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P90X Days 2-8

Well, other than logging the minutes, I'm a little bit behind on my P90X posting.  Sorry about that.  Here's the update for days 2-8.

Day 2:  Plyometrics

This was a pretty good workout.  Lots of various jumping maneuvers which really worked the legs.  Occasionally I felt ridiculous, but that's what my blinds are for.  I'm really digging the format of these videos.  In general, Tony Horton uses normal people that went through the P90X program working out with him instead of the super-cut, ridiculously good-looking people that you see in most other exercise videos.  In fact, one of the people in this video was an amputee and worked out with a prosthetic right leg.  He...kind of kicked my ass.  This was pretty intense, but they're really good about giving you water and towel breaks right when you need them and telling you to rest a little longer if you have to.

Day 3:  Shoulders and Arms

Also a pretty good workout.  I need to get some heavier weights though as all I have right now are two 20 lb. weights.  Unfortunately, weights are flipping expensive and I don't have the scratch for it right now. 

Day 4:  Yoga X

I'm not sure what the X is for.  This was a pretty standard yoga workout.  Nothing that I haven't been doing regularly already.  Not a bad workout per se, but since I already do yoga 2-3 times per week, I think for Yoga X day I'm gonna substitute in one of the Pilates DVDs I got for Christmas a couple years ago and haven't used yet.  The Pilates DVD will be more helpful I think because I tried to do the Ab Ripper X workout this morning after starting my 2nd week and it was awful.  I couldn't even get through the first 2 exercises before collapsing in utter pain.  I really need to strengthen my core and I think Ab Ripper X is a little beyond me just now.  One thing I really liked about the Yoga X video though was that they showed people falling out of poses including Tony Horton, and they just went with it with Mr. Horton explaining that that happens and not to worry about it.  He also admitted that he wasn't very good with balance poses and that that was okay because everybody has their strengths and weaknesses.

Day 5:  Legs and Back

Another good, intense workout.  I've never really appreciated what the last 9 months of yoga have done for my legs until now.  I was able to get through this workout despite the intensity and there was very little leg soreness the next day.  I've had friends tell me that they could barely walk after doing this video, but I was fine except for a tiny amount of calf soreness the next day.

Day 6:  Kenpo X

This was a fun workout.  The only complaints I have are that apparently I got a faulty DVD for this workout and it skips to the beginning of the session right after the warm-up starts so I had to do a lot of stretching on my own and hope I hit the vital areas.  The other complaint I have is that there wasn't much, if any demo-ing of the various punch/kick combos before they started into them so the first half of my sets were spent trying to figure out what they were doing.  I'm sure the next time will be better though.

Day 7:  Rest Day

I had the option of resting completely or doing Stretch X I believe it's called, but I had a lot going on yesterday so I decided to just rest.

Day 8:  Chest and Back

Have I mentioned that I really, really suck at pull-ups?  I did worse than last week which I thought was weird, but whatever.  I'm sure it will get better with time.  I increased the intensity of the chest workout by incorporating Perfect Push-up handles that I bought yesterday.  Wow!  Those really work.  They pretty much cut by 1/3 to 1/2 the number of push-ups I was able to do and I was definitely feeling it more than I was last week.  As I mentioned earlier, after this workout I tried to do the brief Ab Ripper X workout that you're supposed to pair with this one, but it's a little beyond me for now so I'm gonna try to do my Pilates videos a couple times a week until I can handle Ab Ripper X a little better.

Tomorrow is Plyometrics again.

Oh, and as far as diet goes, I'm not really following the P90X plan because it involves a lot of supplements and protein powders and snack bars and whatnot that, of course, they sell off of their website, but I have tightened up my eating habits quite a bit in general.  They weren't horrible before, but I may have allowed myself a couple more cheat meals than is perhaps advisable.  :o)