Day Sixty Nine

I think I'm obsessing. I did Legs and Back/Ab Ripper this morning, Kenpo in the evening, allowing myself "King of Queens" when it came on halfway through Kenpo. (My new favorite TV show. Actually, it's my only TV show. I have a pretty low tolerance for sitcoms. For TV in general, really. To the point of rudeness - just ask my friends. I'm that person that will turn someone else's TV off in their own house if I can't leave the room.) I was pondering adding an X Stretch before bed, but age won out and I just went to sleep. I am bound and determined to add in all the workouts I missed. My Better Half says I'm crazy (which is true) but I'm enjoying the challenge. I only have one extra Kenpo remaining. (And several X Stretch, but those are easy to add in because they are low-impact and just an hour. Doing one before bed seems to help me sleep better, too.)
     I still like the leg routine the least, but I am improving. I can survive the whole routine! I even add a few of the extras, like a knee raise on the deadlift squats. Jumping jacks are no longer hard, something which has dumbfounded me. I can't say I hate them anymore!
~Stick to it!
    

Day Sixty Eight

"I've said it before and I'll say it again..." (Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World?) The worst part of Yoga is holding each pose for five breaths. Makes the ninety minute session seem much longer than it is. Didn't help that I got interrupted three times. Long interruptions. Don't get me wrong, they were good interruptions. I wouldn't trade those conversations for a quicker workout. But the task-focused part of me had planned an hour and a half for Yoga and no extra! Serves me right for thinking life would follow my schedule!
     There's something to be said for enjoying the moments. Relax a little. It'll be easier on yourself - and everyone around you!
~Stick to it!

Day Sixty Seven

Woke up feeling "like poo" as my old college roomie would say, so I opted for Kenpo, low-impact version. I took all the moves and de-intensified them. Open hand instead of fist, low kicks instead of high, fluid movements instead of sharp. It worked so well that I started thinking about the possibilities. One of the downsides of P90X is that it is designed for those already fairly fit. You pay the $100+ cost for a 90 day boost to an already solid foundation. Theoretically, those who need it can't use it, and those who can use it don't need it. (If you don't have an existing workout plan, and are not currently in good shape, the program as designed is too hard for you. If you have a workout background, then you are certainly capable of continuing your previous habits. Though I have enjoyed the DVD's, I could have just started going to the YMCA again and still seen results.)
     But what if you could spread that cost out? What if you could enlarge the target group, using the same DVD's for multiple levels of fitness? Beginners would still need a coach to help them figure out to scale down/alter the exercises, but there are easily five or more levels of intensity. The concepts of muscle confusion and variety are solid and attractive. I think someone at a very low level of fitness could invest in these DVD's and use them progressively for a long time. That's the theory anyway. Now all I need is a guinea pig...
     The upside to the day was that Back and Biceps/Ab Ripper went really well tonight. Not sure if I've gotten that much tougher, or if the ibuprofen I've been taking all day just isn't out of my system yet! My goal is to be able to do one unassisted pullup or chinup after the 90 days. I'm down to a one-loop assistance band, with three weeks to go.
~Stick to it! 

Day Sixty Six

Two unfortunate items of note: My daily task list now includes "vacuum ladybugs." This Debbie-Downer is compounded by the fact that, at last, I have searched Google and found it wanting. Apparently there is no better advice in the world for ridding oneself of the pests than "vacuum them up every day and use candles and room freshener to mask their unpleasant smell." (The smell, by the way, turns out to be the scent of their blood, which is also the yellow stuff they leave behind when you move them.It's the bug version of wetting yourself when you're scared. Interesting bit of scientific information, but ultimately useless.) Other ever-so-helpful hints included covering all your windows with black trash bags (what's the point of windows, then?) and burying your home in a certain type of expensive dirt. (If I wanted to live underground, I would be.)
      The second: I have just killed the largest spider I have ever seen. It was in my house. Running across my living room floor. I have left the carcass out for My Better Half to survey when he returns from work. Why don't vermin come out when he's home? The good news? If ever there is a burglar, I will say to him, like David: "I have vanquished the spider and the snake and you will be like one of them!" (1 Samuel 17, paraphrased)
     After Cardio this morning and X Stretch tonight, I suppose the day would have been too easy without some kind of excitement. Or something like that.
~Stick to it!

Day Sixty Five

When the going gets tough, the tough get going! (The rest of us fall over and eat dirt.) Kenpo this morning and Chest/Shoulders/Triceps/Ab Ripper tonight after work. Talk about sheer force of will power! (At least I have finally found a good use for all my stubborness!) This is where the rubber meets the road. (Right now, I feel like I'm BETWEEN the rubber and the road. Can someone else please brush my teeth for me tonight? My arms hurt too much!)
     But at some point, you have to stand up and say enough. No more. The end. I will finish this if it kills me. (I think the chances of that are fairly high. I would write out a will, but I don't anticipate people fighting over my quirky car and imitation jewelry.) There is no time like the present to take steps to fulfill your resolutions. (Plus, the way things stand, I'll be doing doubles from now until November as it is. Any further behind and I'll have to change P90X to P90-days-plus-a-lot-more-because-I'm-a-slackerX. Don't want to do that. It is very important that I be done with this before Thanksgiving pies and Christmas candy!)
     "Way too many people quit way before they should." -Tony Horton.
     Not just at P90X, but on life, on other people, and on themselves. You always have a choice.
~Stick to it!

Day Sixty Four

Beginning of week ten. (Or ending of week nine, depending on how you look at it.) Finally did Legs and Back/Ab Ripper at 9:30 tonight because I couldn't stand the thought of going into another work week and being four days behind on workouts. Would have been cool to start week ten on 10/10/10 but no such luck. (Or no such discipline!)
~Stick to it!

Day Sixty Three

Nada.
First week in P90X history when I haven't finished at least all the lifting days in their allotted week. In my defense, we've had company four of the seven days. Still, it's going to make next week a tough one.
~Stick to it!

Day Sixty Two

Nope.