I have fallen off of the face of the planet when it comes to my blog. But I AM still doing P90X. And loving it. I am on Week 6, which is the 2nd phase. I had to skip yesterday because I am sick. But I am hoping, still not absolutely sure, but hoping to start again tonight. I worked out on Monday doing Core Synergistics and I was excited to find that I can do more than I have been able to in the past.
I am going to get back into the swing of the blog in the next few days. I have found it hard to do both. Very time consuming. But I miss the blog, and I was encouraged to see how many of you were reading it. As well as being encouraged by it.
So look for updates over the next few days!!
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Week 2
Week 2
Day 8 - Core Synergistics
Still hard the second time around, but I was able to do more of the exercises. I still really hate the Superman/Banana (visualize laying on the floor flying like Superman and then flipping over on your back and being shaped like a banana, SUPER HARD if you have a weak core). It was actually during this move that I realized I had tweaked my hip flexor on Saturday.
I didn't use any weights this time. Only because they were upstairs and I was too lazy to push pause and go get them. But I will definitely be using weights in the future. This workout is such a great chance to work your entire body while focusing on your core. I really felt like I gypped myself by not having weights...but then again, I didn't feel too badly about it.
Day 9 - Cardio X
Still loving this exercise. I like sweating away all the "grit/grime and gristle" as Tony says. And with the combination of the Yoga, Plyometrics, and Kenpo, it keeps you moving and changing things up. It makes the 45 minutes fly by.
Plug here. I have been drinking the "Recovery Drinks" or protein powder you can buy at Walmart. I always associated these drinks with men who wanted to build muscle. But I saw in the "How to Bring It" starter DVD that for about an hour after you do a hard workout, your body is primed to receive nutrients. And those drinks help to repair the muscle fibers and stabilize your metabolism. Plus it gives you a few extra calories. Let's face it, it is hard to keep your calories up when you are eating the right foods and exercising. Keeping the calories up is key, otherwise your body goes into starvation mode and stores everything you take in as fat. Do NOT want that.
Day 10 - Shoulders and Arms; Ab Ripper X
Last week I did shoulders and arms with 5 pound free weights. I know I know, you think 5 pittily pounds, but I was afraid I would get too bulky. However, I quickly realized 5 pounds was not enough weight. So I bought some resistance bands. I like them because they are harder, but I do not like them because they limit my range of motion and kept giving me an indian burn on my legs and outer arms. Plus I am a little scared they are going to pop up and hit me in the face. So they will take a little getting use to. Fortunately, I have 11 more weeks to get use to them ;).
Well since they resistance bands were hard, my workout was also harder. My arms were actually shaking after I finished. Then I started Ab Ripper X (OH! I forgot to say I did Ab Ripper X on friday with my legs and back too!). Anyway, the only nice thing I can say about Ab Ripper X is that it is only 16 minutes long. And that I hate it so much I love it. I know it is working because it is so hard. But those are the only nice things I will say.
Day 11
Yoga X
Okay so this was my first morning workout. I turned off my alarm at 5:50 am, rolled out of bed, pulled on my workout clothes, and thought this is so wrong. But I am going out of town tonight and I knew I wouldn't have time to do it with the driving. Anyway, I really never ever suggest doing Yoga in the morning when your muscles are stone cold. It makes it so much harder. Especially since Tony doesn't really warm you up, you just start doing Yoga moves. However it did help with my deep breathing because I was yawning the whole time. I had to cut down this workout (what a cheater) to an hour because I didn't want to get up at 5 to do the entire program. So I did only a little of the strength portion, then I did the balance poses, and stretching poses. It did waking me up though, and I even left the house on time! Success! Not to mention I am finished working out for the day. Shew!
So the next few days I will be working out in an RV in Auburn. This could be VERY interesting. I will let you know how it goes!
Day 8 - Core Synergistics
Still hard the second time around, but I was able to do more of the exercises. I still really hate the Superman/Banana (visualize laying on the floor flying like Superman and then flipping over on your back and being shaped like a banana, SUPER HARD if you have a weak core). It was actually during this move that I realized I had tweaked my hip flexor on Saturday.
I didn't use any weights this time. Only because they were upstairs and I was too lazy to push pause and go get them. But I will definitely be using weights in the future. This workout is such a great chance to work your entire body while focusing on your core. I really felt like I gypped myself by not having weights...but then again, I didn't feel too badly about it.
Day 9 - Cardio X
Still loving this exercise. I like sweating away all the "grit/grime and gristle" as Tony says. And with the combination of the Yoga, Plyometrics, and Kenpo, it keeps you moving and changing things up. It makes the 45 minutes fly by.
Plug here. I have been drinking the "Recovery Drinks" or protein powder you can buy at Walmart. I always associated these drinks with men who wanted to build muscle. But I saw in the "How to Bring It" starter DVD that for about an hour after you do a hard workout, your body is primed to receive nutrients. And those drinks help to repair the muscle fibers and stabilize your metabolism. Plus it gives you a few extra calories. Let's face it, it is hard to keep your calories up when you are eating the right foods and exercising. Keeping the calories up is key, otherwise your body goes into starvation mode and stores everything you take in as fat. Do NOT want that.
Day 10 - Shoulders and Arms; Ab Ripper X
Last week I did shoulders and arms with 5 pound free weights. I know I know, you think 5 pittily pounds, but I was afraid I would get too bulky. However, I quickly realized 5 pounds was not enough weight. So I bought some resistance bands. I like them because they are harder, but I do not like them because they limit my range of motion and kept giving me an indian burn on my legs and outer arms. Plus I am a little scared they are going to pop up and hit me in the face. So they will take a little getting use to. Fortunately, I have 11 more weeks to get use to them ;).
Well since they resistance bands were hard, my workout was also harder. My arms were actually shaking after I finished. Then I started Ab Ripper X (OH! I forgot to say I did Ab Ripper X on friday with my legs and back too!). Anyway, the only nice thing I can say about Ab Ripper X is that it is only 16 minutes long. And that I hate it so much I love it. I know it is working because it is so hard. But those are the only nice things I will say.
Day 11
Yoga X
Okay so this was my first morning workout. I turned off my alarm at 5:50 am, rolled out of bed, pulled on my workout clothes, and thought this is so wrong. But I am going out of town tonight and I knew I wouldn't have time to do it with the driving. Anyway, I really never ever suggest doing Yoga in the morning when your muscles are stone cold. It makes it so much harder. Especially since Tony doesn't really warm you up, you just start doing Yoga moves. However it did help with my deep breathing because I was yawning the whole time. I had to cut down this workout (what a cheater) to an hour because I didn't want to get up at 5 to do the entire program. So I did only a little of the strength portion, then I did the balance poses, and stretching poses. It did waking me up though, and I even left the house on time! Success! Not to mention I am finished working out for the day. Shew!
So the next few days I will be working out in an RV in Auburn. This could be VERY interesting. I will let you know how it goes!
The Past Week
Okay so I officially stink at keeping this thing updated. No excuses. Just going to say sorry.
Day 5
Legs and Back - 58: ish minutes (Sorry don't have the book with me right now)
OUCH! Picture an entire hour of variations of squats and pull ups. This presented two slight issues. 1. I have relatively bad knees. I tore my left ACL in high school so both of my knees need to be guarded. I want to avoid having that crunching noise when I squat down as I get older, so I tend to really protect my knees. Not a problem though! Tony "the Tiger" Horton (as I like to call him) is all about protecting your joints. *Side note here...I really like Tony (although he is a goofball) because he really wants you to protect yourself. He does not push you further than you can go, and I appreciate that. Anyway, back to the squats. Basically I modified most of my squats or just didn't squat as low as I could have. My main goal on my legs is not really to build muscle (goodness knows my legs are big enough as it is) but to try to reduce some of that nasty inner thigh fat. Ladies, you know what I am talking about. That area that just doesn't seem to go away. Am I right?
So P90X does a great job of alternating between the legs and the back. Which brings me to issue #2. I can do about 3/4 of a pull up...read A pull up...not multiple pull ups. I haven't done multiple pull-ups since I was in the 4th or 5th grade and I was taking the Presidential Physical Fitness test. So I decided if I wanted to really work out my back, I need to modify and use resistance bands. I was at my parents house while I was doing this exercise, and my 9 year old sister (who was working out with me...so cute) had the brilliant idea to hang them from the pull up bar. Good job Eliza! So that is how I completed my back exercises. A little less than 1 hour later I was ready to fall over from exhaustion.
I officially hate the "wall squats" where you spend a minute in a squat next to the wall. Needless to say, my legs were shaking after that one.
Day 5 officially over!
Okay at this point in the game I need to tell you about the financial investment I have made in this workout program. If you know me at all, you know I am CHEAP. I was very leery about spending money on this program because I didn't know if I would/could stick with it. Nevertheless, I found a great deal on the disks and I went for it. I also purchased a nice yoga mat (BEST INVESTMENT YET), some knee braces (got to protect those knees!), some resistance bands (still trying to figure out if I like these, but still cheaper than several sets of free weights), a sweat band (rockin' it 80's style) and finally a cheapo heart monitor watch (Walmart you may be getting this one back). I haven't tallied up the final cost, but I fairly certain it is less than purchasing the entire program through those infomercials you are always seeing.
Okay sales pitch over. Back to the real stuff.
Day 6
Kenpo X - 59: ish minutes
Kenpo is the P90X version of karate. It is a great cardiovascular workout. Plus, let's face it, I really enjoy envisioning that I am beating up mean scary men in a dark alley (Ninja Turtles' style) when I am throwing my kicks and punches.
The thing I like the most about this program (and this workout) is that it keeps you moving but it also varies your workouts every :30 - 1:00. It makes the mental part of exercising a lot easier when you know that you only have to do each move for a short time.
I did this exercise with my 19 year old cousin and my two younger sisters (9 and 10). It was a lot of fun to have people to exercise with, but I think I got a little too competitive for the first week. I discovered on Monday that I tweaked my Hip Flexor doing all those side kicks and back kicks. But no worries, I am all better now.
Day 7 - Rest Day
Thank you Lord for rest! This program has really given me a new love for my day of rest. I did wake up with HORRIBLY sore calves though. Apparently, I don't use my calves as much as I thought I did. I considered doing the Stretch X disk, but then decided against it when I saw it was another hour.
Okay since this post is getting a bit long. I will follow up with my first parts of week 2 shortly.
Oh and side note, I now eat dessert and most of all chocolate maybe once a week. That is a huge change from my 3 times a day chocolate habit. While I missed my beloved chocolate, it really has not been as hard as I thought to give it up daily. But I do like to splurge once a week!
Okay guys...until next time. BRING IT!
Day 5
Legs and Back - 58: ish minutes (Sorry don't have the book with me right now)
OUCH! Picture an entire hour of variations of squats and pull ups. This presented two slight issues. 1. I have relatively bad knees. I tore my left ACL in high school so both of my knees need to be guarded. I want to avoid having that crunching noise when I squat down as I get older, so I tend to really protect my knees. Not a problem though! Tony "the Tiger" Horton (as I like to call him) is all about protecting your joints. *Side note here...I really like Tony (although he is a goofball) because he really wants you to protect yourself. He does not push you further than you can go, and I appreciate that. Anyway, back to the squats. Basically I modified most of my squats or just didn't squat as low as I could have. My main goal on my legs is not really to build muscle (goodness knows my legs are big enough as it is) but to try to reduce some of that nasty inner thigh fat. Ladies, you know what I am talking about. That area that just doesn't seem to go away. Am I right?
So P90X does a great job of alternating between the legs and the back. Which brings me to issue #2. I can do about 3/4 of a pull up...read A pull up...not multiple pull ups. I haven't done multiple pull-ups since I was in the 4th or 5th grade and I was taking the Presidential Physical Fitness test. So I decided if I wanted to really work out my back, I need to modify and use resistance bands. I was at my parents house while I was doing this exercise, and my 9 year old sister (who was working out with me...so cute) had the brilliant idea to hang them from the pull up bar. Good job Eliza! So that is how I completed my back exercises. A little less than 1 hour later I was ready to fall over from exhaustion.
I officially hate the "wall squats" where you spend a minute in a squat next to the wall. Needless to say, my legs were shaking after that one.
Day 5 officially over!
Okay at this point in the game I need to tell you about the financial investment I have made in this workout program. If you know me at all, you know I am CHEAP. I was very leery about spending money on this program because I didn't know if I would/could stick with it. Nevertheless, I found a great deal on the disks and I went for it. I also purchased a nice yoga mat (BEST INVESTMENT YET), some knee braces (got to protect those knees!), some resistance bands (still trying to figure out if I like these, but still cheaper than several sets of free weights), a sweat band (rockin' it 80's style) and finally a cheapo heart monitor watch (Walmart you may be getting this one back). I haven't tallied up the final cost, but I fairly certain it is less than purchasing the entire program through those infomercials you are always seeing.
Okay sales pitch over. Back to the real stuff.
Day 6
Kenpo X - 59: ish minutes
Kenpo is the P90X version of karate. It is a great cardiovascular workout. Plus, let's face it, I really enjoy envisioning that I am beating up mean scary men in a dark alley (Ninja Turtles' style) when I am throwing my kicks and punches.
The thing I like the most about this program (and this workout) is that it keeps you moving but it also varies your workouts every :30 - 1:00. It makes the mental part of exercising a lot easier when you know that you only have to do each move for a short time.
I did this exercise with my 19 year old cousin and my two younger sisters (9 and 10). It was a lot of fun to have people to exercise with, but I think I got a little too competitive for the first week. I discovered on Monday that I tweaked my Hip Flexor doing all those side kicks and back kicks. But no worries, I am all better now.
Day 7 - Rest Day
Thank you Lord for rest! This program has really given me a new love for my day of rest. I did wake up with HORRIBLY sore calves though. Apparently, I don't use my calves as much as I thought I did. I considered doing the Stretch X disk, but then decided against it when I saw it was another hour.
Okay since this post is getting a bit long. I will follow up with my first parts of week 2 shortly.
Oh and side note, I now eat dessert and most of all chocolate maybe once a week. That is a huge change from my 3 times a day chocolate habit. While I missed my beloved chocolate, it really has not been as hard as I thought to give it up daily. But I do like to splurge once a week!
Okay guys...until next time. BRING IT!
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