P90X Diet Review. What You Need to Know.

There are a lot of people who consider the P90X diet to actually be a traditional way to lose weight. It is not. In this review, you’re going to find out exactly how this plan works and if it’s truly something that can benefit you. 

A breakdown of the P90X diet:

This is a supplementary diet that you use in accordance with the P90X workout. There are 3 phases that it consists of which change every 30 days. The overall program lasts for 90 days. With each phase you change the proportions of the food types you eat. While there are limits on what you can/cannot eat, for the most part, this diet is broken down into eating fats/protein/carbs in a specific combination.

Understanding the TRUE purpose of the plan:

One VERY important thing people do not understand about this diet is that its meant to help fuel and build muscle, not provide weight loss. In fact, many times people who start the P90X plan which includes both the workout & diet are shocked to see that they gain weight instead of losing it.

This is actually muscle mass increasing which for the record does not mean bulky. With the P90X program, you get lean results. But the main point here is that muscle weights more than fat and as you go through the program and diet, your body will start to build muscle. This will increase your overall weight and make you look more toned. As for fat, this program is perfect for getting rid of it, but remember you will basically be substituting fat for muscle gain (lean) which means if you see weight gain, don’t worry, it’s a good thing. 

Breaking down each phase of the diet:

Believe it or not, but most of the results you get from P90X will actually come from the diet, NOT the workout so if you’re going to do this program, make absolutely sure you do this diet correctly. Your results depend on it!

Protein, fats & carbs are what will make up nearly 100% of all your foods during the P90X program. Remember there are 3 phases, 30 days long. As you cross each phase, your workout habits will change and the new phase you’ll be following will be designed to fit in with it. So let’s break it down:

1. The first phase is called the Fat Shredder phase.

Usually depending on your starting weight, you’ll be eating anywhere from 2,000-3,000 calories (yep that much!) every single day. Now when it comes to foods, you have to make sure your protein, fats & carbs are within this ratio: 50, 20, 30.

2. The second phase is called Energy booster.

For the most part the same rules apply in terms of daily calories. The only thing that changes here is how you eat the protein, fats & carbs. It’s going to change to 40, 20, 40.  You’re going to eat a little less protein and more carbs here. 

Remember with each phase also comes a new workout phase with P90X. In the second phase, you’re going to pick things up in the workout and focus more on cardio and the increased carb intake will help your body burn more fat prior to and after each workout.

3. The third and last phase is called Endurance Maximizer.

This one is basically the same thing as phase 2, but even more focus than before on carb consumption. Again same rules apply to how many calories you can eat, but when you line up the protein, fat, carb eating proportions, it should look like this: 20, 20, 60.

This means more than half your daily foods will basically be carbs. Keep in mind that you’re also going to be entering the final workout phase of the workout as well and with so many carbs being consumed, you should burn a lot of fat.

Some things to note: Not all carbs are bad, especially if they are eaten at the right times. During the P90X workout a pre & post workout meal is essential for maximizing results and through this plan, you are getting just that. If you don’t see such great results during the first phase, don’t worry, it’s going to show and remember, weight gain with P90X is muscle gain, not fat gain!

Pros: 

• Endorses healthy eating.
• Great suppliment to the workout plan.
• Helps burn  a lot fat (if you complete the workouts as well).
• Great diet for toning up and building muscle (lean).

Cons:

• Not a diet for weight loss! 
• Not ideal for people who don’t intend to do the workout. 
• Might not be suitable for everyone. Consult with a doctor before trying.

P90X diet Score:

2.5 stars out of 5. Pretty solid diet, but only meant to be used with the workout. Not a suitable plan for traditional dieters. See #1 rated diet.

How diets are rated on this website.

Conclusion on the P90X diet:

So many who try P90X do so because they want to lose weight neglecting the fact that this program is not a weight loss program. It is a fat loss program/muscle building program which as you already read will likely make you weight more if you don’t have that much fat to lose to begin with. 

But it’s NOT a bad thing. If you see the before/after pictures of so many who do it, they look absolutely fantastic. But I’d venture to say many of these people probably weight more and that’s only because their muscle mass increased. Muscle mass increase as long as it’s toned is fine to looks sexy, unless bulky is what you’re going for. Either way P90X is mean to get get lean results. If you want to diet in a P90X format, I would recommend doing the paleo diet instead because there are a lot of similarities between them.

As for the subject of the P90X diet, if you’re going to do P90X, do NOT try to limit your calorie intake thinking you’re going to get better results. The workout burns up a lot of calories and this is why you need to supplement the workouts with a lot of food. Some people say the results you get from P90X are anywhere 70%-80% based entirely on the diet! 

Can you do the P90X diet on it’s own without the workout? Yes, but it’s not going to come even close to a short term fix. This diet is designed to work with the workout and vice versa. One without the other will likely get you bad results, unless you hire a personal trainer. 

So if the P90X diet for you? It depends…

If you’re aiming to get into shape, tone up, do the P90X program with the diet. 

If you just want to lose weight, this is not the diet for you. I recommend this program instead.

So many people do P90X because they believe it’s a weight loss program and that’s the biggest misconception about it. The diet plan isn’t really a traditional diet either. It’s just an eating plan. 

I hope this review of the P90X has better helped you understand if it’s for you! You can always leave any questions/comments below if you like.