Round 5: Day 90: The End

Today ends Round 5. I had my ups and downs: a little body fatigue, minor injury, a cold, but overall, I feel like I made some progress towards my objectives.

I'm going to take another week off as an additional Recovery Week, doing some light cardio and core exercises, tweak my schedule, and gear up for Round 6. I'm still feeling the effects of a head cold, and I'd like that to completely dissipate before I get into heavy resistance training again. My body is telling me to rest and take it easy for awhile. I think that, for once, I'll listen.

I'm also going to spend the next week re-examining my nutrition plan. I've gained a few pounds (nothing to be nervous about) and, although I think the increase represents an increase in muscle, I do know that I can improve nutritionally. I'd like to be more strict during the coming Round than I've been in the past (although I think I've been pretty good) and see whether I can really tighten up my body and lose those last few stubborn pounds of fat hanging around my mid-section and my lower back. I'm not talking muffin-top, but there's definitely room for some improvement.

I'll try to post some thoughts occasionally over the next week. Thanks to all who have accompanied my on this journey. I'm looking forward to starting the next chapter.

Round 5: Day 89: Insanity: Core Cardio & Balance

I'm definitely dealing with a minor cold, so thankfully, it's still Recovery Week. Otherwise, I likely wouldn't have the strength necessary for a resistance workout. Even so, today's workout, Core Cardio and Balance, raised my heart rate and rather tired me out, in spite of the fact that it's much less intense than a standard Insanity workout.

There are a couple of sequences near the end of the workout which really point out my weaknesses: shoulders and hip flexors. The shoulder burn-out sequence, about 3.5 minutes in duration, really does burn out the shoulders. The only way to survive it is to tighten your core, and breathe through it. The hip flexor sequence is just pure evil, starting out easy and becoming progressively more difficult as time wears on. By the end of the exercise, I'm just thankful for the opportunity to allow my foot to contact the floor.

This Round's almost done!

Round 5: Day 88: X Stretch

Happiness is sitting in 6°C rainy weather at night, watching your son play baseball under the lights. Unfortunately, it can also be the source of a scratchy throat, which is what I had when I awoke this morning. Thankfully, this is Recovery Week, and specifically, today was X Stretch, which is about the least strenuous workout one could ask for.

And, as it ended up, this workout was about all I could do. I felt stiff after the past couple of workouts, which I haven't done in quite some time, so stretching was just fine with me. My hamstrings still feel stiff from a few weeks ago, and I still don't have the range of motion when stretching out my left hamstring that I had about a month ago. It's going to take some time to regain that suppleness. Perhaps daily stretching of the hamstrings would help to resolve that issue.

I'm going to continue to take it easy for the rest of this week (there's only Cardio Recovery and Yoga left in the schedule, after all) and then see whether another week of recovery might be warranted prior to starting Round 6.

Round 5: Day 87: Kenpo Cardio Plus

Like yesterday's workout, it's odd how Kenpo Cardio Plus, which used to be a challenging workout for me, seems so easy now. This is still a fun workout, though, and it flies by. I like all of the activity, but it just doesn't get my heart rate up like it used to, in spite of my P90X attitude. I think that in some ways, Insanity has forever changed life in cardio-land. What used to be challenging, is no longer, Insanity workouts excluded. Workouts which used to kill me have now been relegated to Recovery Weeks, replaced by new workouts which kill me. That's progress, I guess.

I'm still going to keep this workout as part of Recovery Week, because I find it enjoyable and a nice break from the other cardio routines. It also makes me use my body in different ways from the other workouts, with all of the leg extensions, kicks, and moves that require a big range of motion. Even though my heart rate's not through the roof, it's still good to get your body moving in ways that aren't found in other workouts. That's all part of muscle confusion. I'm looking forward to some soreness tomorrow, and taking care of that with X Stretch. 

Round 5: Day 86: Interval X Plus

Although I had Plyometrics on the calendar today, I wasn't in the mood for it when I awoke, so I did Interval X Plus as a last-minute substitution. I don't recall ever having completed this workout without having to pause the DVD -- until today. Thanks to Insanity, this workout sped by without pause. I'm sure that I've increased my lung capacity and my cardio abilities due to Insanity. Where I used to huff and puff by the end of the first round, I merely took a sip of water, towelled off some sweat, enjoyed my 1-minute break, and jumped back into the fray for the second round.

I didn't really think that I would find any more surprises in personal development this Round, until today's workout. I recall being quite out of breath at the end of the first round of exercises, and used to have to take several minutes for my heart rate to recover prior to starting the second round. Today, I felt energetic and never really severely challenged. It wasn't as though I wasn't trying; on the contrary, I was hopping and jumping in time with Tony and the kids. There just is a world of difference between the P90X cardio and Insanity.

Oddly, even though the workout seemed easy, I experienced a lot of leg shake in the hour following the workout. That gave me renewed respect for this workout. Although the intensity of the workout may be less than Insanity, the duration is more. The workout consists of two rounds of approximately 15 minutes each, unlike Insanity, where a round lasts for about 3 or 4 minutes. The total length of the workouts is about the same, but the way the time is consumed is completely different. I still like this workout and will keep it as part of a recovery week in the next Round.

Round 5: Day 83: Insanity: Fit Test

The time has finally come during this Round to see whether I've shown any improvements in Insanity, by doing the Fit Test again. I've only done this test once, at the beginning of the Round, and although I was fairly certain that I've improved in my overall fitness, I was still somewhat apprehensive about taking the Fit Test. I wasn't worried about actually being able to do the various exercises, as they're all exercises incorporated into the Insanity workouts; rather, it was whether I'd show reasonable measurable improvement.

As always, it seems as though I worry needlessly. My first test, Switch Kicks, I actually decreased in number, but only by a few. That may be because when I first took the test, I wasn't executing the exercise quite correctly. Alternatively, this test is just a killer. At any rate, I'm not going to get worked up over a decrease of about 1%. All other exercises saw improvements, specifically in Power Jumps and in Push-Up Jacks. Numbers are summarized below:

Exercise               Fit Test 1     Fit Test 2

Switch Kicks           126          123

Power Jacks            47            51

Power Knees           90            100

Power Jumps           31            48

Globe Jumps            7             11

Suicide Jumps         17            19

Push-Up Jacks         25            35

Low Plank Oblique    60            68*

(*The Low Plank Oblique numbers are total knees to shoulder moves. Today I did 34 each side, for a total of 68.)

Overall, I'm pleased with the improvements. I'll continue doing Insanity twice a week for the next Round, and measure my progress again at the end of the next Round. There doesn't seem to be much sense in doing the Fit Test again in a couple of weeks, when I can really push myself with a regular Insanity workout.

This ends Week 12. It was a great week, and a nice end to an intense round. I'll take next week as a Recovery Week, re-evaluate my goals and objectives, and create a new hybrid schedule for Round 6, which should begin in a week or two.

Round 5: Day 82: Just Arms

My son threw down the gauntlet yesterday, advising me in no uncertain terms that he was distinctly unimpressed by my arms. He's 15 years old, and has been spending some time recently lifting weights and doing pushups. I suppose that my exercise regimen and body transformation have not gone unnoticed by him, and he is starting to catch on to the benefits of eating clean and exercising regularly. He typically walks around the house, flexing his arms, and inquiring whether we have tickets to the gun show, or, flexing, he points out the way to the beach. Typical teenager, I suppose. I was one too, once.

Spurred on by his comment, I put extra effort into today's Just Arms workout, motivated to build a little golden nugget on top of my biceps. Prior to the workout, I scanned my information sheet, and made notes to increase the weights on all exercises where I was previously capable of doing 12 reps. What resulted was one of the most intense arm workouts I've ever experienced. I had to pause the DVD several times just to catch my breath and recover. Following the workout, I had tremendous difficulty lifting my arms to wash my face. I'm sure I'll feel some delayed muscle soreness over the next few days.

It feels as though this Round is already over. I only have the Insanity Fit Test to do tomorrow to wrap up Week 12, then a Recovery Week, prior to commencing the next Round. Next week, I'll evaluate whether I met this Round's goals, establish new goals, and adjust the workout schedule accordingly. Where does the time go?