Looong time, no blog!

So...I've been gone a few weeks. I've been having hours of rehearsal every night, and I have neglected my computer for the time being. However, my workouts have still been up and running!

I finished most of phase 2...but before I got to recovery week....dance rehearsals (for the show I'm in) started.

I hate to have to say this, but I'm going to take a break from p90x for a few weeks while I'm in those rehearsals. It's 4 hours of intense cardio with almost no break in between...5 DAYS A WEEK! I'm finding myself more sore every morning than I was when I started plyo...or maybe just equally sore. It wouldn't be so bad, but every day is different, so the soreness keeps happening! I don't think I can keep up with both workouts at the same time, especially with the schedule I'm on.

I messaged my team beachbody coach on the teambeachbody.com site, and I might even have to start p90x over (according to her) if I'm out of the routine for too long...but we'll see. Even if I do, that's okay, because I really LIKE doing p90x, unlike any other workout program I've tried. I wouldn't mind doing it every day from the start again.

Anywho...since I'm still excercising a TON, I'm still going to put my 60 day stats up when the time comes.

Also...since this is related to working out (lol)...I'm proud to say that I can proudly fit back into my favorite (size 6) jeans! The size doesn't even really matter....it just matters to me that I love those darn jeans and I can finally wear them again! Woohoo! :)

I promise I'll blog more soon...especially when the looong rehearsals are over!

Back in Business!

OK...long time, no update.

I remained sick a few days after my last post, and FINALLY was able to start recovery week.

All I have to say is....

Core....ouch.

Currently, I'm onto my next phase and so far I'm really liking the challenge. It's similar, but still harder than phase 1, because my body isn't used to all of the new moves yet. Hopefully it will get as easy as phase 1 soon!

I weighed myself today and took measurements (It's over 30 days, but oh well!) , and I'm currently down 12 pounds. I've also lost inches all over and dropped a pant size already. My muscles are getting more and more defined and I can finally see my abs poking through!

I don't have updated pictures yet, but I plan on getting some new batteries for my camera so that I can keep my photos up-to-date as well!

Also, I auditioned a show called "Curtains" last week at a local community theatre, and made it....so I figure that once dance rehearsals start (Just a matter of days...)...I'll be able to add about 3 hours of cardio to the mix. Daily.

Hopefully I'll still have energy to do p90x every night!

Bring it!

How long can a person be sick!?!

*Cough*

I'm STILL sick...and I'm not doing any better than before.

I had to do my band gig on Saturday night, which made everything worse because I had to sing (or TRY to sing...) 70's/80's rock music and put myself in an athmosphere filled with smoke and nastiness for 5 straight hours....the life of an entertainer, eh?

I didn't sleep the entire night due to snot/breathing issues...sorry for the graphics...and on Sunday and decided I needed to call the emergency doctor and literally BEG for some antibiotics ( I didn't want to have to take them, but I'm desperate at this point!)

So what happened next? I got my meds! I was supposed to take 1 pill 2x daily. I took one pill at around 4pm and thought I'd be okay taking the next one at around 10pm. Boy was I WRONG! I took the pills too close together and then had the WRATH OF THE ANTIBIOTICS! That's in all caps for a reason.

Needless to say, I ended up getting extremely sick and was up all night again making friends with the toilet....which means my antibiotics probably didn't even start helping to fight my sinus infection yet.

Goodness!

So after all this rambling....I feel like I've missed a lot of workouts. 4 so far....should I start a regular phase 1 week again before going back into my regular schedule (im supposed to be in recovery week) or what? I don't want to lose any results or mess up the muscle confusion process.

*sigh*

Enough thinking. I'm off to bed early tonight...hopefully this medicine does it's trick tonight...properly. :/

Crap!

Gah. I woke up even sicker yesterday and skipped the workout (doc said to for my immune system)...spending most of my day sleeping, drinking fluids, and doing everything I possibly could to get better.

This morning? STILL sick! I've got head congestion, sore throat, runny nose, earache, can't hear.....and the reason why I care so much...I have a show TONIGHT that I can't cancel (I sing in a classic rock band.)

AHH! I'm freakin' out! I have to get rid of this thing by tonight....I hope I can pull it off....I'd hate to disappoint a few hundred people...

I'll post again when I do my next workout.

:(

Days 18-24

Geez....maybe I should update more regularly...I start to forget the details after a week.

Anywho...

Day 18: Shoulders & Arms, ABX

For this workout, I decided to go to the gym at my work instead of working out at home since they have an entire weight collection there. I found that upping my weights really helped me to feel the burn a lot earlier in my reps. I've been using 5's at home, and moved up to 15's at work....makes me think I need to buy some new weights for the days I can't get to the gym!

I was sore the next day, but it was definately worth it!

Day 19: Yoga X

So...I was in a crunch on day 19. By the time I got around to being able to work out, I only had an hour of free time available, so I ended up doing cardio x instead of yoga, planning on making yoga up on a rest day. I haven't made it up yet, but I will next time around, I guess.

Cardio X was still pretty good though, It definately got me into a heavy sweat in just 15 min. or so.

Day 20: Legs & Back, ABX

I chose to do this workout at the gym as well, since they finally got a pull up bar! I found the pull-ups to be way more challenging with a bar....the heavy bands are good, but still not the same. I still have to use the chair, but I can feel myself getting stronger every time.

My legs are definately getting stronger as well! I am starting to love wall squats (Yes, I just said that!) because they are getting easier every time. I like feeling the leg burn! :)

Day 21: Kempo X

Again...kempo wasn't my favorite work out. Why? The last time I did it, I messed up one of my lower ab muscles which made abx painful for a week...don't ask me how....I only know that it happened b/c of kempo x. Now, THIS week, I messed up my hamstring on my right leg behind my knee. I didn't hyper-extend my kicks, I stretched properly, and even stretched my legs extra before the dvd even started...so I'm confused.

Maybe I'm pushing it too much? I duno. Either way....I hope my leg starts feeling normal soon. It's really tight right now, even after lots of stretching. Grr.

In the positive realm, I sweat my rear off during this workout. :)

Day 22: Rest day!

This was a great day for a rest day because I woke up sick and didn't feel like working out at ALL! I moved some furniture and cleaned the house, so I figure I at least got some sort of cardio. heh heh heh....

Day 23: OOPS!

Somehow, I thought I was on week 3, but it's actually week 4 so....

I accidently did a chest/back, abx routine when I'm supposed to be doing Yoga X. I'm going to start week four (for real) tonight, beginning with Yoga X, offically making my p91x turn into p92x. lol.

I did love the chest/back, abx workout though....I did about 3 more pushups in each excercise than last time, and was able to finish abx with 334 out of the 339 reps. WOOHOOOOO! I never thought I'd be able to say that!

Day 24: Yoga X

I woke up really sick on this day. I think sinus infection....ick! I went ahead and did Yoga with a friend anyways, hoping that moving around would help to clear my head. I can't say that it helped with my stuffiness or not, but I still felt good that I worked out. It felt very productive!

Now comes day 25....core! I'm scared!

Days 16-17

On day 15, I actually ended up resting. I had a long evening and was ready to conk out when I got home...so no cardio X for me!

Day 16: Chest & Back, Ab X

I am beginning to REALLY love this workout! I could barely manage some of the push ups the last couple of weeks, but now I'm getting the stregnth to do them properly. I finally gave in and bought some light weights as well, which I really liked for this routine.

Here's a recent pic of my shoulders/back (not a huge difference, but noticeable!) Hopefully the abs will be gettin' there soon! ;)

Today....the evil Plyometrics! Wish me luck! :)

BTW, this is for Annie: How do I find the motivation to work out early? To be honest...I usually don't, simply because it's easier to do them later in my schedule. I normally do my workouts at night because that's when I'm free, but when I DO workout in the morning, it makes me feel so much better throughout the day. I think you should just think about how good the rest of your day will feel if you push through the tiredness...that might do the trick!

Yee-haw!

Days 11-15

Day 11: Shoulders and Arms, Ab Ripper X

This workout was great, just like last week. :) I did it in the morning instead of the night (when I usually work out) because I'm in a band and I had a show until laaate. I found that it felt a lot different in the morning, and gave me even more energy throughout my day! The only problem is that it made my arms a little sore, and I had to hold a microphone up all night. lol.

I'm going to TRY to do more of my workouts in the morning now....if I can convince myself to get up a little earlier before work....maybe it'll just be an occasional thing. I really like sleep. ;)

Day 12: Yoga X

I got way more out of this workout than last time since I could actually stand properly. It is a long one, but I can actually tell that it's working because my flexibility is increasing very quickly. I didn't work out for a few months before this program, and my flexibility got kind of low, and now I can already grab my feet with my legs straight again. Woohoo, yoga!

I can't quite do all of the moves (crane, *cough*) but I do think that I will be able to by the end of this program. I can't wait!

Day 13: Legs & Back, Ab Ripper X

The legs and back workout really got my legs burning, again! Those wall squats are KILLER! I'm not getting as sore though...I'm able to sleep off most of the soreness that would've crippled me last week. I'm glad my body is getting used to p90x....it's going to make all of the workouts even more enjoyable.

I'm really getting to love ABX as well. Sometimes my stomach/abs hurt so much after this workout that I confuse it for nausea...but it goes away quickly. I can already see some definition coming through, and it's only week 2!!! Sweet!

Day 14: Kempo X (and another ABX since I missed one on Week 1)

Kempo X is actually my least favorite workout, which is funny, because most people say it's one of their favorites. Maybe it's because I used to do those Billy Blanks (I think that's his name) videos and burnt myself out a little bit on kickboxing from doing it too much. I do love that it makes me sweat though. At least I know that it does its job!

I added in an extra ABX to catch up on the one I missed on week 1. I know you don't need it every day, but I felt that my stomach felt calm enough to handle it.

Day 15: REST DAY! Today is my rest day. However, I'm really contemplating adding in a cardio X or something...I don't feel right just doing nothing, or even just stretching today. I wonder if this is a big no-no. Maybe our bodies need the rest time. Hmm. I guess I'll look on the BB forums to see what the general consensus is.

See ya!

Day 9: Chest and Back and Day 10: Plyometrics!

Day 9: Chest and Back

Last night was another Chest and Back today. I forgot how much that workout WORKS! I could really notice a difference in my performance, and it's only been a WEEK! I can't believe how much easier it was to complete in just a short amount of time.

I also felt that I had better form this go around, getting more of a bang for my buck.

I finished my workout with a fruit and protein smoothie, hoping that it would help to relieve potential soreness...and so far, it has! I don't have near the pain and soreness today that I had last week after the same workout. Yay!

Day 10: Plyometrics

Tonight is Plyometrics. I have a couple of friends who want to work out with me, but I'm guessing they don't know what they're in for. :) Hope they like it! I'll update this part later.

Update: I did plyometrics last night with two of my friends, and it whooped all of our butts! Afterwards, we went ahead and tacked on another ab ripper x since I missed one last week, and some wii yoga to "stretch it out." I really liked working out with buddies because we all hold each other accountable. I hope they don't hurt as much as I did last week....that wouldn't be so good....

Anywho...I'm going to do my day 11 workout with my friend Kaylee tonight. She was there last night and loved the workout. :)

Days 4-8

Day 4: Yoga X

I was excited about doing yoga on day 4, because I had woken up in pain from the past workouts. I couldn't lift anything, couldn't walk, and tryed to somehow pee standing up stradling the toilet because it hurt my legs to try and sit that low....(sorry for the mental image, but that's how sore I was!) I know that yoga helps your body to stretch, and I thought that's all I would need to make my body feel better.

I was WRONG!

Yoga, for the first part, was pretty intense like the other workouts. My boyfriend, who does yoga on a regular basis, was even sweating his rear off! I tried to keep up the best I could, but my legs kept giving out when I tried to get into the downward dog, causing me to plop onto the floor....all in all, I got through it, but I was definately glad when it was done.

Day 5: Nothing!

I decided to move my rest day to my 5th day for the first week, because I woke up knowing that there was NO way that I could move my body. I almost called in sick at work because I was in so much pain. I took ibprofen, iced my muscles, and took warm epson salt bath soaks, but nothing seemed to help. I couldn't even lay down comfortably because every position seemed to poke at some muscle. My abs, arms, legs, neck, etc....they were ALL toast.

I looked on the beachbody forums for some answers, and found that I needed to take it easy until the pain let up. So....I did some X Stretch, very lightly. That's all for day 5!

Day 6: Swelling?

Again, I wasn't able to work out on day 6. I already felt horrible for getting behind schedule, and to make things worse, my arms were swollen and my biceps looked like giant marshmellows when I woke up. (?!?)

Again, I looked on the BB forums, and found that my body was in "protective mode" and was trying to retain water in that area to prevent any strain. I've weight-lifted a lot in the past, but never have I been faced with that! Somehow, I feel like that was a good thing. I guess that means that p90x is working. Woohoo!

Day 7: Legs & Back/Ab Ripper X

I was still sore on day 7, but I didn't want even more behind schedule, so I went ahead and did the Legs & Back workout and Ab Ripper X.

Day 8: Kempo X

Hi YA! I just got done with Kempo X. That was an AWESOME work out. I'm sweating like crazy and feel like I just kicked some major butt. I can't wait until I get into better shape so I can really kick strong.

"BRING IT!"

Day 2: Plyometrics & Day 3: Shoulders and Arms, Ab Ripper X

My computer was down yesterday, so I'm going to talk about day 2 and 3 in this post. All I have to say is....

HOLY CRAP! Plyometrics is HARD! I felt like my heart was about to beat out of my chest, and by the end of it I could barely move because my legs felt like jello. But you know what I find the most surprising? It's not my legs that hurt today, it's still my arms, back and abs from the day 1 workout. I can barely move!

I guess that's a positive thing, though. It shows me that these workouts are really hitting the spot in just a short amount of time. I usually work out for a couple of hours and barely feel any burn afterwards. I'm pretty satisfied. :)

update:

Arms & Shoulders was a GREAT work out! I was able to keep up more since my arms are a stronger part of my body. I can definately feel the burn in my arms after that work out.

Yay, p90x!

Beginning Stats and Day 1: Chest & Back, Ab Ripper x

I finally got p90x in the mail today, and.....

Whew! I just got done doing my first p90x workouts. I've gotta say, it's definately tough...my whole body feels like its shaking!

I really liked the chest and back workout because it changes exercises often, preventing boredom. I don't have a pull up bar or dumbells yet, but I used the resistance bands in place of dumbells and attached the resistance band to a hook in the ceiling to do the pull up/chin ups. That seemed to work really well for now.

The Ab Ripper X is pretty intense as well. I wasn't able to finish all 25 reps in all but 2 of the exercises! I definately have room to grow, but I can already feel the burn! Tony's going to give me a run for my money, but I vow to "Bring It" for these next 90 days, and then some.

I'm can't wait to see what the other workouts have to offer...I can already tell that p90x is going to make me a LOT stronger.

As far as the p90x diet goes, I'm going to start tomorrow. However, I don't know if I can eat as many servings of protein as it tells me to eat. It seems like too many servings of food in general. Maybe the caloric and protein intake is based on a male nutritional standard....although I could definately be wrong. I guess I should look into that!

Howver, I ate healthy today, just too many carbs for the program. Yay for wraps and toast. :)

In closing, here's my Day 1 stats:

Weight: 158

Waist: 29"

Hips: 34"

Thighs: 23.5"

Arms: (r) 12" (l) 11.5"

Pull ups, here I come!

Before Photos

These aren't "Day 1" photos, but I figure I'm going to look the same on Day 1, so here's my BEFORE shots.




Lovely, eh? I'll upload new pics for days 30, 60, and 90 (of course) as I progress through the program.

Now I just need to get the actual package in the mail!!!

Ashley

Waiting to Start

OK! It's official. I start p90x this week, whenever it decides to get here through the mail.

I thought this blog would be a good way to track my progress, and share my experiences with this workout routine...the good, the bad, and the ugly.

I'm not horribly out of shape, but I could stand to lose a few pounds, and I would REALLY like to do a pull up in a few months, because I can't do a single ONE as of now.

So....I'll try to update as regularly as possible, and when I get the hang of it, answer questions for others considering the program.

That's all for now.