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     Many of you have probably seen the infomercial of a fit, muscular man named Tony Horton waxing poetically about his exercise program called P90X. For those of you who do not know what this program is let me explain. P90X is a 90 day, structured exercise program where you workout along with videos 6 days a week in the comfort of your own home. There is also a nutrition plan. The exercises vary from day to day and use such equipment as pull up bars, push up bars, weights and resistance bands. The infomercial show pictures of people before and after they started the program and for some, the transformation is incredible! I can speak to the benefits of this program having done it twice and losing 15 pounds in the process. However, I can also see why I am treating more and more people with P90X related injuries. Some of the exercises are quite difficult for experienced exercisers let alone beginners. Also, some people let their ego get in the way  and do not stop when they are tired or using poor form. They try to keep pace with the people in the video. This is not a realistic goal for first timers. Now, in Tony's defense he does show ways to modify the exercises and encourages people to stop if necessary. However, since you are watching a video there is no way to know if your form is correct 100% of the time because no one else is watching you. Working out with a partner may help.

My advice for most people is to review all the DVD's first and watch for any exercises that you feel may be too difficult for you and make note of the modified versions that Tony mentions. Also expect to be sore the first 2 weeks so do not go too hard too early. I feel that P90X is an excellent training program for experienced exercisers. Beginners will benefit from this program if they start slow and are very careful about there form and listening to their bodies.