P90X: Kenpo X

This morning I did Kenpo X in its entirety.  I think this one may be my favorite workout in the series. I love the stretching, and the cardio segments are alot of fun!  It moves quickly and gets the heart rate up.

I'll try to squeeze in a cardio segment this afternoon at the apartment complex gym.  I'm retaining alot of water, so I'll be happy when that finally dissipates in a couple of days.  My energy level is back up and higher today than it has been all week.  So, that rest did me good :-)

Until later folks...

P90X: Legs & Back

Today was Legs & Back. It's been so freezing (which means my garage is also an icebox and can't get warm with my heaters), that I had to bring my workout inside to the living room. I'm so glad that I did and didn't make an excuse to skip the workout. I completed the whole thing. I think next week I'm going to bump up my weights on the weighted leg exercises now that I'm familiar with them all.  I did variations of the TRX row for the back pull-up exercises. I would run into the garage, get that set in and come back into the warmth of the living room to continue the workout.

I also did 5 minutes of core work using one of my Tracie Long DVDs.

All in all, it was a great workout. I was starving afterwards and inhaled a large salad when it was all said and done with. 

Even though I took 2 days off this week, I will still be able to get in all of the planned P90X workouts this week. I just have to change things around slightly.

Hasta manana....

P90X: Chest, Shoulders & Triceps

This morning I did the first 20 mins of Chest, Shoulders and Triceps.  I'm really fatigued today and don't have much of an appetite.  I suspect this lethargic feeling will continue for most of the week (the joys of being a girl).  Anyway, I'm still going to try to finish this workout tonight and get in some cardio.  I'm feeling like pooh, so if I do get cardio in, it will probably be something lower on the intensity scale like treadmill walking.  Mentally, I want to gut it out with lots of swings and metabolic circuits, but I'm trying to do my best and listen to my body....

P90X: Core Synergistics

I was feeling pretty tired today...moreso lazy than anything else
But, I still made it through my scheduled P90X workout.
I did Core Synergistics.  Granted, it was partly half-hearted, but I did it.
I intended to do another cardio interval session on the elliptical or rowing machine, but the freezing temperatures in my garage gym made me less than enthusiastic to stay in there. I could've gone to walk on the treadmill or something at the apartment gym, so I'm really just making excuses...LOL.

Anyway, looking forward to week 2!!!

Diet Snaps - iPhone Application

I am very big into journaling anything fitness/diet/training related. I have weight training journals from my very first weight lifting class in 1998 - LOL and all of my journals from my competition days.  Anyway, I've been wanting to find an application for my iPhone that will serve as a photo food journal. Sometimes I'm stuck without my paper journal and have been taking a picture of my food at certain meals. Well, the wait is over. I've been using this app for a full week, and it's invaluable to me!  I still use my paper journal (habit I guess), but this photo journal is awesome. 

I wanted to let you all know about an excellent app that I just bought for my iPhone. Typically, I only install FREE apps, but this one was right up my alley. It's a photo journal application, that you can use to take pictures of your meals or whatever else you want for a specific journal entry. You can also add any commentary/notes that you want. I swear by my fitness & nutrition journal and carry it will me all the time. However, there are times when I have taken to snapping pictures of my food when I am without my journal. I've been looking for an application that would allow me to just take a picture, put it on a calendar entry, and record my meal to a calendar or database. Well, I found one, and I am in love!! You can log your food, exercise, water/drinks, snacks, and any other generic jouranl entry that you desire. The application is called dietSNAPS and costs $1.99 on the App Store. Here is the URL for their website: http://www.dietsnaps.com/.

I still keep my hard copy journal, but this app really makes things easy & convenient. From what I've heard, it doesn't work quite as well with an iPod Touch since the touch doesn't have a built-in camera, but it can still serve as a journal.

Anyway, don't let the name of the application 'dietSNAPS' fool you. Again, you can use it to journal any thing that you want. It's quite convenient, and I thought I'd share.

Enjoy!


Anyway, check it out and enjoy!!!

In health,
FitGirl-ATX

P90X Rotation: Week 1 Results

I started a rotation on Sunday, Jan 2. So far, so good...but boy, am I sore (let's me know that I'm training right)! I'm focusing more on the 12-15 rep range, as I have enough muscle mass and don't particularly need to add more at this stage. I'm doing a self-designed doubles rotation.  Anyone who knows me knows that morning workouts are a challenge for me. However, this time around, I'm not stressing about getting them done early in the morning, and have found a time slot that works for me. I've been feeling really good about getting a major part of my workout done in the morning.  The evening workout also gives me something to look forward to, particularly since they are usually some form of short cardio. 

Here are my P90X Week 1 Results:

Sun, 1/2/11:
AM - P90X: Core Synergistics
PM - Interval Cardio (15 mins on elliptical, 16 mins on treadmill)

Mon, 1/3/11:
AM - P90X: Ch, Sh, Tri (note: I used my TRX for many of the push-up movements...I loved it!)
PM - Treadmill incline walking (31 mins)

Tues, 1/4/11:
AM - P90X: Legs & Back (note: I used my TRX to do variations of rows for back movements....Loved it!!)
PM - Katami Ab Lab (10 mins), 15 mins elliptical, 15 mins spinner bike

Wed, 1/5/11:
AM - Art of Strength Fire Power (Rounds 1-4, General Alarm) - note: I had to go much lighter than usual..My triceps, shoulders, and back are sore. I used double 9kg kettlebells for this workout. I usually use 12kg and 16kg for this workout.
PM - 3 mile walk
I had planned to do YogaX today, but didn't get to it.

Thurs, 1/6/11:
AM - 1.5 mile walk
PM - did half of P90X: Kenpo X, which I loved! I then did a 3 mile brisk walk. I'd originally planned to do my 2nd leg workout today along with Kenpo X.  However, the weather was so nice that I couldn't resist going outside and taking advantage of the sunshine and mild temperatures.  I also took 2 breaks during the work day to take mini walk breaks.
I felt great today.  I thought about doing another workout  before bed, but I felt it best to rest today.

Fri, 1/7/11:
AM - P90X: Back & Biceps (fun workout! - I'm going to be so sore tomorrow - LOL) and core section of Susan Chung's POW Rapid Fire DVD. Now, let's see if I can squeeze in a brisk walk and a short leg workout later this evening...
Planned PM - Cathe STS Legs, Cathe Core Max 2 (stability ball) moved ab workout to the morning, tacked on to the end of back & biceps
Actual PM - "Fitgirl's 30-Minute Fat Scorcher Workout"
Complete as many rounds as possible of 2:00 elliptical; 1:00 KB swings; and 1:00 TRX Squats in 30 minutes.

• Wheww this was definitely a scorcher! I completed 5 and 1/3 rounds in 30 mins.  I liked this workout, and it doubled for cardio and legs :-)!
• KB Swings: I started off the first 2 rounds with 12kg kettlebell swings, and then moved to 16kg for rounds 3-5. Once I made that adjustment, my heartrate went through the roof.
• TRX squats: I mixed them up with jump squats, alternating side squats with hops, and traditional TRX squats.   

Sat, 1/8/11:
Despite some unplanned time delays, I still managed to get my workouts in for today! 
PM: 10 min brisk walk + 35 mins interval cardio on elliptical (pushed hard!) + 15 mins P90X: X Stretch
Before Bed: Finished P90X: X Stretch workout

All-in-all, I am very pleased with how this week turned out.  I also dropped 7.2 pounds, which is fantastic. My diet started off a bit imbalanced, but once I fully started eating clean, the proper amounts, and fixed my meal timing, things all settled into place.  I'm following the typical pre-contest diet of primarily protein, fibrous carbs, and good fats.  We will see if progress continues moving forward. I'm trying not to celebrate prematurely. I also do not want to become a slave to the scale.  I'm considering not weighing in again until this first 4-week phase of P90X is over.
I'm looking forward to next week to see how the workouts feel the 2nd time through.  I'll work on my schedule and get it posted.

Cheers!

Starting P90X Rotation

I've tried numerous P90X rotations over the years, and the longest I've lasted is 2 weeks. I really do enjoy the workouts, though. YogaX is by far the most difficult for me due to the time commitment. I have alot of great dvds in my exercise library, and I plan to use them more consistently. So, I'm re-committing to doing a p90x (doubles) rotation. i think that for me this will be the best of both worlds. I'll follow the core P90x program, but will still add in some other things to keep progressing with multiple goals. For instance, i'm adding in a 2nd day of legs/week, 1 kettlebell workout per week, and 1 full body circuit. I'm also going to incorporate P90X+ workouts when i get bored/lose focus/need a change from the core program dvds. I'm actually pretty pumped up about it!