Insanity Asylum Gameday – Review

This post is a review on the workout video Insanity Asylum Gameday.

Insanity Asylum Gameday

If you are new to the Insanity Asylum series then welcome.  If you are new to working out, then this is NOT the video you need to start out with. The premise of the Asylum series is that you already have a good foundation to work from, and you are in decent shape. If you are not in decent shape already, then you should start out with the regular “Insanity” videos to build up your foundation. Think of it as trying to jump straight into a level 4 of “extra hard” Chinese calculus, when you barely passed pre-algebra last semester – you will get swallowed whole. If you are in decent shape, then you WILL have fun on this workout.

Insanity Asylum Gameday

Tools Needed:

• Agility Ladder
• Chin-up Bar

The only thing you really need to know about this workout is IT IS BLEEDING HARD. About 45 minutes into the workout I was pretty much done. The last few minutes of the workout, I had to seriously DIG DEEPER.

The premise of the Gameday workout is preparing yourself in training for whatever sport you train for. No, this is not a sport specific workout, but more of a cross train between several different sports.

The video is structured just like the majority of the other Insanity workouts: Warm-up, stretch, workout, stretch.

Warmup:

In & Out Agility – Using your agility ladder, you will simply high knee (both legs) “in and out” between the rungs of the agility ladder. Starting on the left side of the agility ladder, high knee up the ladder and tap your right foot inside and outside the rungs of the ladder as you are moving forward and backwards up your agility ladder. Half way through the exercise switch to the right side of the ladder.

Agility Split Squat Touch – Starting out standing behind your agility ladder, you are going to switch kick your feet in between one box of your agility ladder, every time one of your feet touches inside the box, you will do a squat so that both your hands will also touch inside that same box. When both legs have touched inside the box, move up and down the ladder for the allotted time period.

Agility Dual Hop w/Jump – I believe we did these in a previous Asylum video. Starting on one end of your agility ladder use both legs to hop between the rungs of the ladder, on the last jump do a tuck jump (Jump extra high and bring your knees to hip height) lastly run back to the top end of your ladder and start over again (Land softly, so you don’t jack up your knees!).

End of Warm-Up! No don’t run through it again or any of that, this is by far and away the shortest “warm-up” of any of the Insanity videos. In the past I have ranted about how the warm-up routines are way too long, and this one is perfect! Finally! Going crazy for a warm-up has never been my style, this was more than sufficient.

Stretch – Again if you need to know what the stretches are, go get the video! The key is the do both dynamic and isometric stretches, and make sure you stretch your whole body as you will be using almost every muscle in your body for this routine.

Insanity Asylum Gameday

1 Mile Race – Since we are indoors this will be a “stationary” 1-mile race, total oxymoron I know.

• Flat Run High Knees – High knees, High knees, High knees. Keep your knees up for the allotted time period. Don’t half ass it either. You are looking for speed since you are in a flat.
• Up Hill Climb – Coming out of your high knees, we will now transition into more of a power high knee, the pace has slowed down and you are powering your way “up the hill”. This portion is slower and more controlled. Be sure you are using your arms just like your high school track coach told you! This is the ‘easy’ hill.
• Down Hill Butt Kicks – These are fast butt kicks. That is all. Speed, Speed, Speed.
• Steep Hill Climb – Transitioning out of your butt kicks put one hand on the ground and start doing your mountain climbers on one hand, while pumping your arms with the other. *Pull your knees into your chest*, Halfway through switch your supporting arm.
• Flat run high knees – Yep, we start the sequence again. This better be hard!
• Sprint to finish – Yes, I was kidding.  Now go for broke and sprint to the end.

Water Break

100 Meter Agility Dash – Break out your agility ladder again. There are 3 positions in this exercise as follows:

• Start at the end of the ladder on the side of the ladder. You will be moving sideways down the ladder.
• Your mark: You are in a sprinters “mark” position – Hands at the base of your ladder, chest down, one knee at your chest and your other leg underneath you.
• Get Set: From position #1 rise up to a sprinter “set” position.
• Go:  Jump up and “split” your agility ladder. By splitting your ladder you are simply doing a wide feet exercise. Using 4 ladder boxes (2 for each leg) jump in-in-out-out…
• On queue: repeat the sequence – Yes, you won’t know what the queue is if you do not buy the video. Yep I like free stuff just as much as the next guy, but everything is not free these days.
• Between sets switch your power leg.

Insanity Asylum Gameday

Competitive Long Jump – Still in the track and field section of this workout. Start out by standing at one end of your agility ladder, the length of the ladder in front of you.

• Set: This time instead of going on the ground, get into a marathoners “mark” position.
• Run up – Here you are doing some quick sprints.
• Jump – Now jump over the whole ladder as if you were an Olympic long jumper (go watch some youtube videos if you need a refresher). And sprint back to the staring position into your “mark” position. Halfway through change your power leg.

Water Break

Basketball

Fake-out layup – Start out as if you are grabbing a basketball off the ground (in an actual game of basketball).  Using your right foot as a pivot leg, fake-out your opponent by staying in the down position and pivot to your right. Now quickly pivot back and do a layup (over your agility ladder) using your same left leg and left arm as your power leg. The sequence is as follows:

• Ball – Down position
• Fake – Fake-out
• Fake – Fake-out
• Then immediately go into a layup.
• Halfway through switch pivot legs.
• Be sure to keep your butt down.

Daikler Jump Shot – Daikler, or Carl Daikler is the president of Beachbody and Beachbody is the maker of these videos.

• This exercise is pretty simple. Grasp the ball off the ground, then jump up and hit a 3 pointer, just be sure you follow through on your jump shot. Try for 20 on both your left and right hands.

Water Break

Mounted Matt Maneuver – This is somewhat of a complex exercise.  Your best bet is to watch the video and take it from there.

Water Break

Soccer

Soccer Kicks – Starting from sprinters position like we did earlier, now run up a couple steps and kick the goal, the goal here is to kick  as high as you can (with your legs straight) and touch your hand. Now go back and do it again, this time kick two goals before starting again, continue this routine for eight kicks.

Juggle – Now you are juggling the soccer ball, volleying the ball between both knees and both toes, just like you would kick a hacky sack. Bring your knees and toes to your hands (which are at hip height).

• Soccer Kicks – Other leg and other hand
• Juggle – Don’t stop keep moving!

Water Break

Tennis

Forehand / Backhand – Break out your agility ladder again. Starting at the left end of your ladder with your imaginary tennis racket in your right hand, tip toe to the right between the boxes, until your right leg is outside the box then forehand the ball, now tiptoe to the other end of the ladder, until your left leg is outside the box then backhand the tennis ball. Repeat this for the allotted time period. *Be sure you are getting low when you are hitting the ball.

Volley / Overhead – Starting at the back end of your agility ladder, tiptoe through the rungs of the ladder, at the end of the ladder jump your feet so they are outside the ladder now do a quick forehand and backhand, now shuffle back with your feet still on the outside of your agility ladder (you are facing forward the whole time) when you get to the back end of your ladder, jump up and overhead the tennis ball. Rinse and repeat. Halfway through change your power hand and leg.

Water Break

Speed skating – Start out by folding your ladder in half so now you have just 2 boxes. Now follow this sequence:

Speed Skating Sprint

• Skaters on your mark – This is your position number one. Your upper body is bent over your agility ladder, your right leg is extended, your right arm is touching inside the left box and your left arm is behind you.
• Go – In this position, switch your arms and legs, and go as fast as you possibly can.
• Coast – On queue you step over your agility ladder and start the speed skate sequence (the same thing just don’t use your arms to touch the floor)
• Repeat Speed Skating Sprint

Water Break

Swimming

100 Meter Breast Stroke – This is a vicious way to do your lower back superman’s. Start out by sitting on your calves then follow the sequence below:

• Swimmers on your marks – Drop down so you are now on all fours.
• Get set – Drop to your stomach
• Go – Now both flutter kick and do a complete breast stroke, meaning your arms will do complete half circles and touch both in front of your head and behind your back. You are shooting for speed at this point. Focus on the muscles in your back.
• Coast  – After the specified time, stop flutter kicking (but keep your legs up and in a isometric hold) and only use your arms to get through the water.
• Sprint – After the specified time, start your flutter kicking again. Your arms never stop moving.

Water Break

Surfing – Yep surfing, this is probably the ‘funnest’ exercise of the whole workout. You start out on your stomach. Then follow the sequence below:

• Paddle – On queue start your freestyle swimmers stroke.
• Wave – On queue jump up as quickly as you can into your best surfers pose, and ride the wave, the ocean is not still so actually ride the wave.
• Keep repeating on queue.
• Halfway through change directions you are facing, if you were facing to your right side, then switch it up.

Water Break

Football – Open up your ladder again, it’s time for some more pain.

Lineman’s Drill – Think like an NFL lineman for this drill. Start out by standing behind your agility ladder, and then follow the sequence below:

• Asylum are you ready? – Get down in a lineman’s ready position.
• Hike – Fast feet with your arms up.
• Turn Right – Pivot your body and continue to fast feet to your right.
• Center – Continue to fast feet back to your start position.
• Turn Left – Pivot your body and continue to fast feet to your left.
• Center – Continue to fast feet back to your start position.
• Rush the quarterback – Jump back and forward over your agility ladder and push the quarterback out at the same time.
• Shuffle – Shuffle back and forth in a low squat on your agility ladder and touch each end with both hands.
• Repeat the random sequence “x” number of times on queue.

Rock Climbing – Once again fold your ladder in half so you have 2 boxes again

Mountain Climber Jacks – From a plank position jump your feet in and out of the ladder rungs moving forward and aft of the boxes. Keep your butt out of the air. Remember form is better than reps…ALWAYS.

Rock Climbing Switch – Run to your chin up bar and do a rock climbers pull up in the following sequence

• Under – In the up position, one hand is under the pull-up bar as if you are doing a bicep pull-up
• Under- Now both hands are under.
• Neutral – One hand is at a neutral grip.
• Neutral – The other hand is at a neutral grip.
• Down/Up – Do a regular pull with your neutral grip.

**Alternative to the Rock Climbing Switch = Alternating Lat Push-Up**

These are the side-to-side lat push-ups that we have done in other Insanity videos.

Water Break

Rock Climbing Push-Up – These are similar to the Mountain Climbing Jacks you just did; however, you are adding a triceps-push up at every feet switch position.

• Rock Climbing Switch – Yep again. Only this time you are staying in the ‘up’ position for the full 2 minutes. ** If you are doing the push-ups as the alternative, do single leg alternating lat push-ups.

Water Break

Baseball

The Pitch – This is a very intentional and fluid motion. Starting out as if you are going to pitch a real baseball, when you release the ball continue to drop down into a mountain climber position and switch pitching legs, rise up and pitch once again with the opposite arm. Remember this is a fluid and controlled movement. Continue for the allotted time period.

Batter Up – Jump, swing and hit the ball while you are in the air, follow through when you hit the ball so that when you land you will be hitting the ball from the other side. The goal is to hit the ball 50x, or 50 home runs.

Water Break

Stretch – Very important as always!

Finished

This workout was probably the longest workout of the series thus far. Even though this is one of my longest reviews of the whole series, I don’t think it was the hardest. But overall it was a very good workout. I think that some of the exercises could have been taken out as they seemed more like time fillers than actually being a part of the workout.

Anyway, I give this work out a 4.5 out of 5 Charles Faces.

This concludes my post on the review of Insanity Asylum Gameday.