Well, this is my second attempt at this post. Right before I hit "publish" Blogger decided to crap out on me and nothing saved so at the sake of my sanity this is going to be a much shorter post.
Today was the first day of week 4 which is also know as the recovery week. In case you are wondering, the recovery week is basically cardio, stretching, and yoga. It is designed to give your body a break from the high impact lifting and plyo workouts and to also break up the routine to prevent the dreaded plateau. Another benefit is that it allows you to rest up for week 5 which introduces two new weight lifting workouts that are pretty intense. It is all about the muscle confusion and believe me your muscles will be confused!
I did the entire Yoga routine today. I did not like it but I still did it and am sort of proud of myself! However, I was feeling great so I also did ARX and then a few shoulder and arm reps with my dumbbells. I also had an excellent nutrition day. About 2700 calories and I hit the 40/40/20 ratio right on the head again!
I must admit that I feel much different heading into the recovery week than I did during my first round of P90X. Last time my body was beat down, sore and tired. I really needed the low impact week and so did my body. This time is a little different. My energy level is as good as it ever has been and my body feels great. I am literally attacking my workouts everyday. So, this week I am planning on adding additional reps/exercises to each day and may skip the middle of the week rest/stretch day. However, for you first time P90Xers out there I would not recommend doing this. Stick to the program and then you can mix it up if you survive the first 90 days!!!
Tomorrow is the Core Synergistics Day -- I love this workout!
Thanks for Reading,
Jeff
We may need to re-consider the name "recovery week" as long as core syn is involved (twice), ha ha!
ReplyDeleteI love core syn... it's one of my favorite workouts!
I agree, "recovery" is not the best descriptive word for this week! Maybe call it "Partial Ass Kicking Week" or "Not vomiting in your own mouth as much week" .... "recovery" is not correct.
ReplyDeleteI am pumped for this week. Core tomorrow, then Interval X with some ARX tossed in on Wednesday. Thurs is the stretch day, not sure what to do then maybe Stretch X, maybe Total Body Plus (P90X PLUS Video)????
Congrats on getting through Yoga X. Did you do the Warrior III to Half Moon twists? Without popping any vertebrae? Without crashing into a mirror? Sadly, I cannot claim such a victory...but I'm still trying.
ReplyDeleteDid ARX last evening and stayed up for 23 of the 25 Crunchy frogs, 35 of 50 Mason Twists. Usually, I can't maintain balance, but after my recovery week last week, my abs and balance actually improved.
Talked to a friend who has P90X Plus. He's going to lend me the Interval X to see what its about. I just have to know....
Keep bringin' it!
Steve
Jeff
ReplyDeleteRound two of P90X. That's extreme. I like your site. Very informative to your readers.
Are you a Beachbody Coach?
Its a great program through Beachbody where you help others get in shape. I wish I would have known about it a long time ago.
I write about my struggles and results with P90X at my site www.workoutjourney.com
Thanks
Brad
Keep it up Jeff! It is great to see all of this support!! It helps to have that comradary! Today I measured at my lowest body fat % at 8.9!! I decided that the rest week probably had something to do with it(If you remember it is just a regular X week for the most part). I think it really helped to break the monotonous routine. I also decided to go real low on carbs today just to throw my body a curveball. Ended up with 2600 calories at about 15% carbs 30% fat and 55% protein. I have been doing 40/40/20 for so long I figured it would be a good change of pace. It makes me feel like a cave man eating all of that meat. ahahah
ReplyDeleteSteve,
ReplyDeleteWarrior 3 to the half moon gets complete here but I will admit it is not pretty (-:
Also nice job on ARX you are doing very good. One of the tricks we (Myself, Matt and Mike) figured out about ARX is that breathing is the key. Breath heavy between each rep and I guarantee it will bet easier!
Brad,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kind words about the blog. And no I have never really considered becoming a BB coach. Probably because I was not very impressed with the one assigned to me when I first purchased P90X. She was about as qualified to be a "fitness coach" as I would be to say being a mother(sorry poor analogy but I think it makes my point!).
Also, I checked out your site and realy liked it. You have a good story to share and I loved the Sheryl Crow vid from the Grammy's.
Jeff
Hey Matt,
ReplyDeleteHow the heck are you buddy?
I found it funny that you added all the protein to your diet today because I did the exact opposite and add some extra carbs (and it felt great!). I think you make a great point changing up the ratios to shock the body. Let me know how your body responds?
Have you ditched the carb cycling altogether?
Yeah i had to ditch it after about 15 days. I was losing weight quicker than I liked and it was real hard to keep up my energy in the workouts. Plus it was hard to down all of that meat everyday. I have pretty much been doing 40/40/20 since the beginning of week 3. I recently started taking some Superpump and NO Shotgun. I have started to see a little increase in strength but without an increase in stamina it is difficult to maintain intensity. Hopefully it will imoprove. It 's like I have short bursts of energy that are "explosive" but I can't maintain them through the whole workout. Then after the workout I still have tons of energy but it's like I have to recharge. It's been a little frustrating hoping to see some big improvements these last 4 weeks. Keep you posted.
ReplyDelete