P90X: A Commentary

As I mentioned in my last post I started P90X on Saturday. I am loving it.  That may sound strange to you if you have heard anything about this video series.  Essentially, it’s a set of 5 DVD’s that take you through 13 weeks of hard core, and when I say hard core, I mean hard core training.  It incorporates strength training, plyometrics, kenpo, core exercises, and yoga.  It’s just the diversity I was craving in my exercises and the right kind of cardio for me.

My diet has shifted a little bit, I need to take in more calories now and the diet that they suggest was a bit different than the one I was using before, but I am really enjoying it. You can learn more about the nutrition plan at http://www.beachbody.com/product/fitness_programs/p90x.do?code=P90XDOTCOM.  I found this website extremely helpful in finding out what I can eat and when I can eat it. It gives me a list of foods  I can and cannot eat and then a worksheet to track what I am eating.  I also use my “Lose It” iphone app to track my calories.  It’s been great and only required a bit of an adjustment, but I feel like I am eating even healthier becuase I am able to have more veggies on this plan than I was on the other.

Example Day of Meals:
BREAKFAST
Smoothie:  1 c. nonfat yogurt, 2 c. strawberries, 1 scoop of protein

MID-MORNING
6 egg whites
4 slices of turkey bacon
(sometimes I have a whole wheat english muffin)

SNACK
Protein bar/almonds and cranberries mix/pb with celery

LUNCH
Grilled chicken on 2. cups of lettuce with a balsamic vinegar and olive oil dressing or
Lean meat burger with veggies

MID-AFTERNOON
3 oz. of chicken and veggies or protein shake

SNACK
12 small rice cakes

DINNER
3 oz. steak with veggies or baked potato or sweet potato

SNACK
protein shake/4 oz. of frozen yogurt/string cheese

I find it much easier to plan this way and I enjoy having a worksheet to fill out. 

Now, for the exercises.  These are not for the faint-hearted.  They are tough, intense workouts and definitely devised for people who have been working out for a while and want a new challenge.  If you begin this workout without being even a little bit in shape, you will want to take it slow and you’ll also want to be okay with not finishing the videos.  Some of them are really lengthy and can be difficult to complete. But if you feel ready and up for the challenge DO IT.  Every person I have talked to, whether they have followed the diet or not has seen results.  I’ve only been doing it for five days and already I can see changes in my body.  I feel leaner, stronger, and more fit.

 

Restart

Life has been crazy.  I have been getting ready to move to a new state, we are now two weeks away and so there has been a lot of house cleaning, moving, and packing going on in my home . Which is great cause I am getting over and above my normal exercise on some days, but on others I am so exhausted I can barely get my body to move out of bed.  OH and the aches and pains.  Well, you get the point.  At any rate, believe it or not I am losing weight.  I was so excited when I got on the scale in the morning and saw that I am down to 139.0.  I am starting to wonder if blogging is helping or hurting my situation.  It’s hard to put yourself out there and try to lose a lot of weight only to find that you are losing inches.  However, I think that some of the adjustments I made this week of focusing on increasing my cardio has really helped.

So now it begins, p90x here I come.

As we speak I am debating on going out for a walk or if I should start doing my p90x. OH yeah, I’m giving into the hype.  I have a friend who has given us access to the recordings and my husband and I are going to give it a shot. I have a wedding to go to on May 15th and I would really like to not only fit into one of my old dresses but also feel good in it.  That means I have a little less than a month to get closer to my goal weight, which means I have to lose at the very least 2 lbs a week.  The week before we move I have some traveling I have to do so I am going to have to be strategic about getting in my workouts and then the week we move, I don’t know what kind of set up I’ll have so again, I”ll have to be a bit more strategic.  It’s more my diet that I am concerned about when I travel.  I’ll be working and it’s not easy for me to take snack breaks during the day so I’ll have to make sure I am making good higher calorie, high protein options.

Unsure

I am unsure of what to do.  I was just reviewing my stats and I am not looking too good.  I have been working my butt off, working out and eating healthy for 7 weeks now and I have 2 lbs of weight loss to show for it.  2 lbs.  I don’t know what to do and I really don’t know how to feel.  Frustrated is the word that is going through my head right now.

I’m frustrated that the weight just isn’t coming off the way that I thought it would.  I thought that with some hard work and an adjustment to my eating habits, that I would be able too shed this weight pretty quickly.  But I am into week 8 already and looking at my numbers I am not too excited or proud of my accomplishments.  I should have lost at least a lbs a week.  But that first week I gained 3?  Then I didn’t lose any weight.  Then I changed my diet a bit and I started losing more weight 2.4 lbs that first week.  Then another 2.2 lbs.  Then it was just a 1lbs and then I gained 2 lbs.  What in the WORLD!!!  I have no idea what or who to be angry at.  I mean, eating healthy is a good thing right.  And it’s always good to get exercise, so I think…okay, Dawn this isn’t a bad thing.  You have lost the inches and you are stronger and healthier than you were when you started.  But WHY is the weight not coming off.  This past week I added in more cardio so maybe, just maybe I’ll see some changes on the scale when I weigh in on Thursday.

If anyone has any thoughts, words of encouragement, suggestions…I’ll take anything at this point.