Three weeks down---and after tonight, there's just 78 days to go! :)
Overall impressions at this point---I'm liking it for the most part but I actually still wish the cardio was a bit more intense in a different way. Yes, I'm definitely sweating, but some days I miss going for a long run rather than this muscular/core/cardio work stuff. However---my muscles are definitely stronger: my core is firmer (underneath the pudge), I could probably eek out 25 push-ups in a row at this point, and my legs are more defined.
The negatives so far:
1) That pudge around my core still exists.....and I'm not entirely sure that it's actually going to vacate this human body throughout the duration of the P90X program. One of the complaints in the reviews was that for some it didn't cut fat as much as expected....again I attribute this to the cardio, but I also finally looked in detail at the nutrition plan the program has lined out to see if/where my diet might be faltering. What I learned is that by eating what I think is healthy, I'm not matching the diet whatsoever....and according to some of the reviews you pretty much need to follow their plan in order to see the fat leave. But I'm sorry, I believe that for myself the best diet is based on lots of fruits and veggies, some carbs with a bit of protein thrown in. Asking me to eat SIX servings of solid protein a day and only ONE fruit and ONE carb is like asking me to bench twice my weight. (Possible but not fun and probably not the healthiest for me in the long run.) Again, there is a good possibility that until I add in more cardio, the extra fat might not go anywhere.
2) This might be TMI but I have a mole on my derriere. There's a lot of moves that require rolling around on your behind---thus said mole is not very happy and is in fact inflamed and has split open a few times. Maybe I'll have to use my health insurance after all to try to get it removed.....although that might get in the way of completing the program so at this time I'll just keep soldiering on....
The things I've figured out:
1) Pull-ups: Hub has these hanging rings that attach to the pull-up bar. I finally set them up how they're supposed to be during the pull-up segments from this last week--and I think they'll be a great solution! I might actually get to the point where I could do a pull-up by the very end.
2) I'm also noticing my flexibility and balance are much better as I progress, as is my strength as already mentioned.
3) Tony Horton is a big promoter of wearing shoes---I prefer to go with cushy socks. This preference comes partly from the last year of wearing the Vibram FiveFinger shoes and recognizing how my body is worked in more natural ways when my feet are in a more natural condition rather than constrained in something meant to "protect" them. I also believe that doing the routines barefoot allows for my muscles to strengthen in different ways---case in point, do a calf-raise in a shoe and then do one barefoot....you'll feel the barefoot one working more and have better control over doing it correctly.
4) Back to nutrition, I did monitor my actual calorie intake for two days and I'm pretty sure I'm eating more calories than I realized and more than the nutrition plan calls for (it states I should be eating 1800 calories, which is probably reasonable but might be slightly low).
The good things:
1) I love feeling stronger. I love seeing my body improving and being able to complete more of the exercises.
2) The DVDs continue to be easy to use and its nice to have the set-up at home to work-out. If we travel to my parents or elsewhere, as long as there is a DVD player I can still stay on track.
3) I also told one of my health classes that I teach that I'm trying to complete the whole program, so my 27 students in that class have become accountability partners in a sense---and they ask me if I'm sticking with it which definitely helps the motivation!
4) The other nice thing is that I have crappy knees at times and there are a lot of squats, lunges, and jumping in this program. Even with all those knee jarring movements, its incredibly rare that my knees ever feel strain or uncomfortable however, which hasn't been the case in other exercise situations.
Do I think thus far the program was worth the money I paid for it? I'm not sure, but I'll let you know for sure in 78 days and a few in-between. ;)
A few things we've been eating lately:
Overall impressions at this point---I'm liking it for the most part but I actually still wish the cardio was a bit more intense in a different way. Yes, I'm definitely sweating, but some days I miss going for a long run rather than this muscular/core/cardio work stuff. However---my muscles are definitely stronger: my core is firmer (underneath the pudge), I could probably eek out 25 push-ups in a row at this point, and my legs are more defined.
The negatives so far:
1) That pudge around my core still exists.....and I'm not entirely sure that it's actually going to vacate this human body throughout the duration of the P90X program. One of the complaints in the reviews was that for some it didn't cut fat as much as expected....again I attribute this to the cardio, but I also finally looked in detail at the nutrition plan the program has lined out to see if/where my diet might be faltering. What I learned is that by eating what I think is healthy, I'm not matching the diet whatsoever....and according to some of the reviews you pretty much need to follow their plan in order to see the fat leave. But I'm sorry, I believe that for myself the best diet is based on lots of fruits and veggies, some carbs with a bit of protein thrown in. Asking me to eat SIX servings of solid protein a day and only ONE fruit and ONE carb is like asking me to bench twice my weight. (Possible but not fun and probably not the healthiest for me in the long run.) Again, there is a good possibility that until I add in more cardio, the extra fat might not go anywhere.
2) This might be TMI but I have a mole on my derriere. There's a lot of moves that require rolling around on your behind---thus said mole is not very happy and is in fact inflamed and has split open a few times. Maybe I'll have to use my health insurance after all to try to get it removed.....although that might get in the way of completing the program so at this time I'll just keep soldiering on....
The things I've figured out:
1) Pull-ups: Hub has these hanging rings that attach to the pull-up bar. I finally set them up how they're supposed to be during the pull-up segments from this last week--and I think they'll be a great solution! I might actually get to the point where I could do a pull-up by the very end.
2) I'm also noticing my flexibility and balance are much better as I progress, as is my strength as already mentioned.
3) Tony Horton is a big promoter of wearing shoes---I prefer to go with cushy socks. This preference comes partly from the last year of wearing the Vibram FiveFinger shoes and recognizing how my body is worked in more natural ways when my feet are in a more natural condition rather than constrained in something meant to "protect" them. I also believe that doing the routines barefoot allows for my muscles to strengthen in different ways---case in point, do a calf-raise in a shoe and then do one barefoot....you'll feel the barefoot one working more and have better control over doing it correctly.
4) Back to nutrition, I did monitor my actual calorie intake for two days and I'm pretty sure I'm eating more calories than I realized and more than the nutrition plan calls for (it states I should be eating 1800 calories, which is probably reasonable but might be slightly low).
The good things:
1) I love feeling stronger. I love seeing my body improving and being able to complete more of the exercises.
2) The DVDs continue to be easy to use and its nice to have the set-up at home to work-out. If we travel to my parents or elsewhere, as long as there is a DVD player I can still stay on track.
3) I also told one of my health classes that I teach that I'm trying to complete the whole program, so my 27 students in that class have become accountability partners in a sense---and they ask me if I'm sticking with it which definitely helps the motivation!
4) The other nice thing is that I have crappy knees at times and there are a lot of squats, lunges, and jumping in this program. Even with all those knee jarring movements, its incredibly rare that my knees ever feel strain or uncomfortable however, which hasn't been the case in other exercise situations.
Do I think thus far the program was worth the money I paid for it? I'm not sure, but I'll let you know for sure in 78 days and a few in-between. ;)
A few things we've been eating lately:
Stirfry over rice w/ peanut sauce for dinner w/ a glass of red vino.
And hub went on a kale craze, so I had onion & kale w/ feta scramble for breakfast one morning, followed by an onion & kale egg scramble w/ a bit of sour cream in a tortilla for dinner.
And then hub made this: Sweet Potato & Kale pizza....AMAZING!
Other than that I'm pretty much munching on toast w/ agave with some breakfasts, peaches & cottage cheese, Kashi frozen lunches, V-8 juice & protein shakes for a snack, and a fruit smoothie in the evening. I just might have to start documenting what I'm eating again though to make sure.... ;)
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