Category: DVD Days P90X to Tapout XT

Everything I think about the workouts. Including some weights, reps and sets etc. Detailed as much as I can remember or is relevant.

10.4/5 – Wrench In The Works

10.4 – Rest (sick)
10.5 – RKC at work (scheduled as WOD at gym)

234.4
21.1%

I am not sure what it was, but the last couple of days my stomach hasn’t been right. For that reason I took the day after Bootcamp as a rest day and then in preparation for not being able to do conditioning at gym I did my RKC at work. Turns out it was a good call, the kids didn’t show for class so I was given the night off.

My RKC at work was basic

5C&P per arm x3
20 swings
5C&P per arm x3
20 swings
5 snatch per arm x2
20 swings
5C&P per arm x3
5C&P per arm x3

It’s usually over in about 30 minutes and it is the perfect portable workout.

I’m trying to recover from the mysterious bloating and cramping I am feeling, hoping it’s just a mild stomach bug.

 

10.1 – The Last 10 Pounds

I have decided that this “round” should be concentrated on getting rid of my last 10 lbs of bodyfat to get me around the 220lb mark. This would signify meeting my ultimate goal weight which is a big deal among the gravitationally challenged. As mentioned yesterday I have very little in the way of actual choices, except for the bootcamp and WOD for gymnastics over which I have complete control. Having said that, I think the biggest difference is going to be frequency. For round 9 I took 175 days to do 90 workouts which averaged only 51% workout ratio. Compare that to Round 8 which was a whopping 70% ratio and a 64% ratio from back in my P90X/Insanity Hybrid days. Yes, it appears as though I am slacking off. I wanted to make it to 5 days a week which works out to 71% and for this round I think it’s critical that I try to maintain a higher work rate. I am not sure what the reason was behind the drop for round 9 other than it was the start of bootcamp which in the beginning made sure I took at least 2 days a week off to recover. Add that to occasional days off during the weekend and you are already down to 4 days a week, or 57%. Now that I have the hang of bootcamp and I am also able to train the girls again with tougher conditioning that they can do with me I am hoping upping the frequency will be a cinch.

My weeks are going to look something like this (at least until July 1st):

Monday, 06/04/2012 1 Bootcamp 3 Cardio and Abs
Tuesday, 06/05/2012 2 OFF
Wednesday, 06/06/2012 3 Bootcamp 3 Bodyweight
Thursday, 06/07/2012 4 RKC Thursday
Friday, 06/08/2012 5 WOD Friday
Saturday, 06/09/2012 6 WORKOUT CHOICE
Sunday, 06/10/2012 7 OFF
Monday, 06/11/2012 8 Bootcamp 3 Weights
Tuesday, 06/12/2012 9 OFF
Wednesday, 06/13/2012 10 Bootcamp 3 Cardio and Abs
Thursday, 06/14/2012 11 RKC Thursday
Friday, 06/15/2012 12 WOD Friday
Saturday, 06/16/2012 13 WORKOUT CHOICE
Sunday, 06/17/2012 14 OFF
Monday, 06/18/2012 15 Bootcamp 3 Bodyweight
Tuesday, 06/19/2012 16 OFF
Wednesday, 06/20/2012 17 Bootcamp 3 Weights
Thursday, 06/21/2012 18 RKC Thursday
Friday, 06/22/2012 19 Cardio Friday
Saturday, 06/23/2012 20 WORKOUT CHOICE
Sunday, 06/24/2012 21 OFF
Monday, 06/25/2012 22 Bootcamp 3 Cardio and Abs
Tuesday, 06/26/2012 23 OFF
Wednesday, 06/27/2012 24 Bootcamp 3 Bodyweight
Thursday, 06/28/2012 25 RKC Thursday
Friday, 06/29/2012 26 WOD Friday
Saturday, 06/30/2012 27 WORKOUT CHOICE

That’s 74%!!

 

 

R9D90 – The End.

I decided as a treat for ending round 9 that I would do Plyocide. I then succeeded in justifying 2 days off to “plan” my next move. To be honest, with the way my bootcamp and gymnastics are going plus the requirement for RKC every week my choices are limited. I have 3 days of gymnastics / bootcamp, 1 day of RKC and a projected 2 days rest. That means I am down to 1 day where I can do a workout of my choosing. So what are my choices? Well, I made a short list of the workouts I could do and I am thinking of putting them in a hat and pulling one every week… It seems as good a method as any.

Here are my choices from my stack of DVD workouts:

P90X

Chest & Back, Ab Ripper X
Plyometrics
Shoulders & Arms, Ab Ripper X
Yoga X
Legs & Back, Ab Ripper X
Kenpo X
Rest / Stretch X
Core Synergistics
Chest, Shoulders & Tris, Ab Ripper X
Back & Biceps, Ab Ripper X

P90X2

X2 Core
Plyocide
Rest or X2 Recovery + Mobility
X2 Total Body + X2 Ab Ripper
X2 Yoga
X2 Balance and Power
Chest + Back + Balance & X2 Ab Ripper
X2 Shoulders + Arms & X2 Ab Ripper
Base + Back & X2 Ab Ripper
PAP Lower
PAP Upper

INSANITY

Plyometric Cardio Circuit
Cardio Power & Resistance
Cardio Recovery
Pure Cardio & Cardio Abs
Core Cardio & Balance
Max Interval Circuit
Max Interval Plyo
Max Cardio Conditioning
Max Recovery

INSANTY ASYLUM

Speed and Agility
Strength
Back to Core
Vertical Plyo
Relief
Game Day
Game Day / Overtime

I then decided to isolate them to the appropriate methodology used, either strength or cardio with a separate section for recovery, yoga, stretching, abs etc.

Strength

Chest & Back, Ab Ripper X
Shoulders & Arms, Ab Ripper X
Legs & Back, Ab Ripper X
Chest, Shoulders & Tris, Ab Ripper X
Back & Biceps, Ab Ripper X
X2 Total Body + X2 Ab Ripper
X2 Balance and Power
Chest + Back + Balance & X2 Ab Ripper
X2 Shoulders + Arms & X2 Ab Ripper
Base + Back & X2 Ab Ripper
PAP Lower
PAP Upper
P90X2 Strength

Cardio

Plyometrics
Kenpo X
Plyocide
Plyometric Cardio Circuit
Cardio Power & Resistance
Pure Cardio & Cardio Abs
Core Cardio & Balance
Max Interval Circuit
Max Interval Plyo
Max Cardio Conditioning
Speed and Agility
Vertical Plyo
Game Day
Game Day / Overtime

Recovery / Yoga / Abs

Yoga X
Rest or X2 Recovery + Mobility
X2 Yoga
Cardio Recovery
Max Recovery
Relief
Back to Core
Ab Ripper X
X2 Ab Ripper

Of course there is also the option of picking another DVD, I have a recommendation to try Bob Harper’s DVD but I think I have a little too much on my plate for now. I may try it out as a test one week but my faith in Bob Harper extends as far as training the obese, not necessarily the Beachbodied…

R9D86 – Bootcamp Cardio Abs

Today was a hot one, I had planned to do a little more abs than cardio but when it came to the actual workout I realized I hadn’t really met my objective. Nevertheless it was a great workout, but with the gym being very warm it was a real challenge.

Here’s how it all went down:

2x section
20 Hit the floor
10 3 step Suicides
20 switch kicks
20 in and out abs
10 side crunch

2x section
10 Frog jumps
10 switch lunge
10 stance jacks (foot touch)
10 vsnaps
10 roll to boat

2x section
5x long jump run back – single double triple repeat
10 tuck jumps
10 river jumps
10 ski abs
10 bum lifts

x1 section
10 2 line forward and back suicides
2 lengths sprint runback switch
2 lengths long jump tuck jump
20 plank jacks
10 plank jacks with in and out

x1 section
10 X Jacks
10 diamond jumps
10 wide knee tuck jumps
10 vsnaps
10 rollback hold to shoulder stand

x1 section
5x low jacks and pulse 4+8
10 burpee with half turn
20 knees up same elbow
20 knees up opposite elbow
40 happy dance

x2 section (actually only did 1x)
10 in and out
10 crunchy frog
10 ARX bicycle (forwards and backwards)
10 full sit up
10 side crunch
20 side to side flutter (on your back) 3 position
10 russian twists
10 rollback hold to shoulder stand

R9D81/2 – RKC and Bootcamp. A Tinge Of Nostalgia

Re-reading some of my posts, which I do in order to bolster my motivation at times, I couldn’t help but feel a little saddened that I have drifted far from the path of P90X2. Although I pay homage to it twice a week at bootcamp, it’s not the same as happy little Tony and his sweaty minions entertaining you, nay, mocking you (see Ab Ripper X!) while you roll around on the floor like a tasered college student or struggling to keep up with “pullup boy” only to find that the inside of your elbows are capable of producing inexplicable pain.

It’s an easy enough fix, I need to commit to spending 2 days a week with Tony on PAP for the balance of the program but since there are only 8 dys left, maybe it’s too little too late. That said, then end of the PAP section will enable me to return to the start and design a program with Original and inappropriate Tony, Tony 2 (The 50 Something) and of course not forgetting Shaun T who lurks in the background of my basement just waiting to choke my confidence to death with his bare hands.

I am kind of looking forward to it, even though 2 days of bootcamp is a lot of work, I think I am getting more used to it and should be able to balance it as a workout day, rather than a day always followed by a day of rest. The summer is always better, doing pullups on the deck out in the sunshine, Insanity with the french doors open and the summer breeze blowing through or even the short P90X2 yoga with the sun setting, bathing my workout space in a soothing orange glow.

It’s time for a shake up and I think that means it’s time to think about my future both here on my blog and with my workouts. I mean, this isn’t really a P90X blog any more, it’s far more than that and I think maybe it’s time to move it to another site, something with more of an all around fitness and nutrition feel to it.

Speaking of shaking things up, here is the bootcamp for tonight so if my participants are sneaky, they can get an idea of what pain lies ahead…

D19 2.10.1 Bodyweight

Balance and coordination

10 regular pushups with shoulder touch
10 military pushups with hip touch
10 sphinx to plank step or drop
10 pushup side raise
10 pullups

20 in and out row
10 roll to boat hold 3 count
20 bicycle with leg extension
20 side crunch per side
10 pullups

10 SB pushup boing
10 SB Burpee lift ball
10 SB Plank to sphinx
10 per SB elbow plank side raise

Feet on SB

10 regular pushups with shoulder touch
10 military pushups with hip touch
10 sphinx to plank step or drop
10 pushup side raise
10 pullups

10 SB pushup boing
10 SB Burpee lift ball
10 SB Plank to sphinx
10 per SB elbow plank side raise

20 Crunchy Frog
20 vsnap
20 laying triple bicycles
20 full situps

Arms on SB 20 360’s
Arms on SB plank to sphinx
10x feet on SB walk out and back
2x feet on SB 360 walkaround
20x laying hamstring pull

20 laying leg lifts
10 per rainbow leg lifts
10 per scissor hold on count
25 per side to side scissor rapid

BONUS ROUND!!

10 military pushup
10 diamond pushup
10 Hindu Pushup
30s crane

R9D73/4 – RKC At Work And Chelsea 20 Double Time

For some reason, I have yet to complete a round of Chelsea, I always seem to get stuck around 20 minutes probably because I am thinking about Cindy. Since it’s not a good idea to be thinking about one woman when you are with another I need to get my head sorted out. They are both similar, with the differences outlined here:

Chelsea:
Each minute on the minute for 30 minutes

5 pullups
10 pushups
15 squats

Cindy:
AMRAP in 20 minutes:

5 pull-ups
10 Push Ups
15 Squats (Air Squats)

The thing is that apart from kettlebells, the pullup, pushup, squat workout is one of the best and simplest workouts you can do, that’s why I love it so much. So this time for a bit of a change I thought I would do this:

10 rounds of:

10 pullups
20 Pushups
30 Squats

It was much tougher than the others, getting to 10 pullups by the end was a chore but mostly doing 30 squats each time proved far more challenging than I had anticipated. However, I struggled through in about 25 minutes including a short warmup.

The previous workout had been RKC at work and it’s becoming a pretty standard workout now like this:

5 rounds of:

5 C&P each side
5 Snatch each side
20 Swings

It’s a good, quick workout and makes my heart rate go pretty wiggy so it’s definitely working!

 

R9D71 Bootcamp Bodyweight Personal Training Styleee!

I have been neglectful of this page this week with everything I have going in to being a single parent for the week. In order to catch up, I am posting twice with the bootcamps that I have done. Day 71 was Bodyweight but I only had one participant so basically it was an hour of brutality for her and a walk in the park for me. This is what we did:

10 Regular Pushup
10 Air Squats
10 Military Pushup
10 Pistol knee raise

10 Ultra wide pushup
10 Back lunge front kick
10 Plange Pushup
10 Super skaters

With Partner
10 Squat ball pass
10 Back to back lean twist pass
10 Wall sit side to side pass
10 Full situp ball pass (Throw not pass)
10 Pullups

10 One hand on ball pushup
10 Side to side one hand on ball pushup
20 Single hand ball touch
10 Double hand ball touch
10 Pullups

With Partner
10 Squat ball pass
10 Back to back lean twist pass
10 Horse stance ball throw
10 Full situp ball pass (Throw not pass)
10 Pullups

10 Overhead squat
10 Wall ball
10 Overhead tricep wall throw
10 Between Knees hold, double elbow sit up
10 Leg Lifts

Apparently this was a tough one for her, and I think it’s partly because one on one is always more demanding because you have nowhere to hide your skipped reps and partly because it was mostly new stuff for both of us. It was so tough in fact that come Wednesday she was too sore to do the next class. Now that is a workout!!

 

R9D69-70 – Disappointed (Bootcamp Off)

So nobody turned up for bootcamp last week. My kids weren’t participating because they have competition this week and among the litany of excuses there was zero participation. That said, I have a new, and I think  fun, workout to do so bring on Monday so I can try this puppy out!

So on Friday I was forced to do an RKC workout at work during which a Yoga class broke out. It was a fairly standard workout but the numbers were a little different:

5 C&P Left
5C&P Right
5 C&P Left
5C&P Right
5 C&P Left
5C&P Right
20 Swings

Repeat 4 more times for a total of 5 rounds.

Add 5 Snatch per side 3 times and there you have it.

Saturday I made an attempt at PAP Upper again and I have to say I enjoyed it a little more this time but it’s still just not a tough enough workout for me. I am trying to make it as hard as I can but it doesn’t quite manage to hit the spot for either heavy weight work or good cardio work. I am sure I will get used to it but I can’t see it becoming a favourite. Then again, I have had an on and off love affair with Kenpo so you just never know!

This week with my wife out of town I am hoping to get some extra physical work done. If I can make this a solid 5 or 6 days of working out then I figure I can get rid of this ever so slight feeling of laziness and get my sleeping schedule back on track.

R9D68 – Vegas 2012

For the past few years my wife and I have travelled to Vegas with friends and in the beginning it was always a hedonistic trip through buffets and restaurants and for the other three, an alcohol soaked trip through toleranceville. As the years have passed we have learned how to use the Las Vegas Strip as a cardio event and now thanks to the Paleo diet being rolled out of buffets is a thing of the past. This trip it was nice and warm so we even got to spend time in the pool (we usually go during the colder months) and overall we had an amazing time. I did manage to squeeze in a bootcamp workout while I was there but the amount of walking that we did each day was more than enough to count for the daily burn so to speak. The food was fantastic, we did breakfast at Hash House A GoGo which I would recommend and other meals at P.F.Changs and BLT inside Mirage. We also had an excellent meal at Samba, the Brazilian Steakhouse in Mirage and while the atmosphere isn’t quite as energetic as Copacabana Steakhouse in Niagara Falls still the food was very good and the service was attentive. Despite the bad reviews for the Niagara location I still think it was the best Brazilian we have been to, the wait staff make it hard to love, but the food choices are unparalleled. The one good thing about Samba was that the food was not salty, just well grilled and well presented and with 8 choices you are hardly limited in what to eat.

Now it’s back to the grind, I have bootcamp class this evening and it is going to be tough to get over the lack of sleep even though I seem to remember doing a fair amount of napping during the weekend. It was great to get away, and from a fitness perspective, the break was welcomed with open arms.

R9D64-65 – PAP Lower Review and The Disappointing Finish To P90X2

PAP Lower.

Since I found PAP Upper to be, well, a load of PAP I wasn’t expecting to be blown away by PAP Lower. Having lowered my expectation a little I enjoyed it a little more than PAP Upper but I was not impressed by the workout. I found the warmups to be more entertaining than the workout itself but to give it credit, I actually did struggle a little with a couple of the moves. Here, in brief (because it is brief) is the workout:

Warmup – Interval 1 x4 – Interval 2 x4 – Cool down

Interval 1:

Step up Convict – 1 leg step up to back lunge
Skater Plyo – basic skater side to side jumps
One Leg Line Hop – Hopping forwads, backwards and side to side 45s
Tony Horton’s Triangle – Besides the disgusting image the name evokes, this is just a front and back laying abductor exercise from the 80s

Interval 2:

Squat Cross Reach – Highlight of the workout, weighted squat with a diagonal extension at the bottom
Split Squat Jump (Mary Katherine’s on Crack) – Yawn, more MKs
Monster Slalom – Think of it as wide tire runs
Side Bridge Leg Lift – the toughest move, get into side plank and hold your leg up. Ouch!

So it wasn’t too challenging but it also wasn’t the yawn fest that PAP Upper was. I at least was challenged with this but then again in about 2 weeks when I have mastered the Side Bridge it will be reduced to just another short, not particularly hard workout.

That’s my beef with the whole P90X2 thing, it’s the same issue I have with ending P90X on a rest week. This third phase was supposed to be the Grand Finale of your 90 day crusade, a fitting end to a three month journey of fitness and mental toughness but it just isn’t. Instead it’s a gentle tailing off of the system with 4 workouts, 1 yoga day and 2 rest days, not exactly the fitting climax to what is otherwise a great workout system.

In other news, I filled out the days with some RKC and a day on a spin bike while waiting for my kids to show up for gymnastics.