Hammer And Chisel - Review
The Masters Hammer & Chisel is a new strength training workout designed to provide you strength gains while reducing weight & body fat to keep you lean and athletic. The workout was designed by trainers Sagi Kalev (Body Beast), and Autumn Calabrese (21 Day Fix/21 Day Fix Extreme).
Ive done a few rounds of Body Beast, and absolutely loved that program. When Beachbody announced that they were combining trainers for the first time to produce a workout designed for the exact type of results I wanted, I was elated. I HAD to get this program.
The primary schedule of the program is a hybrid of body Hammer workouts (strength training wtih more heavy weights) and Chisel workouts (more cardio-like with lower weights and higher rep sets). Basically it is a rotation of days, very rarely do you workout with the same trainer on back to back days. There is also a 30-day Hammer schedule, and a 30-day Chisel schedule if you just want to do those wokrouts.
THE WORKOUTS:
The workouts themselves were awesome. In Body Beast, it was close to traditional weight lifting/body building where you work a single body part, or muscle groups, each day. The workouts for Hammer & Chisel were nothing like that. There was no "Chest Day", or "Back Day". The main focus of the workouts was the major muscle groups (back, chest, and let's not forget legs... They didn't). Why those groups? They are the largest muscle groups in the body, and they burn the most calories. You didn't focus on biceps, triceps, shoulders as much because they are supportive groups, and can get worked doing other moves. Just as a warning, EVERY DAY IS LEG DAY in Hammer & Chisel. The same goes for the Chisel workouts, they were very similarly to 21 Day Fix, but Autumn managed to push the envelope a bit harder. Quite a few times I found myself lying in a puddle of my own sweat.
THE MEAL PLAN:
The meal plan was simple, and it followed the 21 Day Fix portion control system. The calorie calculation was simple, and I felt it was right on. It gave me enough calories to stay energized throughout the workouts and get the results I was working towards. Never did I feel sluggish, or just tired.
There are 6 Calorie ranges in the meal plan, A-F. Once you calculate your needs, you will identify your calorie group,. That group will have the number of each container you need to eat each day. Then, just as with other programs, you eat and do the workouts. The containers seem small, but they are not by any means.
RESUTLS:
So, let's talk results. How did I do?
Starting Stats:
Weight: 233.9
Body Fat %: 21.4
Chest: 42in
Waist: 41.5in
Thighs: 25in each
Ending Stats:
Weight: 225.1
Body Fat %: 20.3
Chest: 40.5in
Waist: 38.5in
Thighs: 24in each
OVERALL:
Honestly, I am very pleased with those results. The scale went down, the tape went down, but my strength gains went way up. You can't get mad after 60 days. Now, if this was a 6-month program, yeah, but not 60-days.
