I have really enjoyed the Beachbody.com at-home exercise programs. I started with the Power 90 Fat Burner Express fifteen months ago and aside from a few detours with kettlebells never looked back. I have to say, working out at home with Tony Horton and his minions has done more for my body than personal trainers, strength coaches, and mind-numbing laps in the pool ever did.

The biggest reason is consistency. Most of the Beachbody.com workouts are forty-five minutes or less; the majority of those still are thirty minutes or under. It’s hard to skip a day when one could easily spend thirty minutes browsing a Web site, watching television, or playing a video game. If you have time to complain about not working out, you have time to actually work out.

Lately I’ve gone back to the original P90 Basic routine. It’s considered the foundation series for other workouts I own, like the Power Half Hour or the Great Body program. I’m all the way at the starter pair, Phase 1 (cardio and abs) and Phase 2 (strength). This time, however, I’m doing things a little differently.

The first change is I’m doing them with someone. Sedagive? has been a brave trooper through over three weeks of P90 Basic workouts. Even though she was trim and in good shape to begin with, she no longer has to stop in between exercises. She’s even motivated me to get up from the computer to work out a few times. Working out with someone makes a huge difference. It’s more fun, less monotonous, and having someone to suffer through the routine is a big boost.

The second thing I’m doing is breaking away from the pace of the standard program. Typically there’s a standard move, an advanced move, and an alternate move. The alternate move tends to be for those with a prior injury or who are too tired to do the standard move. The advanced move might feature a longer/deeper range of motion, or a faster pace.

I’m doing those things, in addition to throwing some other shit on. I’ve used hand weights a few times for the low-impact cardio component of Phase 1. I am doing the lunges and squats with forty pounds of weight. Instead of pacing my jab-cross combination in Phase 1, I’m punching at 80% speed for each thirty second drill.

I was concerned about “starting over” so to speak, but doing the P90 Basic routine with a partner and pushing myself beyond the advanced moves has made it feel like a new routine. Especially in the morning, when my muscles are sore :) I’m not sure if that will be enough to keep my attention another 75 sessions, but for now I am happy to be back to basics.