Workout Update: Job 1-XB Stretch Day 6

For Day 6 I just did the Realign workout in XB stretch, which is a workout that focuses on the lower back, hips, and hamstrings. You will need a towel or a yoga strap to do some of the hamstring stretches and you can use a yoga mat, but that is optional.

Workout Update: Job 1-XB Stretch Day 5

Day 5 was another circuit workout in Job 1, with the body parts being worked being arms, shoulders, and legs. In this workout, you do three blocks again, but in each block, you work each body part with one of the moves. So you will do an arm move, a shoulder move, and a leg move. You repeat the block twice and then move on to the next block in which you do a different arm move, a different shoulder move, and a different leg move. 

XB stretch was the Signature Stretch workout, which is another 15-minute morning workout. This workout does again have some balance work, so you will need a chair or a stool. But otherwise, there is no other equipment required.

Workout Update: Job 1-XB Stretch Day 4

Day 4 of Job 1 was the second cardio workout of the week. This one again has four blocks and you do three moves in each block, so you do 12 total moves.  You do the four moves in each block, then you get a rest, then you repeat the block, rest again, then move onto the next block. This is the workout that you can swap out with a cycling workout if you have a bike. It is definitely not as hard as the HIIT workout was, but it is still challenging. 

In XB, I did the Mobility workout, which was another one of the morning workouts. I decided that I will do all the morning workouts for the week and then in week 2 I will do Restore each night, then switch back. 

Workout Update: Job 1-XB Stretch Day 3

On day 3 of Job 1 you do another circuit workout, this time doing a Chest, Legs, and Core circuit. In this workout, you will use weights for the chest workout, and resistance loops (not bands) for the legs and core workout.  It is another challenging workout, and despite being only 20 minutes long, you will most definitely feel it. And, because the breaks are so short, you are also getting a cardio workout.

For XB stretch, I did the Refresh workout. It is kind of like a yoga workout and kind of like the X-stretch workout in the original P90-X workout. You do not do any Yoga flows, but you do go into downward dog a couple of times.

Workout Update: Job 1-XB Stretch Day 2

Day 2 of Job 1 was a HIIT cardio workout. Like the circuit workout, you do a block, get a rest and then move on. The difference is that each block has just one move. For XB stretch I did Restore, which is the evening workout (and would be the second workout if I was following the program to a t). Restore is good, but it is a bit hard to follow along since there is a move in which you will put your leg on a chair and then partially turn around so you will not be able to see the TV or computer, or whatever you are playing the workout on.  

Workout Update: Job 1-XB Stretch Day 1

 

For this round of workouts, I decided on Job 1 and XB stretch. Job 1 is a five-day workout led by trainer Jennifer Jacobs that includes two circuit workouts and two cardio workouts. One of the cardio workouts is a HIIT workout, and the other is a lower-intensity cardio workout, that you can swap out for a cycling workout if you have a stationary bike. XB stretch is a series of flexibility workouts led by Andrea Rodgers (who looks like Jennifer Garner's sister) that range in length from 5 minutes to 15 minutes. The program is centered around doing two 15-minute workouts per day, but since I am doing Job 1 in the morning, I am just doing one of the stretching workouts in the evening.

Day 1 in Job 1 was a Back, Glutes, and Core circuit workout. Basically, you do three blocks of three exercises, with each block focusing on a single body part. You need three different sets of weights, light, medium, and heavy, and you do each move in the blocks for 30 seconds. So, I would not pick a weight that you would lift to failure because you will be doing about 15 to 20 reps of each exercise. In XB stretch, I did the Energize workout, which is one of the 15-minute workouts, and is meant to be a morning workout to get your body moving and loosened up for the day. 

Each of the workouts seems to be "pandemic era" programs as in Job 1, it is just Jennifer in her gorgeous living room (which incidentally has a staircase that cannot possibly be up to any kind of city or county code) and one of the nicest bookshelf/fireplace combinations I have ever seen. Similarly, Andrea does the stretching workouts in her living room, with a much different backdrop, basically showing the buildings in the city she lives in (I'm guessing either NY or Los Angeles, but I cannot tell). There is no cast in either workout, and while both of them tell you how to modify moves if you need to, you do not have a modifier to follow all the way along with. 1 issue that I have with Job 1 is that there are no workout sheets telling you what moves you will be doing in the circuit workouts or keep track of the weights you are using. And since, the breaks are very short (about 15 seconds between the blocks, and no rest between the individual moves in the blocks), you kind of have to guess at what weight you are going to need. But, overall, I liked day 1 of each program.