Transition Week

After Phase I there is a one week transition period of workouts that are much more cardio and core focused, and less intense on the weights. It was during this week that we were introduced to the Core Synergistics DVD and it instantly became among our least favorite! This is an hour-long torture of balance and flexibility where each move invokes your Abs and makes you want to throw-up. I was disappointed to feel that way, as it had been at least 3 weeks since I last wanted to throw-up after a P90X workout, and had thought I'd put that behind me. Oh well...

Outside of the Core torture DVD, the transition week was a relative break from the typical workout schedule. It did include Yoga, and I'm happy to report that I can now lean forward and grab both of my toes in a seated position - that's about 3-4 inches further of a stretch than I had 30 days ago so flexibility is definitely a positive outcome of this program. I'm also able to hold the poses much better, including Crane, where you lean forward in a tripod like position and balance all of your weight on your hands and wrists. I am pretty much the Crane master now - I can do it for almost the entire 30 seconds!

Kenpo is still our favorite and the most fun - and my left side punches and kicks may actually now knock someone down if landed. This too is huge progress! With transition week behind us it's full steam ahead to Phase 2!

Also - as an alternative to the P90X recovery drink I have been mixing all sorts of drinks with Vanilla flavored whey protein, plus sprinkling in Creatine and Glutamine. This is definitely a cheaper alternative to buying the P90X product. If you try it, I recommend Apple Juice - but it is higher in calories than my next two favorites, Fruit Punch Flavored Gatorade and White Cherry Flavored Powerade. Orange Gatorade or Powerade are also ok - just avoid the lemon-lime and the lemonade flavors - trust me...

Phase I Completed

Last week we successfully put the first ~30 day phase of P90X behind us. At the conclusion of Phase I, both Amiee and I are down 5-6 pounds, and we've each lost 1-2 inches off of our waists. I've also added an inch to my biceps - that's all we've measured, though I bet if we were to measure all muscle groups we'd see results in all areas.

So the conclusion is that we've definitely redistributed our weight and we're changing our shapes. Even though Amiee has lost only 5-6 pounds to this point, it looks like she's lost more like 10-15 because of the transformation in shape. My back has gotten a lot tighter as well giving me a much better "V" shape from my waist up to my shoulders.

The workouts continue to be hard - but we are getting through them. We're both making a concerned effort to eat healthier without being on a diet, and for the most part that's been working although this past week we've run into a number of things that have kept us too busy to plan properly for meals (e.g. track meets) and so we've had to hit some fast food here & there - I really feel it now when I eat poorly.

So heading into Phase 2 I would recommend P90X to anyone as a quality program. Certainly challenging, but worth it if you stick it out!

Week 3 Concludes

At some point during week 3 something kicked-in for me and the intensity picked up considerably, along with the strength results. My theory is that the first time through each workout you're basically trying to survive, the next week you start to gain a little confidence, and by the third you have enough confidence to challenge yourself more. After my first Kenpo karate session I felt awkward, but after my last session I felt like some sort of action movie or video game superhero! I swear, if I'm ever in a situation where two thugs try to attack me, one from in front and one from behind, as long as they attack rhythmically and allow me to reset my feet between kicks, they're dead!

We've decided to extend this first phase by a week to capture that momentum and to keep building on the strength training for one more week (ok, I decided and Amiee is too exhausted to argue!). So instead of week 4 being a transition week of cardio, yoga, and core, we're doing an optional fourth week of the first phase workouts (we checked in the P90X manual and this is common practice for those who had a tougher first week). We started that today and I did 212 push-ups (standard, wide, military, decline, diamond and dive bombers among them) as compared to 154 during the first week, and the quality was also much better. I did 30 reps of "lawnmowers" with a 12 pound dumbbell in week one, and cranked out 15 reps with 45 pound dumbbells today - definite progress has been made.

I'm down 5 pounds after 3 weeks, but more importantly my energy level is up and I can see a difference in my chest, shoulder and arms. Amiee has also commented on my back looking a lot leaner - and it better after doing over 200 pull-ups a week for the last three weeks! I'm not sure how many pounds Amiee is down at this point, but she looks great and is a wonderful person, and a great mother, and I'm not asking anything about the scale or her thoughts on the program anymore! I do think she believes it's working, even if she won't admit it...

Our eating habits remain healthy, but we're definitely not on the diet formally any longer and haven't been for a week or so. My appetite for bad foods has diminished - I don't crave the carbs like I once did and I've had less than a full can of soda in the past week so I think I've kicked that. I do feel like a chemist mixing my supplement shakes 2-3 times per day, but I feel so much healthier that I don't mind the extra time in the kitchen.

Overall, so far so good, and we (I) look forward to future weeks of the program!

Week 2 Concludes

OK, so week two was a lot better than week one in many respects. We're getting through the workouts and we're each making improvements in either the weights or number of reps (or both) that we complete. I am looking more forward to the workout each day, and overall my energy level has been a lot higher (except for last night when I fell asleep at 8:30 but I'm not sure what that was all about).

I still hate the AB Ripper, but I can at least now do all of the exercises it contains, just not too many reps. Amiee is still way better at that one. My favorite workout remains the Kenpo Karate because it is so different from anything I've done before. Amiee's favorite is Shoulders & Arms, which if you choose the right amount of weights and reps is challenging, yet reasonable. Plus since its just upper body you don't have too much trouble walking the rest of the day or the next day...

Overall, I do feel a lot tighter, stronger and a lot more flexible. I actually was able to grab my toe during a yoga stretch the other night - something I wasn't sure I'd ever be able to do again, so my body is changing for the better. Amiee is less enthusiastic about the results, but continues to be a good sport.

As for the nutrition plan - after 14 days on the P90X diet Amiee and I were down only 3-4 pounds each, which we don't believe is nearly enough to justify eating egg whites every morning for breakfast and shoveling down four servings of vegetables every day. Let alone grilling chicken every-other-day and celebrating our daily Powerbar like it is something that actually tastes good! So, we've pretty much decided to ditch following the diet so closely. We'll still be mindful of our intake, and actually I think we'll both eat fewer calories than the diet called for, but we'll do it more with the foods we want to eat! Besides, as grueling as the workouts are we should still keep dropping pounds, especially as we work some muscle back into form.

We're almost out of the P90X Recovery Drink, and it's like $50 a bottle - so I did do some research and will soon be experimenting with an alternative. Supposedly Apple Juice with the right amount of protein mixed in will be just as good, plus a splash of creatine and glutamine powder - sound good? Can't wait to try it!

Week 1 Concludes

Goals Update: After 7 days I'm down 3 pounds and am definitely feeling tighter everywhere. My watch is sliding all over my wrist to the point I think I'll need a link taken out. My stomach looks better as well - but there's still a way to go there. My posture is better and I feel more flexible. Amiee is down 2 pounds and is very sore, which leads her to believe that "something" is happening - she's just not certain what and still wants a Krisy Kreme lemon-filled donut.

Day 6: The diet still sucks, but I will admit that when it's over I'll have much better eating habits moving forward - so that'll be good in the long run. Amiee is not as enthusiastic about the discovery, but I think she agrees at some level. I did make it through my first lunch out on Day 6 - I met some friends at TGI Friday's. Here's my order - "I'll take the chicken fajitas, but I don't need the tortillas, beans, rice, cheese, guacamole, sour cream, or pico de gallo. Just give me a big pile of chicken, peppers and onions." Yes, I had for the moment transformed into one of "those" people!

The workout for day 6 was Kenpo Karate. Of all of the workouts so far, I think this was definitely the most fun and the least challenging. And, it was unlike anything I'd ever done before so that was good for my body. Amiee says it's the same as Taebo but I never did that so I have no basis for comparison. It's essentially an hour of kick and punch combinations.

Because the Kenpo workout makes you use both of your arms & legs it definitely reveals which is your dominant side (and obviously, which is the weaker). I'll put it this way - if I were to get into a fight and could only use my left arm and leg, any one of those kids from The Sandlot could kick my ass, including either the fat kid and the little dude with the glasses...

Day 7: On day 7 you can either recover or do the stretch DVD. I had every intention of doing the stretch DVD but the day got away from us. As a consolation we saw Hot Tub Time Machine and that was way better than I'm sure the stretch DVD is - no offense to Tony Horton.

Days 4 & 5

So Jason "suggested" I write the latest update covering our last two days.

We had Yoga X yesterday and today we had the double session of Legs & Back followed by the horrendous Ab Ripper X. I say horrendous because although it is only 16 minutes, it is arguably the hardest ab workout I've ever done, including the various sessions with my personal trainer at the gym and all those Tae Bo tapes years ago!

So far the yoga session is my favorite, if I can go so far as to say that any of them are favorites! I've had very limited exposure to yoga, and Jason has had none, so the balance moves are bit beyond our level of expertise. I kept glancing over at Jason to make sure that I was in the more flexible position. I figured since he will certainly be the superstar in the pull-ups and squats department, I can at least feel good knowing he's nowhere near as flexible as I am. In reality, neither one of us looked nearly as graceful and peaceful as the perfect dopes on the screen. Still, we were both able to work up a good sweat and completed a majority of the moves.

After completing the chest and back session the first day, I felt like I pretty much knew what was coming today with the legs and back session. Hundreds of pull-ups with your hands in every grip position imaginable, and hundreds of squats and lunges. We also did 4 different types of calf raises. I didn't know there was more than 1 or 2.

Concerning the diet, my pizza craving kicked in yesterday just before lunch time. As Jason eluded to previously, I hadn't seen any changes on the scale. Finally today I have lost one whole pound! If I sound excited, don't worry I'm not. I wouldn't want to endure the workouts or the diet independently for one measly pound, much less in concert with one another! So even though I was ready to call it quits, Jason and I struggled through yesterday and kept to the plan stuffing in the last ounce of protein. Today was our self-proclaimed cheat day. We knew pizza was actually on the menu for dinner so we swore to be as good as possible all day in preparation for our splurge. When Jason left to get the Barro's pizza, I was fantasizing about eating 6 slices. I'm happy to report that I only had 2, Jason had 4 and we have several pieces left over! I'm sticking to my irrational belief that I will weigh 8 pounds less tomorrow despite having pizza for dinner.

So we've nearly made it through one whole week and we're continuing to chug along. I'm anxious to re-visit all of these workouts next week to see if we perform better!

Days 2 & 3

Day Two: The day 2 workout is plyometrics, or jump-training for those of you not familiar. After the hundreds of push-ups and pull-ups we did in day 1, I was looking forward to something more active and not so isolated. Besides, years ago when I was a personal trainer I did get certified in Speed, Agility and Quickness training, which incorporates a lot of plyometrics - so I figured day 2 would be easier than day 1... Big mistake! The plometrics DVD is essentially an hour of jump-squats! Amiee and I were both panting with our legs burning after the 8 minute warm-up, and then the real pain began!

For the second day in a row I wanted to throw-up immediately after the workout. But I rested, enjoyed another recovery drink, and moved on. I'm pleased and proud to say we did make it through the entire session - we took a few jumps off here & there but overall it was a solid effort.

Day 2 on the diet was also ok - we went grocery shopping to buy a variety (as much variety as you can get) of the different portions of food groups and sorted them into portion sized packages. The lunch I packed to take to work consisted of 1 banana, 1 powerbar, 1 oz. of almonds and cashews mixed together, 3 oz. of non-fat ham and non-fat turkey, and two 3 oz bags of baby carrots. I ate throughout the day and was never hungry nor full - and I guess that's the point so that was alright. For dinner we made a taco salad with low-fat hamburger that I grilled and then broke apart into the salad. We each had to put 4 cups of leafy greens in our salad, which completely overwhelmed the hamburger and tiny ass 1 oz. portion of cheese that we were alloted, but we made do.

Day 3: Both Amiee and I got hungrier throughout day 3. I was at work and she was at home with Mackenzie (age 5), whose primary diet consists of Oreos, pizza, Pepsi and chocolate. Amiee made it past the temptations and supposedly kept her self-control - I'm taking her word for it with no questions asked at this point since she's being such a good sport with the workouts!

We enjoyed an egg-white scrambler for breakfast and I had prepared foods in portions to take to work for lunch so again we got by. For dinner we made a shrimp stir fry from a recipe in the P90X nutrition guide that was actually pretty tasty. However, in our excitement to prepare this experimental dish we forgot to pull the tails off of the shrimp so it was a bit more challenging to eat than it should have been!

The day 3 workout was arms and shoulders, which we both completed successfully and had no urge to throw-up after! We're definitely making progress - or we didn't push it hard enough with the dumbbells we were using - we'll step it up next time to be sure. We also had to do the Abs DVD again today, and I made it a little further in this time. I still can't get my body into the starting position of half of the moves, but I think that will improve over time - Amiee again did much better than I with that one.

We are wearing heart rate monitors during the workouts - that's recommended to make certain you're not "dogging it." For the time being we're using them to ensure we're not on the verge of death, but hopefully they will be used for their intended purpose in future weeks!

We each enjoyed the recovery drink after the workout this time - either the taste is growing on us or we're so dissatisfied with the other foods that we're eating that this wins out by comparison.

As far as results go, I am down 2 pounds but that could simply be a weight fluctuation, although my watch was sliding on my wrist today and I swear my pants felt looser and baggier. Could just be psychological but we need every bit of encouragement at this phase in the workout! I asked Amiee if she had lost any weight yet and she made some sort of groan and gave me a look that I only see when I've pissed her off. I think I'll wait a couple more days before I ask again.

Bottom Line: The workouts are ridiculously tough, you definitely have to be an athlete to get through them, and the diet is an adjustment - but pretty reasonable as far as diets go. Overall we're pleased with the program and anxious to keep moving forward after the first 3 days.