What's Up?

So, you're probably wondering what's going on with me. Some of you probably assume that since I haven't been posting, then I haven't been working out. WRONG! Today is day 12 of my first P90X3 program. Back on February 8th, I completed my 2nd full P90X program. During that time, I lost 33+ pounds (and have lost another 4 pounds so far on P90X3). To be completely honest, I probably have not been eating enough calories, but I have rarely felt hungry. I've been eating quite a bit, but the calories have been from good foods (fruits, vegetables, turkey, chicken, salmon, etc). So as for P90X3, I like it so far. The only gripe I have is Yoga seems rushed, but that may be just because it's 1/3 as long as the P90X Yoga workout was. I have been pleasantly surprised that the workouts have been so good. The worry was that going from 60+ minutes to 30 would be too easy, but that's not the case. I'm feeling great and looking better too, though the "feeling" part is much more important to me. Dan

Holy Sore Hip Flexors, Batman!

Ok, so today was Day 3 of my 2nd "Full" P90X program (Full meaning I'm dedicated to sticking with it for the full 13 weeks...it's happening.) Anyway, I was very sore today! the worst part was my hip flexors. They hurt so bad that I had trouble standing upright to walk and when I did walk I looked like an 80-year old man. I got a lot of laughs and fun-poking from my "caring loving" co-workers. :) Surprisingly, I was able to do Ab Ripper X tonight after Shoulders and Arms. I was thinking earlier today that I wouldn't even be able to attempt it. Maybe it was the ibuprofen I took around 5pm...who knows. Dan

Bartender? Another round, please!

No, I'm not drinking.  I'm doing another round of P90X!  Some folks from my work have formed a small accountability group using the MyFitnessPal app/website.  Certainly makes it easier for me when other folks are helping to keep me motivated.  I think it's pretty clear that self-motivation is not one of my strong points!

Anyway, I'm not sure how much I'll be blogging about it this time...probably from time to time but certainly not daily.  I am planning on posting a daily picture on my Instagram (dvice72) feed, so follow me if you're interested.

Dan

Insanity!

As you can probably tell from the title of this post, I'm switching things up.  I had a good run with P90X...a great run, in fact.  I lost a lot of weight and really turned my health and fitness around.  However, after 8 weeks of this last P90X run, I started losing motivation.  Don't get me wrong, it's a great program...and I will certainly go back to it someday in the future.  But for now, I feel a change is needed or I may regress, which is something I don't want to do.

The answer?  Shawn T and Insanity.  I've had the videos for awhile, and have watched in fear a few times.  But until now, I never really considered going to it.  I just didn't think I was ready.  I guess now I either struggle doing the P90X routines, or I man up and get to work with something new.

I actually started on Tuesday, and I'll post how things went these first few days a little later.  I also want to post about some great results I got back from my most recent health assessment!  More to come!

Dan

P90X Status

It's day 45 of my second full P90X program, and I'm still going strong.  In my last blog post, I mentioned that Wendy and I were doing P90X Lean together.  Well, she decided after a few weeks into the program that it wasn't for her, so I've been continuing the same program by myself since.  I considered going back to the P90X Classic program, which I did the first time, but decided to continue this one....just for something new.  Basically, you do one less Ab Ripper workout per week, and for the first two three-week blocks, you substitute Core Synergistics for Chest & Back or Back & Biceps.  Lastly, you do Cardio X instead of Plyometrics.  It's easier than what I did before, but that's ok.  I'm still working hard, and over half of the workouts are the same, so it's not that much easier! :)

The weight isn't coming off as fast as it did last time, but the eating hasn't been as "intense" as before either.  I've been eating very good, just not 100% of the time.  I've lost about 7 pounds in the first 6+ weeks, so that progress...even if it slow.  Can't complain, right?

Dan

P90X Partner!

I'm happy to announce that Wendy has now joined me in getting in better shape.  During my Christmas vacation she mentioned she'd like to lose some weight and get healthier.  So, I concluded my three week P90X classic workout and started a new P90X Lean workout with her on 12/26.  Happy to say today that we have successfully finished the first 8 workouts and have eaten very well.  The only meal we splurged on was on New Year's Eve when we had company over and had lots of goodies.

So far, Wendy has struggled with some of the moves and felt ill a few times, but has stuck with it and done it all.  The only change we are going to make is to do the Ab Ripper workout in the mornings on Friday and Sunday rather than after the 60-minute workout that day.  We feel it will be easier than trying to do it when we are already spent.

I'm very excited to see how the first weigh-in goes.  I'm hoping we both see some good results because it will only help motivate us more!

Dan

Back in the saddle!

The refueling outage at my work is complete, and I'm back to doing P90X again!  About time!  I'm back up to 248 pounds, so I didn't do well between the end of my first run and now.  However, I hope that I learned some valuable lessons about how to conduct myself.  I won't be following the P90X program forever, so unless I want to gain all the weight back and lose my fitness gains, I'm going to have to figure out how to eat right and get enough exercise to maintain these gains.  I'm not sure what that's going to look like yet, but I need to start thinking about it, anyway.

I'll post more updates as needed.

Dan

P90X Round 2: Week 5

The week started off great!  Monday through Thursday I had great workouts and ate much better.  However, Friday through Sunday were bad.  I didn't do the workouts and ate bad about 1/2 of the time.  I know I need to do better, but I cannot get the motivation up.  It's so frustrating!

All I can do now is not let the past affect the future.  I need to work my hardest each day to work up the motivation to get the workout done and have control of the eating habits.  I know I can do it...just need to figure out how do actually do it every day!

Dan

P90X Round 2: Weeks 3/4

Well, week 3 started out pretty good, but didn't end well.  I let the lazy Dan talk me into not doing the workouts anymore...I'm ashamed.  So, I spent all last week telling myself that I "just wasn't motivated" to do the workouts.  Hogwash!  I was making excuses so I didn't have to do them.  Also, since I wasn't doing the workouts anymore, I was eating pretty much what I wanted.  At work, I was still eating good...probably so my co-workers didn't know about not doing the workouts.  Again...ashamed.

Well, today I'm stopping all that crap and going back to the "new" Dan, who does the workouts every day and eats like he should!  I missed an entire week (plus Yoga and one Ab workout during week 3), so I'm onto week 5 now.  I did Chest, Shoulders and Triceps today.  Pretty much sucked at it, but that's what I get for quitting!  It's only uphill from here!

Dan

P90X: Round 2: Week 2

I had an OK week this week...still not eating nearly as good as I'd like to be.  As I said last week, that 6-week in-between period really screwed me up and had my mind telling me it's OK to eat that way...I've already lost 50 pounds!  True, but I really want to get down below 200 and that will take another 27 pounds.  I don't think I'll get there eating like this.  I'm not sure how to fix it...but I need to...soon.

As for the program, I had to adjust again.  Monday was our last Senior legion baseball game so I missed that workout and moved everything out.  Then, it was so hot Wednesday night (when I was supposed to do Plyometrics...which I have to do in the garage) that I did Kenpo inside instead.  This was supposed to push Plyometrics to Friday but it was 100+ degrees again and I decided to do Yoga...hoping it would be cooler on Sunday...which it was.

Basically, as you can see below...I did no workout on the day it was originally scheduled.  :)  Oh well, I got them all done, so that's the important thing.

Monday: Chest and Back No Workout
Tuesday: Plyometrics Chest and Back
Wednesday: Shoulders and Arms Kenpo
Thursday: Kenpo Shoulders and Arms
Friday: Shoulders and Arms Yoga
Saturday: Yoga Legs and Back
Sunday: Stretch Plyometrics

I think I'm going to try to do Stretch tonight if I have time to (which I should).  I really enjoyed it last year, when it was the only workout on Sunday and especially after I did Legs and Back, which leaves me sore every time.

Dan

P90X: Round 2: Week 1

I've come to the end of my first week of P90X round 2, and boy was it painful!   I wouldn't think that taking 6 weeks off between would make such a big difference, but I was really sore this week...just like I was during the first week of round 1.  Now it's Sunday and I'm feeling much better...with the usual glute/upper leg soreness from Legs and Back.  I'm hoping that week 2 is much easier and less sore like it was in week 1.

As for eating, I'm not doing as good as I should be.  Not horrible, just not as good as I'd like.  The 6 week period between rounds has brought back some bad habits that I need to rid myself up pretty quick here.

As for the program, I've made one simple change.  I've swapped Yoga and Kenpo around.  I now do Kenpo on Thursday and Yoga on Saturday, when I have more time for a 90 minute workout.  Kenpo is <60 minutes, so it just makes sense.

So, one week down...12 to go.  I'm really excited about where this round is going to take me and my fitness level.  I'd love to see my abs, but if I don't, that's ok because I still will have worked my ass off during that 13 weeks.

Talk to you next Sunday!!

Dan

T-14 Days and Counting!

Well, I'm 2 weeks out on starting round 2 of P90X, and I can't wait!  I'm really excited to get started again and to really push myself to get in really good shape.  I weighed myself this morning, and I'm still at 226.4, which is 47.6 pounds down from when I started.  I'm going to ramp back up the healthy eating this next two weeks, and I'd love to be at or below 224 (50lb lost) by the time I start.  I'd like to get below 200, but I'm not making it a goal because I don't want to limit myself...I'm going to work my butt off and see where it takes me.

Dan

New P90X Plan

After looking at the schedule, I've decided to start a new P90X program on July 16th.  This is near the end of the baseball season and will end right when the refueling outage at my work starts.  I'm working 60 hours a week during that outage, so being done before that starts is a huge plus.

So, I have three weeks left before that happens.  I haven't done any additional P90X workouts whild I've been off, so that's not good.  But I am determined to complete another round, so I'll enjoy this 3 weeks and then get back into it.

Dan

Stop the Insanity!!

Ok, I've finally come to my senses. Coaching baseball and P90X at the same time is not a good idea.  I really like both, but I can't get these games in and then start up a workout at 10:30-11pm at night.  This week is so busy with games, that I was considering doing chest and back at 11pm tonight, and then plyometrics at 4am tomorrow.  That's crazy

Therefore, I'm going with my initial idea of waiting until baseball is over before starting up with P90X again.  If it turns out that I can control my eating during this lull, I guess I'll gain the weight back.  I'm tired, and it's not great on the family life either.

Dan

Round 2, Day 7: X Stretch

As usual, X Stretch on Sunday evening was just what I needed.  As I've mentioned numerous times on this blog before, my glutes, hamstrings and quads are always sore on Saturday and Sunday after Legs and Back on Friday.  I feel so much better after doing this workout.

Also, this workout produced two firsts:  1) I touched the floor with my toes on plough for the first time and 2) I was able to do Camel by going back onto both feet for the first time.  This may not seem like much, but to me it's more evidence that this program is still producing steady improvements.

Well, one week of round 2 down, and it went very well.  I've got new batteries in the body fat scale, so I'm going to take a peek at that and see where I'm at.  It will be interesting to see, as I've not been as "straight and narrow" with the eating as I was the first 2/3 of round #1.

Off to bed, as I have a busy week ahead of me (big surprise, right?).  Baseball games tomorrow, Tuesday and Thursday.  Avery also has at least one game this week as well.

Dan

Round 2, Day 6: Kenpo X

Didn't get up early Saturday to get this workout in, but I did have some good luck...for P90X anyway.  We were supposed to have a Senior Legion tournament in Falls City Saturday starting as noon, and just as the first game was winding down, we got about 1.5 inches of rain...in the span of about 30-40 minutes.  Needless to say, the tournament was cancelled so I had all kinds of time in the early afternoon to workout.

Kenpo...well, it's Kenpo.  It's a fun workout and I have a lot of areas to improve.  For example, my side and back kicks with the left leg are still ugly and wouldn't be very effective in a real situation.  I also need to try and improve my hip and feet movement during some of the punch sequences.  All in all, though, the goal is to burn calories, and I certainly did that.  My heart rate monitor showed 75-85% max heart rate most of the time, so that's very good.

I'm just getting ready to do my X Stretch, so I'll be shooting off a post on that later this evening or tomorrow.

Dan

Round 2, Day 5: Legs and Back with Ab Ripper X

Well, just like the Yoga workout I did today, I "nailed" the legs and back workout too.  Again, I don't know what it is, but I was really going after it tonight.  I would have expected that with my doing two workouts today, I may have trouble with legs and back, and I guess some of the "usual suspects": were still harder than others (I really stink at balance lunges), but again I was huffing and puffing after this workout more than I ever did the firs time around.

Ab Ripper was pretty much a carbon copy of Wednesday's workout.  I did all of the reps with a couple going past the "time limit" imposed on the TV.  None more than 5-10 seconds, though.

Maybe this is a sign of what's to come.  I really have a great feeling about how I'm going to feel when day 90 of round 2 rolls around.  I have 2 goals.  1) I want to go below 200 pounds. 2) I'd love to see my abs.  I don't know if either are possible, but they are goals that I can shoot for, right?

Kenpo tomorrow morning, as I have a busy Saturday planned.  Baseball tournament, wedding reception, and Wendy's 20 year class reunion.

Have a great weekend, everybody!

Dan

Round 2, Day 4: Yoga X

All I can say is WOW!  I've never had a Yoga X workout like that before!  I don't know if it's just my energy level today (can't be that...I've had 11.5 hours of sleep the past 3 days) or what, but I "brought it" during the workout today.  I was down farther than I'd ever been before on the Crescent/Warrior poses.  The only thing I can this of is I was really trying to work on my breathing during the poses..that and closing my eyes when possible.  I've been told it helps...maybe they're right!!  I sweat my "you know what" off!!

Report for Legs and Back coming up!!

Dan

Round 2, Day 3: Shoulders and Arms with Ab Ripper X

Great workout tonight!  I upped many of my previous weights, and was still able to complete the exercise in the 8-12 range.  Many of the curl exercises are now done with 30lb weights, where I used 20lb weights before.

Ab Ripper was great as well.  On fifer scissors, hip rock and raise, and pulse ups, I was a little short of the 25 reps when the DVD exercise was done, but I went ahead and took a few extra seconds to get to 25, which is fine by me.  I'm doing extra reps, which is never a bad thing, right?

I'm really starting to feel now like I'm turning a corner with my fitness because of this program.  I have a ton of motivation this time around, and I'm really excited to see what my "day 180" pictures and weight/body fat percentage will be.

Yoga is on the menu for tomorrow.

Dan

Round 2, Day 2: Plyometrics

Well, it's day 2 and I've already had a schedule adjustment.  Last night, we had Senior Legion baseball games (we won both!) so I didn't get any supper after work and didn't get home until after 10pm.  Since I was doing Plyometrics, I also didn't want to workout too soon after eating.  So, I went ahead and did the workout on Wednesday morning.  I was a little worried about not having much energy, but it went pretty good.

Speaking of the workout, I experienced the same slight decline in performance in Plyometrics that I saw in Monday's workout.  Not much...probably just a few percentage points...but it was noticeable.  I again chalk this up to being off from this workout for a few weeks.  I expect next Tuesday's workout to be back to where I was when I ended round 1.

No baseball tonight, so Shoulders and Arms should go off tonight as scheduled.

Dan