Bring It!

Having spent the last three days doing yoga, stretching and assuming various pretzel-like postures, I'm declaring this week to be successful in meeting my objectives, and will reset the calendar to commence Week 12 on Sunday. My lower back feels much better, and my range of motion is pretty much back to normal. I've been riding my bicycle the last couple of days with no ill effects.

I'm going to be cautious this week and will take a few extra minutes during my warm-ups to ensure that my hamstrings and lower back are fully stretched out and warmed up prior to my wholeheartedly engaging in the workout.

I'm looking forward to jumping back into the fray and getting to the workouts with a renewed sense of energy and vigour.

Let's hope that listening to the body pays off with strong workouts and pleasing results.

Bring It!

Recovering...

I had a 1-hour therapeutic massage yesterday, which was just what the doctor ordered. I wouldn't exactly say that I was bound up, but I was experiencing some muscle soreness, and the masseuse found those points, applied pressure (pretty much to the point of pain) and I left relaxed and pain-free. I was feeling better this morning, but decided to take it easy by doing the first half of Yoga X.

It's been awhile since I've done this workout, as I always seem pressed for time in the mornings and don't wake up early enough for the 1:32 workout. What a pleasure to do this workout again! I had nearly forgotten how much I enjoyed it (and cursed it in the early days). Now, it's pretty much a breeze to get through the first half (the movement exercises) and it was exactly what I needed to stretch out my lower back and hamstrings.

I'm probably going to continue with yoga for another few days to give my back more time to recover and to stretch out and limber up. Then, hopefully, I'll be ready to recommence Week 12.

Namaste.

Time Off

I recently posted about how flexible I am, and how that's contributed to being pain and injury-free. No sooner did I do that, then I really pushed myself in a Shoulders and Arms workout. Then, I had difficulty making it through an Insanity workout the next day. I think that I may have given myself a slight tweak in my lower back, possibly from Shoulders and Arms, and it may be been exacerbated by jumping during Insanity. As a result, I was experiencing some discomfort over the weekend, and I'm going to listen to my body and take a few days off to rest and recover. I'm not so into working out that I'm keen on seriously injuring myself.

So, I have a massage scheduled for today (thankfully, my wife has a health benefit plan which includes massages for spouses and significant others), I'll take a few days off from riding my bicycle to the office, and I'll give Tony and the kids a break. I'm sure they're happy to be away from me for awhile, anyway.

I hope that this is just a short-term break. I'd like to at least engage in some yoga or stretching over the next few days. I'll likely put Week 12 off for one week to stretch and recover, then jump back into Week 12 and finish off this Round. It's unfortunate, but that's what happens in life, and you have to learn how to handle the minor setbacks so you can quickly get back to your program.

Round 5: Day 76: Insanity: Cardio Power and Resistance

It was a very tough workout today, for some odd reason. I found the warmup to be really exerting, which is not a good sign with an Insanity workout, as the warmup is just a hint of what's to come. I managed to work my way through the exercises, but I never really felt that my heart was in it. I found the "Hit the Floor" exercise to be tough on my lower back, so part of the exercise felt like I was just going through the motions, rather than really jumping and leaping.

So, the end of Week 11 goes out with a whimper, rather than a bang. It just goes to show that, even with a lot of workouts behind me, there will still be off-days, where your body just doesn't respond the way you'd like it to. It's important to realize that off-days aren't what characterize your workout regimen, as there will be many, many more "on" days, and you shouldn't feel discouraged by one isolated workout. Still, as the Round is wrapping up, I would have liked to have pounded this workout into submission. There will be other opportunities in the future.

I'm looking forward to a good sleep tonight and a rest day tomorrow. That should recharge the batteries for Week 12.

Round 5: Day 75: Shoulders and Arms

I've made a subtle adjustment to my nutrition by eating non-fat, non-sweetened, plain probiotic yogurt for breakfast instead of millet cereal in soy milk. That cuts down a little bit on my soy consumption and eliminates some grain from my diet. I've read The Primal Blueprint and have been somewhat convinced by its arguments, so cutting down on grains is a goal I'm working on. It's been difficult to do that, as my wife prepares our meals and she can't really get her head around eliminating grains. Also, the kids can be picky eaters, and it's tough to convince them to eat something other than those soothing carbohydrates. As always, I seem to be the poster boy for alternative nutrition in our family. I'll try to lead by quietly setting an example.

I'm really pushing myself now that the end of this Round is in sight. I try to spend a few minutes studying the workout sheet prior to each workout, to examine what I've done in the past, to consider what the day's objectives are, and to establish goals for the workout. Do I want to match what I've done in the past? Should I increase the weight? Looking over the sheet is a good way to see trends in your workouts. Have things been flat for a number of weeks? Is it time to push yourself harder? Today's review led me to believe that I could be doing heavier weights, so I set that as an objective and specifically targeted several exercises where I felt improvements should be attempted. I say "attempted" because I don't know whether I'll achieve success. Attempting is the key. If you attempt, but struggle and fail, you'll eventually succeed, because ultimately, success lies in the struggle.

Also, I'm of the opinion that your mind causes more failure than your body. Get your mind right, and your body will usually obey. Today's workout demonstrated all of the above. I set out to exceed what I had done in previous workouts, I got myself into a good frame of mind, and I pushed myself like crazy. The last three reps were extremely tough, but mostly, I succeeded in improving. The result was really satisfying, and I now know that I can bring this workout to yet another level. It will take a few more workouts before I hit 10-12 reps again, but it's nice to know that it's still possible to break through a plateau and keep challenging myself. Now, if I can only bring the same mindset to Insanity.

Round 5: Day 74: Yoga

I just realized that I've written more about yoga than any other workout. That's because I likely do yoga more than any other workout. I've now been stretching regularly for about 16 months, and the change in my body over that timeframe is nothing short of remarkable. I used to think that I was just not a flexible person (physically, that is; mentally, it's a completely different story). Even sitting cross-legged was a difficult task, and I couldn't maintain that position for more than a couple of minutes. Crouching low was uncomfortable, bordering on painful, and bending over to pick something up off the floor left my knees sore. Now, I don't suffer any kind of pain related to movement, my joints are more flexible than ever, I have a full range of motion in all my limbs, and crouching is no problem. I owe that to regular stretching, yoga, and probably, Plyometrics and Insanity workouts.

So, I never approach yoga with a sense of dread or foreboding. I always look forward to the stretch, knowing that it's going to benefit my body (and mind, as an added benefit). It's also perfectly placed within the workout schedule, right smack in the middle of a week of resistance. Although some of the stretches can be challenging, I never (rarely?) get a sense of failure. I just do my best. For me, yoga is a workout critical to succeeding in personal fitness. If I didn't do yoga, I probably wouldn't be as successful in other workouts, due to a restricted range of motion or lack of mental toughness. Yoga is the glue that holds my workout schedule together. As such, it's indispensable.

Namaste.

Round 5: Day 73: Back and Biceps

Prior to starting the workout, I was musing about changing the schedule for the next Round to re-introduce Upper Plus and Total Body Plus into the mix. Recently, Day 3 and Day 5 have been alternating between Just Arms/Diamond Delts and Back and Biceps/Shoulders and Arms, and I'm starting to get a little bored with the Back and Biceps/Shoulders and Arms combination, having done them so frequently. On the other hand, following the workout, I'm not so sure I feel that way anymore.

Like other P90X workouts, this workout grows with you. I saw improvements in about 6 exercises today, which is 25% of the workout. I either increased my repetitions or increased the weight. I'm still following my self-imposed rule that if I reach 12 repetitions, I'm going to increase the weight. I don't want to do more than 10 repetitions, unless the exercise specifically calls for more. On Lawnmowers, I'm now pulling 50 pounds per side, and could likely do more weight, but 50 lbs is the maximum weight I have. In that case, I'll increase the number of repetitions. I increased my weight on strip-set curls, hammer curls, curl-up and hammer down, and others. I like that after 16 months, I'm still progressing.

I might still make a change in the schedule for the next Round, but not because this workout fails to challenge. Sometimes I like to make changes just to keep things fresh and interesting. Just as long as I keep pushing play, it's all good.