Week 2--Day 14 and Week 3-- Day 15

Ahhh my day of rest was fabulous.  I laid around like a lazy lump all day and felt....lazy.  I can't help but feel disgusting now after not working out though! Uh oh! Looks like habits are settling in....good thing they are AWESOME ones.  In case anyone is curious, here is what my daily food consists of.  Breakfast:  although I change it up sometimes, it's usually a piece of fruit, 4 pieces of turkey bacon (I could eat 100), and yogurt.  It's pretty much the quickest meal that's delicious.  Lunch:  A salad with feta or mozzarella cheese, chicken breast, and light dressing.  Dinner:  chicken, beef, pork, or salmon, and salad with the above toppings.  I cannot imagine doing this work-out being a vegetarian.  First off, the food would be twice as boring because there is so little variety that you can eat (at least I think).  Plus, I love meat far too much to ever imagine such a scenario!  Soooo, although I am loving the protein aspect of it, I'm getting kind of bored and sick of salad.  So needless to say, when I feed the girls animal crackers during the day I drool over them until I watch the girls with their grubby little hands, slobbering all over the crackers, gumming them into mush, and my taste for carbs is quickly diminished.  So that's a plus.  And I'll admit it, over the weekend I was DYING for an ice cream sandwich.  (I don't know why because I haven't had one in like a year!) and Dane brought back a pack of 4.  I had one. I admit it. And it was DELICIOUS. (And it was during my cheat meal, so back off!) So one has been sitting in the freezer all week, and I eye it every time I get ice.  I successfully resisted last night and had some fruit instead............I'M DYING FOR CARBS AND SUGAR.  Bread! Bread and water! I could do THAT.  10 more weeks....10 more weeks....anyway, the reason I brought this up is I've been thinking about what our diet will be like after I'm done with this adventure.  I'll modify it some, but overall, it really is a well-balanced diet.  Not as terrible as some I've tortured myself with! (At the end of a diet my mom forced us kids to participate in years ago, that inhibited us from eating any carbs at all, I remember downing an entire bag of potatoe chips when we ended the diet. True story. But I was like 13 so fat slid right off my bum then. Ah to be young again.)

Anyway, enough about food.  Today was the last day of chest and back for awhile.  I threw myself completely into everything and you know you did good when you're drenched in sweat and you can't lift your arms after the work-out.  Ah pull-ups and push-ups, we're going to have words sometime soon....but not today, I can hardly speak from the exhaustion.  I am improving in form and reps, it makes me happy.  I'm starting to notice little places like thighs and arms slimming down a bit, it's encouraging to see results so soon! I am fully confident that I am "bringing it".  By the time I end this week, I know my body will be screaming for a break.  And my little P90X book is right, just when you need a break badly, you get one.  (Break= yoga 3 times, kenpo, stretching, etc) Fear not, I won't be doing just nothing all next week.  Actually I think I need more of a break from the monotony than the actual work-out.  Anyway, more tomorrow peeps. 

Week 2--Day 12 and 13

Once again, I took a break from blogging, but was faithful to my work-outs. Sigh.  I have to admit, I am getting burned out on this whole deal, but I'm still plugging away, praying for strength! 2 weeks down, 10 to go.  The weeks have been flying, I must admit.  By the end of the week, I am so so ready to be done! Tomorrow is my rest day. I have one more week of the same routine, then I switch it up with a week of "rest" that includes yoga, stretching, and cardio. Not too bad.

Since I prefer to do my work-outs in the morning when I have the most energy and time, my amazing husband didn't start P90X with me.  This hasn't stopped him from participating with me in work-outs every chance he gets. (And that's in edition to morning PT for him!) Just a side note, one after which you can quickly say, "ew", is it has done wonders for the levels of attraction for us! (Just when I didn't think we could have anymore than we already do of course!) Nothing like seeing your man sweat and watch his muscles flex! Ok, I'm done! (Proceed to say "ew").  Just an idea for you couples out there, a little extra zazazoom in your relationship. Fun times. ;)

That's what we were doing yesterday, flexing our muscles at eachother. ;)  The work-out was Legs and Back.  It amazes me every work-out how drenched in sweat I am, makes me think I'm at least getting my heart pumping, which is never a bad thing.  Due to a full day, we didn't get a chance to work out until close to 5. That, my friends, is a big mistake.  I encourage everyone when they start, to do themselves a favor and do it in the morning!

This caused me to be extremely exhausted for the Kenpo work-out today.  Before I even got started I felt like a rag doll, and literally wanted to fall on the floor like I had no bones either. But instead, I pumped myself up and went ahead with the work-out.  I always feel like an idiot doing this work-out (and am quite positive I look like one too) because I am a very uncoordinated person and lack complete rhythm (which is incredibly ironic having been a music major and a pianist). Not to mention punching the air is just silly.  I figure it is probably the most unimportant work-out, as it's not too hard, and they put it right before the rest day when they know people are falling over from exhaustion.  Needless to say, it is completed and my week is done! Until Wednesday.  So hope everyone is having a great Monday!

Week 2--Day 10 and 11

I can hardly believe it's been a week and a half already! Time has really been flying throughout my days as I'm running back and forth between feeding babies, feeding myself, changing diapers, doing pull-ups, wiping faces and hands, and curling iron (or bands, whatever). I can't say I'll complain about that. The faster my day goes the better.  We are like a well-oiled machine now and running full speed ahead!

Yesterday consisted of the Arm and Shoulder work-out.  I actually really enjoy "lifting weights", it's always been my favorite form of working out.  Unfortunately, I am the cheapest person alive and buying weights is the last thing I feel like spending money on, at a dollar per pound, I gladly say, "pass".  So I'm dealing with the bands still and checking craigslist every now and then hoping to find a bitter ex-wife trying to sell her husbands $800 weight-set for like 10 bucks.  (I've heard something equally crazy involving a car though). If only. So I am forging on ahead, hoping it's enough resistance, but have a sinking feeling it's too easy for me. I enjoy having Dane around to critique my form and performance because I fear I'm not doing stuff right. Especially when I walk away from a work-out not being as sore as last week.  Which I seem to be encountering for some reason.  So I need to figure this out quickly, because if I'm taking the time to do this, well by God I'd better be doing it right!

I haven't really mentioned the ab ripper X workout before. Frankly, it sucks.  It's only 16 minutes and I'm supposed to do it every other day.  It's so depressing that at the end of an hour long work-out, I still have to do the ab ripper.  I find myself wanting to whine about how long it is, but this is why I prefer to do it in the morning, otherwise I'd dread it all day! But if you're not willing to put in the time, I guess you shouldn't expect a lot, right?

Round 2 of Yoga today.  Me vs. the mat.  Dane has decided to join in. Should be a good time  ;)

Week 2--Day 8 and 9

This will be short and sweet folks, for I could not make my usual blogging time this morning, and had to wait until tonight, thusly, I'm lacking a little creativity and brain power (I used it all up working out). Yesterday's work-out was surprisingly much better! It was the very first work-out of P90X that I did, and I pretty much doubled my reps this time around.  This is one of the work-outs where you write down how many reps you did and of what, so it's pretty encouraging to see your progress.  I was able to do a few of the push-ups that I couldn't do last time.  (Damn those dive-bomber push-ups). Sometimes I wonder if it was just a matter of intimidation, or if I'm actually becoming a muscle already. ;) Pull-ups were much better this time around as well.  I've only had one mishap thus far where I was switching hand positions mid pull-up and knocked the bar up off the door frame.  Could've been really painful if not for my cat-like reflexes!

As for today's work-out, this was the second round of Plyometrics, and I have to say, it went much much better than last time! I didn't find myself tiring as easily and I didn't have to stop during the work-out to breathe this time as opposed to my five (or so...) breaks last time.  I did however have my faithful hubby along side me today, since he was off work.  Lucky him.  It is definitely a lot more encouraging to have a buddy working with you.  At this early on point it is pretty nice to have some accountability to avoid slacking, as I can be prone to do when I get tired.  A very successful week so far. I have now passed the first week hump and am enjoying the progress.  I have now lost a full inch off my waist!  Although I'm sure the working out has a lot to do with it, I am chalking up most of it to eating right, eating frequently, and drinking water.

And now I leave you with an intimidating rival....

Don't let that smile fool you, she's a beast!

Time to get serious....

Look, one hand!

Week 1--Day 7

Ahhhh. I have finally made it to my day of rest.  Yesterday was as I suspected.  Kenpo was pretty much like kickboxing and karate.  It was actually pretty fun, although I find myself wondering work-out after work-out, if I'm doing all the moves correctly.  My sore body is proof I suppose.  Not to mention I'll have plenty of time to critique these moves. Today it feels like I may have pulled a muscle in my neck and back, wonderful way to celebrate.  Just thanking my lucky stars it wasn't on the day of a work-out or I might be in a world of hurt.

Tomorrow my week starts over.  Looking at it as a whole, I'm finding myself extremely overwhelmed.  I'm trying to find ways to keep myself motivated because I am determined to go all the way.  I guess it's like everything else, take one step at a time, one day at a time.  I have yet to hear from anyone I know that's tried P90X, that the full 90 days was completed.  (If you are one who has, please speak up now so I can congratulate you!)  I can see why, but I don't want anything to deter me, I intend to go all the way.  It's only 90 days right?? You can do anything for ninety days! I need a countdown! I need to have peaks and things to look forward to at the end of a week.  Maybe hanging up some pictures of ripped bodies and flat stomachs on my fridge? That's about as far as my creative juices flow.  Anyone have any ideas?

I was a little late doing all my measurements.  I just did them last night, so who knows if I've made any improvements in one week.  I do know that I've lost a half an inch off my waist so far, so that's encouraging!  Stick to the diet people, it works! I plan on printing off a portion chart I made, in case anyone wants to see how I've been scheduling and planning my food.

I won't have anything to write about tomorrow, except basking in my glorious off-time, but I may post if the spirit moves me. ;)

Week 1--Day 4, 5, and 6

I'm sure you were wondering if I was faithful over the weekend, I was, just not to blogging. ;) I have a bit to cover in this post, but that's ok, because I'm up to the task!  I figure there was so much time "wasted" over my weekend by working out, I would just wait to blog, as I'm sure there aren't any screaming fans awaiting my posts. ;)

Well I'm not sure if it was just that my work-out times were thrown off, but they seemed way more difficult this weekend. I'm sure it had nothing to do with the pain that was making me hobble around.  Anyway, so day 3 consisted of Shoulders and Arms.  Not really too bad, I enjoy working those guns out, and my husband paid me a compliment that my shoulder muscles already look somewhat cut.  No, P90X doesn't have THAT fast of results, I just informed him that was from hours and hours a day of lifting my hefty little chunker babies.  I guess I'm not in as bad of shape as I thought, as I do have SOME muscle definition.  You wouldn't know it by the amount of suffering I have gone through thus far though.  (I find myself continually wondering if the people in the videos are suffering as they are, I wonder what I look like?)

The actual ridiculous work out didn't come until Saturday, when I experienced Yoga for the first time. I mean really, who would've thought from watching all the movies that it could be so difficult, they always make it look so easy!! There is no such thing as easy in these videos though.  I found myself throwing a childish fit as I refused to do a few of the moves, irritated that I was taking an hour and a half out of my Saturday afternoon to twist myself into a complete pretzel.  My yoga mat kept rolling up on me and I felt like punching it. I was about to square off against the TV, close to tears, once again thinking, why am I doing this???  I had been looking forward to the yoga portion, as I'm pretty flexible, but it is hard core yoga, the full shebang.  Just as I'm about to reach breaking point, it finally starts to get semi-easy as we move to sitting position and start doing the more realistic stretching, that doesn't have to do so much with balance.  When they started doing the move where you balance your whole body (which is pretty much crunched up into a little ball) on just your hands, I only scoffed. No WAY.  Maybe that will be for another week.  If I'd have tried, I'd have ended up doing a somersault and probably knocking my back out of place.

Onto Sunday for Legs and Back.  Can I just say that I hate lunges??  Hardest work-out yet, due to me being sore and tired I'm sure.  Once again I found myself folding my arms and tapping my toe like a spoiled child ready to throw something. This time I actually did produce tears though.  All I could think about was this entire work-out as a whole, and that I'd have to do all these work-outs 11 more times at the very least.  What am I trying to prove? Am I trying to prove something to myself or everyone else?  Both I'm sure.  Trying to be an example that you CAN come back to your normal state and size after having twins.  That after you have kids, it's not over! You still have hope! You can still be attractive and slim, not flubbery and gross! My husband is my hero however and jumped in to do it with me, encouraging my every move.  It was a draining weekend in the way of working out, but I have to admit, I do feel so much better when it's done.  I feel like I'm changing every day. 

I just also have to express how much I love the diet.  No, really.  Protein is amazing! I'm such a meat-eater, I just can't get enough.  Who wouldn't want steak, salmon, and shrimp multiple times a week while still losing weight and getting in shape?  Well I sure do.  It's nice to cut out all the crap we sometimes allow into our bodies. I have not been having sugar, which I thought would be harder. I am allowing myself one cheat meal on Saturdays, and this weekend we went to Buffalo Wild Wings with friends and I splurged on 7 Asian Zing chicken wings. Oh delicious. Yet even after eating that, I felt gross and unhealthy.  So sticking to this diet is the easiest thing so far about this whole shenanigan. 

Today is my last work-out of the first week, it's Kenpo, whatever that is. I have a sinking feeling it has something to do with kicking, so probably something like Karate or kickboxing.  Tomorrow will be my first rest day, and I am welcoming it with open arms! (There is an optional stretch video which I haven't decided if I'll do yet.) Two weeks to go until I can be in rest phase, which I hear isn't really rest because it's all cardio. Gr. In any case, it'll be nice to give my muscles a slight break. 

Well that about covers it! Until tomorrow....

Week 1-- Day 3

Definition of relief:  Being done with the Plyometrics work-out. 

In case you're wondering what it is, like I was before the work-out, here is a little excerpt from Wikipedia. 

"Plyometrics is exercise training designed to produce fast, powerful movements, and improve the functions of the nervous system, generally for the purpose of improving performance in sports. Plyometric movements, in which a muscle is loaded and then contracted in rapid sequence, use the strength, elasticity and innervation of muscle and surrounding tissues to jump higher, run faster, throw farther, or hit harder, depending on the desired training goal. Plyometrics is used to increase the speed or force of muscular contractions, providing explosiveness for a variety of sport-specific activities. Plyometrics are useful for several sports - notably soccer, rugby, basketball, track and field athletics, racket sports and martial arts."  Aka, you pretty much jump during every movement.

Now tell me why would I ever need to torture myself and do this work-out again? I don't play any of the above. (Anyone???)  Nonetheless, it will definitely help on my road to getting abs. People did not exaggerate about this; out of Tony's mouth, it is the "Mother" of all the P90X work-outs.  I figured I did pretty good to make it through though, considering how out of shape I am.  (I doubt I have ever seen my own face so red.) Tony himself had to take a "personal pause" a couple of times (and I admit, I took plenty of those myself, and went against the recommended rest time of no more than a minute. I figured it wouldn't have done me much good to pass out on the floor, I'd rather have just finished). There was a man on the video with a prosthetic leg, I figure if HE can do it, well I sure as hell should. (Not to make fun, in all seriousness, the guy was seriously in great shape, but I do have a slight advantage in the limbs department, at least enough so to actually finish!)

11 More weeks of Plyometrics makes me want to curl into a tiny little ball and cry.  It was basically the most intense cardio work-out I may have ever had.  LOTS of jumping squats for over an hour had me begging for a break (and a drink).  I respect sports players and their training so much more now.  I sat in the shower whimpering and licking my wounds (figuratively) like a small puppy.  Dane wanted to see what the big deal was.  He himself is a man who is in shape and does regular cardio.  Well at the end of it, he was a sweaty little mess too, so I know it wasn't just me. ;)

So needless to say, I have fire thighs today as I walk around.  My poor daughters are feeling the effects every time I pick them up and yelp.  They, along with myself are not used to all of this. Eh, give it a week or two. 

Here's a shout out and props to my brother-in-law Gabriel Jordan, who is 2 days ahead of me! We plan to be the muscular ones lifting weights in the corner at the family Christmas party.  It's hard to believe when this is all over it'll be Christmas time. Kind of depressing since it's still 90 degrees every day here in Georgia!

I'm hoping for a little less intense work-out, as today is shoulders, arms, and abs.  I won't get my hopes up though! ;) It might be a little bit nicer to know what to expect for a work-out. Pretty soon I'll have been through all of them and I'll know what to expect every morning (there's 12 discs).  I tend to not freak myself out more by watching videos ahead of time to see what they're about. I prefer the "SURPRISE!" factor I guess.  More tomorrow!

Week 1--Day 2

I quit.  Just kidding.  Well after I posted yesterday, I put on my super cool work-out outfit, and just as I sauntered in to start, my amazing mom nose smelled a poopy diaper. You'll never see me jump that quickly to change one again, unless of course it's right before a work-out.  Any delaying was making me nervous though, so I decided to hop in and do it. 

The opening video has a warning that one who was experiencing neck or back pain shouldn't be doing this work-out, which made me quickly wish I had one of the two.  Well, I actually have both of the two, just not as extreme enough to avoid this endeavor.  My fears were legitimate.  The first video is for chest, back, and abs.  (But every other muscle seems to be sore as well!) Just, ya know, every pull-up and push-up ever invented.  Two of my very weakest points.  But I threw myself into it, and managed to do very well, in my opinion.  I'm not a huge work-out guru, so a lot of it to me is learning the moves, learning the right way to move your arms when lifting weights, etc. (btw, I love the "lawnmower"). So there were a few points where I had to pause, and rewind, and study my form to make sure it was right. 

However, close to the end of all the extremeness, they went back to the plain Jane push-up and I got a surprising (and welcome!) burst of energy and I cranked out 15 push-ups like nobody's business. (Imagine the thought of a push-up being "easy"!) I gave myself major props! Let me just warn you.......the Dive Bomber Push-up.....is death.  At one point after several failed attempts, I found myself laying on my stomach, looking up at the TV with a glare.  What am I thinking, I can't do this?? Then Tony Horton, looked right at me (yes, right at me) and said, you can do this.  I did manage to do one.  And the decline push-up, no way Jose.  My back was slowly concaving in. For fear of snapping in half like plyboard, I decided to wait until I have a little more strength, as I am, like I said, still recovering from a screwed up back from the pregnancy.  My pull-ups drastically improved. Although I will admit, I am a baby and have to have at least one toe propped up on a coffee table in order to do them.  But so does the girl in the video, so I didn't feel so bad. 

Overall, my first day was a good experience, I felt empowered, muscular, and strong.  It was just as intense as everyone says though.  If you're not bringing at least a shred of confidence and strength with you, don't even bother.  X is for extreme, afterall. 

The amount of food was a little ridiculous to me at first, how can someone who eats as little as I do (usually. Hey, I love food.) consume 2400 calories a day? Well, I found out quickly I could.  By lunchtime I was like a ravenous beast.  (See picture to the left, that was me!) And the past two mornings I've woken up energized, awake, and ready to go.  So forget the eating a couple of almonds a day diet. (Psh, models....)

Onto Plyometrics today, which I've heard from my sources, is INSANE.  Bring it.

How to Bring it: Week 1-- Day 1

Day One.  Let me just start by saying, if I can do this, LITERALLY anyone can! I have a history of starting work-out fads that don't usually last longer than a month.  So needless to say, this is going to be more for accountability than for anything. Feel free to laugh along with me. 

As I pulled P90X out of it's box, it was almost as if a light from heaven came shining down around it.....well, not quite.  It was more like, I groaned and hesitantly unwrapped it from it's packaging.  Carefully flipping through the nutrition guide, the little handbook, and the calendar.  I decided to sit and start plotting my demise by figuring out which plan from the nutrition book I was going to pursue.  There is a portioning option, and a menu planning option.  I settled with the menu planning and as I started to see what it entailed I quickly switched.  Swordfish and Asparagus soup seemed kind of overwhelming to make at the time.  I switched back and forth a few more times and finally settled on the portioning option, which has a lot more freedom of choice.

Then onto the Fit Test.  Activities to see if you have what it takes to "bring it", such as pull-ups, vertical leaps, push-ups, etc.  As my husband timed and counted for me, I went through most of them ok.  I even managed to do one pull-up on the new bar I bought (I won't mention my toe balanced on the table to give me a little help).  During each phase of torture, between gasping breaths, I was asking Dane what the minimum requirement to pass was.  (At one point he fibbed about the time as I was squatted up against a wall, with my thighs on fire. He insisted it was to motivate me to hold it longer than the minimum. He learned quickly not to do that again.) My poor baby daughters are watching with wide horrified eyes throughout the whole process, crying off and on.  Which shows you how little I have worked out, sadly enough.  (They were fascinated with my jumping jacks. Hey, at least I'm impressing someone). So the outcome is, I did reach the requirements, and I am now qualified to do P90X. Woo. 

This morning as I woke up, my arms were sore, my abs were sore (which means there really ARE some in there!), and I groaned as I lay there taking my pulse.  Am I ready for this? You betcha.  I quickly got up and started making my breakfast. I don't think my taste buds wake up that early. I'm used to a quick slimfast shake, or maybe a granola bar.  Not 2 cups of strawberries, a bagel with a small amount of cream cheese, 4 pieces of turkey bacon, and tons of water.  Midway through, I felt about to burst.  I then proceeded to make my babies protein shakes, er, bottles, and after feeding them, placed the girls in their play yard.  And now, it is time to see what I'm made of.

If I don't survive, I love you all!  On a serious note, I would encourage you to encourage me during this time, as this should be a hilarious experience! Updates tomorrow! (Granted I can type....)