Rev Abs Review: Phase 1

I completed the first 45 days of Rev Abs this past week and have been very pleased with the progress I have made and with the program thus far. So far, I have lost 6 pounds and am down to a new all-time adult low of 190 pounds. The definition in my abs has really started to show and the body fat around my midsection is disappearing rapidly. My diet has been solid.  After the first 14 days I have strayed a little off of the specific meals in the nutrition plan but I have been very strict on keeping my carb intake low, and consuming lots of lean protein and veggies. I have also been consistently taking my Shakeology daily, and using the P90X Results and Recovery Formula after every workout to reduce next day soreness.

I haven’t become bored or annoyed with any of the workouts which I have experienced in the past. The shorter time commitment has taken away any excuses I may have in terms of time to work out.  I am still impressed with the physical changes I have been able to make with workouts no longer than 45 minutes. I was seriously skeptical at the beginning of this but am really excited to see what challenges await in Phase 2.

In Phase 2, I plan to make a better commitment to my water intake and my hours of sleep as I believe those two things will increase my results dramatically. I’ll be posting pictures and stats from day 1-45 in the next few days and will post a Phase 2 review after day 90.

Have you been using Rev Abs? I’d love to hear your impressions of it so leave a comment!

Rev Abs Review: The First 14 Days

I purchased the Rev Abs program after hearing a Beachbody training call with Brett Hoebel and the principles behind the program. First of all, this program is not just abs. It’s strength training, cardio, and ab work. He has a great technique called abcentrics for getting you to “fire your abs” every move of every workout. I figured if this program could help me develop defined abs then it would be really amazing. Having just finished Insanity I was unsure how much I would get out of this program but after only 14 days I am already getting nice results. Here’s how the first 14 days work.

Eat Right: I used the 14 day quick start meal guide almost to the letter. This consisted of 5 meals per day specifically including protein and lots of veggies. For this part of the program fruit is almost omitted completely as well as carbohydrates.  I thought this would be much more difficult than it was. The meals are small but satisfying and every time I was hungry it was usually time for me to eat my next meal anyway. The meal plan takes some planning, just like any other meal plan, but once you learn which meals travel well it gets easier to be on the go and stay true to the schedule.  Here is what a typical day looked like (there are many options these are simply the ones I chose to use)

Meal #1 Mexican Scramble (5 egg whites scrambled, top with 3-4 tbsp salsa and ½ avocado)

Meal #2/ Snack Blues Buster Shakeology (Frozen blackberries+ blueberries, 1tbsp Low fat Blueberry yogurt, 1 scoop Greenberry Shakeology, ¾ cup water, ice to taste in blender)

Meal #3 Southwest Turkey Burger (3oz ground turkey 2tbsp salsa, serve over mixed greens cucumber and onion)

Meal #4/ Snack  4oz. Turkey lunchmeat wrapped around cucumber spears, dip in 1 Tbsp light vinaigrette dressing.

Meal #5 Grilled sirloin (4 oz.)  served over Spinach salad with tomato and onion.

The workout regime is simple. There are two phases to the program lasting 45 day each. You workout six days a week, and no workout in Phase 1 is longer than 45 minutes. I am following the workout calendar and using the first 4 workouts of the program as prescribed. The four workouts are:

Total Strength: Strength training, including pushups, lunges, squats and boxing all help you get stronger and boost your metabolism.

Fire Up Your Abs: Brett’s six pack moves, plus intervals of explosive cardio.

Power Intervals: This session alternates cardio with lower body sculpting exercises to blast fat and burn calories. This is a fast paced workout that really feels like it’s over before you know it!

Mercy Abs: 15 minutes of serious abdominal work.  Brett works your abs from 6 different angles in this workout and it gets progressively more difficult each of the three rounds.

I will post another Rev Abs blog at the end of Phase 1.