Something they don’t tell you about pull-ups is that they work your core and the thin layer of muscles over your lower rib cage as well as your arms, shoulders, chest and back. I woke up this morning after my first P90X workout with the distinct feeling that someone had gripped the skin and muscles on my shoulders and yanked UP really hard, because everything between my lower abs and traps is going through DOMS now.
Another fun thing I learned was that doing 60 minutes of plyometrics while in this state of “Don’t touch me or I will smack you so hard you’ll be able to see first hand if your rump is getting bigger” soreness is not exactly a jolly experience either. Imagine feeling a jolt of DOMS in your entire torso every time you land a jump…over and over and over again. Yeesh. I’m glad I’m not a busty gal; plyo must KILL when you have that much adipose tissue, saline, or silicone grafted to your chest. Ladies, do NOT attempt plyo without a really good sports bra. 
Plyo, like the chest and back workout, is 60 minutes long. The workout is broken up into 4 or 5 sections consisting of 2 sets x 4 different exercises each. You get a 30 second break between each section which never seems long enough. I like it because I can feel it building more explosive power in my legs, and it is one kickass cardio workout to boot. At this point in my training, I don’t think I really need to build more mass in my lower body, just lean out and maintain what I have, so plyo and the leg workout tomorrow should be sufficient to do that.
And best of all, there’s no running involved. :biggrin:
So my assessment of P90X so far: It is an advanced level bootcamp style workout series that is extremely challenging even if you are already fit. I think based on the success stories and photos on the site and the type of exercises involved that men will build more upper body mass than women (surprise surprise) because they can actually perform more reps of push-ups and pull-ups, but the high average calorie burn per workout (600 calories) when combined with the very moderate calorie restriction recommended with the program (1800 calories/day for a woman of my height and weight) WILL lean both men and women out during the course of the 90 day program.
This program will get you lean, ripped, and compact, but arguably not lean, ripped, and BIG, especially your legs. There are no major leg mass building exercises like heavy squats or presses, so if you are hoping to balance out some chicken legs, I’d recommend sticking with the iron. I also think that chest development might be a bit weak in this program relative to traditional weight training. If I were a fella trying to work on my chest, I’d probably supplement the workouts with some good old-fashioned bench presses and flyes once my strength progressed beyond body weight exercises. If you are a woman with dreams of becoming a fitness model or figure competitor, I don’t think this will get you there either. You would still need to refine with gym workouts and exercises, but you will sure surprise a lot of folks with how many “hard” exercises like pull-ups you can perform. :whistle:
The variety of workouts is excellent. It’s an expensive program at $119, but you get 12 different workouts that mix resistance/strength, cardio, endurance, and flexibility training into a nice, organized program for you. There are also two well-written guides included–one for the workouts and one covering the nutrition plan you can use with the program for maximum results. Equipment is pretty basic as well: yoga mat, resistance bands/tubes, pull-up bar, and dumbbells. You can get away with just the mat and bands if do the modified exercises for bands instead of the pull-ups and dumbbell moves in the workouts. They also recommend a heart rate monitor, but I’m way too cheap to bother with that. I use the free internal Gasp-o-meter to gauge how hard I’m working.
The emphasis on arm/upper body work, power and bodyweight-based lower body work, non-running cardio, pull-up training, and yoga/stretching is a perfect fit for my current training goals of
-Dropping body fat
-Improving flexibility
-Maintaining muscle mass in legs without adding more
-Increasing upper body muscle mass
-Doing 10 unassisted pull-ups
-Working on functional aspects of fitness instead of just the aesthetics
If you are thinking about picking up P90X, check out the web site first, take the fitness assessment test, and think about your goals and current fitness level before you order, because make no mistake, this program will work you hard. It would be kind of wasteful to spend $149 bucks and a ton of sweat and effort on it if it won’t further your specific individual fitness goals.
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Nutrition: 1700 calorie low zig zag day
1: 3×1 spinach and pepper omelette and large navel orange
2: Proatmeal PWO combo (1/2 c. (dry) oatmeal, 1/2 serving fruit and 3/4 scoop Myopro whey)
3: 3.5 oz. grilled pollock, 1 c. sauteed broccoli, 1/2 c. rice
4: Peanut butter banana protein shake
5: Oatmeal tuna salad with 1/2 banana
6: 3/4 c. FF cottage cheese and large navel orange
Total: 1632 calories, 50.9% carb, 35.5% protein, 14.7% fat
Daily Supplements: multivitamin with iron, calcium 500 + D
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Workout:
7:45 AM P90X Plyometrics
3:00 PM 1 mile walk (4 mph / 15 minutes)
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The Awful Truth:
1. Extra 1/2 c. of Great Grains cereal around 10 pm.
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Brownie Points:
1. Really, really sore from chest/back/abs workout yesterday. :ouch:
2. Adjusted personal finances to pay off last credit card by June 30 (one month earlier than expected). :prop:
3. Cleaned the bathroom this morning.
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Short-term Goals:
1. Take both cats to vet at 2:00 pm today for annual exam and shots.
2. Deposit FSA check.
3. Work on paper doll project.
4. Do thumbnails for 5-6 new prints.
5. Clean the kitchen.
6. Set up dual monitors with desktop system.
7. Test scanner set up.
