Hello Jell-O

Day 5 - Legs & Back, Ab Ripper X

My fantastic husband straightened up the basement a whole lot today to make room for me to "Bring It." Previously we had the game system hooked up to the same TV as the one I use for doing exercise DVD's. In that same room was also the treadmill, the step boxes, the free weights, the exercise ball, the fan, a recliner, the deep freeze...

Thanks to his clever rearranging, and some pitching of things were really weren't using, I had plenty of room to do so many lunges that I could barley sit to write this. Thanks honey!

Legs & Back (58min) - Lunges, squats, and chin ups, oh my! One legged wall squats are now my nemesis. The variety of lunges was interesting and I got a good chance to work on perfect form for squats. My legs feel very "weak"...like cooked spaghetti, or jell-o.

Ab Ripper X (15min) - I did a few more of two of the exercises today! Doing this routine after the beating my legs took was tough. There are Scissors, Heels to Heaven, and some crazy thing called Crunchy Frog that I remember from the Power 90 Masters series. I actually felt like throwing up once and had to pause so I didn't loose it.

Dang, I'm tired tonight.

Calories burned: 536

Average HR: 128

Max HR: 179

Times I nearly threw up: 1

No "Ohm" for Me, Thanks

Day 4 - Yoga X

Yoga has helped my running, my back problems, and has really improved my balance. This workout was a little long, but held my interest with fast paced, challenging routines.

Yoga X (90min) - This workout was broken in to several parts. The first 45 minutes was dedicated to movement in the poses. This was the hot and sweaty part of the workout. Next, Tony took us through some poses to work on balance. The "Yoga Belly Seven" were poses designed to work the core. The last 10 minutes were dedicated to relaxation, and 'ol spandex tights clad Tony even did a little "ohm." All in all, a nice break from the last few days of torture.

Calories burned: 314

Max HR: 144

Average HR: 91

Times I wished for death: 0 (hardly worth my time, ha, ha!)

Not So Bad Today

Day 3 - Shoulders & Arms, Ab Ripper X

Fortunately I wasn't as sore today, from Plyos, as I thought I would be. Either my legs are a little stronger than I thought...or...the Recovery Drink really does help! I am still considering getting some. Per serving, it is less than other sports recovery drinks in the grocery store. It's just the up front investment that makes me swallow hard.

Shoulders & Arms (60min) - I really like upper body workouts. I am fairly strong and can tolerate a lot of abuse. I used 8lbs weights on most of the curls and presses, 5lbs on triceps work. I was surprised at how many calories I burned, overall. It didn't feel like I worked terribly hard.

Ab Ripper X (15min) - I am rethinking doing any workout with the word "ripper" in it. This is a killer routine. I am only able to complete less than half of the 25 reps for each of the 11 exercises.

Calories burned: 406

Average HR: 111

Max HR: 159

Times I wished for death: 1

Still Smiling

Post-plyo...wow.

And I Thought I Was Fit

Day 2: Plyometrics

I gave up my one chance per week for a nap to do this workout. I was really glad that the Littles slept well and I even had the chance to shower before they both woke up.

At the beginning of this workout, Tony Horton says that THIS is the workout that put the "X" in P90X. This, he says, is the "money". I have been exercising for years - taken some time off to have babies and gain weight - but I have done a LOT of exercise videos. So when I hear an assertion like this I sort of roll my eyes. I really hate plyo exercises...hate, hate, hate. Hate.

Plyometrics (60min) - Also known as "jump training", this style of workout works the large muscles in your legs. There was a LOT of jumping as you might imagine, but as a surprise we squatted down and THEN jumped up. A LOT. The warm up and the first round of exercises weren't to bad. I was feeling confident. But, around the 20 minute mark we moved on to some harder stuff. I have never cried during a workout, but I was close today. There were two times in which I audibly said "I hate you" to the television screen.

I recommend that if you do this workout, you don't do it in the basement, as I did. It might be hard for you to get back up the steps. I downed some P90X Recovery Drink that I received as a sample. Tasted pretty good - and hey, if it helps - I'm all for it.

Stats:

Calories burned: 560

Average HR: 148

Max HR: 182

Times I wished for death: 3

High Protein Bonk

I followed the P90X diet plan today. I normally follow a high protein diet, but Phase I of this plan failed me today. Per the plan - all of the complex carbohydrates included in my day are - one serving of traditional carbohydrates and one fruit. I had 1/2 a serving with breakfast and an apple for morning snack.

By 2:00 this afternoon, I had a headache and a steely taste in my mouth. I've had plenty of water today, and one of my two allotted vegetable servings, so the last thing I thought could be lacking was some complex carbs.

Piece of multi-grain toast with a little butter to the rescue! I washed it down with a glass of water and in about 20 minutes or so, things were getting better. I want to follow the diet plan as closely as possible - but may need to adjust Phase 1 to meet my bodies specific needs.

Chest and Back

Day 1 - Chest and Back, Ab Ripper X

Today was my last day of the 5:30am workouts. HOO-RAH. Hubby's schedule is changing, so we will have to squeeze them in sometime in the afternoon or evening. I don't mind working out in the mornings, sorta gets it out of the way. I wonder if I could perform better later in the day, though.

Chest and Back (55min) - tons of push ups in every different way imaginable (Decline Push-Ups with your feet on a chair!!). A fair amount of pull ups in varying grips. I do okay on the push ups, but totally bonk on the pull ups. I used to think my arms were pretty strong - what with lifting kids all day - but I guess they are not strong enough to pull up my body weight. I used a chair with one foot on it for support and was able to at least begin half way and pull myself up. Essentially, there were 12 exercises and then we repeated them in reverse order.

Ab Ripper X (15min) - If you complete each rep of every exercise, you end up performing over 300 moves. Needless to say, this 30-Something Momma of 4, did NOT even come close. I estimate I was able to do a third of the exercises. This DVD is used as an add-on 2 or 3 days a week.

My arms feel like jello and I'm pretty sure my abs will be screaming by evening. For breakfast, I followed the meal plan and had a Mushroom & Egg White Omelet. Not far off what I normally have. I skipped my usual high fiber tortilla, but ended up having a piece of multi-grain bread later. I could hear my body needing the carb energy.

Stats:

Calories burned: 475

Average HR: 122

Max HR: 168

Times I wished for death: 1

That's it - Day 1. Only 89 to go...