Shaun T's FOCUS T25 GAMMA Cycle DVD Workout

T25 Gamma is the third in the series and features 4 workouts all based on getting stronger. They are Speed 3.0 Ript Up, Extreme Circuit, and The Pyramid. You also will need the Stretch workout from the Alpha\Beta phases. There is no double workout on Sundays as there was in Alpha or Beta. Since this phase is about strength, and it's been 10 weeks of cutting and shredding in Alpha and Beta, I work in some free weight work. [Update] In fact there is a second option on Gamma for more strength focus that does include a double workout. The schedule is listed towards the rear of the DVD packaging and incorporates a few of the workouts from the previous phases such as Upper Body, Total Circuit and Dynamic Core. Chances are you're not just jumping into Gamma and you have done Alpha and Beta. But if you are picking this up without doing the previous phases, consider your weights carefully whereas you will burn out after successive exercises and your arms will be like wet noodles by about the 12 minute mark. Overall I believed it noticeably raised the difficulty level from Beta. I went from surpassing Sean T in Beta, on some exercises, to missing some of the repetitions in Gamma the first week. I even mixed in some Insanity Fast and Furious workouts before doing Gamma so it was interesting to see how the difficulty compared. The Fast and Furious workouts will definitely introduce you to some similarities but also remind you during Gamma it could be a lot harder regarding some of the exercises. Also you notice that Tania and Scott are in the Insanity workouts so when you compare yourself to how they are doing just keep in mind they do a lot more a lot longer than 25 minutes. Speed 3.0 is the first workout and it is also the first time, in the 3 phases, that I really felt a true cardio workout in the heart and lungs. All of the other Alpha and Beta cardio and speed related workouts tired out my quads or hip flexors instead. The difficulty was comparable to the Insanity Fast and Furious 15 minute workout. Speed 3.0 uses the same Round and Level format you experienced in Beta but you will go to the floor to perform all sorts of burpees and planks and combination moves. So far I've done this workout three times and I still cannot keep up with Sean T especially near the end when they go through each exercise two times and then just one time. You will sweat early and often. The Ript Up workout reminds me of doing supersets. Although you will start out with some familiar speed and agility style warmup moves, you will soon pickup the weights and use them a lot more than in Alpha or Beta upper body oriented workouts and you will go from one exercise to another of a proximate muscle group before moving onto another muscle group once you've exhausted it. I referenced supersets earlier because although T25 always did this format in other workouts it is the increased use of weights that reminds me of them. This is the first workout that also introduces additional sets of lighter weights for some of the exercises. Everyone uses different weight but as an example I use 15 lb dumbbells plus a lighter 8 lb set for other exercises like weighted superman or rocketman exercises. My wife typically uses 10 lbs and 8 lbs. You optionally may use a chin-up bar for some exercises. If you are using the rubberbands, instead of weights, you should get a chin-up bar else you will do a number of exercises with bare hands such as superman and rocketman. One of the participants uses the chin-up bar so you know when to do it and the camera will briefly focus on him. You will also do a lot of the exercises on one leg such as triceps and curls which take a little getting used to. Extreme Circuit: The description on the packaging for this workout claims the weights will never leave your hands but that is false. You will put them down periodically beginning around 9 minutes left in the workout but you'll soon pick them up again and incorporate them into the ground exercises. You'll even do push-ups and burpees off of the weights. Since you are using the weights, the speed of those types of exercises is not as fast paced as the burpees from some other workouts. This workout is a lot of upper body lifting with some plank walks and burpees mixed into the occasional weighted squat. This workout also includes the burn out phase you are used to from Alpha and Beta workouts. You will use the standard weights you normally use or the optional chin-up bar. There's not much more to say about this one. You're lifting a lot but it is not like the superset style you performed in the Ript Up workout. The Pyramid: The whole premise of this workout is that you build up the difficulty as you go. So if you started with a single repetition, let's say 1 curl, you increment it each time through the exercise. Most of the exercises are performed in repetitions of 8 and sometimes more pending the exercise. This workout is in my opinion the easiest of the 4 and although you will sweat you will not feel as exhausted at the end. You will however feel the effects of the Pyramid in your legs the next workout.

I have been doing T25 Gamma for about a year now so I thought I would share some of my thoughts on the program. If you are unfamiliar with the T25 videos, they are 25 minute exercise programs starring Shaun T. Currently there are three phases to the whole program Alpha, Beta, and Gamma. Alpha and Beta where focused on helping people lose weight without spending too much time out of their lives for exercise; there are no breaks in between the moves, just different ways to modify the current move if you are tired. Gamma flows with the same style but focuses on building muscle. I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed all three programs and that Gamma is an excellent choice for building strength. This set comes with 4 videos: Speed 3.0, Rip't Up, The Pyramid, and Extreme Circuit. I kinda wish there were 5 videos so that there was no repetition in the 5 day workouts. The schedule is set up so that the first and last videos for the week are the same. It's actually an interesting way to measure the progress for that week so I don't think this is a major criticism. This set does not include a dedicated stretch video so make sure you either have the Alpha/Beta stretch video or some other kind of stretching program to do. I enjoyed the program so much I have been repeating it for the past year or so. The workouts were really tough for the first few months. Once you get used to them, or if you are already fit, their difficulty depends on the size of the weights that you train with. I think I started with 10 pound dumbbells, increasing to 15, 20 and 25 once I could handle it. I found the 20 pounds to be the most balanced in terms of what I could do speed/strength wise. Here are some notes on each of the videos: Speed 3.0 - There are no weights in this video. it is the one cardio workout in the set. This is meant to let your muscles rest and lose any potential fat that will hide your muscles. It is pretty tough even after coming out of Alpha and Beta. In the first couple months when your weights are not as heavy, this will probably one of the toughest workouts. I also don't think there were many, if any, modifying moves for this video but it also holds back from crazy plyometrics. Rip't Up - This is the main upper body strengthening workout. There are no repeated moves in this video which is great. 1 min of a move and you carry on. It mostly involves slow and controlled lifting with a little cardio just to fill in the gaps between the strength moves. Smaller 3-5 pound weights are used in the video for a few really tough moves that seem downright impossible with larger dumbbells.The difficulty of this video really depends on the size of your weights. The Pyramid - This to me is the strength/endurance workout. You start with 1 rep of a move, start over again with 2 reps, then 3, then keep building up until Shaun T says the move is over. It's pretty difficult to accomplish an entire set even if you are comfortable with the size of your weights. It's a great workout for building your endurance. This is the only video where you actively count how many lifts you can complete so it's easiest to see your progress. I really like it. Extreme Circuit - Remember how much you feared Total Body Circuit from Alpha? Add weights to it. This workout is brutal. The weights are in your hands 95% of the video. You have the weights in the warm up until the 15 minute mark when you put them down for about 2 moves and then they are right back up. This workout is an intense total body strengthener. It's a great rush when it's over though. You could theoretically start Gamma without Alpha and Beta but I would only recommend that if you were really fit and worked out regularly prior to starting Gamma. Also it was really fun to swap some Alpha/Beta workouts in the mix after repeating the same schedule so many times so I did enjoy having all three. It's been a great experience and I am happy with the results. As I mentioned earlier my dumbbells have gone up about 10-15 pounds heavier. In about my 4th month of Gamma I had lost an extra 30 pounds in addition to the 20 that I lost after Alpha and Beta. It's time for me to move on though. Hopefully my experience with Gamma will be helpful to me in my new endeavors. Thank you T25 for helping me so much this past year.

I love the T25 series, but I have to admit i have mixed feelings on Gamma. I loved the BETA cycle, especially Speed 2.0. I don't feel the same at all about Speed 3.0. On the other hand, I really enjoy the challenging strength workouts of Ript Up and Extreme Circuit. The pyramid is also a really fun workout that goes by fast. Compared to Alpha and Beta, there is a lot less cardio, and much more focus on strength building. You will get the best effects (for men and women) if you lift as heavy as you can. Shawn has you do a lot of repetitions in Extreme Circuit (rather quickly) and Pyramid, so you may end up using a lighter weight than usual. Overall, I don't think you'd see great results if you used only 5 lb weights as they show on some of the gals, because you need to build muscle to burn more calories especially if you're going to lighten up on the cardio. Anyway, Speed 3.0 is super-hard with tons and tons of burpees, which I hate. Every other exercise is a burpee, and since it's structured like Speed 2.0 where you go in rounds and repeat over & over, you will never get away from that dreaded burpee exercise. I also noticed that Tania no longer modifies in Speed 3.0, so if you were hoping for an alternative, there's no getting away. I admit it - I just use Speed 2.0 - the whole idea of the Speed videos is to get your cardio in anyway, and I think Speed 2.0 does just as good of a job. You definitely will want to purchase the original T25 series to go along with this, because my favorite workout calendar combines videos from Beta and Gamma.

Gamma is what you've prepped for in Alpha & Beta. There are four workouts in this DVD collection. Pure Gamma is four weeks long. You could also opt for the Gamma Hybrid, which mixes in workouts from Alpha, Beta , and Gamma, also for four weeks. Speed 3.0 is the aerobic activity of epic proportions. If you're not burning calories in this workout, you need to push harder. Extreme Circuit is a great mix of weight lifting and heart pumping exercises. The Pyramid will take you beyond what you ever thought you could do (think of building super sets one rep at a time). Rip'T Up will challenge you with weights and aerobic moves to get you totally ripped. Remember with weights, to increase the intensity all you have to do is use heavier weights. I'll normally use 15 lb. weights, but some exercises require you to lighten up so I'll use 10 lbs. for those. Of course when doing Superman with weights, 3 lbs. are more than enough. I am not a coach, I'm just working to get and stay in shape. Been working out with Focus T25 since November 2013 and love the convenience, efficiency, and the time it takes to get it done. 25 minutes is all you need. Skip one 30-minute tv show a day and push play. :)

I'm not a BB coach and (obviously) have no incentive to pump this product. People review these workout products like you must keep up with Shaun T step for step or you FAIL. Look, if your heart rate exceeds a safe range or if you get winded, sit out a set. Towel off. Press pause. Follow the low impact steps (Tonya). Go jogging every third day instead of pounding through disc after disc. Anyway, I jumped right into Gamma without spending megabucks on Alpha and Beta. (Oh no, Hobbes! Did your body burst into cosmic dust?!) Gamma is apparently higher intensity than apple and bubba, but I had a pretty good exercise base from which to tackle it. The first time through the DVDs was challenging, and I had to take breaks. A lot of breaks. I "barely made it." However, I found that the second time through the four DVDs was easier and my core was already feeling "tighter" all around. After the second time through I was tempted to start checking "nailed it" on the calendar. I suspect by the third round I will be able to handle all 25 minutes without breaks. In short, if you have a decent fitness foundation, you should feel emboldened to skip the expensive Alpha and Beta set, and go straight to Gamma. I do like the Gamma discs because of the extra focus on strength training, as well as their shorter, 25-minute length. Partly, I just don't like cardio or plyo workouts all that much. I could be the exception, but I like the pushups. Partly, I am using this program for general fitness and weight loss, and strength training, in some circles, is at least as important as cardio. If you haven't already been hammered over the head with this, T25 is just like Insanity, but shorter, and without breaks. Insanity, for the uninitiated is non-stop, fast-paced, high-intensity aerobics and body weight exercises. T25 is just like that, but the aerobics are a little different, not necessarily better or worse. Some of the exercises may be slightly less intense than in Insanity: that is when you get to catch your breath. One thing I should note is that the Gamma routine does not spend a lot of time teaching you the exercises probably because Shaun already did that back in the first two discs. And one or two of the exercises have a little bit of hip-hoppiness to them. I'm not saying that you need break dancing experience, but the rhythmically-challenged may need to stop and watch those sections before attempting them at home. I already mentioned that skipping to the Gamma routine is a lot less money than the alpha beta set, while still pricey enough. However, the downside to not buying the previous discs is that you get fewer discs and therefore less variety. (Thank you, captain obvious). For me, the biggest workout killer is dull, redundant moves. The mental fatigue is just as taxing as the physical. For example, see exhibit A: the Insanity warmups (yes, I'm talking about you, mummy kicks). Fortunately, I have amassed enough of a beach body library that by the time I tire of the Gamma routine, I will start to miss Tony Horton's jokes. They never get old, do they?

I absolutely LOVE this program. LOVE. I started out with Alpha and Beta but moved into Gamma after a week of Beta. After completing the Upper Focus in Beta I realized how much I missed the weight training and immediately jumped into Gamma. I modified the schedule a bit to add in a bit of Alpha and Beta including Ab Intervals, Core Cardio, Lower Focus and Upper Focus. The results I'm seeing are impressive. If you're looking for a solid weight lifting program I'd highly recommend this one. You can't beat 25 minutes a day. Some of the supplements that I've been taking to go along with this program are: • Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey Gold Standard Natural Whey, Vanilla, 5 Pound • NOW Foods EGCg, Green Tea Extract, 400mg, 180 Vcaps • PurePump - Natural Pre-Workout Supplement - Vegan, Non-GMO • Optimum Nutrition Creatine Powder, Unflavored, 600g • Doctor's Best Glucosamine/Chondroitin/MSM, Capsules, 240-Count I originally started out taking a couple different supplements but they included artificial sweeteners and junk like that so I'm trying to move completely over to all natural products. So far so good. This program is tough but awesome. I even look forward to getting home every day so I can work out. Good luck and have fun!

This is a much more challenged workout than T25 Alpha and Beta phase. Those who have been doing Insanity, this will be a great alternative for you if you are short on time and want to incorporate some weight into your routine. Nothing could ever beat Insanity in terms of cardio workout, but Speed 3.0 will be challenging enough, especially when it only takes 25 minutes of your time. I've been working out with T25 Gamma phase for 2+ weeks now. The first week I was sore... now I'm good. However, I know if I stopped doing this regularly, I will be sore getting back to it. The full-body push-up is still a challenge for me and that's what I'm trying to improve. Shaun T loves burpee so there are a lot of that in this phase (usu. a burpee followed by something such as push-up jack, spider lunch, pike-up, ski-ab, plank-walk, kicks, etc.). Most of the time, I use 10-lb dumb-bells or 8lb for tricep - only one move that I have to come down to 5 lb. Once I'm done with the 4 weeks of Gamma, I'll try to incorporate all 3 phases together to get a balanced cardio/weight workout. Focus T25 rocks!

This is a continuation of my prior reviews of Alpha/Beta (which I did 2x each before trying Gamma). I won't rehash any of that here, but it might be helpful to know I have only done Alpha/Beta/Gamma and no other workout videos - Beachbody or otherwise. Gamma has pros and cons, just like Alpha/Beta, and everyone will feel differently about them so I'm just going to present some facts and some of my opinions. Things I consider objective: Gamma is not as tough on the knees as Alpha and Beta. Gamma is much tougher on the shoulders - lots of burpees and things like jack-arm pushups in addition to the weighted lifting. Gamma has more options to customize your exercise - there is Andy on the bands and Tanya "modifying" but everyone else has free weights and Scott goes over to a mounted pull-up bar for some of the exercises. Gamma has much less cardio (save for Speed 3.0) and the majority of the exercises are focused on the upper body, many on smaller muscle groups like bi-ceps and tri-ceps. The major muscle groups like your pecs lack focus, except for the pyramid of pushup (which comes out to 45 in the set). Tanya is there to "modify" but does a lot more of the same exercises as the rest of the group and isn't shown as frequently. My Opinions: Gamma is less tough on the knees because it is focused very much on the upper body and core. I had a trainer once explain that the large muscle groups in your legs (quads, hams, gluts) comprise about 50% of your total muscle mass - so if you're looking to build muscle as a means to burn fat, it makes less sense to neglect these. However, I do feel that this is a good set for working to tone your upper body. Of course if you're still overweight like me, the fat is still covering up the beach muscles so results are harder to notice. Because of the excessive lateral raises, flys, jack pushups etc. my shoulders would be prohibitively sore, more than my knees during Alpha/Beta (when I weighed 20-40lbs more), to where I'd need to take an extra day off after certain Gamma workouts because I was afraid I might actually hurt myself. The extra options to customize, I think, work against me. For instance - some portions have you holding free weights and Andy is just holding the band in his hand. If you only have the band, you aren't moving with the extra weight the rest of the folks are using. I used 20lb freeweights for Beta and could do everything. In Gamma, Shawn uses 15lbs. 30lbs total (or even 40lbs total) makes for a pretty easy weighted squat or deadlift but in moving to tricep press I can't do more than one or two with 20lb in each hand. I found myself doing something like the following: 20lb freeweights shoulder press, squats, "deadlift", burpees Band for triceps, or long sets of bicep curls 2.5lb weights for superman/rocketman pulse That's a lot of changing where one weight doesn't fit all exercises, and the band doesn't either. You can see full slack on the bands for some of Andy's bicep curls - point being if you just have the band you'll definitely miss out on a lot of exercises, but I found I needed the band to complete certain exercises at all. This was true most on Pyramid and Extreme Circuit. Tanya/Modifiers - Tanya doesn't make it that much easier on a lot of these. On the other hand, there are more ways to push yourself more here (using a pullup bar, using heavier feeweights instead of a band). So if you're planning to take the easiest route on T25, I don't think Gamma is your best bet. But if you're trying to push yourself, especially on your upper body/beach muscles there are more variations to choose from here than in either Alpha or Beta. Nit Picking: Speed 3.0 - I have a few issues with. Not for the same reason as other folks here - Burpees are tough but that's what makes them great. There aren't that many of them, and you can always slow your pace a bit or skip one or two if you need to. It's also a bit of a slower pace overall than Speed 2.0. It's overall a great workout - I really like the mix of movement. However, the positioning changes in a way the other exercises don't. In my room I only have the space to do pushups/burpees being parallel to the tv. Shawn and co. do a ton perpendicular to the screen. Not impossible to overcome, but as it moves faster from set to set, I wind up facing away from the tv for about 1/3 of the video to keep up. Also, Marlene annoys the hell out of me. Of all the models of all the videos, nothing irritates me more than her dumb overly energetic bobble head front row weaving around during her moving jabs and her constant screaming and mugging for the camera are just too much for me. Summary: Gamma is the next step, but for me I still need to burn more fat and found Beta a better program for this. The extra strain on my shoulders was more prohibitive than the impact on my knees from the first two rounds. I found myself less motivated for Gamma than Alpha or Beta, and have gone back to Beta which I'm enjoying just as much on my 3rd time through. If I were doing this again, I'd wait longer to make the move to Gamma and would do it more if I was truly bored with Beta and really wanted to focus on smaller upper body muscle groups.

Gr8 fitness DVD Short 25Min workouts, but effective, but you will need the rest of the set, Alpha & Beta, guaranteed get you fit and looking good, Focus its only 25 minutes of your life, as Shun T says.

Love this programme! It’s the best one of the t25s, well worth getting

quick delivery, well packaged, in good order