Chalean Extreme - I love you!

I have been meaning to post a blog about my love of Chalean Extreme. Chalean Johnson is another one of the Beachbody family of trainers who is most widely known for her Turbo Jam and Turbo Kick workouts. Instructors can become certified in TK and teach the classes at any gym across the country. Her dvds are a BLAST! She's so fun, peppy, energetic, and really motivational. I love working out with her.

As I was wrapping up my second round of the X, I heard a lot of chatter on the Beachbody message boards about this new program, Chalean Extreme. CE was just released earlier this year and people were raving about it. It is an extreme circuit program, similar to P90X, but different in so many ways. From a setup standpoint, there are 3 resistance days (similar to p90x), 2 cardio days (similar to p90x), and 2 rest days (this is where it's different - Tony only gives you one!). In general, the workouts are shorter. The resistance days are about 38 - 40 minutes, and the cardio days top out at 32 minutes. No need to worry - Chalean is no joke and this lady will kick your butt up and down. I burn as many calories in half an hour with Chalean as I would sometimes in an hour with Tony.

Here is how Chalean differs - she stresses lifting S L O W. If you're doing a chest press, you're only going to do 10 reps, as slow as you can (typically a 2 to 4 count to fully extend your arms), and then just as slow back down. This stuff burns!!! You aren't using momentum to lift the weights - just your muscles. Plus, the slower you lift, the more you pay attention to proper form. Chalean also focuses on dual movements. Instead of just doing a bicep curl, the woman has you doing a lunge AND a bicep curl as one move. Deadly!! You are moving so slowly, using both upper and lower body (and therefore core as well), you absolutely max out at 10 to 12 reps. Brilliant!

The program is set up in three phases at approx 30 days each - burn, push, and lean. In the burn phase, you are getting your muscles used to this slow method of lifting and start revving your metabolism. You max out at 10-12 reps and every move incorporates both a lower body and upper body aspect. In the push phase, she has you pushing as hard as you can possibly go. These moves only focus on one body part at a time (either upper or lower, not both) and you max out at 6 to 8 reps. It was amazing to see how heavy I could go - I was squatting 90lbs, curling 25 in each arm. Awesome phase! The lean phase goes back to the same types of moves as burn - incorporating upper and lower body, maxing out at 10 to 12 reps. The moves are totally different from the burn phase, so I'm sore all over again!

I just started week 2 of my lean phase (so I guess overall, that's week 10). LOVE IT! I'll be sure to post a link to my before and after pics once I complete.