Day 60: I'm Loving This

Today I decided to take my 60 day photo. I have to say, I've really been loving it. I've been enjoying workouts, enjoying results and getting more comfortable with myself. Its great.

Here is a little cheesy collage I made this morning to celebrate my 60 day mark.

Day 57

Boy oh Boy! I am SOO close to the 60 day mark and I'm really getting confident about keeping up my fitness for the rest of my career. This week started by bringing back some of the videos from the first month. I have to say I was very impressed with myself. My pushup's doubled! I could hold out longer. I felt the strength! I could see muscles!! I'm swimming in joy(actually sweat).

My only concern is my 60 day photo. You see, this weekend there were a lot of family functions to attend. This could only lead to one thing. Eating. A Ton...I had wayyy to much and I hope it doesn't ruin my 60 day photo.

Fingers crossed for beautiful results!!

starting week 8

So, I've forgotten to blog about it quite a few times, but workouts are going pretty great! I feel stronger and a little more lean. I still have about a week and a half until my 60 day mark. When it does come, I hope I see what I feel.

Right now, I've started my recovery phase to end this second stage to the program. this week will focus on flexibility and core strength. I'd say the biggest workout of this week is  Core Synergistic.  This workout rocked my REALLY rocked my body. I am still sweating and breathing heavy . It is so surprising how often your abs engage in what you do. I really want to improve on this workout. The intesity is a bit addictive.

The last few weeks

I feel like the last few weeks have slacked a little bit. I missed a couple of workouts, which is not going to work for my goals for the future. It was only a few, but I don't want to start going down hill.

I'm still making progress, though. I feel like I have been getting stronger. I did the shoulders, back, and triceps today. I found myself doing drastically better with the push ups. I even did a couple of one arm. VERY HARD!!!

Now to do my ab workout!!

Day 29: Starting Phase 2

Okay this is it! My unvailing of my 30 day photo. The calendar said to take a photo although this is day 29.

First, My workouts for today were Chest, shoulders& Triceps, and ab ripper X. I can tell you right now, it was a struggle. I was falling out of push ups. We had one arm pushups, which just weren't really happening, but I did my best. I'm pretty satisfied with what I accomplished today. I'm hoping to get much better though.

AND NOW!!



My 30 day photo! Small improvements!

Week 4: Summarized

Week 4 was a complicated week. Things didn't go as planned. I had wisdom tooth pain, which stopped me from working out every day. I did about half of the workouts. I felt like I should continue on to week 5 today instead of repeating.

Day 17: Whoa thats a big number.

Shoulders and Arms.
This was my first experience with my new bands. I was so confused. I have five colors. I don't know what they mean. Most of time I used two bands at once. I wish I had more handles though. It takes forever to change them. I tried to use the red one alone once and I broke it after about 5 reps, but I was REALLY stretching it. I guess that was the easy band. Did Tony know I was using the "easy band" and use his super-buff-man lazer powers to snap it and make me work harder? I'm sure that is what happened.

Ab Ripper X- "I love it, but I hate it" I feel really good about doing this often.

I'm really excited to have gotten soooo far. I'm half way through with  week three. Next week things will get changed up before Phase 2. I feel really good about seeing that thirty day photo. Even if know one is reading this that picture will be encouragement enough to push harder.

WEEK 2: Update

Week 2 went pretty well. I'm changing my yoga to a time I will be alone. I get so distracted when Troy is here. I've order bands and a yoga mat. to prevent sliding during yoga X. The bands will help me make a few things more intense.

Weight: 170lbs. (I don't really see it, but I've been in work clothes all week.
Diet: Went a little off. Need more good food.

Day 8: Encore to Rome

Chest and Back
I felt really good about today's workout. I'm happy I repeated this week, because now I have another week to catch up to their fitness level-ish. I still modified. I still struggled BUT I did several more reps than last week. Enthusiasm is back!!

Ab ripper X
I'll be all up on that after run to work for my check in an hour.

Glad to be back on it. As far as the diet, it sucks right now. We had to throw out all of the food after the storm. I have the basics though! Nothing fancy but, I'm good.

Power Failure

Well, week 2 did not go as planned, which is disappointing. We had a storm which caused a power outage in Carbondale. When they finally turned it back on, I noticed our power lines fell into a tree. The tree then caught on fire. So, being a good person, I called the power company to let them know. What did they do? The turned off the power again and said they would return in a few days. Without power all that time I was unable to do the one thing I was instructed to do on the video. Push play.

Now, I am starting week two over again and trying to find my motivation after this mishap. Wish me luck.

Day 8: Rome

Rome was most certainly NOT built in a day... and neither was my body. Today was tough. I see that I am going to struggle with my chest and back workouts.

Chest and Back;
Today I REALLY felt the burn. I was doing push ups and guess what hurt! My ABS! They were on fire. Those ripper video's three times a week are ripping me a new one. I fell short right off the bat. I said "I can't do any!!" So I modified my push ups. Used my knees and STILL had an amazing workout.

Ab ripper X:

As I have learned, these workouts are better when I can really push through them. I don't want to fall apart five minutes in and lose any form. So, I've decided to take a break and do it in the afternoon. This has helped before and I feel the results for sure.

As for Rome, it may have taken more than a day, but it was built after all. I know the same will work for me. Thank you Rome!

Day 6: Kempo X

Kempo is a fighting style workout. My definition= intensity. I'm really excited to be doing this workout every week. It seems like a good experience to have, but I'm learning. I think this will do a lot for my speed, balance, sharpness and flexiblilty. Winning.

Day 7: Rest or X Stretch.
I chose to rest. I think I'll start to dig into that stretch soon.
p.s.- I am afraid to workout when Troy is home.

Day 4 & 5: Sweat

Day 4: Yoga X

This workout reminded me of my Music Theater Dance class with Courtney Self. She mentioned that she does pull from P90X for her workouts, but I must say She makes it way more fun, has better music and gives much more time to feel the stretch!!
They were popping in and out of "Downward Dog" so quickly that I began to wonder if they were doing it at all. It was like the go to move before whatever he decided to show us next. I wanted to pause it and take more time with it. Basically, my dance teacher knows where its at and I will be taking a few extra long "downward dogs" in the future.
Despite that, this workout felt great. Maybe some switch went off a couple of days ago, but I liked it. I enjoyed the sweat rolling down my face and the burning muscles. It just worked. I definitely felt the "calm during the storm"

Day 5: Legs and Back, Ab Ripper X
Great Workout! I definitely learned some new moves. I think some of them will be great for my balance. I was happy that there has been a dancer in all of these videos. By the way, her control is super intense!!
I'm saving the Ab Ripper X for after work around 3. I might even run. I had an urge to after my workout this morning. Who knows what that was all about.

DIET(fat shredder): Still good, mostly protein, and few carbs.
Weight(was to excited to check on day one. Day 5 will have to do.)=178lbs(usually it is 185)

Day 3: I understand now.

4/13/11 Was: Shoulders and Arms and AB ripper X.

I started to understand what it is like to enjoy a workout again today. I felt really good about these workouts and I was sweating like crazy. I was at my Grandma's and didn't even feel dumb with them watching me.

The only thing I think I'm concerned about was the weights.

Day 2: How high?

Today's workout was the hour long "Polymetrics" video. This was the video I was very curious about. I mean, What is polymetrics anyway?

As I soon learned, the comes name comes from the Latin phrase "measurable increases" and it is also known as "jump training." According to the P90X Workout Guide, this is an effective technique, which emerged in Eastern Europe in the early 1970s. I'm sure no one ever learned the effectiveness of jump training up to the point. Not even..The Russian Ballet. It is, however, very effective. Any athlete could benefit from this workout. There are even modified workouts for those with knee problems AND one of the men in the video is doing the entire hour of jumping/squats on a prosthetic leg!!


Anyway, this morning, I woke up sore. My triceps were sore, which is okay. Its nice to know they're still there. I had some soreness on my back but nothing major. As for the workout , I found myself 30minutes in saying, "ugh, its too much." So, I opened a window, let some air in and made myself do it. After that, I kept pushing. It wasn't easy, but I got through. I found myself drenched in sweat, panting, and feeling very happy about it. I was a little doubtful of my ability to push through it after yesterday's struggles. I had to prove that inner critic wrong. I did.

Day 1: The Initial Start

My before P90X Photo; a tough thing to post.

Its my first day of P90X and I'm very excited/nervous/sleepy. I am eating my first meal on the plan, which is pretty okay. They gave me three options in the nutrition guide. I chose the portion approach. It seemed like a lot of food. Mostly protein.

Right now, I am eating Scrambled egg whites, grapes on the side, and a glass of milk for breakfast.  I'll have a tuna cucumber sandwhich for lunch.  Chicken and Mixed Veggies for dinner and a snack of Cottage cheese at work tonight. It seems like a lot of food! For now, I must see how it goes on the workout.

ONE HOUR LATER...

My First Workout: Chest and Back(about an hour)

It has been a while since I've been really intense with my workouts, which is why I needed this program so much. That is a really long time. Music Theater is a VERY physical career. I need to be pushing myself every week. So, when I got this program, I knew it would be very tough and I may not be able to finish every set. It turns out, that was very true. Push ups are not my strong point at all. I have limited upper body strength at this point. There were four variations of push ups and about three types of pull ups. They showed a modified version of the pull ups which really helped. You put a foot on a chair to assist, but keep it as far from your body as possible. I think that will be a nice boost for me. We also did some weight work, which was surprisingly easy for me. I used a 15 pound weight. I may go up after a few more. They tell you not to push too hard at the beginning because THEN you do everything AGAIN. Oh man! I kept falling on the floor during my push ups. I don't know if I should be disappointed because I couldn't finish or glad that I pushed my self to my limit.
Anyway onto the second video.

20 MINUTES LATER....

Ab Ripper X(about 16min.)
This is a workout I have done before. It wasn't easy before, but I did have much more stamina. That was before I dropped out of the semester. Now that I have noticed how much I have neglected my body, I am quite a bit fearful of my return. I have to stick with this program, no matter what! Today, I couldn't keep good form. I was struggling with a lot of it and I kept collapsing. I have never combined this workout with anything before either. After the Chest and back routine before it I felt very worn out. Now I feel like jello. That isn't so bad. The only other time I feel like jello is after quite a few margarita's, but, unfortunately, those make me LOOK like jello.

Well, looks like I have a challenge ahead of me. I would really appreciate support from anyone who has some input. I HAVE to do  this for myself and I know this is only the beginning.

It has arrived

P90X!! My workout baby has arrived. I decided to be truly American these last few weeks and binge on junk food. I think I qualify as a "Chubby Bunny."

More weight to lose! Yeah!

Here are some very unflattering photos from a recent trip to STL.

Here you can see some of the Jiggly puff in my Mid section...

There is me looking chubby from the back with my still attractive friends. (I'm far right obviously)

My Belly has a few seperate territories. One of them is Danish!

Basically, I look like a 7 year old kid, with baby fat.

Get Ready for those Day 1 photos. Don't worry. I don't think I'll do the grey underwear thing like on TV.

Hope in The Mail

Okay. Sorry to say things didn't work out so well with who I was borrowing the DVD's from. Boo. Pity. Yeah, I know.

Anyway, I just ordered The P90X Set myself. This means I will have my own little bundle of joy arriving in 5-7 Business days. Then I will begin to whipped into shape! Oh, man.

Making it Happen

Yes. This is one of those work out blogs. I , Phillip Christian George, am going to create a log of my experiences with the legendary P90X 90 day challenge!!!

I'm really hoping it lives up to its reputation. I sampled it before and it kick Jenny Craig's butt. I'm okay with that.

So I'll be posting my experiences on this website and let my few little readers how my progress is going. I'll talk about the crazy things that happen during the work outs, the things I'm having trouble with, and the things that HURT. That's what working out is all about right? Complaining about how sore you are?

Anyway, I don't have the DVDs just yet, but I wanted to go ahead and set up this website as part of my commitment. The person who will be delivering these to me is currently on spring break in Florida. She text me last night saying, "I'm in Miami trick!". So, I feel super cool blogging here in Southern Illinois at 9:00 am. Keep your eyes open. For. P. 90. X!!

"I, Phillip Christian George, do awesomely vow to stick with the P90X challenge, eat well and record my experience. I will do so even if I have been UP IN THE GYM working on my fitness. It does not matter who is my witness, because of my humps, which are not as lovely as Fergie's at this exact point in time. I shall disclose my weight from week to week with my readers on the first post and keep a very controlled diet. Posting pictures will be at my own personal discretion, until the time comes for progress. In the case I DO miss a day, I shall add the "Ab ripper X" to the following days schedule to teach myself not to be so fat. If I so choose, after completion of this program,  to continue the workout. I will allow myself the option of updating this blog. As it is written, so shall it be."