That is the classic question. Which is better, Tony Horton and his new P90X system, or Shaun T and his truly daunting INSANITY workout? Both are touted as very intense, only for old and conditioned athletes. Both the products give you exceptional results if you follow their guidelines closely and use them the way they should be used. But how should you choose between the products? Do you feel like going for Tony Hortons 90 day body transformation, or Shaun Ts 60 day cardio madness? Is one of them simply better than the other? The answer, as you might have had a sneaking suspicion, is that it totally depends on your own fitness goals. In this article well take a look at what each program provides, and see which style of exercise suits your own personalized needs. Because while each is truly a challenging workout, theyre tough for their own particular reasons, and its important to know why before making a choice.

Lets start the argument from the beginning. Before looking at both the products, you need to think a little about yourself. What do you really want to accomplish from those products? What do you think are your fitness goals? Is your primary goal related to losing weight, or bulking up with some muscle? Do you enjoy extreme cardio, or simply hate it? What about free weights and doing pull ups? Of course in an ideal world you would be able to accomplish every fitness goal you could put on paper, but here you have to be realistic. What is your number one goal?

That determined, lets look at the programs. Shaun Ts INSANITY is so called because he strives to keep you in your anaerobic zone for extended periods of time while giving you short short breaks inbetween. INSANITY is all gut wrenching cardio, where you use your own weight as the primary form of resistance. But lets be clear: the key word up there was anaerobic. Shaun T doesnt want you to cruise through his workout at 65% effort, but rather 85% +. When exercising this hard you wont be getting enough oxygen to comfortably break down fat for energy as you would over the course of a 45 minute leisurely jog”youre forced to break down your own body tissue to keep going once youve exhausted your supply of blood sugar. Then, over the course of the rest of the day and that night your body will repair itself, resulting in more lean muscle tissue, greater health and less weight. But its hard. For this to work, you need to operate at 85% + effort level, which few people can do for more than six minutes. Shaun T will ask you to do so for thirty minutes to an hour. Can you handle that kind of cardio?

Conversely, Tony Hortons P90X will challenge you in terms of strength training. While Tonys workout includes cardio and plyometrics (jump based routines), there is a strong focus on weight resistance training, from pull ups to free weights. Youll be breaking down the muscle tissue in the classic manner, which will not only help burn fat but result in muscle growth. You will not only fitter but stronger, and your appearance at the end of it will reflect that.

Finally you have the time consideration. INSANITY is 60 days. P90X is 90. How much are you willing to commit to one of these programs? Are you willing to go at it for the long haul, or do you want a shorter exercise period?

Extreme cardio versus strength training. Theres plenty of overlap, with both generating extreme body transformations if done correctly, but in the end its a matter of style and taste. Do you want to bulk up some while shedding weight and developing athletic potential? Then P90X is for you. Do you want to burn fat so fast it melts right off you, leaving you leaner and ripped as a result of tons of sweat drenching exercises? Then Shaun Ts INSANITY is just right for you. But remember: the most important part of this decision is not only knowing your own fitness goals, but undertaking either of these at-home workouts with utter dedication and awareness of your own bodys limits. If you do that, than both of them will give you the incredible results you desire.