Week 2 (and 3 also)

I'm into week 2!! only 12 more to go....weeks 2 & 3 are the same as week 1. So, i'll check back at week 4.

P90X Day 8 - X Stretch

Finally took the rest day today, one day late. instead of doing nothing, i decided to keep the drive going and did X Stretch. it was alright. a few notes:

- i noticed a bunch of the stretches were not held for too long. i've always understood that its best to hold a stretch anywhere from 15-30 seconds. some were nowhere NEAR 15 seconds.
- there didnt seem to be too many stretches for the upper body (chest, shoulders, arms). being that i worked the chest and back (which worked the tri's and bi's as well) the night before, that would have been nice.
-ironically, there were a number of hamstring stretches. but in the legs and back workout, as well as Plyo X, there didnt seem to be many (if any) exercises for your hammies. hmmm...

but all in all, it was good, relaxing, and you actually work a little of a sweat doing it all. got the body to relax, and is very welcomed after 6 (7, in my case) days of intense workouts.

P90X Day 7: Rest or X Stretch

first things first, WEEK ONE COMPLETED!!!!!! whoo hoo!!!...haha...ok.

now the title says rest or x stretch, i did neither. i actually went ahead and started week 2 (which is a repeat of week 1), chest and back. i was going to be busier tomorrow, so i took the opportunity of being home early with nothing to do and start week 2's workout. so, really its:

P90X Day 7: Chest and Back, Ab Ripper X
still struggling mightily with the chest exercises (push-ups). and i used the pull up bar (most of the way), instead of just the bands. i need some serious chest work. Good news tho, the first 2 times i did ab ripper x, i was ENTIRELY unable to do the final exercise (mason twists). today, my friends, i was able to do it! albeit for little 5 second spurts (it lasts for about 90 seconds). but hey, every little bit counts. 1 week down, 12 to go, BRING IT!!

Up Next: Day 8 - Rest or X Stretch (for real this time)

P90X Day 6: Plyo X (sub for Kenpo X)

well, it was basically a cardio day, so i substituted the Kenpo X with Plyo X, because i read some places that the Kenpo X was a little corny. and i liked the Plyo. so, why not?? and good news boys and girls because i made it through this time!! whoo hoo! i did pace myself a little better, and i took slightly longer breaks (30 secs on the video, i did 60 seconds). and that made all the difference. and this time it came on the heels of doing LEGS and back the day before.

and i know its probably psychological, but i think i can already see a difference....hmmm...

Up Next: Day 7 - Rest or Stretch X

P90X Day 5: Legs & Back, Ab Ripper X

well well well, THAT, was a workout. some serious leg burning exercises in this one. a lot of squats and lunges. some may argue there's not enough work for the hammies, and they might be right. i feel it all in my quads and gluts (aka, yer butt, tushy, bottom, derier...you get the idea). i worked up a really nice sweat. included a couple calf raise workouts as well. my legs did some serious shaking on the wall squats. good thing it threw in a back routine for every third exercise, to rest the legs a bit. i'm going to have to start using the pull up bar, tho i'm getting to fatigue on the bands, it just doesnt feel like i'm getting the full work out, as its not sore.

aaaand, all of this was followed up again, by ab ripper X. the creator of that must be a sadist. or something. still very, very, very hard to keep up. its 25 reps of each exercise, i'm trying to do 10 for now. i'm ok in the beginning, of course.

Up Next: Day 6 - Kenpo X (tho i might substitute with Plyo X).

P90X Day 4: Yoga

Alright, i know what you're all thinking, YOGA?!?!?! haha....well, yea, thats what i thought too. but i gave it a shot. first off, the workout is a whopping 90+ minutes long. i dont have that kind of attention span, so i did 40 min. but not only that, ITS HARD!!! i realized how little flexibility i have in my body. so it wasn't only cuz i was, "bored", but i had a hard time keeping up past 40 min! i was sweating. doing yoga. who knew!? haha....well worth it. i had thoughts of skipping it, but thankful i did not.

Up Next: Day 5 - Legs & Back, Ab Ripper X!!!!

P90X Day 3: Shoulders and Arms

This workout, was surprisingly "easy". Perhaps i didnt use enough tension on my resistance bands. but i walked away from this workout not feeling sore at all. This one worked a combination of shoulders, biceps and triceps. It was one exercise for each muscle group, after the third one, you repeat. i liked this one for the lower itensity, and the fact that i didnt feel like i needed to puke afterwards. oh, thats probably also due to the fact that i skipped Ab Ripper X at the end, for the simple fact that my abs were still significantly sore from doing Ab Ripper X on day 1.

Note to self: Crank up the tension next time.

Up Next: Day 4 - Yoga

P90X Day 2: Plyometrics X

i thoroughly enjoyed this workout, as it had me moving and SWEATING. and i mean, SWEATING. fyi- plyometrics is also known as "jump training", learn more here: http://sportsmedicine.about.com/cs/conditioning/a/aa062701a.htm

my only issue was not that my muscles couldnt keep up, but that my conditioning was crap. i was completely out of breath with 20 min remaining in the workout. i also found out my core muscles were lacking tho, especially around the hip area. but this, just like chest & back, was INTENSE. have not sweat like this in a long time. it felt REALLY good. hopefully i can make it through the entire workout next time.

P90X Day 1: Chest & Back

Alright, so i've decided to try P90X (www.P90X.com, for those of you who do not know what it is) to get my body back into shape. The "X" apparently stands for "extreme", which i will say, this program is exactly that so far. This blog is a little late, since i'm day 4 already, but just wanted to track my progress. Oh, and depending on how it goes, i may or may not post before and after pictures...haha.

Starting Stats:
Weight: 230.8 lbs
Fat % : 27.5%
Waist : 40.5" (yikes!)

Day 1: Chest and Back (~50 min)
One word describes this work out, INTENSE. workout essentially alternates chest (push-ups) and back (pull-ups). and on top of that, after you're done with that, you tackle Ab Ripper X, which is 339 reps of various ab exercises. the key to chest and back? PACE YOURSELF. you think you're all manly and do as many reps as you can in the beginning, when you repeat the set, forget it, i was down to 3 reps because i ran out of gas.