), if you choose to not do the Yoga X workout.
Nah, not really, I’m just kidding. The truth is that Yoga X is a tough workout, and it is long too. It is an hour and a half long and it has a lot of difficult Yoga moves and poses.
However, I have to say that for me, Yoga has been the most beneficial workout in the P90x program. So let me sidestep answering this first question and proceed to the next question.
What Will I Miss Out On If I Skip Yoga? What’s The Big Deal About It Anyway?
So what’s all the fuss about Yoga? Why in the world do the creators of P90x think you need to do Yoga?
Let me tell you just a few of the basic benefits of this awesome old form of exercise.
- Improve flexibility – Spend enough time twisting like a pretzel, and you can bet you’ll get more flexible.
- Gain strength – Helps you gain all around strength
- Calm your mind and body – Yoga helps you stay calm in the storm.
- Improve breathing – Because you focus on breathing during Yoga, it helps you improve your breath control.
For me personally, the biggest benefits from Yoga that I have received are improved flexibility, focus, and control over my body. Tony Horton talks about calmness in the storm during Yoga X. Practicing this idea has helped me in my other workouts and elsewhere in my life.
It is hard to believe that such a hard workout could leave you with a calmer and more relaxed mind and body, but with Yoga X, it happens. The focus on breathing and staying relaxed helps you unwind.
For a more detailed explanation about why Yoga is super awesome, read – The Health Benefits of Yoga
Ok, Ok, Ok! I Get It That Yoga Is Awesome, But I Still Don’t Wanna Do It!
So you understand that Yoga is hugely beneficial for you, and that it will only help you achieve better results, but you still don’t want to do it?
Substitute For Yoga P90x – Can’t I Just Replace It With Something Else?
Getting fit is more important than following the program 100%, so if Yoga X is absolutely keeping you from doing P90x, or ruining everything for you, if you really must substitute it, you could do Cardio X in it’s place.
I recommend you do your best and forget the rest, and give Yoga X a try. Just do what you can and each time try to do a little better. If you aim to do what you can, and try to improve each time, before you know it you will be rocking Yoga X.
Unleash Your Inner Beast And Go For It! The Benefits You Get From Yoga X Make It EXTREMELY Worthwhile!
P90x is a tough program. During the middle of the week muscles are often sore and tight and in need of stretching. Flexibility is something that is often hugely undervalued in fitness programs. P90x is not one of those programs. Yoga is in there to help you get a great workout, and also help you limber up- and help you limber up it will!
People get fat because they DON’T want to eat right and they DON’T want to exercise. Sometimes it is hard to workout when you don’t feel like doing it. It is hard to eat right when you are surrounded by tempting, sweet, and fatty foods. NOT doing what you SHOULD do (exercise and eat right) is what gets you into trouble health wise.
I encourage you to do Yoga X. It may be hard at first (it is for many), but with practice you will get better, and the benefits you receive from it after the 90 days are up will have made doing it more than worthwhile.
With all of that said, having gone through P90x myself, I understand why someone would want to skip the hour and a half long Yoga workout. There have been many days when I didn’t want to do it. I made myself do Yoga X during my first, and second round (I plan on doing it during my third round as well), but frankly, in a future round of P90x I may choose to not do Yoga X and to instead substitute it with Cardio X.
For those going through P90x for the first time, I recommend you continue to try the Yoga X workout and do the best that you can. However, if you feel like you really must skip it, do the Cardio X workout in it’s place!
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So, in 90 days of P90x I lost 11 lbs and 6% body fat. Overall I feel much stronger and much more energetic! I’m happy with what I achieved because it was definitely a huge step in the right direction!
