The P90X (Power 90 Extreme) is a best-selling home exercise program since it debuted. This is the brainchild of Tony Horton, a popular fitness guru. Below is information about this guy – how he got started in the world of fitness, as well as his other creations.
He was born Anthony Sawyer Horton Jr. In July 2nd, 1958 in Westerly, Rhode Island. After graduating from the University of Rhode Island, he moved to California to pursue his dream to become an actor. However, he grew up loving fast food and hating sports and fitness. During that time, he was told to shape up. It was then that he realized being physically fit is one of the requirements of making it into show business.
What he did was join a famous fitness gym in Venice, California: World Gym. He was so into fitness that he also got information from books and the pros who were attending the same gym. That time, famous bodybuilders such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno frequented the place. But Tony wasn’t a fan of the bulky and non-flexible physique.
Instead, what he wanted was to have an athlete’s body – toned and sleek. He developed his own routines that would help him achieve such fitness goal. He centered at enhancing his endurance, flexibility and balance. Soon enough, his fitness level improved. He began trying his hands on activities like plyometrics, yoga, pilates, inline skating, rock climbing, etc.
It was also during this time that Mark Sisson, an athlete, introduced him to the marvels of interval training. Little did Tony know that all the things he had been learning would soon be the foundations of his ground-breaking home exercise programs in the future. News about transforming himself from gangly to ripped soon spread. Opportunities started knocking on his door in no time.
In the early 1980s, he became an in-demand exercise instructor for many celebrities – from film actors to recording artists. He started writing for many different health and fitness magazines. He became a spokesperson for a popular line of fitness machines. He also hosted a TV show. Additionally, he established his own company: ASH Fitness.
Through a client, Tony met a guy by the name of Carl Daikeler. They became friends and he hired Tony to become his fitness trainer. Later on in 1998, Daikeler established his own company, Beachbody, together with another friend named Jon Congdon. They asked Tony to help them develop an exercise video series, where he is the star. His first line of videos for Beachbody was called Great Body Guaranteed. He made a lot more, including Tony and the Kids, Tony and the Folks, 10 Minute Trainer, Power Half Hour, etc.
But perhaps none is as popular as the Power 90, which was launched way back in 2001. Then a follow up version to it was released in 2004: the P90X or Power 90 Extreme. This home exercise video is designed to last for 90 days, divided into 3 stages. There’s also a matching nutrition plan Tony himself has designed. The principle behind this system is muscle confusion, which keeps the body from reaching the plateau effect.
Tony Horton didn’t just create another in home fitness routine when he invented P90X. He revolutionized the in home fitness and exercise industry by bringing not just what people wanted but what they needed. P90X MC2 being the next in his series will accomplish the same when it delivers the next evolution of muscle confusing exercises.