Thursday, April 2, 2009

P90X Round 2 Day 74: Back, Biceps, & ARX

It is nice to be back on track after today's workout!

I mixed things up a little today. I didn't have my first appointment until mid-morning today so I got up and did ARX. I have read other people say they have not always done ARX back-to-back with the primary workout and I always wanted to try it this way. I will admit I had a lot more energy during ARX but it took me a little longer to warm up and feel the so-called "groove".

After work today I came home and did Back & Biceps. This is one of my absolute favorites, except for the corn cobb pullups. I took my NO Xplode and brought the heck out of it today. The other day I moved my workout room to an empty guest bedroom. I used to do my workouts in my upstairs gameroom and as I accumulated more junk that room became rather cluttered. So, I decided to move everything into the guest room. For some reason it is sort of cool to have a change of scenery ... I feel like I need to christen the new workout room or something. Very strange but whatever helps keep it fresh works for me!

As usual I had a solid day eating. It has become habitual to me.

I need to get some things off my chest and if you are the type of person who likes not keeping score at kids soccer games or doesn't believe in things like tough love then you may want to skip this next section.

(Stepping up on Soap Box ......)

I haven't spoke about this much lately, but if you are reading this and are new to P90X or considering doing the program, nutrition is the most important part of the program. If you do not adhere to the nutrition guide your results are only going to be so-so. For 90 days you need to commit to not just getting your butt kicked by Tony Horton but also following his advice on eating.

This is going to sound mean and I might come across as an ass but here we go. Over the 8 + months I have been doing P90X and P90X + I have received a number of emails saying, "I have been doing P90X for (blank number) of days and I am not really seeing that great of results." Then they attach a link to their blog. Sure enough, I go to their blog and see that they are doing the workouts spot on but every couple of posts I see a sentence like this, "I was bad today, I had cake at work and then had a bunch of chicken wings and beer for dinner ... but I've been working hard so I deserve it!!", or "I went on vacation and it was so hard to not eat bad, but it is vacation so I deserve it!!"

The answer to the original question is pretty obvious after you find out what they are eating. You deserve what you earn and if you cheat on the nutrition portion of the program then sub-par results are what you earned. We all talk about how hard the workouts are and how plyo is "the Beast" and how ARX is brutal and blah, blah, blah ... but the bottom line is that the workouts are the sidekick to the nutrition aspect of the program. The workouts are Robin and your diet is Batman. FOLLOW THE NUTRITION GUIDE. And if you choose not to that is fine! But do not come to me and ask why you aren't seeing the results and get pissy with me if I don't help you make BS excuses!

(Stepping down from Soap Box ......)

Feel free to rip me in the comments!

Tomorrow is Yoga.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

11 comments:

  1. I loved your post today. I feel the exact same way. In fact, just today, one of the guys in my office asked me about doing P90X. I flat out told him that P90X is 70% nutrition and if he could not commit to changing his lifestyle, then he would not get P90x results.

    I am glad you go that off your chest.

    Boomer
    Project Exercise

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  2. It's definitely easier to jump to the conclusion that it just isn't working for you, or that you just can't lose any weight, than to really question if it is your fault you aren't losing weight.

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  3. Hey, where does the Batmobile fit in?

    Like you said, nutrition is EVERYTHING with this program. No if's, and's, or but's. It is a huge lifestyle change, just like Boomer said.

    Plus, don't discount the importance of the supplements. Without the recovery drinks and protein powders, I wouldn't have half the gains I have now.

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  4. I'm so glad I found your blog! I've been wanting to try P90X for quite some time, and found your blog while looking for reviews.

    I appreciate your honesty and perspective on the nutrition portion of the program! I'll definitely be back for more!

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  5. Thx SMitS - Your are welcome back anytime.

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  6. Thanks everyone! I was in a bad mood yesterday and took it out on my blog!

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  7. hi jeff. i just created a blog here for when i start P90X in a week. can you tell me what you do to follow the nutrition plan? if you look at my blog you will see i dont think ill be able to follow the nutrition plan to a tee on my first round. and i dont plan on complaining to anyone about results. but i am going to try to, and will be Dramatically changing my bad habits and eating patterns to begin with. but any advice or examples i can get will help, thanks, im enjoying the blog so far.

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  8. If I may chime in about the nutrition plan, I'd like to suggest that if you can't follow the nutrition plan exactly, then do what's called "eating clean."

    That means saying "no" to pizza's, cakes, softdrinks, fast-food, fatty stuff...I think we all know those types of foods.

    It's saying "yes" to high proteins, low carbs, limiting carb intake in the evenings, drinking lots of water, salads, grilled chicken, egg whites, skim milk, etc. Bypass the snack machines and eat an apple instead. Eat oranges instead of chips...stuff like that.

    I'm a husband with two kids and a wife who enjoy their "non P90X" palettes. Coming home to a bag of chips and salsa on the table is tough. I may have a few chips here and there now, but I used to polish off half the bag before I put down my keys!

    It's discipline-discipline-discipline. After a while, it will become a habit, and the results you want may indeed become reality.

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  9. James, Exactly what Steve said above. Follow his advice and you'll do great.

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  10. Jeff, First off, I am on day 70 of P90X and I read your blog everyday. At times your writing makes me laugh out loud and then days like this you give me the kick in the butt needed to push play.

    Yesterday I ate lousy and told my wife that I was working hard and deserved to eat bad. Then today I read your post and feel like an inch tall. No more excuses for me. You are right, you deserve poor results if you eat poorly. Thanks for the honesty because it was just what I needed.

    Keep on bloggin man, I cannot wait to hear how the triathalon traing goes.

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  11. I am going on onto phase 3 tomorrow. 1st phase i dropped 20 lbs, second phase is going to be about 5 pounds (weight in tomorrow). Started at 215 at 5'11" and i am around 190 now. Things are great, problem is i think i strayed from the nutrition guide. Allowed myself a few more carbs like i should from phase 1 to 2 but my portions got a little out of control. 1 oz of almonds turns to 3 oz - ate too much grilled chix. Not eating bad but i think my caloric intake must of went up. As a teacher, having a week off from school, screwed things up. Now for my question..

    Going back to school tomorrow i am definately going to have my meals planned more and more regimented. Should and do you think it would be cool to revert back to phase 1 to really strip away the excess fat for the last 4 weeks(Keep my carb intake up for 1 more week- then crunch time).

    PS I was a fat mess before - belly and love handles- and now i can start to see abs so i am a little anxious to really get back on track and not do OK but look to WOW by the end.

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