Thursday, July 9, 2009

P90X+: Round 3: Day 5: Upper Plus/Abs-Core Plus

Upper Plus

Not that I'm the world's most buff guy, but I've been thinking throughout the week that perhaps P90X Plus isn't really for me. I've been thinking a lot about Shaun T's Insanity program (intensive cardio), released today, and about obtaining Tony Horton's One on One, volume 1 (12 discs). I suppose the idea is to make a commitment to daily exercise and to mix up the workouts in such a way as to keep encouraging muscle confusion, and, as long as that is adhered to, you can't really miss the mark too badly.

I approached Upper Plus with somewhat more zeal than previously, because I had done the workout once and was somewhat more familiar with the individual exercises. I still find the first exercise somewhat ridiculous (or humiliating, depending upon your point of view) because I cannot make my legs scoot between the PowerStands the way Mark Briggs does (or should I say, "I currently struggle with..."). Well, do your best and forget the rest. I end up doing a step move in both directions. I think I need longer arms to be successful. At any rate, the push-up part of the exercise is a nice way to start the workout.

Most of the exercises went well. It's surprising that I'm using the maroon(!) resistance band for many of the exercises. This is due to the elongated time frame of most exercises. This is a departure from P90X, which stressed 8-10 reps for bulk and 12-15 reps for lean. Most of the exercises in this workout seem designed to encourage lean muscle. Fine with me, as that is how I approached my last 2 rounds of P90X.

It was a good workout, and I think I'll improve over time.

Favourite move today: spiderman push-ups.

Toughest move today: 2-way flys.

Abs/Core Plus

I really stepped on the bike pedals on the way home, and, upon my arrival, immediately popped in the Abs/Core DVD and hit play. I was motivated to finish this workout without pausing the tape, and managed to succeed. In the process, I also succeeded in working up a good, dripping sweat.

I realized that there is a coordination issue between the Plus manual and the workout sheets. The manual calls for Abs/Core only twice a week: day 1 and day 5. The workout sheets show three slots per week. It did feel strange not to be doing ab work on day 3. I'll make sure to include that in future weeks. This week, I inadvertantly gave myself a break.

Favourite move today: banana masons.

Toughest move today: cherry bombs.


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