Day 19 – Legs and Back Review of P90X

Woke up this morning with a lot of pain in my neck. Not sure if I just “tweaked” the pulled muscle I had before, or if I just slept wrong last night.  I told myself it would work itself out if I got in a good workout today.  Guess what?  I was right.  After I got through the stretching and made it through the first series of Legs and Back with my girl Sophia in my review of P90X, I felt great.   Very happy I did not use the excuse of waking up a bit rough to talk my way of the workout.  Still having trouble seeing the tremendous value that the bonus sets gives, but otherwise, the heartbeat was up for a solid hour today.  I am learning this is one of the keys to weight loss.  Another is packing on muscle so your body is burning calories while doing some of the necessities in life like watching two and a half men and watching football.  Legs is the key I was always avoiding.

I am starting to feel a little different at this point in my Review of P90X.  My pants fit a little looser.  My arms feel tight, my chest feels good, and above all, my hamstrings and ass are still killing me!  How is that possible in this stage in the game?  It was a week ago since I last worked legs and still walk a little gingerly.   Not as bad as the image below…but close:-)

I guess this is a sign that I am moving in the right direction.  I have not really had anyone make any comments about my appearance, but I am not going to let that discourage me at this stage of the game.  I am only a short time into this workout routine, and I can see the writing on the wall.  I am going to be in the best shape of my life at 40 years old, and that is saying a lot.   My key is to just keep waking up and pushing through the routine.  If I have too much time to think about working out, I can find a million reasons why I shouldn’t do it right now.   I learned from my mistakes and just wake up and go.  Seems to work very well for me at this stage.

For those of you reading this review of P90X and using it as motivation for your next day, let me start by telling you some of the things that have worked for me at this stage of the game.  I am not by any means trying to tell you that you need to follow me.  However, just like I am writing this review of P90X to give a 40 year old man’s perspective, I also look at other blogs and information in order to prepare myself for what is about to come.  So this is simply my attempt at helping you out and giving you some tips that may work for you.

So far, I have completely given up on the morning coffee.  In the beginning, I would wake up, make my coffee, read a few emails, take care of a few work related issues, and then head down to my basement for my workout.   I found this was mentally killing me because I had an internal war going on in my head as to why I shouldn’t work out that particular day.   I now wake up on my own every morning between 6:15 and 6:30.  Walk to the bathroom, then put on my workout gear, grab my water and head right to the basement.   By the time I am fully awake, I am 25 minutes into the routine.  Ideal?  Not sure, but I no longer need coffee to wake up in the morning.

I have also learned that I have such a high from completing my workout, that I often come up and run around with my kids before they have to go to school.  I know they love it, but Mom who is not your morning person, gets a little ticked as I am playing with my kids while she is trying to get them out the door for school.  More energy for sure.

The last little thing I have done is started drinking water like I was on Survivor for 40 days.  I used to be a coffee, coffee, diet coke, diet coke, diet coke, water, and a beer or two kind of guy.   After all, didn’t want to much caffeine late in the evening:-)  Since I started pushing my body so hard, I think about all of the crap I am putting in it.  I realize that water is the key to staying fuller longer, and also, when I don’t have enough, I get a little lightheaded on days like today.   So, in closing….Drink Your Water People!

Little bit by little bit, I am starting to get into yoga. What started out as something that was just impossible, has slowly become a little easier. I can get farther with each of the poses. I can touch the floor now in a few stretches that I couldn’t when I started my review of P90X. I still use the yoga block a lot, but I am starting to see progress, and that is a good thing.

One of the goals that I have in doing P90X is that I want to become a better golfer. I realize that my lack of flexibility restricts my game. I cannot make a proper turn, or finish the golf swing. Yoga can make a significant impact on this, and that is a big reason I am sticking with this. Not only will I look better, feel better, and be much healthier, I will also hit the ball a lot farther when I play golf.

Look at any of the tour pros on the golf course, they are all ripped. After today’s workout, I felt so good that I put together a quick weekend trip for some Myrtle Beach and  Golf. Got three guys together for the last weekend of the month. Hey, I am busting my butt here….I deserve it.

Completed about 75 to 80% of the stretches today. That is an amazing accomplishment for me in my review of P90X. Keep pushing play!!

Jump Training! Heart pounding, intense, and over the top training is the way I would describe plyometrics in my review of P90X. In my opinion, this is the core of P90X. A word of caution after my experience today..

Do NOT take this routine lightly! Even if you love it like I do. Yesterday I ended my post by saying how much I was looking forward to my workout routine, and could not wait to add week 3′s plyometrics to my review of P90X. I was excited to start, pushed myself harder than I should have, tried to do every exercise to the extreme, and most importantly……

Threw up like I did when to my first college fraternity party!!!

OK, so I threw up, and I am not proud of this statement. I tried to hang with the big boys, and unfortunately, I was taught a little lesson. In the beginning of the Plyometrics video, Tony Horton makes a statement about how you should not eat anything for an hour prior to doing this DVD. I heard him say it twice before, but I didn’t really HEAR him say it, if you know what I mean. I woke up early this morning ready to conquer the world. Went into my office, read a few emails, and realized that I was starving (like I have been for the last 16 days while doing my review of p90x). I know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so I thought I would get as much protein in my body as I could prior to the workout. 3 eggs, some turkey bacon, some coffee, and I was ready to roll.

Wait, maybe I should say ready to HURL! 35 minutes into the routine, I didn’t feel so good. I was drenched in sweat, but somehow, I was sweating more, in a different type of way. I kept drinking water. And then more, and more, and more. Why was I sweating so much, is my heart rate too high? What is going on?

Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. Hunched over, and not feeling very good. What was going on? I felt like I was working hard, but the rock star hops did me in. If I didn’t run to the bathroom, I was going to lose it right there on my basement rug. Disgusting! I couldn’t believe what was actually happening. I felt like a high school kid again playing football where the annual right of passage was vomiting on the side of the track after doing the indian mile with the rest of the team. Only back in high school, everyone laughed if you threw up. Now, I was mad as hell because I made a mistake that I could have easily avoided. What an idiot!

So, to sum this review of P90X up, today’s Plyometrics workout was shortened due to mother nature. Or…mother something. I think Tony says that this is the mother of all workouts. He just didn’t get too graphic on this DVD because there could be some kids listening. I threw up, couldn’t push play again, and curled up in the fetal position on the floor for 45 minutes after this workout. I have heard the saying many times before, but I guess I really didn’t quite understand it until today…….You live and you learn. I learned something today. Hopefully, I don’t have to repeat the grade once again like my slow cousin did in grade school. Until tomorrow…keep puking….I mean, keep pressing play!

BRING IT! I felt amazing today, and worked my ass off! Today was Labor Day and I knew there wasn’t much going on throughout the day so I decided to work like I have never worked before. I pushed to the limit on most of the exercises in the first phase, and then completely burnt myself out on the second phase. I feel proud to post my Review of P90X today, because now I know why all of those people on the infomercials look the way they do. My numbers were higher by 2 to 5 on each pushup exercise. Still struggling with pull ups, but I don’t beat myself up over that. I couldn’t really do them much before, so the fact that I can get 2, 4, or even 5 without the assistance of a chair is pretty amazing to me.

Although I look like a middle aged body builder when I get done doing this exercises, I hate the fact that half way through the day I feel like a 40 year old out of shape man. I am hoping that the “pump” that I get during the workout starts to stick around a little longer with each passing week. How great would that be?

Ab Ripper is so much fun! BullS$%t! The two guys on this video that seemed to be able to do this exercise while half asleep really irritate me. The dude without the shirt really pisses me off. He is a dancer!?!? Ok, so he should be flexible and limber and all of that stuff, but does that also entitle you to an amazing stomach and abs ripped to shreds. Do you think at any point in the last year he has eaten a cheeseburger? I can promise you that when I am done with this whole routine, I will not look like that. However, if I look more like an athlete and less like a couch potato, that would be pretty cool. If you have read along in my review of P90X, then you probably know I am very, very excited about Plyometrics tomorrow. I kick ass in plyo and cannot wait to sweat like Patrick Ewing. Until next time, I am going to keep pushing play!

Wow, did I need that. My body has been pushed pretty hard over the last two weeks. I took today to lay around, do very little of anything, and got some much needed rest. The only problem with all of the lying around, I was starving most of the day. Anyway, my last week before the rest week. Pretty stoked thus far.

Kempo is one of the best workouts for me in my Review of P90X.  I make this statement for a couple of reasons.  First and most importantly, there are no pullups or pushups involved.   This routine is based more on the movements required in Kempo.  Kind of like Karate, martial arts, etc.  I don’t know much about this stuff so I won’t go into detail, but I do know I like this routine.  The second reason I like this routine is because I think I understand what it really is.  It is designed to get you sweating, but also to get your mid section making many different turns, movements, and stretches.  By working your core, you are strengthening your abs, back, mid section, and hamstrings.  All very important in the process of uncovering the flab around your midsection and seeing those abs.

I know this exercise is not that difficult, but I see the value in it.   I am not sweating like a plyo workout, but still get the heartbeat going.  There are a few of the moves that I just can’t get, but I am sure over time I will get much better.   Going to enjoy the Labor Day Holiday and enjoy a full day of rest tomorrow.  No stretching, just recuperating so next week, I can bring it like a champ.   Happy Labor Day Everyone!

Entering this workout, I had two main goals.  The first was that when Monday morning came around, I would be able to walk without limping and being hunched over.   The last time I did legs, I was sore as can be, and had difficulty walking up the steps a few days later.  The second goal was that I didn’t do anything to hurt my neck any further.  As you may have seen in my last post, I went to the doctor and pulled a muscle in my neck.  I want to not do any more damage, but at the same time, this is not my Review of P90X plus 15.  If I am going to offer a full review of P90X, I need to do it all in ninety days.  Or at least that is my thought process.   So I guess what I am trying to say is I wanted to complete the exercise, but I was not going to do anything that was going to prevent me from working out for the rest of the 90 days.

Even when I paced myself and was conscious of not pushing too far, I still felt I got a great workout.  I completed all of the exercises, almost was able to do the whole one leg wall squats, and felt better after I was finished than I did prior.   Great sweat and I know that by adding muscle to my legs, I will actually burn more calories while I am doing things like laying on the couch watching a Michigan Football game.   Muscle burns more calories than fat, so it is crucial to add muscle to your lower body.   I have neglected working on my legs for years because there is not an ounce of fat on them.  All of the extra weight that I carry around is in my stomach and butt.  Why focus on something that doesn’t need work?   Well, now I know.  Just adding a little muscle over the course of the year is going to burn more calories for a longer period of time.  Makes sense, and changed my whole outlook on doing the exercise for my review of P90X.   Pullups are still tough, and I was not able to push nearly as hard with a slightly pulled muscle in my neck.   Tomorrow is like a vacation day:-)   Kempo is pretty simple, but so great.   It makes so much sense why you do it in terms of your overall appearance.  If you are not sure what I mean, be sure to check out Day 13′s post on Kempo.  Later!

Short and sweet today.   I made it through most of the poses today.  I still cannot contort my body into the position of an olympic athlete, but I am getting considerably closer to being able to touch my toes.   Earlier today, I dropped my pen on the floor.  Rather than having to drop to one knee to pick it up, or ask one of my employees to get it for me, I was able to do it on my own.   I did not cry, grown, or even wince in pain.   This is some good progress for my review of P90x.

I do however have some bad news.  It appears that all of the exercises may have caused a slight bruise to this indescructable physique.   I went to the doctor today to check out my neck.  I thought I was having some sort of internal problem, but it appears as though I have strained a muscle in my neck.  I can only imagine it was during the shoulder and arms routine.  I felt something when I was doing the overhead presses, and have had some minor pain for the last few days.   I was told that I need to take a few days off, but I am having a bit of difficulty doing this.   We will see how I progress.  Afterall, tomorrow is legs.

BY THE WAY…….I have lost 10 pounds in the last 11 days.

Me driving to my new fitness goals with P90X!

If Plyometrics is my favorite exercise, then shoulders and arms is not far behind. When I got done working out today I thought I was going to need to go out and buy a new wardrobe. My guns were fired up! In all seriousness, this was an extreme workout today. Really focused and really committed for the full workout. I also got into the ab ripper and put in a pretty good effort. I still cannot complete all of the exercises, but am getting between 15 and 20 on each one. I can feel my stomach getting tighter every day. If only I could strip away the 20 pounds of fat off of the midsection right away, I would be flashing my abs like “The Situation”. Maybe at the end of my review of P90X I will look more like Paully D? Right now, I look more like a chubby Vinnie from Jersey Shore.

(Keeping up with my promise of not showing guys on this website without shirts on, here is another member of Jersey Shore to keep with the theme)

So what I have learned from my review of P90X thus far?

• You have to feed your body the right fuel, or you are going to be hungry ALL OF THE TIME.
• Do not push yourself to exhaustion on the first set of exercises. If you do, your next set will suffer.
• “Don’t Smash Your Face”
• Tony has the hots for Draya Webber:-)
• Soreness goes away after a while.
• Do not procrastinate. Just keep pressing play, and do not give yourself a chance to make excuses to not work out.
• Nobody reads any of my posts. I don’t care at this point, this is all about me making the journey for 90 days.
• My wife eats Ice cream A LOT!
• I like doing plyometrics.
• I have the flexibility of the tin man after he has been in hibernation for 2 years.
• Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.
• Your dog will lick your face until you wake up if you happen to be laying on the floor because you are exhausted.
• One legged wall squats can bring tears to a 40 year old man’s eyes.
• Keep Pressing Play!

Plyometrics or as Tony likes to refer to it as….”jump training”. This workout is by far my favorite exercise disc in all of them that I do on the Review of P90X. It has become part of my day now to work out, and then report back to everyone online how I am progressing. I was hoping at this point to have a few comments from people telling me what they liked and what they didn’t like, but I guess that will come with the traffic to my site. So if you are liking what you are reading, please let me know. If you hate it, please let me know. At some point I almost feel like I am writing into a diary every day. Either way, it is keeping me motivated to press play every single day.

So today I tried to keep up with the lunatic in the background who jumps like a mexican jumping bean for 54 minutes. Big mistake. Not that I couldn’t hang with him for the first set, but the next exercise suffered. There is a learning curve here and I think it is that you do need to dial it back at times when you are doing the workouts. What good is it to expel every ounce of your energy only to not be able to complete the next exercise on the list? The feeling I get after I complete this workout is probably a lot like what a marathon runner feels like when they complete the Boston Marathon. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying it is requires the same amount of effort to do both of these things, but there is a HUGE sense of accomplishment when you complete plyometrics. Kind of like knocking Tyson down, or having Jennifer Aniston checking you out from across the bar and approaching you with a Miller Lite in hand and her hotel room key in the other. Well, maybe not that good but hopefully you understand my point……Damn it feels good to complete this routine.

So the soreness is starting to go away in my legs and butt. This morning I was not only able to roll out of bed on my own, but I didn’t need my wife’s help to make it to the bathroom. I simply crawled on my hands and knees like any other infant would. My arms are starting to feel much better. Today I almost was able to lift them high enough to shave. For now, I have been growing a nice little beard because I can only shave under my chin. Hopefully later this week I will be able to wash my hair and brush my teeth. My wife has been a saint through all of this P90X stuff. Just this morning she told me that all of this hard work inspires her to eat less ice cream late at night. She did give me a kiss this morning too before she asked for a $100 and my credit card to go shopping, so this P90X stuff must be working. Tomorrow I get to sell tickets to the “Gun Show”. Working my arms into a tizzy in order to drive the ladies wild. Can’t wait!