As you may know, I am a big fan of Tony Horton. He is just the right mix of goofy, funny, knowledgeable, and fit for me to enjoy spending a lot of time with him, even if it’s just via DVD.
I subscribed to Tony Horton’s One-On-One DVDs almost as soon as I had finished P90X, because I knew I wanted to continue with this kind of fitness plan, and I also knew that I get bored pretty quickly, so a new DVD every month is a great way to change things up.
Some of the One-On-One DVDs are better than others, so I thought I would offer my opinion on the ones I have. I’ll begin with one of my favorites, Vol. 3, No. 3: “Shoulders and Arms”.
Volume 3 of One-On-One is a departure from the first two volumes, because in volume 3, Tony is testing his reaction to routines he’s developing for the new P90X that will come out sometime in the next year or so.
(I can’t wait for that. If you haven’t done P90X, don’t wait for the new one. You’ll get through the first, then want to buy the new one anyway. Plus, really? You are going to put off getting into the best shape of your life?)
This “Shoulders and Arms” routine, as I said, is one of my favorites.
It consists of a total of 24 sets, with 8 moves done 3 times each. We do two moves, the same two again, the same two again, then move to the next two, and so on.
The design of this workout is pretty ingenious.
We start by working shoulders with Pike Presses and Alternating Arnold Presses. These are heavy weight moves that will really wear the muscles out. Next up, though, we continue with shoulders, but with more precise, fine tuning, and much lighter weight, with 6-Position Flyes and Posterior Delt Flyes. These light-weight moves help to focus directly on the shoulder muscles, especially the Posterior Delt move, which hits an often ignored muscle.
The same principles apply then for the second half of the routine, which has us doing heavy Seated Biceps Curls and Triceps Bench Presses, followed by lighter weight Crazy 8s and Alternating Triceps Kickbacks. Heavy, then light.
The routine lasts 58 minutes and the pump I get in my biceps and triceps lets me know it is working. The day after a shoulders workout, I always hope to have some soreness in my traps, because I really need help there, and I have to admit, I don’t get that much here. I should perhaps add some Upright Rows.
However, I applaud this routine as a fun — despite the triplication of the moves — and quite effective in working the target areas. It seems to go by faster than the hour it takes, and leaves my muscles worn out.
I give One-On-One “Shoulders and Arms” 4.5 out of 5.