I just finished up my BAXX2 hybrid, which was a great mix of Body Beast, Asylum, P90X, and P90X2. It was very well balanced and kept me in great overall shape.
For some reason, I just really LOVE the Body Beast workouts and can’t get enough of them. So this next 90 days BEAST will be my foundation. I’ve built 3 workout phases around the Beast workouts (a Build phase, a Bulk phase, and a Tempo phase). This is slightly different than the regular Beast plan, since there isn’t a set Tempo phase. I really like the Tempo workouts and feel they are a great variation that deserve their own phase.
Now as much as I love the Beast lift workouts, I’ll be the first to acknowledge that Beast is weak on cardio. I don’t want to be a meat-head bodybuilder so I’m gonna keep myself honest by adding some intense HIIT cardio twice per week in this hybrid. It’ll be a mix of Beastly lift days and Blazing cardio days!
When comparing Body Beast lift days to P90X lift days, for instance, what I really like is the way Beast is structured to really emphasize hypertrophy with force sets, drop sets, progressive sets, etc. The exercises are also very well designed. For instance, most of the P90X back exercises are pullups (various hand positions). That’s great for the lats. With BEAST, pullups are usually just one set of a back workout. You’ll also do a lot of rows, flies, etc to really focus on the upper back musculature between the shoulders and neck. Those muscles really make you look built from behind.
Overall, Beast is brilliantly designed to build muscle. I really like being able to step into my workout on the lift days with the mindset of a bodybuilder — total 100% focus on lifting and lifting big. Beast workouts aren’t full body, they aren’t high heart rate, but they blast the target muscles and give you a pump like none other. Then on my cardio days, I can completely shift gears and start my workout with the mindset of being quick, agile, and fast.
P90X and P90X2 are better for a plug-and-play total fitness solution, but muscle hypertrophy isn’t the main goal of X and X2. Beast is definitely more strategic in building muscle. It’s also not as well rounded, which I acknowledge, and that’s why I need to plan my hybrid accordingly.
I want to keep my fitness balanced, so if I’m going with all Beast lift days, I still need to hit the cardio hard. I’m going to do 2 days per week of cardio and abs. I will use primarily the Insanity MAX workouts (like Max Interval Circuit and Max Cardio), Asylum (like Vertical Plyo and Speed & Agility), and I may throw in some Combat, Pump cardio, and Asylum 2 depending on what I feel I need. I may also do some cycling for cardio since I enjoy doing a few long cycle events each year with my brother.
Below you’ll see the links to my “BEAST-Cardio Hybrid” in both PDF and Excel formats =
You’ll notice that rather than specifically schedule which cardio workout and which ab workout I’m doing, I simply have “Cardio/Abs” on the schedule. This will give me (and you if you choose to do this hybrid) some flexibility in what cardio and ab workout I want to do. Also, if you are training for an event, you might want to use the cardio days for a long run or bike ride.
I don’t have any dedicated leg lift days in this hybrid, as I plan to use the plyo effect to work on lower body speed and agility rather than lower body muscle building. I naturally have big legs so I really have to focus on upper body lifting to keep my body in balance. If you need to add some lower body lifting to beef up those legs, then instead of doing cardio, do Beast Build Legs and Beast Bulk Legs on one of the Cardio days. Make the hybrid fit your goals!
You’ll also notice that I don’t have yoga and stretching in this workout. I plan on using my “Rest” day to do either stretching or yoga as I feel I need it. I may take the day off altogether, or I may decide my body could use some good foam rolling and stretching. I’ll listen to my body and encourage you to do the same.
Finally, you’ll notice that I don’t have recovery weeks. It’s not that I am against them (in fact I’ve written an entire article on the importance of recovery weeks). What you WILL see though, is that if you add up my phases they are 12 weeks (a full 90 days is 13 weeks). So if I feel worn out after a few weeks I will insert a full recovery week with X2 Recovery and Mobility and X2 Yoga. Since my Phase 2 is based on the BEAST Bulk workouts, they are short (less than 30 minutes) so I want to be flexible on when I take my recovery week based on when I feel I need it. Again, I’ll listen to my body and know that I have a recovery week in the bank to use when I need it.
Let me know what you think about my BEAST-Cardio Hybrid. And let me know what you are going to be doing for your next round.
Keep Bringing It!!!!
Need a coach?
My email: coachwayne@teamripped.com
IG: @wayne_wyatt
