9 Week Control Freak Off the Wall Review

It’s done! I completed the 9 Week Control Freak “Off the Wall” workout program through Beachbody On Demand. Woohoo!

I wanted to try the regular 9 Week Control Freak but didn’t want to buy the control track without knowing if I’d like the program. So I figured, why not try out “Off the Wall” first?

It’s an Autumn Calabrese program so I anticipated getting motivated and my butt kicked at the same time. She delivered!

Here’s the breakdown of “Off the Wall” basics:

• It’s led by creator Autumn Calabrese
• Unlike the original 9 Week Control Freak, the only equipment you need for Off the Wall is a few pairs of weights (light, medium, heavy) and a yoga mat.
• The 9 weeks are broken up into 3 phases, 3 weeks per phase.
• Each week has 5 workouts and 2 rest days (so 15 unique workouts) that you repeat 3 times each.
• You can stream the workouts from anywhere through Beachbody On-Demand.
• Workouts are between 23 to 33 minutes each.
• For most moves, there is a modified version, but not necessarily always low impact.

Everything above you can learn online. If you know you want to get started but might need some equipment, start here:

Below is my honest review and feedback of 9 Week Control Freak Off the Wall after going through the entire program. Here’s a quick peek of how I felt during most of these workouts:

PROS

• Autumn makes the most of every minute. Even the shorter workouts, she gets your heart rate up quickly!
• These workouts are efficient. When your legs need a break, she works on your core, etc. Most moves work multiple muscles at one time and there isn’t a lot of downtime.
• Most of the workouts have a time element where you push yourself. For example, see how many rounds of these 5 moves you can do in 12 minutes.
• When repeating the workouts the second and third times, I challenged myself to increase weights or reps when I could. By the 9th week, I was using my bowflex weights for 17.5 and 20 lbs!
• I love that they provide tracking sheets so I can see my progress over the program.
• During the workouts, Autumn provides a lot of motivation and inspiration, but it feels genuine and true to the workouts. It sometimes feels like therapy. No really, I liked it so much I write down her quotes that inspired me »
• She incorporates warm-ups and stretching every workout.
• Autumn gives good instruction on how to do moves and continues giving guidance, addressing corrections or how to get your heartrate down.
• She tells you how much she’s lifting and then gives you the opportunity to try a few slow reps before starting, which helped me pick correct weights and check form.
• The clock on the screen was great! It wasn’t confusing (like in some workout programs) and was super helpful. She even called out one minute left on the density rounds.
• She encourages you to take true rest days.

I suggest also investing in a good fan, and if you work out on a hard floor like me, invest in some extra padding like my floor mat foam tiles. Those were two pros in my arsenal.

CONS

• Whoever made the tracking sheets had horrible attention to detail or these were made before filming and weren’t updated for last-minute changes. Not a huge deal but a bit confusing, especially in the 3rd phase.
• Typically I use my rest days to get in a Peloton bike ride or go running, but Autumn specifically tells you that you have to rest on rest days. I had a hard time with this and really missed my miscellaneous exercise days.
• Since I needed a variety of weights, I couldn’t easily take this program on vacation.
• She incorporates multiple rounds of Tabata, which is only a “con” because it’s REALLY HARD! (Tabata = 20 seconds on, 10 seconds off for 4 minutes)
• Along those same lines, whew, this program has a lot of burpees!
• In at least 3 different workouts, Autumn mentions that she’s moving slower because she’s talking through it all. I’m sure she’s self-conscious about it, but if she hadn’t said anything, I wouldn’t have noticed at all. She’s human and fabulous.
• Each phase has the same warm-ups. 15 workouts that start with the same warm-ups got very repetitive and boring. It is similar in 80 Day Obsession though.

The program provides controlled stretches every evening. They’re about 10 minutes each, I think. To be honest, I only did them one time. My evenings are so busy that I never remembered!! But if I had the time to do extra stretching, I think it would’ve been really beneficial. But it is extra time I didn’t account for.

My Off the Wall Results

I started 9 Week Control Freak at the end of July and finished at the end of October. So, it took me 3 months to complete it. But, I had to pause this program for two different vacations and frequently added in a run or bike day when I felt I needed it.

Halfway through the program, I went to get a haircut and my hairstylist commented that my arms looked good and strong. Whaaat? Who doesn’t love that!

Would I do it again? Absolutely. Except now I am psyched to try 9 Week Control Freak. I bought my control track and am ready to start soon!

If you want to try 9 Week Control Freak too but don’t know what it is, click on the links in this post and they’ll provide you more information on how to get started.

Have you ever tried 9 Week Control Freak, either version, or have thought about trying it? What are your thoughts, comments or questions? I’d love to hear your feedback below!