Categories

Archives

A sample text widget

Etiam pulvinar consectetur dolor sed malesuada. Ut convallis euismod dolor nec pretium. Nunc ut tristique massa.

Nam sodales mi vitae dolor ullamcorper et vulputate enim accumsan. Morbi orci magna, tincidunt vitae molestie nec, molestie at mi. Nulla nulla lorem, suscipit in posuere in, interdum non magna.

P90X2 Day 46: Shoulders + Arms and Ab Ripper

When I woke up today, for some reason I guess I thought it was Friday instead of Thursday, so I went down to the basement without any shoes on and almost got started with P90X2 Yoga. Oops! Fortunately I realized my mistake before putting in the wrong DVD.

My goal today was to lift as much weight as possible with good form. After all, this is the updated bodybuilder-style workout, right? Recently I heard Ben Greenfield on his Get Fit Guy podcast episode titled “10 Ways to Keep Your Workouts Exciting” talk about using a different workout position, such as being on one foot, or on a Bosu ball. Wow, that sounds really familiar to me now! All that being said, I really need to pay attention to last week’s entries on my worksheet before I choose a weight and repetitions, if I want to improve.

Here are some additional tips I picked up from the Fat2Fit Radio podcast, episode 99:

  • The first step of muscle building is actually “nerve training,” that is, teaching your nerves that they will need to adapt to a heavier load
  • Lifting more weight requires the use of more individual muscle fibers, so if you lift a heavier weight, additional muscle fibers will be “recruited” for that task (and require repair, becoming bigger and stronger)
By the way, I would highly recommend the above podcasts for beginners in the areas of health and fitness. Even for those of us who have been at it a while, these are very informative, and presented in an entertaining way.
So, how did I do with all this new information? I finished the entire workout, unlike last week, but I suppose that was just good time management. It also means I got in all my sets and repetitions, which is great. In addition, I matched last week’s repetitions with either the same weight, or increased weight. I finished the 52-minute workout in just over an hour, with some pauses to write notes and switch equipment. I am calling it a good day!
Later today, as in 10:20 PM, I came back for my Ab Ripper session. Fortunately it’s not one of those workouts that gets you so revved up you can’t get to sleep. I’m proud of myself every time I check this off my workout list. Come on, six pack!
Do you have any favorite health and fitness podcasts? I wish Beachbody had a podcast that was more than an infomercial for a particular product du jour. Maybe some workout tips and encouraging testimonials would be nice.

February 9th, 2012 | Category: Beachbody, Ben Greenfield, Fat2Fit Radio, Get Fit Guy, health/fitness, P90X2, P90X2 Shoulders and Arms, podcast, Rebecca Black | Comments are closed

P90X2 Day 45: Recovery and Mobility

These days, I tell my wife I am doing “The Rumble Roller Infomercial” when I refer to this DVD. Of course, Tony Horton is sincere in his praise of the enhanced foam roller, so I won’t give him a hard time. He also admits later in the session that his jokes might get old after the tenth, no, second time, so it’s OK to skip the DVD entirely once you get the hang of it. I decided to stick with Tony and the kids for now.

Here’s a surprise: I started my session with Ab Ripper, to make up for what I skipped two days ago. After that, I did not feel the need to do Sun Salutations as a warm up, and proceeded directly to the mobility portion of the warm up (kicks, squats, etc.).

I tried writing down the sequence of all the warm up and mobility exercises. Maybe I need to practice in front of the TV one night, if my family doesn’t get too annoyed, distracted, or tease me too much.

Does anyone else use the foam roller in front of the TV, or maybe while reading?

February 8th, 2012 | Category: Ab Ripper, Exercise recovery, foam roller, myofascial release, P90X2, Rumble Roller, Tony Horton | Comments are closed

P90X2 Day 44: Plyocide

I came into today’s workout a little tired, so it was not as energetic as last week. I did have some surprising results, though. Here are some highlights:

  • I was back to a, um,  “faster” Fast Feet Jump
  • I did OK (based on my own past performance) on the Warrior 3 Lunges. A little steadier, maybe?
  • 22 Jack in the Box Jumps (matching Traci Morrow‘s total)
  • Solid footwork on the Think Drill (more Fast Feet, really)
  • Fair (not great) Spartan Lunges
  • 12 plyo push ups after the Super Skater Kicks (but fewer toe taps)
  • 9 Frog Burpee Hops in 30 seconds (not 60 seconds as I said last time, so even better!)
  • I was much better on my right foot during the One-Leg Squat. It’s not easy, but easier? I still did 11 plyo push ups for practice.
  • I did the P90 Cross Hop for the entire time, but I didn’t follow the pattern too well.
  • I am getting pretty good at the Flying Fighter Kick, except for the height of my kicks.
  • I did all of the Set Sprint Plyo Plank Jump (in random order)

I had enough time this morning to do the neuro-integrated stretching. For some reason, it’s hard for me to follow what angle he is pulling towards and what the opposite side is for each stretch. I’m getting there, I guess.

Once again, I did not have time for Ab Ripper. Tomorrow is a Recovery and Mobility day. Maybe that’s another opportunity for a make-up workout?

February 7th, 2012 | Category: neuro-integrated stretch, P90X2, Plyocide, plyometrics, Tony Horton, Traci Morrow, Tracy Morrow | Comments are closed

P90X2 Day 43: Chest Back and Balance, Ab Ripper

I started the DVD today, and I thought once again, “That’s a lot of stuff!” when I saw the equipment list. Also, I was wondering if I mentioned that the cast members are Aaron, Shawn, and of course Kelly (bikini/fitness model and health blogger).


This time around, I heard Tony Horton say that “kipping” is “Body English that’s ugly.” A more formal definition is “using a forceful initial movement of the legs in order to gain momentum.” So when he says “No Kip” that means “no movement to gain momentum.”


This is my first time doing Chest Back and Balance with the heavier weight bands I used late last week. I was able to do the same number of repetitions as before (maybe a few less), but with more effort. According to the numbers stamped on the band clips, I am pulling about 60 percent of my weight. We’ll see how that translates into easier pull ups when I use a bar.


I’m not talking about my push ups too much, but they are coming along nicely. I’m still not very confident with the stability ball, but I attempted a few plyo pushups before returning to the floor. 


It took one hour and 15 minutes without Ab Ripper. Any time I have to go back and forth to the resistance bands, it gets complicated and there are pauses. I did not have time for Ab Ripper this morning or tonight, either. I will do my best to make up for it tomorrow evening!


P.S. My arms have been sore all day. It’s not painful, but the “good kind” of post-exercise soreness that means I worked hard!

February 7th, 2012 | Category: Bodylastics, kipping, P90X2, pull downs, pull ups, push ups, resistance bands, Tony Horton | Comments are closed

P90X2 Day 42: Recovery and Recap

It’s Superbowl Sunday! That didn’t really affect my plans for recovery, or otherwise. I did feel an urge to indulge, even though there’s no TV party at my house, so I decided to make a mini ice cream sundae with a banana (about 300 calories), in addition to my usual Sunday morning treat (another 300 calories or so). The damage was +500 calories over my estimated calorie burn for doing basically nothing all day. It’s all part of a balanced approach, I guess. My meals were average or a little light, so it could have been worse.

I did not pull out the foam roller today, either. Back to business tomorrow!

February 5th, 2012 | Category: Exercise recovery, overeating | Comments are closed
« Newer Entries  
  Older Entries »