My P90X Experience – Bring it!
July 5, 2009 | Filed Under Small Talk
When I used to be a grad student in philosophy I thought it was funny that materialists/physicalists who take “body” as the fundamental unit of reality, tended to be overweight and in poor physical health, not really taking their own bodies seriously.
The irony is that as I’ve gotten older (now 30) I’ve not taken my own body that seriously. I’m going to change that.
On July 1st, I started a workout program called P90X. It’s an insane, sweat dripping, blood pumping, full body, athletic training program. It takes a lot of commitment and a lot of hard work. About 1.5 hours per day, 6 days a week. In order to keep myself accountable, I’m going to document my progress on this blog.
The reason I’ve decided to start P90X is simple. I know it works because I’ve seen it work for others (David Akers of the Philadelphia Eagles for example). Very rarely in life do we know exactly what we’ll get if we put in the time and effort. Most of the time we’re stabbing in the dark.
It just feels good to know that if I “Bring It” for the next 90 days or so, I’ll be in as good shape as many top athletes.
Ok. So, Tony Horton, the trainer on P90X can be a little corny, but overall, I actually think he helps keep my mind focused on the task at hand. So far, I’ve gone through 5 days and I find that his little quips often come at just the right time to motivate me to go the extra mile and get over the pain.
Progress Report
Day 1 – Chest & Back – DONE
Day 2 – Plyometrics – DONE
Day 3 – Shoulders & Arms – DONE
Day 4 – Yoga X – DONE
Day 5 – Legs & Back – DONE
So far, my favorite routine has been Plyometrics, or jumping exercises. I don’t know why exactly. Maybe the thrill of doing exercise along 3 dimensions (up/down, left/right, forward/back).
The most surprising program has been Yoga X, because I’ve never, ever felt sweat pour down my body at such a rapid pace as during the first half of the moving poses in Yoga X – I thought Yoga was supposed to be about quiet and peace. Well, turns out you can sweat like a monster in silence.
Least favorite was Chest & Back, mostly because it killed me. I felt like I was going to puke by the end and literally couldn’t do Ab Ripper X that day because I was lying on the floor panting like a dog. Learned not to ever do P90X within 2 hours of eating a meal. Maybe Chest & Back will be better 2nd time around. I’ll soon find out.
Biggest challenge right now is pull-ups. I hear this is common. Right before I was married, I was doing 20 pullups in a row. I spent 2 months working up to that. Now I can only do about 4-5.
After the resistance workouts, we’re asked to do Ab Ripper X. I’ve done them twice so far (should have done them 3 times, but just couldn’t after day 1). I’m amazed at how good my core feels after only two Ab Ripper X workouts. Tight and firm. Sure, it doesn’t look 6-pack yet, but it feels amazing.
Excited about doing Kempo X tomorrow. Actually, I think it is the most exciting workout for me because I’ve wanted to start learning some martial arts and this will hopefully give me some rudimentary foundational principles that I can take into more formal training.
One last thing: I love how Tony Horton values things beside resistance training (yoga, stretching, etc.) and keeps things mixed up and varied. I’m convinced that it’s the variety of this program that keeps people like me motivated for all 90 days. Let’s hope so.
Related posts:
- Post P90X – Revised Primal Workout Schedule
- Massaging Your Nervous System
- Adapting P90X to Mark Sisson’s Primal Blueprint Fitness Principles
- A Mantra for Every Man – Bring it on
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