5 days down! Honestly, I'm kind of impressed with myself that I've been pushing myself so hard in these workouts. Usually when I start something new, the first few days take the most willpower to get through. I hope I can stick with it for the next 85 days!
Anyway, I was still sore today. My legs were slightly better than they were yesterday but not much. So today's workout was tough. The first set of squats killed me, but as I went on, it actually got better. I'm still sore, and I'm sure it will be even worse tomorrow, but at least I made it through the workout. I actually liked it, and I think I'd be pretty good at it if I wasn't already in pain. So hopefully in the upcoming weeks the soreness will decrease and I'll really be able to push myself hard when I have to do it again. I was still sweating a lot today, even with the air conditioner blasting. As someone who always just did cardio before, I'm amazed at how strength training can get my heart rate up and make me sweat as much as this does. It's great.
Speaking of cardio, tomorrow is Kenpo X. That should be fun--as long as I'm not too sore again.
I wasn't in such a good mood today at work. I'm tired of the service I'm on currently, so in that sense I can't wait for this week to be over. However, I am really not looking forward to the service I'm going to be on next month. So I don't want this week to be over. It's kind of confusing, but overall I'm not very happy with work this week. Actually, I've been in sort of a funk for the past few days, even when I'm at home. I don't know what's up, but hopefully it will go away soon. I guess another good thing about P90X is that it takes my mind off things, even if it is only for an hour!
Today, I made chocolate chip cookies to take to work tomorrow, and I had to eat one to make sure they were okay, right? I mean, I can't feed my coworkers substandard cookies! It was only one, and it was little, so I won't feel guilty about it. Otherwise, my food choices today have been pretty good. My energy level during the workouts is fine, so I think I'm doing okay in the food department.
I think I worked out too late last night, even if it was yoga. I couldn't fall asleep until after 1. So I'm going to read and hopefully go to bed a little early tonight. Maybe I'll wake up tomorrow and be in a good mood! I can always hope :-)
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
Day 4: Yoga X
First of all, I am still so sore. Today, every step I took was painful, and it hurt to sit down and get up from a chair. I also think my arms have gotten progressively more sore as the day has gone on. I'm kind of scared for tomorrow's workout, Legs and Back. If it's going to be more squats, I'm not sure I'll be able to handle it. Or maybe my legs will recover just in time to get sore again.
Anyway, today was Yoga X. I love this workout. I've taken some beginner yoga classes before, so I was familiar with some of the positions, and the others weren't too hard to figure out. I did have to pause the DVD a few times and rewind to see what to do for some positions, and there were two or three that I couldn't do at all. I'm sure I didn't look all that graceful for the hour and a half, but at least I could manage most of the positions. And I'm sure I'll get better eventually. Also, I love the way my body feels after I do yoga. This was definitely an intense workout--I was sweating like crazy during the first half--but I feel a lot more relaxed now that I'm done. For the first time after one of these workouts, I'm not completely exhausted afterwards. So overall, I'm happy with it.
Again, I didn't eat as much as I was supposed to today. But I did a good job of sticking to the proportion of foods I'm supposed to have. I just had some cottage cheese and half a banana after the yoga. I haven't had cottage cheese in forever, but it's not bad.
Hopefully I'll be able to walk normally tomorrow--just in time to work out my legs again! Awesome. I guess I should get used to being in a constant state of soreness, at least in the near future.
Anyway, today was Yoga X. I love this workout. I've taken some beginner yoga classes before, so I was familiar with some of the positions, and the others weren't too hard to figure out. I did have to pause the DVD a few times and rewind to see what to do for some positions, and there were two or three that I couldn't do at all. I'm sure I didn't look all that graceful for the hour and a half, but at least I could manage most of the positions. And I'm sure I'll get better eventually. Also, I love the way my body feels after I do yoga. This was definitely an intense workout--I was sweating like crazy during the first half--but I feel a lot more relaxed now that I'm done. For the first time after one of these workouts, I'm not completely exhausted afterwards. So overall, I'm happy with it.
Again, I didn't eat as much as I was supposed to today. But I did a good job of sticking to the proportion of foods I'm supposed to have. I just had some cottage cheese and half a banana after the yoga. I haven't had cottage cheese in forever, but it's not bad.
Hopefully I'll be able to walk normally tomorrow--just in time to work out my legs again! Awesome. I guess I should get used to being in a constant state of soreness, at least in the near future.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Day 3: Shoulders and Arms
I slept in AGAIN today! Even later than yesterday! I'm going to assume it's because my body needs the extra rest after the past couple days of workouts. But I'm a little afraid of what's going to happen tomorrow morning. I have to work, so I can't exactly wake up at 10 (or later). But I worked out earlier in the day today, so hopefully it will be fine.
My arms are still pretty sore from Friday's workout. And when I woke up this morning, my thighs were somewhat sore but not too bad. As the day went on, however, they started to hurt a lot more. Now it's hard for me to get up from a chair or walk down stairs. I guess that means I'm really working my muscles hard, though, which is the point of all of this.
Today was shoulders and arms. I like this workout. It's a lot of bicep and tricep curls and other exercises using dumbbells or resistance bands. I was using 5 lb weights for most of the hour. For me, 5 lbs isn't too much, but I figured I should start light since I'd be doing reps for an hour. For two of the tricep curls, 5 lbs was probably all I could handle comfortably, but for all the others I could do more than 15 reps without feeling much of a burn. So I'm definitely going to have to get heavier weights. Right now, I have one 10 and one 15 lb dumbbell. So I'll have to get another one of each since you need a pair for almost all (if not all) of the exercises. I should be fine with that for the next several weeks, I think. Yoga tomorrow! I've done a little bit of yoga before, and I really like it, so I'm looking forward to that.
Again, I didn't eat as much today as I should according to the nutrition guide. Actually, I didn't eat much at all. My whole day was thrown off since I got up so late. But during the week will be better for me since I have a pretty set schedule, so it should be easier to stick to a meal plan.
In other news, I saw the Harry Potter movie tonight! It was great--probably the best one yet. Not nearly as good as the book, of course. But really good nonetheless.
Blah...I don't want to go to work tomorrow. Oh well. One day at a time, just like with P90X. I'm going to put my laundry away (there's a pile of it on my bed at the moment) and then get some sleep! Good night!
My arms are still pretty sore from Friday's workout. And when I woke up this morning, my thighs were somewhat sore but not too bad. As the day went on, however, they started to hurt a lot more. Now it's hard for me to get up from a chair or walk down stairs. I guess that means I'm really working my muscles hard, though, which is the point of all of this.
Today was shoulders and arms. I like this workout. It's a lot of bicep and tricep curls and other exercises using dumbbells or resistance bands. I was using 5 lb weights for most of the hour. For me, 5 lbs isn't too much, but I figured I should start light since I'd be doing reps for an hour. For two of the tricep curls, 5 lbs was probably all I could handle comfortably, but for all the others I could do more than 15 reps without feeling much of a burn. So I'm definitely going to have to get heavier weights. Right now, I have one 10 and one 15 lb dumbbell. So I'll have to get another one of each since you need a pair for almost all (if not all) of the exercises. I should be fine with that for the next several weeks, I think. Yoga tomorrow! I've done a little bit of yoga before, and I really like it, so I'm looking forward to that.
Again, I didn't eat as much today as I should according to the nutrition guide. Actually, I didn't eat much at all. My whole day was thrown off since I got up so late. But during the week will be better for me since I have a pretty set schedule, so it should be easier to stick to a meal plan.
In other news, I saw the Harry Potter movie tonight! It was great--probably the best one yet. Not nearly as good as the book, of course. But really good nonetheless.
Blah...I don't want to go to work tomorrow. Oh well. One day at a time, just like with P90X. I'm going to put my laundry away (there's a pile of it on my bed at the moment) and then get some sleep! Good night!
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Day 2: Plyometrics
I slept in today. I'm not sure if I was exhausted by yesterday's workout or just tired in general, but I didn't get out of bed until 10, which is unusual for me. I was also basically a bum for the whole day. But it felt great. My arms and shoulders, as well as my back to a lesser extent, are so sore today. It wasn't so bad that I couldn't wash my hair this morning, but it's definitely more than my typical soreness after a hard workout. I like it.
I tried to follow the nutrition plan as best as I could today, but I ended up eating less than I was supposed to. I'm not going to worry too much about that though. If my performance during the workouts starts to suffer or if I feel like I don't have enough energy, then I'll eat more. Otherwise, I don't think there's any point in eating more than I want to, especially if I'm trying to lose weight. The first phase of the diet requires you to restrict carb intake, and I've been doing that. But I couldn't get all 5 of my protein servings in.
Anyway, today's workout was plyometrics, and it was pretty awesome. It was basically a lot of squats and jumping around for an hour, and it was really hard. I pushed myself as much as I could, but I definitely had to take a few quick breaks during the hour. I'm pretty happy with how I did, though. I was literally dripping sweat by the end of it, and my thighs felt like mush. After yesterday's workout, it was nice to have some cardio. I wonder if my legs will be sore tomorrow. I kind of hope so :-P
After looking at my initial pictures, I think maybe I won't post them after all. I'm really hoping the camera does add 10 pounds because I am not happy at all with how I look in those pictures. I don't think I look like that in the mirror. Or maybe the clothes I wear are more flattering than a sports bra and shorts! But, as Tony says, those are goodbye pictures because you'll never look like that again. I hope not. I am keeping them for later comparison, so hopefully I'll see some changes in the near future.
So far, I haven't bought any of the vitamin supplements or protein bars or anything else like that. But I wonder if I should invest in the recovery shake. Maybe as I go further into the 90 days...I'll keep it in mind.
Anyway, I'm going to bed. Tomorrow is Shoulders and Arms, which I'm looking forward to, and Ab Ripper X again, which I'm not looking forward to. But the more I do it, the better it will be!
I tried to follow the nutrition plan as best as I could today, but I ended up eating less than I was supposed to. I'm not going to worry too much about that though. If my performance during the workouts starts to suffer or if I feel like I don't have enough energy, then I'll eat more. Otherwise, I don't think there's any point in eating more than I want to, especially if I'm trying to lose weight. The first phase of the diet requires you to restrict carb intake, and I've been doing that. But I couldn't get all 5 of my protein servings in.
Anyway, today's workout was plyometrics, and it was pretty awesome. It was basically a lot of squats and jumping around for an hour, and it was really hard. I pushed myself as much as I could, but I definitely had to take a few quick breaks during the hour. I'm pretty happy with how I did, though. I was literally dripping sweat by the end of it, and my thighs felt like mush. After yesterday's workout, it was nice to have some cardio. I wonder if my legs will be sore tomorrow. I kind of hope so :-P
After looking at my initial pictures, I think maybe I won't post them after all. I'm really hoping the camera does add 10 pounds because I am not happy at all with how I look in those pictures. I don't think I look like that in the mirror. Or maybe the clothes I wear are more flattering than a sports bra and shorts! But, as Tony says, those are goodbye pictures because you'll never look like that again. I hope not. I am keeping them for later comparison, so hopefully I'll see some changes in the near future.
So far, I haven't bought any of the vitamin supplements or protein bars or anything else like that. But I wonder if I should invest in the recovery shake. Maybe as I go further into the 90 days...I'll keep it in mind.
Anyway, I'm going to bed. Tomorrow is Shoulders and Arms, which I'm looking forward to, and Ab Ripper X again, which I'm not looking forward to. But the more I do it, the better it will be!
Friday, July 24, 2009
Day 1: Chest and Back, Ab Ripper X
I finished today's workout about two hours ago, and--wow. It was just as hard as I expected it to be. My arms are so tired right now, and I can already feel some soreness starting.
Several years ago, I went to a rock climbing wall. It was my first time going to one of those, so I didn't know the right climbing techniques. But I was determined to make it all the way up to the top every time, and I definitely overdid it. At one point, I was reaching for one of the handgrips, and my arms just gave out. I had never experienced anything like that before. Afterwards, I remember that my arms were so sore that it hurt to pick up the phone and wash my hair. I have a feeling that this is going to be about the same.
Basically, the workout was a series of pushups, pullups, and dumbbell exercises. There were 12 different moves, and then the whole thing repeated for the second half hour. It was ridiculously hard, but somehow it motivated me to push myself throughout the entire thing. I think I want Tony Horton to be my own personal trainer. I like the way the workout is set up so that you can modify the exercises that are more difficult for you. I had to modify many of them, but some I could do the way the people on the DVD were doing them (although not as many reps!). It's cool because I can actually see the possibility that I'll get better with time.
So I was doing pretty well, or so I thought, when there came a pushup called the divebomber. I was on my second one...and on my way down my arms suddenly turned to jelly, and I fell flat on my face! I took a quick break and then managed to do a couple more, but that was crazy.
But I made it all the way through the whole thing, and I actually felt really good afterwards.
Next was Ab Ripper X, which was only 16 minutes long or something like that. This was not quite as good as Chest and Back. I know that my abs are a huge problem area for me, and the muscles I have there are not strong at all. Some of the exercises were okay, but most of them were really hard for me, and there were a couple that I could hardly do at all. I tried my best, though, so I'm hoping I'll make some progress eventually.
I didn't follow the meal plan today. I'm going grocery shopping tomorrow, so I'll be able to plan out my meals from now on. Right now, I have my computer on my lap, and just the effort of holding my arms up enough to type is making them tired. So I'll post my pictures and measurements tomorrow. Time for bed!
Several years ago, I went to a rock climbing wall. It was my first time going to one of those, so I didn't know the right climbing techniques. But I was determined to make it all the way up to the top every time, and I definitely overdid it. At one point, I was reaching for one of the handgrips, and my arms just gave out. I had never experienced anything like that before. Afterwards, I remember that my arms were so sore that it hurt to pick up the phone and wash my hair. I have a feeling that this is going to be about the same.
Basically, the workout was a series of pushups, pullups, and dumbbell exercises. There were 12 different moves, and then the whole thing repeated for the second half hour. It was ridiculously hard, but somehow it motivated me to push myself throughout the entire thing. I think I want Tony Horton to be my own personal trainer. I like the way the workout is set up so that you can modify the exercises that are more difficult for you. I had to modify many of them, but some I could do the way the people on the DVD were doing them (although not as many reps!). It's cool because I can actually see the possibility that I'll get better with time.
So I was doing pretty well, or so I thought, when there came a pushup called the divebomber. I was on my second one...and on my way down my arms suddenly turned to jelly, and I fell flat on my face! I took a quick break and then managed to do a couple more, but that was crazy.
But I made it all the way through the whole thing, and I actually felt really good afterwards.
Next was Ab Ripper X, which was only 16 minutes long or something like that. This was not quite as good as Chest and Back. I know that my abs are a huge problem area for me, and the muscles I have there are not strong at all. Some of the exercises were okay, but most of them were really hard for me, and there were a couple that I could hardly do at all. I tried my best, though, so I'm hoping I'll make some progress eventually.
I didn't follow the meal plan today. I'm going grocery shopping tomorrow, so I'll be able to plan out my meals from now on. Right now, I have my computer on my lap, and just the effort of holding my arms up enough to type is making them tired. So I'll post my pictures and measurements tomorrow. Time for bed!
Thursday, July 23, 2009
The Beginning
My very first post... :-)
This story began a couple weeks ago when I woke up early on a Saturday morning. I was still sleepy, and I didn't feel like getting out of bed, so I turned on the TV. There was this infomercial on about this crazy workout routine called P90X that guaranteed an amazing body in 90 days. At first, I didn't think much of it, but the more I watched it, the more I wanted to try it. Now, I've never bought anything from an infomercial before, but somehow this seemed like a good idea. So later that day, I googled P90X and found a lot of blogs and reviews written by people who had completed the 90 days and had great results. I decided to go for it. I ordered the DVDs.
I'm a second-year medical resident training in pathology. During college, med school, and my first year of residency, I tried to stay active by going to the gym, but it's been pretty tough. Right now, I consider myself to be in decent physical shape--meaning that my strength, endurance, flexibility, etc. are reasonably good--but I've gained weight over the past several years, and I'm now at least 20 lbs heavier than I'd like to be. I don't think I look like someone who is in good shape, and I have lots of clothes in my closet that don't fit as well as they used to. I also don't have the level of energy that I'd like to have, especially given the stresses of my job. I'm the kind of person who needs structure and organization to do well, which might be part of the reason why P90X appealed to me. There's a set workout that you have to do each day and specific foods that you should eat. With some extra willpower to stick to it, I'm hoping this will work for me.
I decided to jump on the blog bandwagon to track my progress as I go through the intense workouts that P90X promises. I'm not expecting to be a supermodel by the end of this, but I'm hoping that I'll stick to it and end up losing some weight and being in better shape. And I'll probably end up talking about myself and my life other than P90X on here, which should be cool too.
I looked through the different materials that came with the DVDs, and I found that there are 3 different workout regimens that you can do. I was torn between P90X Classic, which is the one that's advertised, and P90X Lean, which is a modified version designed for more weight loss and less muscle building (they say many women do this one). The Lean version seemed pretty appealing, but the Classic seems more intense in the types of workouts it has. So I think I'm just going to go with the Classic. I won't use heavy weights to build too much muscle mass, and if I'm working out and sticking to the diet plan, I'll lose weight anyway.
I took the fitness test and did pretty well, which is great. Here are my results:
Pull-ups: I didn't do this one because I don't have a pull-up bar and don't think my doorframes can handle one. When I was younger (and lighter), I could do 6 or 7 pull-ups, but right now I'd be surprised if I could do a single one. I'll be using a resistance band for the pull-up workouts on the DVD.
Vertical leap: 7 in (recommended minimum 3 in to start P90X)
Push-ups: 10 (recommended minimum 3)
Toe touch: +3 in (recommended minimum -3 in)
Wall squat: 1 min 10 sec (recommended minimum 1 min--this one was tough!)
Bicep curls: 20 curls with 15lb weights (recommended minimum 10 curls with 8 lb weights)
In and outs: 29 (recommended minimum 24--another hard one for me!)
So overall, I think I'm ready to start the program. I know that my abs are going to be a problem area, but we'll see how it goes. I've read enough about P90X to know that this is going to be really hard in general. I'm happy about that, though. If I'm going to work out, I might as well make it count!
So as long as I'm not at work ridiculously late tomorrow, I think I'll start Day 1 then. Otherwise it will be on Saturday definitely. I'll also take my initial measurements and (ugh) pictures and post them when I start the program.
That's about it for tonight. I'm going to relax a bit and make a grocery list--and come to terms with giving up junk food for the next 3 months!
This story began a couple weeks ago when I woke up early on a Saturday morning. I was still sleepy, and I didn't feel like getting out of bed, so I turned on the TV. There was this infomercial on about this crazy workout routine called P90X that guaranteed an amazing body in 90 days. At first, I didn't think much of it, but the more I watched it, the more I wanted to try it. Now, I've never bought anything from an infomercial before, but somehow this seemed like a good idea. So later that day, I googled P90X and found a lot of blogs and reviews written by people who had completed the 90 days and had great results. I decided to go for it. I ordered the DVDs.
I'm a second-year medical resident training in pathology. During college, med school, and my first year of residency, I tried to stay active by going to the gym, but it's been pretty tough. Right now, I consider myself to be in decent physical shape--meaning that my strength, endurance, flexibility, etc. are reasonably good--but I've gained weight over the past several years, and I'm now at least 20 lbs heavier than I'd like to be. I don't think I look like someone who is in good shape, and I have lots of clothes in my closet that don't fit as well as they used to. I also don't have the level of energy that I'd like to have, especially given the stresses of my job. I'm the kind of person who needs structure and organization to do well, which might be part of the reason why P90X appealed to me. There's a set workout that you have to do each day and specific foods that you should eat. With some extra willpower to stick to it, I'm hoping this will work for me.
I decided to jump on the blog bandwagon to track my progress as I go through the intense workouts that P90X promises. I'm not expecting to be a supermodel by the end of this, but I'm hoping that I'll stick to it and end up losing some weight and being in better shape. And I'll probably end up talking about myself and my life other than P90X on here, which should be cool too.
I looked through the different materials that came with the DVDs, and I found that there are 3 different workout regimens that you can do. I was torn between P90X Classic, which is the one that's advertised, and P90X Lean, which is a modified version designed for more weight loss and less muscle building (they say many women do this one). The Lean version seemed pretty appealing, but the Classic seems more intense in the types of workouts it has. So I think I'm just going to go with the Classic. I won't use heavy weights to build too much muscle mass, and if I'm working out and sticking to the diet plan, I'll lose weight anyway.
I took the fitness test and did pretty well, which is great. Here are my results:
Pull-ups: I didn't do this one because I don't have a pull-up bar and don't think my doorframes can handle one. When I was younger (and lighter), I could do 6 or 7 pull-ups, but right now I'd be surprised if I could do a single one. I'll be using a resistance band for the pull-up workouts on the DVD.
Vertical leap: 7 in (recommended minimum 3 in to start P90X)
Push-ups: 10 (recommended minimum 3)
Toe touch: +3 in (recommended minimum -3 in)
Wall squat: 1 min 10 sec (recommended minimum 1 min--this one was tough!)
Bicep curls: 20 curls with 15lb weights (recommended minimum 10 curls with 8 lb weights)
In and outs: 29 (recommended minimum 24--another hard one for me!)
So overall, I think I'm ready to start the program. I know that my abs are going to be a problem area, but we'll see how it goes. I've read enough about P90X to know that this is going to be really hard in general. I'm happy about that, though. If I'm going to work out, I might as well make it count!
So as long as I'm not at work ridiculously late tomorrow, I think I'll start Day 1 then. Otherwise it will be on Saturday definitely. I'll also take my initial measurements and (ugh) pictures and post them when I start the program.
That's about it for tonight. I'm going to relax a bit and make a grocery list--and come to terms with giving up junk food for the next 3 months!
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