Time to Tackle P90X - and You Can, Too..! Starting Monday 3/

P90X DAY SIXTY-SIX - Back & Biceps, Ab Ripper X

Again, the first shot at a strength workout with the dumbbells instead of the bands. Talk about feelin' IT! Yeouch! As expected, most of the weight values came down. Strange how much different the moves feel with weight, but when you look at it, it makes sense. A band increases its resistance with increased tension; a dumbbell weighs what it weighs regardless. Nemesis today were all the pull-up moves; using no chair for support until the last rep makes a HUGE difference, and the decrease in rep numbers show it. Still, it's not disappointing because I'm knocking out "real" pull-ups now, so the more I can manage, the happier I am.

Also, while it's on my mind, I don't know about anyone else, but ARX still kicks my hiney every single time I do that workout... Sheesh. I do notice now that I can keep pace with the group for the first five moves, so improvements continue to be made.

Yoga X is next... Gotta love it.

P90X DIAGNOSTIC WORKOUT - Kenpo X

Well, this was the first workout following my week-long sickness, and I'd say this was the toughest Kenpo X has ever been for me. I had to stop completely about halfway through because I got to coughing so badly. It's not the "I'm still sick" cough; it's more the "my body's trying to get rid of the junk" cough. Also, as I tried to ramp up my intensity in places, breathing got progressively more difficult, so I couldn't go as full-out as I prefer to in this workout. While I feel well, my respiratory tract isn't quite back to normal yet.

We'll have to see, but I think after some good rest today and tomorrow, I should be ready to pick it back up this coming Monday; that's the plan, at least. Tough though this was today, it felt great to be back in the saddle working out.

P90X 18 DAYS TO GO - Chest & Back, Ab Ripper X

Well, here's the first real workout following my recent illness, and I felt pretty good actually though still not quite at 100%. Interestingly, on several moves, I seem to have made some good strength gains in terms of the reps I could crank out. For example, on my last C&B workout, I did a total of 54 standard push-ups. Today, I knocked out 67, and that's after basically a week of not working out. So... there's something to be said it seems for a rest period. Other than that, reps for all the moves were either equal to or greater than the last time around - very nice.

Plyo tomorrow... That will be the REAL test.

Ok, time to catch up on questions and such, then it's downstairs for Shoulders & Arms and ARX...

Mosse... Honestly, I've never looked for protein bar recipes. I've tried several, but there are only two brands that I like: Beachbody P90X protein bars, and CLIF Builder's bars. Both have good flavor and texture and good protein numbers.

Also, with respect to creatine, I don't know that you'd find many products that combine a goodly amount of quality protein with a creatine supplement. The two compounds perform different tasks: protein provides the building blocks for your body to build lean tissue (among other things), and creatine (usually in the form of creatine monohydrate in supplement form) is part of the chemical energy cycle that powers your skeletal muscles. Do you need a creatine supplement? No, it isn't critical. Can you achieve more muscle growth and sustained workout intensity with it? In most cases, yes because the added creatine (which your body already has, but in lesser amounts when you're not supplementing) enables you to maintain the intensity of a workout for a longer period of time, thus working those muscles harder for longer and generally prompting more growth (hypertrophy). I take it, and I do notice a difference; your results may vary.

larthur... You should definitely be seeing some very noticeable changes in your body composition by now I should think. Keep pushing play, and only good things can happen! Like April suggests, I rarely bother with the scale honestly. Every time I have to go out and get new chinos and shorts because I'm shrinking in the waist, I know things are moving in the right direction. :bigsmile: Also, congrats on dropping three more pounds... Great results are headed your way..!!

April... Sorry to hear you're sick. I was dealing with the crud all week last week, and I'm still trying to shake the remnants of it... but, on a better note...Way-to-go! I am always inspired by your sticking with it and getting the most our of your workouts. Congrats on the one-arm push-ups on the toes - that's awesome!

RowerC... You sounds like you're making excellent progress amigo... and if you've been doing P90X, of course you've been doing serious cardio, man... No wonder you can crank out the distance on that rowing machine! It's the magic of Plyo X... lol.

... and last but not at all least...

eriny... Hey there brother, I see you're still the old school workout animal of our bunch... lol. Yes, the pics will definitely be posted. Interestingly, the other evening, I was doing pull-ups, and normally my better half isn't around when I'm doing that. She happened to be behind me as I was pulling and said, "Oh my god, what happened to your back?!" She took some quick pics, and there are muscles jumping all out of my back that I, of course, never get to see. Very cool...

Ok, I think that's everyone... Off to the workout..!!!