For a Good Stretch

Still sort of getting back into the swing of things with P90X. The little annoying issue with my right legs has subsided somewhat, but is still there. So instead of doing Yoga X, I opted for X Stretch instead. It was a good session. I haven't done Yoga X in about 3 weeks now, but I am eager to get back to it. I have definitely decided to complete Week 7 from beginning to end next week. This weekend will serve as a supplemental session, as i will get my Kenpo X, Legs & Back and Back & Biceps workouts in during the next three days. And then I am off and running again beginning on Monday.

P.S.> I've got a plan to supplement the rest of this round with some extras. Not gonna talk about it just yet. I will try it out and see how it works. I am excited about it . . .

:^)

Bringing It Back!

So the last couple of weeks or so have been a bit of an emotional roller coaster for me as I have had to sort of deal with some personal issues. And as much as I didn't want it to, it sort of derailed my progress a bit. My Week 7 was all messed up as I only completed half of it, then when I attempted to redeem myself the followeing week, I only got to Tuesday. And then this week, I didn't even get it started. But I am putting that behind me now and getting back in the saddle. I didn't want to completely start from the beginning, so what I am doing is sort of making up the best way I can for what I missed. So today was my re-do of Day 45.

Day 45 (Version 2.0) - Plyometrics / Chest, Shoulders & Triceps / Ab Ripper X
So yeah, I got off my butt and decided to double things up today. I was concerned that after being on and off for the last few days, that this was gonna be absolutely dreadful. I couldn't've been more wrong. I did take it a little easier on the Plyo because I had been having a small issue with my right knee, or specifically the area just below it and towards the calf. So any of the exercises that involved leaping or jumping, I played it safe and just barely hopped off of the floor. Still brought as much intensity as I could elsewhere and ended it with a soaked tank top. It almost felt like I never left.

So I skipped the cool down and popped in the Chest, Shoulders & Triceps DVD. I was still quite warmed-up from the Plyo, so I skipped ahead to the Slow-Motion 3-N-1 Pushups. Throughout most of this workout, my pushups were not quite on par with the last time I successfully completed this workout. But I did my best and forgot the rest and kept chugging along. Like in my previous posts, I decided not to record the numbers until I am back on the cycle, but I think I was probaby just slightly sub-par with all of the resistance exercises. Not a total washout by any means, but not quite where I was before. Understandable after the half-hiatus.

Moving on to Ab Ripper X. I went back and forth on doing it. By this point I was pretty much spent. But I thought, hey, it's only fifteen minutes. And I knew I wouldn't forgive myself for getting this far today and not going through with it. So I put out the workout mat and went for it. I knew this was gonna be tough, but it had to be done. I am happy to say that I still managed to do the sit-up exercises. Not as many as before, but I felt good that I was still able to do them and not revert to crunching. The rest was surprisingly on par with the last time I did ARX.

It was good to see Tony's face again, and even better to be on the floor and getting back into the swing of things. I am now pondering redoing Week 7 from beginning to end next week. I have this burning need to complete the week as outlined before moving ahead with the next Recovery week. I believe that is what my plan is. That will certainly set the tone for the second half of this round of P90X.

So to honor my return to X-Land, I present Dolly Parton and "Here You Come Again." . . . . and here I go! Have a good one. See you here tomorrow!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdQxseZJLdk

:^D

Jumpin' Jumpin'

Dragged myself outta bed and hit the "gym" and pressed play. YAY!!

Day 44 (Version 2.0) - Plyometrics

It still amazes me how the better workouts seem to be the ones where you really don't feel like hitting. Somehow the blood starts pumping, the energy starts buzzing and you are jumping and sweating like a mad man. yeah that was me this evening. My legs were really feeling this Plyo workout tonight. Had to take several mini-breaks, but kept them short. The thing about Plyo with me is that no

matter how challenging it is on a given day, I always tell myself "You gotta make it to Football Hero, you gotta make it to Football Hero!" I like to finish a workout strong, and Football Hero always gives me the opportunity to do that.

Overall, a good workout! I am happy. Again, not detailing the workouts until I get to my official Day 46 which will be here soon.

How 'bout a little Destiny's Child and "Jumpin' Jumpin' "! Have a good night!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1P96MOONDQ

:^D

Back in the Game . . .

So the first half of last week was awesome. Started the week off pulling a double and then reached the halfway mark on a high note. Then, the latter half of last week just totally fell into a Cuisinart and got totally pureed. Had several things happening and not enough time and energy and sleep to do it all. So I ended up missing my Yoga X, Back & Biceps and Kenpo X workouts. Luckily I didn't do any binging or go crazy with the eating. I will confess to having some ice cream after a very spicy Indian dinner on Friday night, but beyond that, I didn't go flying off the wagon. So I decided to just do a do-over and start the week fresh. The plan is to follow the schedule as it was laid for last week and pick up the counting and the detailed journaling when I hit the point where I left off on Thursday, starting completely over didn't make sense since I only see this as a stumble and not a tumble. Kinda wacky I know, but this will work for me

Day 43 (Version 2.0) - Chest Shoulders and Triceps / Ab Ripper X

So I did not record my workout today because I am sort of supplementing the impromptu break. That doesn't mean I didn't work just as hard, however. I was concerned going in that the break may result in a struggle. But I am happy to say things went okay. I guess having the first 45 days of work behind me paid off in that I didn't feel like I was starting over from scratch. It took me a minute to get into the groove. But I think I found it. I would say that today's workout was maybe only slightly less below par from last Monday. There were a few places where I took a mini-break or didn't start right away with Tony & Friends. But for the most part, especially in the latter half, I did bring it and it felt like I never left.

Same with Ab Ripper X. The Wide Leg Sit-up and the Roll-Up/V-Up Combos were a bit more challenging than the last time, but everything else was pretty much on the same level as the last time I did this last Wednesday. So all-in-all, I fee like I am on track to getting back in the swing of things overall and really tackle the second half of this round of P90X.

This song from Queen says it all, "The Show Must Go On." Feels good to be back on track! See you here tomorrow!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ADh8Fs3YdU

:^D

Halfway There!

Well here we are at the halfway benchmark. I have to be honest, when I started this, I wasn't sure if I was gonna last a week, and now I am in the homestretch of Week 7! Feeling good, things are moving along swimmingly. I still need to conquer the nutrition end a little better, but overall, things are great. Feeling better, clothes are little looser, and gaining a more and more positive outlook on life. In the words of Martha Stewart, P90X: It's a good thing!

Day 45 - Back & Biceps / Ab Ripper X
I entered this workout in an upbeat kinda mood. I was actually kinda antsy and ready to go and was wishing Tony would stop talking and start moving! Although, I have to say he is quite the motivator, and quite the goofball. He really makes the torture a lot of fun. So my mantra lately has been Form, Form, Form! I am at the point where I really want to make sure I am doing the exercises correctly to get the maximum effect from them. With that in mind, my rep numbers lately have been closer to even, and in some cases a little less than before. Quality over quantity. Let's review the numbers . . .

Wide Front Pull-Ups: 25 0
Lawnmowers: 18 left/17 right +1/0
Twenty-Ones: 21
One-Arm Cross-Body Curls: 15 +2
Switch Grip Pull-Ups: 22 +2
Elbows-Out Lawnmowers: 13 left/ 12 right 0/-1
Standing Bicep Curls: 15 0
One-Arm Concentration Curls: 15 left/15 right 0/-1
Corn Cop Pull-Ups: 10 0
Reverse Grip Bent-Over Rows: 14 -1
Open Arm Curls: 18 +1
Static Arm Curls: 20 -4
Towel Pull-Ups: 18 +3
Congdon Locomotives: 35 -5
Crouching Cohen Curls: 19 +1
One-Arm Corkscrew Curls: 17 +1
Chin-Ups: 21 0
Bent Over Back Flys: 18 0
Curl-Up/Hammer Downs: 17 -3
Hammer Curls: 13 +1
Max Rep Pull-Ups (Wide Grip): 25 +1
In-Out Hammer Curls: 13 +1
Strip-set Curls: 32 +5

Plus, had a very strong set of Supermans, as well! This was a good set, resulting in an extremely soaked tshirt! I notice a big difference when I focus on form and not just trying to get high reps in. I have already been doing a good number of reps on most of my exercises in general all along. In tryin to get high numbers, I sometimes sacrificed form, which in turn sacrifices benefits. So heading into the second half of my first round of P90X, I will most definitely make proper form a top priority.

Had another great Ab Ripper X as well. I have a ways to go before doing a perfect set of ARX, but I have also come a long way in the last seven weeks. I completed 17 Wide-Lg Sit-ups! The most so far! Also completed 17 Hip Rock N Raises, also a personal best. My Roll-Up/V-Up Combo has really vastly improved form-wise. I got 12 completed, but more importantly, they were completed the closest to proper form than ever before. Also seeing some minor positioning improvment on the Leg Climb. Got my back a little further up from the floor. Still having some issues with the Fifer Scissor and the Pulse-Ups, but seeing how well I am coming along in other places gives me confidence that I well improve on those as well.

So the Halfway Hurdle has been cleared. Now it's time to kick it up a notch and finish this round strong!!

So one of my favorite singers is Celine Dion. I know apparently it's not "cool" to like her, but I don't care. I am a fan. So there! And this is one of my favorite songs from her, "Halfway to Heaven." Hope all is well in your world!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VuuVv-4lMFQ

:^D

The Fun Continues

Day 44 - Plyometrics

Just keeping it short and sweet tonight. Ripped through another excellent Plyo work. Sweat, sweat and more sweat. Feeling great. Tomorrow marks the half mark!! Wow! The one thing I love about the workouts, and I think it applies the most to Plyo, is I can go in feeling like I don't really want to do it, but once I get in the zone it becomes a goal to make it to the finish line. And always feels so good to get there. Such a real sense of accomplishment.

Here's your song. "Jump (or My Love)" by the Pointer Sisters. Have a good night!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgSyB5xSo2U

:^D

Mucho Mondo Make-Up Monday!!!

Talk about a total 180. I was bound and determined to make up for the schlumpy weekend I just had. I had this crazy notion that I would start off with Kenpo X and then move right into Chest, Shoulders & Triceps. How'd it go? Read on . . .

Day 43 - Kenpo X / Chest, Shoulders & Triceps / Ab Ripper X

Well this was gonna turn out either really great, or really meh. Thankfully it leaned toward the former and not the latter. I never fail to get inspiration from reading the messages on the P90X Facebook. Today was no exception. I read through the statuses, looked at the pics and videos and get a bit of a fire lit under me.

First headed into Kenpo X. I was originally supposed to do this on Saturday, but my body decided I needed to rest, and rest a lot. And then Sunday was a little more of the same, plus a sense of lackidaisicalness. But fortunately, none of that was there today. I entered Kenpo X with a pretty good level of intensity and maintained it thoughout the entire session.

I have always said this is my favorite workout of the series. And not that I pretty much have about 90% of the moves down, I can totally focus on form and intensity. For the most part, I kept up with Tony & Co. from beginning to end. I did have to take a couple of mini-breaks throughout, but that was mostly because I was really going for it! So I reached the end soaked with sweat, and pondering if I should go with my plan and head straight into the next workout. I decided to go for it. So I skipped the cool-down portion of Kenpo X, got a bit of Recovery drink in me, and switched out the DVDs.

I figured I was more than beyond warmed-up from Kenpo, so I skipped past the warm-up section of Chest, Shoulders & Triceps and went right into the main workout part. Here are the numbers. "Granny" push-ups and the Red band are still being applied. Difference from previous workout is in red.

Slow Motion 3N1 Push-Ups: 12/10 bonus +1/+10

In & Out Shoulder Flys: 16 -2

Chair Dips: 29 +5

Plange Push-Ups: 21 +1

Pike Presses: 11 +1

Side Tri-Rises: 16 left/16 right +1/+1

Floor Flys: 24 0

Scarecrows: 13 +5

Overhead Tricep Extensions: 12 +2

Two-Twitch Speed Push-Ups: 20 +4

Y-Presses: 14 0

Tricep Extensions: 15 +1

Side-to-Side Push-Ups: 20 +4

Pour Flys: 15 +2

Side-Leaning Tricep Extensions: 12 left/12 right +1/+1

One-Arm Push-Ups: 14 +3

Weighted Circles: 20 forward/20 backward 0/0

Throw the Bomb: 10 left/10 right 0/0

Clap Push-Ups: 15 +3

Slo-Mo Throws: 13 +5

Front-to-Back Tricep Extensions: 20 0

One-Arm Balance Push-Ups 10 -2

Fly Row Presses: 12 +2

Dumbbell Cross-Body Blows: 35! +13

I wasn't sure how well this was gonna go after such a full-throttled Kenpo X, but I think I did a great job considering. Numbers were up for the most part and I was able to finish very strong! I could still stand to get lower on all pf the push-ups, but trust I did them to the best of my current abilities and did as many of each that I could muster. By the time I reached the Cross-Body Blows, I was quite thrilled with how things went and really brought it!

So was there anything left in me to get through Ab Ripper X? I was in the zone and was not about to stop now, so I let the DVD continue on and unrolled my mat. I have to admit I was pretty exhausted by this point because I had just gone through 2 hours of moving and sweating, so my hopes for a successful ARX were high, but not without a little questioning. There was no time to think about it, so I went right into it.

My trajectory with Ab Ripper X I think is continuing it's slow, but sure ascent. I managed 15 Wide Leg Sit-Ups, which I think is the most I've done in a session so far. On the Hip Rock N Raise, I am still doing them on every odd number, but today when it got the 19 count, I did one at every number for a total of 15. Another high! And managed to squeeze out 13 Roll-Up/V-Up Combos. Not bad after all the torture that cam before it.

I have to say I feel VERY good about what I achieved today. More than makes up for the weekend! I know I will be feeling this later, but that will only serve as a reminder of the work I put in!

So I think the obvious choice for today's song is "Manic Monday" by The Bangles. Hope you're having a great Monday!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAZgLcK5LzI

:^D