This is me polishing an imaginary medal on my jacket. "P90X Heroine" or something like that. :) This morning (well, our morning, which is afternoon to most of you) My Better Half (MBH) and I did Shoulders & Arms/Ab Ripper together. This in and of itself is worth noting, as our schedules seldom find us exercising together.
Side note - It is a theory of mine that all good, long term relationships do (and should?) fall into habits of operation. For example, the one with a tendancy for "backseat driving" will probably do most of the actual driving. Some tasks are always completed together, others are better performed independantly. Division of labor is sometimes marked by preference (I enjoy cooking, and despise gardening, MBH the reverse) and sometimes decided by service. (We take turns cleaning the bathroom, I do most of the other cleaning, MBH does anything spidery-basement related.) The jury is still out on if we should exercise together!
Then, I did Cardio to finish out my evening. Not too shabby! I almost didn't, as I French-tipped my nails while watching a movie before supper. And, as I had feared, the polish did smuge a bit. Oh well, I'll just wiggle my fingers all the time and maybe no one will notice! Cardio went better than I had expected. Kenpo tomorrow morning, but now maybe I won't dread the two-a-day again on Saturday as much. :) And next week is Recovery Week!
~Stick to it!
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Day Eighteen
Home for a grand total of forty-five minutes out of twenty-four hours. I'll have to do doubles twice this week to catch up. Shoulders & Arms/ Ab Ripper plus evening Cardio tomorrow. (This is going to be my week to substitute Cardio for Yoga. Ain't doing no ninety minute hanging upside down stuff after doing sixty minutes of weights followed by twenty of hardcore gut squishing. That would be sick.) Kenpo Friday. Legs & Back/Ab Ripper plus evening Cardio on Saturday. Blech!
~Stick to it!
~Stick to it!
Day Seventeen
Chest & Back: pushups, chinups, pushups, pullups, more pushups. Note - decline pushups should be done with your feet up on a NON-SLIP surface! Otherwise, halfway through the grunting, your feet slip, driving your knees down into the carpet. When you roll onto your side, you will leave some skin behind. Then, throughout the rest of the workout, the knee pushups are agony. (There is no point in attempting actual pushups as they become an exercise in making weird faces as you try to get cooked-spagetti arms to propel you up, then once up, you shake and collapse, crushing said spagetti and then lying there contemplating not ever getting up. Ever. Very unproductive.)
Another note - eat breakfast. Even though that means postponing a workout til later. (Just not too much later. See Day Sixteen.) I was in a hurry and didn't think I had time to eat breakfast, and workout, and get everything done. Besides, I used to always workout before eating. No biggie. Right? Wrong! By the end of Chest & Back, I was dogging it. Worn out. Bonking. In fact, I skipped Ab Ripper because I just didn't have it in me. The plan was to do a double today, adding Cardio in the evening to catch up. But I ended up leaving town for an overnighter and, well...didn't take Cardio along. But - Chest & Back is checked off.
~Stick to it!
Another note - eat breakfast. Even though that means postponing a workout til later. (Just not too much later. See Day Sixteen.) I was in a hurry and didn't think I had time to eat breakfast, and workout, and get everything done. Besides, I used to always workout before eating. No biggie. Right? Wrong! By the end of Chest & Back, I was dogging it. Worn out. Bonking. In fact, I skipped Ab Ripper because I just didn't have it in me. The plan was to do a double today, adding Cardio in the evening to catch up. But I ended up leaving town for an overnighter and, well...didn't take Cardio along. But - Chest & Back is checked off.
~Stick to it!
Day Sixteen
SLACKER! No other term so succinctly sums it up. I could talk about how late we got back from our trip, or how many loads of laundry we had to do, or the dire need to get groceries after cleaning out the fridge in preparation for a week-long absence.
But all those things, true as they would be, would also be mere excuses. The truth of the matter is, we never quite got around to working out. We watched two movies, ate proper food, unpacked, ran errands - all good things - just NOT P90X!
Our coversations went something like this: "We should work out."
"I agree. That would be a good thing to do."
"But we just ate. You don't want to work out too soon after eating!"
"Let's watch a movie while our food digests."
(Two hours later...)
"Good movie. We should work out now."
"Or we could do it later. I'm hungry again."
"And it's time to switch the laundry."
"The laundry is in the kitchen. Let's have a snack while we throw the clothes in the dryer."
(At this point, return to the beginning of the conversation and start over!)
Though I could blame the fact that the laundry is in the kitchen for the demise of our discipline, truth be told, we just wussed out. Chest & Back wasn't something we were particularly excited to do - it's hard, parts of it we don't like, and there is always something else we could be doing.
Ring a bell? Anything you tend to put off? We tried to avoid a workout (didn't work, it's still hanging over our heads, now accompanied by an uncomfortable guilty feeling!) and I'll admit I've tried to avoid apologizing to someone before. Maybe you've put off something more serious, like thinking about what happens after death. We have the option to quit P90X, but no one has the option to avoid death forever. Thinking through the possibilities is hard, parts of it I don't like, and I'd much rather do something else. But maybe it's worth the discipline to do.
~Stick to it!
But all those things, true as they would be, would also be mere excuses. The truth of the matter is, we never quite got around to working out. We watched two movies, ate proper food, unpacked, ran errands - all good things - just NOT P90X!
Our coversations went something like this: "We should work out."
"I agree. That would be a good thing to do."
"But we just ate. You don't want to work out too soon after eating!"
"Let's watch a movie while our food digests."
(Two hours later...)
"Good movie. We should work out now."
"Or we could do it later. I'm hungry again."
"And it's time to switch the laundry."
"The laundry is in the kitchen. Let's have a snack while we throw the clothes in the dryer."
(At this point, return to the beginning of the conversation and start over!)
Though I could blame the fact that the laundry is in the kitchen for the demise of our discipline, truth be told, we just wussed out. Chest & Back wasn't something we were particularly excited to do - it's hard, parts of it we don't like, and there is always something else we could be doing.
Ring a bell? Anything you tend to put off? We tried to avoid a workout (didn't work, it's still hanging over our heads, now accompanied by an uncomfortable guilty feeling!) and I'll admit I've tried to avoid apologizing to someone before. Maybe you've put off something more serious, like thinking about what happens after death. We have the option to quit P90X, but no one has the option to avoid death forever. Thinking through the possibilities is hard, parts of it I don't like, and I'd much rather do something else. But maybe it's worth the discipline to do.
~Stick to it!
Monday, August 23, 2010
Day Fifteen
The Grand Pause: A musical notation similar to " which indicates a temporary suspension of sound, used for emotional effect, the length of which is determined by the style of the piece and by the preference of the performer. (Do I sound like a Webster dictionary? That was my goal, becauses I've never actually looked up the official definition of a grand pause!)
The past week was our "grand pause" in P90X. We took vacation time and went visiting friends, family, and forbidden foods. :) I'm counting yesterday as the official day of rest in week three, today should be Chest & Back, and we'll be back on schedule. Fallen off the wagon? Climb back on and start again.
~Stick to it!
The past week was our "grand pause" in P90X. We took vacation time and went visiting friends, family, and forbidden foods. :) I'm counting yesterday as the official day of rest in week three, today should be Chest & Back, and we'll be back on schedule. Fallen off the wagon? Climb back on and start again.
~Stick to it!
Monday, August 16, 2010
Day Fourteen
Two weeks down, eleven to go. Tried having my carb for breakfast today. Worked great, except then I was full for so long, I didn't get to Kenpo til snacktime. I think I'm resigned to the fact that I never will be able to get in all the eating at the appropriate times. Once again, I was very glad no one was watching. It's downright appalling how uncoordinated I am! They started doing those combination punches and I was still trying to figure out which direction my foot turns. (It is actually only physically possible to turn it one direction, but that concept is difficult to convey to a brain apparently already overloaded with the responsibility of moving more than one body part at a time!) Part of the time, I was just waving my arms and legs around to keep my heart rate up. After all, if the main purpose is cardio, wild and random flailing probably just as effective as a well-coordinated series of moves, right?
~Stick to it!
~Stick to it!
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Day Thirteen
I don't believe in the Fates - despite several compelling reasons to do so. For example, I go off the program for not even three days and now I have a cold sore, sore throat, earache, headache, neckache and nausea. One serving of ice cream and two iced mochas is asking for this much punishment? Instead of jumping back in with the eating plan and "crushing play" again today, I'm maxing out on echinachea and vitamin C and warming the couch while I wait for the aspirin to kick in. (I probably wouldn't have the earache except that I was trying to still be active, went swimming, and got water in my ears. Figures.)
I was planning to do Kenpo like a good little girl, but out of spite (and complete lack of energy) I'm doing the weekly day of rest today, and Kenpo tomorrow. (Ironic how it's necessary to have a day of rest to recover from my days of rest!) The program is more like guidelines, anyway. (Pirates, again, of course!) My Better Half (MBH) has already substituted basketball and bike riding for a couple days of cardio. Does it sound like we're bailing on the plan all the time? Or just keeping it real?
On a different track - With the portion approach to eating, you can pick when to eat your food groups, the main thing is that you eat them in their specified portions. So I'm thinking that I may try moving my carb portion from lunch to breakfast. I have this theory (one of many, about every subject under the sun!) that different people's bodies have different needs for food. My mom swears by eggs for a good morning start. When I eat protein first thing in the morning, I need an hour to recover. A small serving of carbs, on the other hand, gives me energy til lunchtime. MBH doesn't seem to need breakfast at all. (Although I originally believed that the description of a good wife included "Makes her husband a hearty breakfast every morning," I have come to realize that if he doesn't need breakfast, forcing it down his throat is overrated. And too much work first thing in the day!)
~Stick to it!
I was planning to do Kenpo like a good little girl, but out of spite (and complete lack of energy) I'm doing the weekly day of rest today, and Kenpo tomorrow. (Ironic how it's necessary to have a day of rest to recover from my days of rest!) The program is more like guidelines, anyway. (Pirates, again, of course!) My Better Half (MBH) has already substituted basketball and bike riding for a couple days of cardio. Does it sound like we're bailing on the plan all the time? Or just keeping it real?
On a different track - With the portion approach to eating, you can pick when to eat your food groups, the main thing is that you eat them in their specified portions. So I'm thinking that I may try moving my carb portion from lunch to breakfast. I have this theory (one of many, about every subject under the sun!) that different people's bodies have different needs for food. My mom swears by eggs for a good morning start. When I eat protein first thing in the morning, I need an hour to recover. A small serving of carbs, on the other hand, gives me energy til lunchtime. MBH doesn't seem to need breakfast at all. (Although I originally believed that the description of a good wife included "Makes her husband a hearty breakfast every morning," I have come to realize that if he doesn't need breakfast, forcing it down his throat is overrated. And too much work first thing in the day!)
~Stick to it!
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