Day 84: Love & Legs

My honey joined me for the P90X Legs & Back workout on this lovely Sunday morning. As you've read in many of the posts, I love to workout with Karen. Not only does she make it fun, but she's in such good shape that she serves as an inspiration to me.

Working out with your significant other can also be very romantic. The workout may be hard but when you participate in healthy addictions as a couple, you feel good about yourself and good about each other. You are proud of what you are doing and proud that you are doing it together.

Granted, Karen and I go out and party and get drunk and dance like fools, but we know this debauchery is offset by our love of fitness. In the photo, Karen is taking advantage of the calf raises to sneak in a few kisses. Karen's 17 inches shorter than me so I have to wait until I'm doing squats if I want to sneak in a few kisses of my own.

Day 83: Imbalanced

Every P90Xer that I speak with agrees that Yoga X is one of the most difficult of the workouts. Hell, I can't do half of the poses without some assistance. I'm 6'5" and 255 pounds of imbalanced, uncoordinated, stiff muscle.

In the photo, I'm doing the Warrior 3 pose. Normally, you are supposed grab your left ankle with your left hand, stick your right hand straight up in the air and raise your right leg perpendicular to the floor. Yeah, right. If I try this pose without using my heavy bag and yoga block for support, I'd being laying on the floor. Trust me this pose is still hard doing it my way.

Therefore, if you are doing the Yoga X workout or any of the others, you may find it necessary to use blocks, bags, walls, chairs or shelves to provide balance and support. Try to do the moves that you can do, but if you are unable, improvise.

When improvising just use as much support as needed. For example, I use a chair when doing lunges. I don't put too much weight on the chair but just enough to maintain balance and still exert myself and get the maximum benefit of the god awful lunge. Eventually, and I mean eventually, I'll be able to do most of the exercises and poses with perfect form.

In the meantime, I'll continue to give 100% assisted effort and that's good enough for me.

Day 82: Be Flexible

P90X puts a strong emphasis on flexibility. I've discovered that I also need to be flexible in my scheduling. Let me explain. Last week P90X had me scheduled to do the following:

   Mon:  Chest & Back
   Tue:  Plyometrics
   Wed:  Shoulders & Arm
   Thu:  Yoga X
   Fri:  Legs
   Sat:  Kenpo X
   Sun:  X Stretch

I do every workout that P90X calls for in a week. However, sometimes I switch the days around. For example, last week Karen wanted to workout with me on Monday but she has an injured shoulder. Therefore, we switched Monday's Chest & Back with Tuesday's Plyo workout. Karen wanted to workout again on Friday and loves Kenpo X so we did that workout instead of Legs & Back. Saturday I was exhausted so I did Sunday's X Stretch and put off the Legs & Back workout until Sunday. I got all seven scheduled workouts in for the week but didn't do the workouts on their regularly scheduled days.

Some P90X'er may consider this sacrilege, but in the real word, no one will be able to tell that I moved workouts around. I'll be just as lean and muscular and fit. P90X is tough physically but it is tougher to schedule 90 days straight especially if you are an adult with kids. If you want to successfully complete the P90X program, you have to be flexible.

Day 81: Keep Your Right Up

When I was taking Muay Thai (Thai Kickboxing) at a local studio, the hardest thing to remember (besides breathing) was to keep your hands up. You'd think you were doing a good job at this but it until the instructor began his constant mantra. Keep your right up. You dropped your left. Hands up. Quit dropping your hands. If you were sparring with an experienced opponent, they weren't as gentile when they reminded you.

The P90X Kenpo X workout is a great cardio workout, but it doesn't teach you anything about fighting. I've had some basic training from my Muay Thai classes and remember enough to take a more experienced approach to the workout. I use the heavy and standing bags to provide resistance and let me feel those punches. I also am focusing on form and trying to keep the hands up, rotate the shoulders and punch with the hips. My form is probably far from perfect but at least I'm getting a little more than just a good cardio workout.

I've only got one more Kenpo X left during this round of P90X. Kenpo has been the most enjoyable of all the P90X workouts. Actually, it's been the only enjoyable workout. The rest of the workouts are work-outs. That's why I'll always do at least one or two Kenpo workouts every week when I'm not in a structured P90X 90 day cycle. It's so nice when you can combine exercise and fun and not have to rely so much on discipline.

Day 80: Part 2 of 2 - Might as Well Jump

I get up, and nothing gets me down.
You got it tough. I've seen the toughest soul around.
And I know, baby, just how you feel.
You've got to roll with the punches to get to what's real
— Jump by Van Halen

I stepped into my home gym late this evening to do my second P90X workout of the day. I missed Plyometrics (jump training) yesterday and decided to knock it out tonight. My upper body was suffering from this morning's workout and my lower body has been sore for the last two weeks. However, I dug deep and squatted, jumped, twisted, lunged, hopped and leaped for an hour.

I felt like I was solid stone and probably gave the worst plyometrics performance since days 2 and 9 of P90X. Although my performance wasn't top notch, I gave it my best and that's all that counts. In P90X you ain't competing with nobody but yourself.

I'm so glad I made up yesterday's missed workout. One P90X workout in a day is tough enough let alone two. I'm sure I'll be paying for it when I wake up tomorrow to do my Kenpo X with Karen. Friday night I'm going to try to squeeze in an extra X Stretch P90X workout in the evening to make up for the one I missed during week 3. Then I'll be caught up and feeling good about myself again. I know I'm being extreme but that's what the X in P90X is all about, baby!

Day 80: Part 1 of 2 - Pull Up Land

I had a full day of appointments scheduled beginning at 9:00am so I gat started at 7:30am and hit the fast forward on all of the breaks so I could get finished in time. My first workout of the day was Disc 10 Back & Biceps with an Ab Ripper X tacked on at the end. It was one hell of a tough workout here in Pull Up Land.

This is the last time I'll do this workout in this 90 day round of P90X so I hit it hard and made it count. As I'm writing this post I can definitely feel the workout. I am sore and my muscles are solid stone. Although I've only lost about 5 pounds in the last 80 days I can really see and feel the results. I don't think I've ever been this big. It's time to buy some new shirts. Karen can you help me out?

I am really loving my pull up bar even though I still have to use the chair for support. My only regret is that I wasn't able to use the bar exclusively during this round of P90X. The bands are effective but not even close to a reasonable substitute for pull ups.

The biceps exercises were fantastic also. P90X has about eight different versions of bicep exercises that absolutely destroy your arms. You will feel the pain and discomfort during this workout. It pushes you to your limit.

Day 79: Strike Two

Oh, mercy me. I had to get up at 6:00am so I could pick up the kids from their mom's and get them to school by 7:30am (30 mile drive). Then I had to drive to my biggest client's office by 8:00am to meet a computer tech. They're in the middle of a new server installation and I have to babysit the project so no one drops the ball. Well, the computer tech dropped the ball and didn't show up until 2:00pm. Unfortunately, that tied me up until past 7:00pm. By the time I got to my girlfriend's and ate some dinner (I was starving!), it was past 8:00pm. My girlfriend usually gets up at 4:30am so she goes to bed early. I was physically and mentally exhausted and wanted to spend some cuddle time with my girl so...I skipped my P90X workout.

I did the right thing. I feel guilty. I had no choice. I'm a loser. Priories come first. If I wasn't so undisciplined I'd got up at 4:00am. Blah, blah, blah, blah.

As you can probably tell, my angels and demons are at war. This occurs because I'm obsessive-compulsive about this P90X among many other things. I skipped an X Stretch workout during week 3 so this is also my second strike. However, I have the solution. On Day 80, I'll do my regularly scheduled workout in the morning and do Day 79's workout in the evening. It will have to be late though, because I have appointments scheduled from 9:00am until 9:00pm. This is going to be tough but that's the price I've got to pay for a clear conscious.

Note: This weekend I'm throwing in an extra X Stretch workout to make up for week 3's strike one.

Day 78: My Tool Chest

P90X doesn't require a bunch of expensive equipment. Tonight's workout was fancier than usual and still only required some dumbbells and push up bars. Of course, you'll need a television and DVD player to watch the workout. If you do have some extra dough to throw around, you can always add some extra stuff.

In the photo, I have four sets of iron hex dumbbells (10, 15, 20, 25) totaling 120 pounds. You can buy these dumbbells for a little over a buck a pound. I seldom touch the $400 Bowflex dumbbells in the upper left behind the fan because I don't lift heavy very often. The pair of push up bars only cost $20. I did recently purchase the AKROwheels total body functional training system for $35. AKROwheels are like a dumbbell with wheels on the ends instead of weights. I used them tonight to do floor flys. In this exercise you put one hand on the floor and use the AKROwheel to roll the other arm back and forth to the side as you do push ups. This is not exactly how they do it in the video but it works for me. You can also use the AKROwheels to do all sorts of ab exercises.

The only other pieces of equipment you need for P90X workouts are some bands and a pull up bar. You can get a set of bands for about $50 and a pull up bar for $30. I had a lot of equipment before I started P90X and purchased some extra stuff including the rubber flooring. I probably have a little over $1,100 invested which ain't bad. I don't have any buyer's remorse because I use the hell out of my stuff and it is good for me. If you are frugal and on a tight budget, you can get setup with the basics for around $200.

I almost forgot. The set of 10 P90X DVDs cost a mere $120. They are the cheapest and best investment I ever made in my health.

Day 77: My Lesser Half

As I keep saying, you need to balance your upper and lower body workouts. Most people focus on the upper body because it is easier and they like to build up those glamor muscles. Unfortunately, when they throw on a pair of shorts, their legs look disproportionate to their upper body.

I'm a tall guy and suffer from skinny legs. Therefore, I put lots of work into exercising my legs and trying to add bulk. As you can see in the photo, I am getting some size and lots of definition but it's been and will continue to be a long battle. Trust me. I'm not being too critical of myself because I get told I have skinny legs on a regular basis and, yes, it does irritate the piss out of me.

Initially, when I started the P90X program I planned on sneaking across the street to my LA Fitness and doing some heavy leg workouts with the weights. However, between P90X, maintaining my blogs, working, kids, and spending time with my girlfriend, I just can't find the time.

I haven't lost hope, though. After this round of P90X, I'll try to go to the gym and lift heavy legs at least once a week. My home gym is great, but when you're trying to grow your legs, there is no substitute for the heavy metal.

I stated above that your strength training should be balance between your upper and lower body. However, if you're going to be out of balance, my suggestion it to overdue the legs. Just try to avoid over training and spread out your leg workouts so you can recover and grow.

Day 76: Crouching Tiger

Crouching tiger? More like squatting bull. You should have heard my knees crack when I stood up. I have trouble doing many of the moves in the P90X program. For example, in the photo I am doing deep squats. I put my hands under the heavy bag simply to keep my balance and maintain the position. This allows me to focus on the stretch instead of focusing on my balance.

I use chairs, yoga blocks, my heavy bag, the wall and my garage shelves to assist me in many of the exercises, yoga poses and stretches. Some exercises like the Camel and Hero yoga poses are just too much for me. I don't want to risk injury so I do a safer stretch that benefits the same muscle group. My biggest fear is injury. I'd be devastated if I had to stop exercising.

One of the things I love about the P90X workout videos, is that Tony Horton always tells you how to modify the exercise if necessary. Let's face it. At 47 years old, I just don't have the athletic ability of a younger man. I'm doing my best to recapture my youth but my springs are sprung. I'll never be able to dunk a basketball again. Nonetheless, I still get a lot of benefit from doing these exercises even if I'm using a heavy bag to keep me from falling on my ass.

Day 75: The Couple that Fights Together...

The couple that fights together, stays together. Karen wanted to do P90X with me today but her legs were killing her from yesterday's workout (her personal trainer is tough). I love to exercise with my girl, so I switched Friday's Legs & Back for Saturday's Kenpo X. Karen loves Kenpo, so we had a great workout together. We were both slugging away and kicking and sweating. I use the heavy bag most of the time and Karen uses the standing bag. Karen refuses to spar with me because she's afraid of that terrifying right upper-cut in the photo. I'll pay for that.

The workout went quickly and we both thought it was much easier than usual. Fortunately, by the end of the day all the muscles in my upper body were real sore. Karen also remarked that she was feeling the pain; we both love the pain. It means we pushed ourselves.

After I finish this 90 day round of P90X in 15 days, I'm going to do intense interval training for a few weeks. Interval training involves bursts of high intensity alternated with periods of low activity. This is great for cardiovascular build-up and more effective at inducing fat loss. I'm not overweight (255 pounds) but I still want to burn off this last layer of fat and drop my body fat under 7%. Last time I tested I was just over 10%.

To accomplish this, I just ordered the P90X Plus workouts from Beach Body. This series includes a Kenpo Cardio Plus workout that is more intense and looks like a lot of fun. In addition, I ordered Beach Body's Insanity workouts. Insanity is just plain crazy-ass over-the-top interval training. If these workouts don't lean me up and melt off the rest of my fat, nothing will.

Day 74: Downward Dog (254 lbs)

This yoga pose is called Downward Dog and it's a toughie. This pose kills my biceps after I've done it only  once or twice and, unfortunately, you have to do it a lot during the Yoga X workout. Also, the pose is supposed to look like an inverted 'V' when done properly, However, you'll notice in the photo that Senior Stiffy looks more like an inverted 'U'.

Today's photo was symbolic of the workout. I had no energy. I felt tight and sore. My muscles were weak and it was very hard to focus. It was just a downward dog kind of day.
However, I pressed on and finished the workout. I paid my dues and now I have another Yoga X behind me.

I've done 13 Yoga X workouts so far and only have three more remaining in this round of P90X before I'm free. I'll still do yoga workouts at least once a week in the future, but it's nice to pretend that yoga will be behind me in two weeks. I love to pretend. I need to pretend.

Well, I'm off to work. I have a very long day ahead of me. I'm just hoping that I get my post-Yoga X euphoria blast gets here in the next hour or two.

Day 73: Shoulders, Biceps, Triceps, Repeat

Shoulders Biceps Triceps Shoulders Biceps Triceps Shoulders Biceps Triceps Shoulders Biceps Triceps Shoulders Biceps Triceps Shoulders Biceps Triceps Shoulders Biceps Triceps Shoulders Biceps Triceps Shoulders Biceps Triceps Shoulders Biceps Triceps. All done!

I wish it was that easy folks but in case you weren't counting, that's 30 sets of shoulders, biceps and triceps up there. Those exercises were crammed into 50 minutes so this workout required a lot of hustle to boot. On top of that, I bumped up the weight in each set by 5 or 10 pounds from last week's because I wanted to really push myself. By the time I finished the workout and the Ab Ripper X that followed, I was crushed.

After the workout, I took a quick shower and threw on some jeans and one of my last clean tight t-shirts (I really gotta do some laundry). I was in a hurry because I had to meet a client for breakfast and wanted to run a few errands first. I drove across the street to pick up my mail from the UPS store. As I was walking up to the store, the kid who cuts my hair walked past and gave me a thumbs up. "Lookin' good bro!", he said. I walk into the UPS store and bumped into one of the Asian ladies from the salon next door. "Oh wow, you lose lotsa weight. How much you lose?" I told her that actually I had gained about 20 pounds but she didn't believe me. Then the guy who runs the store found out I was doing P90X and peppered me with questions. Of course, I was happy to answer. Throughout my workday, I got half a dozen more compliments.

I guess this P90X is really starting to work. After 70 days, I've started to get a little discouraged at times and worn down physically and mentally from the constant workouts. However, it's mornings like today that make it all worthwhile. People let me know that my efforts are starting to bear fruit. All I did differently today was wear a tight t-shirt. Tomorrow when I'm suffering through the dreaded 90 minute Yoga X workout, I'll remember this morning and try that much harder.

Day 72: Push Up City

I spent the morning in Push Up City. Today was my fifth and last Chest & Back workout (disk 1) in this 90 day round of P90X. All I can say is, thank God. I cranked out 99 push ups and 75 pull ups with some heavy dumbbell exercises thrown in for fun. Oh, I had the pleasure of suffering through another Ab Ripper X workout at the end.

The workout was so hard, I actually pressed the pause button. I consider it a matter of pride that I seldom do this. However, this workout was whooping my ass and I was in desperate need of oxygen.

Push ups are one of those perfect exercises. They work your chest, hands, forearms, biceps, triceps, shoulders, traps, upper back, lower back, abs, glutes, hamstrings, quads, calf, feet, and your heart. You can also perform them anywhere and anytime. No equipment is required and there are many variations. Also, if push ups are too intense, you can always do them on your knees and make them much easier.

Overall, I've been impressed with the P90X Chest & Back workout. I'd consider it the third hardest workout after plyometrics and yoga. If you want to get your upper body toned up and increase your strength, this workout comes highly recommended.