P90X+: Round 3: Day 69: Kenpo/Cardio Plus

Well, I've become the form-master. What was so difficult over the past 9 weeks has suddenly become second nature. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?

It was such a joy to do this workout today. All of the moves just seemed to flow effortlessly (well, not exactly effortlessly, as evidenced by the enormous volume of sweat expelled from my body) and smoothly. I've frequently become fouled up by switching from my right side to my left, or vice versa, but not today. Finally, for the first time, everything just seemed to click. Magic.

I also noticed that the workout seemed easier than it has previously. That's not to say that I was dogging it. On the contrary, I was really focussed, engaged the cage, and worked hard. I just think that my overall level of fitness has improved. There's more to this Plus workout that I had previously credited. Good job, Tony.

The toughest moves for me are still the timing moves, like claw-lunge-kick, where a skip step has to be introduced into the sequence so that body parts don't hopelessly flail about. Also, gladiator still requires a thought process for me, to ensure that the correct leg kicks up and the correct hand drives the sword into the unfortunate victim. Today, that all worked.

My wife walked into the room during spinning swords. Typically, this comes at a time when I'm sweating pretty hard and beads of sweat are flung from my arms and fingertips as I spin back, swording and hammering. Today was no exception, and I think I noticed a look of both horror and disgust register on her face. Fitness does come at a price.

End of week 10. Next week will be a bit of a challenge, as I know in advance that I'll have to double up workouts some days. Perhaps that's a good thing, as I'll be able to empathize with my online compatriots who are doing doubles.

P90X+: Round 3: Day 68: Upper Plus

I'm skipping a day in the blog. I did yoga yesterday, but wasn't able to get to the computer to blather on about my warm, fuzzy feelings for the workout. I'm mentioning this just to put on the record that while I skipped a day of blogging, I didn't skip the actual workout.

We accidentally slept in today, arising 1/2h later than usual. For some reason, the alarm clock didn't sound. My wife questioned the integrity of my internal clock (which, frankly, I had wondered about as well) but, sometimes, I guess, your body just requires additional rest. We've both been a bit worn out, having attended some evening curriculum sessions at the kids' schools the past two nights. Neither of us likes to go out during weeknights; we're quite content to spend the evening at home together, relaxing after a long day's work.

As a result of the additional sleep, I had to jump all over the workout, and the extra intensity was reflected in an increase in quantity today. I guess I'm capable of more than I thought. The more I do this workout (and I do it a lot), the more I seem to enjoy it. My least favourite moves are probably pumper curls and the shoulder everything. These exercises always challenge me, especially the shoulder everything. I can feel my right shoulder popping (like a breakfast cereal, as Tony says), likely due to overstressing my arm playing baseball as a youngster, even though I'm using only 10lb dumbbells.

My favourite moves are still the pushups. I've increased the combat pushups to 14 recently, and could probably crank out one or two more, as I take a pause or two during the 90 seconds. I'll have to eliminate that pause and replace it with a pushup. I'm so bagged by the end of the workout that I can't even raise my PowerStands in the air in celebration with Tony and the kids. Just getting up off the floor is celebration enough for me.

P90X+: Round 3: Day 66: Total Body Plus

I got plenty of sleep last night, and awoke refreshed and energized. I've been noticing that there's a difference in my energy level since I've increased my water intake. Starting this workout was no problem, and it moved along nicely to the end. I paused briefly before the spiderman jumps (which I now regret), but was able to complete the workout. One exercise I don't particularly care for are the Plyo pushups done right at the end, nor do I care for the way they are introduced; however, it's a minor quibble.

I really focussed on form during the warm-up sequences this morning, paying particular attention to my left hip flexor, which can get a bit stiff from time to time. It doesn't cause me any pain, but I notice that there is a slight restriction of movement in it compared to the right side. I'm taking care to ensure that the left side gets stretched out and is really warmed up, especially during workouts like today's, which involve the total body. Also, I want to make sure that the left side is as flexible as possible, to stave off any long-term effects of not using that body part.

I enjoy this workout, especially 3 and 3s and 1 and 1s, along with the 10 sets of 3 different types of pushups done early in the programme (whose name currently escapes me). I find these exercises in particular to be quite challenging, and I've been noticing some modest improvements in my numbers as this round continues.

Overall, I've been enjoying P90X+; however, I am getting a little bored with all of the scheduled Upper Plus routines and I don't feel that my legs have had the attention that they probably need. I'm thinking of creating a hybrid workout routine for the next round, incorporating P90X, P90X+ and One on One. To do that, I'll actually have to purchase the One on One discs. It's almost decision-making time.

P90X+: Round 3: Day 65: Plyometrics

A sidebar to Friday's post: I've managed to keep up the water consumption, and I've noticed a drop in weight. I presume the two are related, because that was the only change I've made recently to my diet. I'm cautiously optimistic, and will keep it up.

I had a horrible sleep last night, probably only about 5h in duration. Cranky would be a good word to describe how I felt when I rose from the dead this morning. Tired and cranky. Tired, lethargic and cranky. Unamused, tired, lethargic and cranky. You get the idea. It probably didn't help that I ate poorly last night. Not enough self-discipline, and I was paying the price.

So, I was in no mood to tolerate levity during Plyometrics this morning. It's a miracle that I even bothered to do the workout at all. Imagine my mood when I slid the disk into the tray and the DVD player didn't recognize the disk. I'll elucidate: I was...displeased. A quick cleaning of the disk brought it back to the land of the useful, and I was able to commence the workout. Still displeased, but at least my body was moving.

I managed to scrape by during the workout (never pausing the disk) and worked up a terrific sweat. There are still some nuances I'm picking up during the workout, such as how low Tony gets during leapfrog squats (relative to the other participants), and the angle of the legs on squat jacks. I had never noticed how bent my legs are when in the open position, until I compared myself to (Perfect) Pam. Wow. She's really getting deep into those jacks. Also, I was careful to ensure that my knees were tracking out over my toes, which meant that my feet had to be in a more open position than when doing conventional jacks, where the feet face straight ahead at all times. It's all good.

When I completed the workout, I had forgotten about my lack of sleep (although I'm thinking about it now) and was feeling great. It never ceases to amaze me how good it feels just to get my body moving, my heart pumping, the blood flowing, and the sweat dripping, even if the workout itself is just so-so. There are definitely benefits to just pressing play.