P90x is worth it!!

I have been done with the P90x workout routine for about a month now, so it is probably about time I write about my overall experiences with the program.  First of all, the reason I did P90x, was because some of my girlfriends thought I would not be able to complete it, so we made a little friendly bet.  If I did not finish the P90x program then I had to shave my legs for a month, I know it might not sound like a big deal, but I really did not want to be shaving my legs!!  If I completed the program then the girls have to take me out for a nice steak dinner.  I guess I could have made them “not” shave their legs for a month… but really… who wants to see that?!  Besides, I really like steak and girls with shaved legs!!  I pretty much saw it as a win win situation, because not completing the workout was not an option.  So I get in great shape by doing the P90x workout and I get a nice steak dinner for free at the end of it… sounds pretty sweet to me.  But I have to admit it was not as easy as I thought it was going to be, it was only three months right?  The hardest part about doing this workout is making sure you hit play on the remote every day.  There are days when you really do not want to workout, you just want to take a break and be lazy, but fortunately that is not an option.  I actually suggest to anyone who is thinking about doing this workout, that you make a bet with someone.  It needs to be something you really do not want to do, like losing money are some weird activity like shaving your legs, because I am not sure if I would have finished the P90x routine if i did not have that bet in the back of my mind.  If you are already a self motivated person then you are probably good to go, but if you are like me and you “hate” losing bets, then make one.  Anyways, I won the bet!!  

Lets talk about the progress that I made.  I started off weighing 199 and in the first couple weeks I actually gained a few pounds, so I went up to 202.  I wish I would have checked my body fat percentage in the beginning, I started around the second month  I did not really stick to the P90x nutrition guide, I was allowed to make up my own diet, so I put myself on a high protein diet, and later on I started adding other foods and drinks to my diet to help my body recover more quickly.  I tried pushing myself more every week, if I struggled with certain exercises on the discs then I made it my goal to be able to do those exercises better and in more quantity.  I pretty much stayed at the same weight through the second month, the new exercises in the second month were a great change, and really helped my arms and chest begin to show some great definition.  All the pull ups and push up and resistance band exercises really push you to the limits.  But it really was not until the third month is when I really started to see change.  By this time I started eating more food, drinking more protein shakes and vitamin drinks.  I also started taking the P90x Multivitamin pills for extra energy.  I began going back to the gym to get more cardiovascular workouts in.  For a awhile it was pretty nuts, because I was doing P90x in the morning, then running and stair climbing a few miles in the evening, and then I would go back to the gym later on and play racquetball.  So some days I was doing up to three workouts, most the time though I was doing at least two a day.  I really started to see results, and I had energy to do it all, it was pretty nuts.  When I started to add more cardio exercises to complement the P90x routine I went from weighing 202 to 196.  As of today I weigh 193, the last time I was at this weight is when I had my knee injury, and a year ago I weighed 245.  So all together now I have lost 52 pounds…pretty sweet huh?  I still have some more weight to lose, so I want to see if I can get down to around 180.  

I loved the P90x routine, I am glad it is over, but it really made a difference in my life.  I wish I would have done more cardio from the beginning of the workout, and I wish I would have been more disciplined in my eating.  It was hard to stick to a diet when you have three Thanksgiving dinners and left overs, 3 Christmas parties, New Years, and 3 birthdays in one week, one of them being your own.  So I probably could have seen even more results than I did, but I am happy with myself, I feel like I am in the best shape of my life.  The P90x workout really helped me with my trip to Honduras, because we laid about 50 yards worth of concrete that we mixed ourselves with shovels, so it was pretty tough, plus we had to remove all the ground before we laid down the concrete.  The sidewalks were about 8 feet wide and we had to dig down 7 to 8 inches then shovel sand and lay that down on the ground to even it out, then mix and pour concrete.  I really do believe if I did not do the P90x workout, it would have been way tougher for me to do.  So next my buddy and I are going to do the Chalean Extreme workout routine, which is another 90 Days!!  We will see how it goes, he is a pretty motivated person, so he will help push me and motivate me.  I will also be blogging about that.