I have an admission...I am cheating on my beloved Tapout XT fitness program!
Although I still think Tapout XT is super awesome, I had grown bored of it...something that happens to me frequently. There is a second edition, but it is not yet available in Canada. So when I was at the mall a few weeks ago with the girls and spied the UFC Fit program, I decided to take a risk and check it out.
Oh man! I have fallen in love all over again! Honestly, I think this program is even harder!! I also like how its organized. Each workout has a set number of rounds and exercises in each round. You do each exercise twice, for 30 seconds at a time. Its essentially HIIT training, with a mix of strength, cardio and MMA exercises. So much fun!
I will warn you that there is a ton of level change exercises (BJJ get ups, burpees, sprawls, etc.) including going right from lying on your back to standing quickly, so if you have back or neck problems, this probably isn't the program for you.
While Tapout XT has more of a focus on upper body (punches and strikes), there is far more kicking in this series. The one drawback is that it utilizes weights instead of bands so it isn't as good for travelling. Due to all the rolling stuff, you also don't want to be doing it on a hard floor, which is why they sell a rubber mat you can buy. Truthfully, however, you can probably get a similar thing for cheaper through Amazon, or at a local fitness equipment store.
Its a good value with 12 DVDs, and has a program and nutrition guide too, if you are interested in that (I'm not).
The workouts are led by Mike Dolce, a UFC trainer. He's got a weird, robot-like way of talking, but because I love the workouts so much, it doesn't bother me. His participants are all 'industry' folks. Not necessarily the champion fighters he name-drops, but others from the MMA world, as well as dancers, stunt doubles and other entertainment people who are ridiculously fit and beautiful. These super men and women will either inspire you, or piss you off because they set the bar so high. In Tapout XT, by contrast, MMA fighters are mixed in with ordinary folks like you and I.
One thing I'll warn is that the titles of the DVDs can be a bit misleading. For example, Power Punch focuses a lot on core, Grapple Strength is all weight training, and no fight moves, and Fat Fighter, Plyo Shred and Cardio Cross Training contain the most MMA-inspired moves.
I don't recommend this program if you are completely unconditioned, or, as I said, if you have some sort of musculoskeletal injury, but if you are already fairly fit and looking for something challenging and fun, you totally want to check this out.
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