Buffer BuFer -- some thoughts on P90x

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dragonfliet

I write stuffs
Apr 24, 2006
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So over the course of about a year, with a new job that drove me crazy and took over all of my time, I stopped going rock climbing and kept on stress eating, and gained way too much weight. I became quite soft in the gut, and it was awful. So I quit that horrible job, went back to decent hours (for shit pay) and decided to work my ass out and diet a bit. For workouts, I didn't feel like going to the gym, so I grabbed a copy of P90x and decided to give it a go. Here are some of my thoughts

P90x diet:

Fuck that. It's a good solid diet plan, but their recipes aren't particularly inviting and their example calendar is a complete and utter mess. It would be next to impossible to cook the food on the schedule they suggest. Since I'm not made of time, and I know how to eat right, I avoided their BS entirely. If you don't know how to set up a good diet that won't have you eating the wrong KINDS of food (for something like this you need plenty of carbs and protein so you aren't running out of energy and so that you're rebuilding the muscles you'll be using) or eating too much/too little, their diet plan might be worthwhile. For me, though, not really.

I did a diet of approximately 1800 calories a day (for the first 8 weeks, then I kicked it up to 2200) with about 40% of the calories coming from carbs, 40% from protein and 20% from fat. This meant a good sized breakfast, a lunch of a protein shake, a few snacks day (generally an ounce of almonds, because they're super tasty) and then a huge dinner (I like big dinners) of very low calorie, vegetable heavy fare. It worked wonders.

On weights:

If you don't have weights, this program is going to be expensive. You're going to need a lot of them. Think about how much money you want to spend and how much space you'll need. If you have the money and space, buy a rack and get individual weights in 5lb increments, starting with 5lbs and going all the way up to 50lbs. If you don't have the money, you can do what I did which was a cheap dumbell set with removable plates. Where this sucks, really bad, however, is on the weight heavy days, where you'll be changing them out every rep, which is a huge pain in the ass and can slow down the pace, which is counter productive, as this is a high intensity interval type exercise routine. I pretty quickly bought some 5, 10 and 15lb dumbbells to supplement my weight plates and that made my life much better. I'm sure you could use the bands, but it seems more difficult to keep track of, so I skipped it.

The actual workout:

There is no way to follow this workout and not lose weight/gain muscle (unless you're already super fit). It is high intensity interval training, meaning that you'll be doing something hard for a little while, have a brief break, do something hard, etc. You'll also be working out something like 9 hours a week, all told. It's brutal.

Advice for beginners: take freaking breaks. Also, don't push yourself. Do half the reps/weight as the trainers, example people, even if you feel you can do more, because you will suffer the next day if you try to push it. If it's too little, change it up NEXT week, but you're less likely to push if you are in agony over your entire body. You will be. Keep a fan going, directly on you. Have plenty of water nearby (but only drink it in sips as you go through, so you don't make yourself throw up) If you get dizzy, pause the freaking DVD and rest until your heart rate comes down. This seems obvious, but this kind of training will push you.

Anyways, the first week is hell, the second a little less so and from there on out, provided you keep up and don't murder yourself when the exercises change, but work hard, it's a very solid routine. You'll feel good after your exercises (though you'll be VERY tired), but once you're in the routine, it's easy to keep up. I found that I most enjoyed pushups and pullups (partly because every dude wants a nicer chest, and also because I'm really good at pullups), that Plyometrics was hell every single time (seriously, lots of breaks at first, don't pass out), but solid, and that no matter how many times I do it, yoga is the worst, most painful, most uncomfortable, most hated thing ever. I did get more flexible though, and I really, really need that.

On results:

They're pretty obvious. I only did 10 weeks of the program because I had a conference that I couldn't get around, and I wouldn't work out or eat right for any of it, so I used that to call it. Over that 10 weeks, however, I made significant progress, with my arms getting a little bit bigger, but much more defined, my belly fat mostly going away (there's still some), my face got a bit thinner, my arms have almost no fat on them, and my thighs got smaller then bigger and more defined. I'm very happy with the results.

As far as numbers, the following are the body measurement changes (all measurements done in the morning after going to the bathroom, before eating food at around the same time for consistency):

Week 1 (before working out)

178 lbs
Neck: 15
Chest: 39
Biceps: 12
Waist: 35
Thighs: 22.5

Week 4 (phase 1 done)

169lbs
Neck: 15
Chest: 39.5
Biceps: 12
Waist: 33.5
Thighs: 22

Week 8 (phase 2 done)

160.6 lbs
Neck: 15
Chest: 39.5
Biceps: 12.5
Waist: 32
Thighs: 22.5

Week 10

159.0 lbs
Neck: 15
Chest: 39.5
Biceps: 12.5
Waist: 31.5
Thighs: 22.5

Final Thoughts:

Honestly, it's a good, solid program, though I won't be doing another round, nor will I be doing any of the insanity type things that keep the same basic premise, though I'm sure they're good too. I've more or less reached my goal, as far as increasing endurance and cutting body fat, and next up I'll head to the gym and start lifting some weights to build more muscle and cut the remaining fat. I have another 7lbs or so of fat to get rid of before my abs really show through, and I want to get back up to 165, which means I have about 12+ lbs of muscle to put on, which is best done with very heavy weights, not the high rep workout that HIIT programs emphasize. Also, 1hr+ a day (most of the workouts are 1 hour, plus a 15 minute ab workout 3x a week plus the thursday yoga day is 90 min) 6 days a week is simply too much for me to do a workout program, now that I've reached a good goal. I like being fit, but that's just insanity. Also, I'll be rock climbing, which is a good workout and way more fun.

I would recommend this kind of a thing for anyone, like me, who wants to work hard and see pretty immediate results, especially when you don't feel like putting together your own routine. Having a video to workout in front of is really helpful for motivation, and you feel worse quitting than when you're by yourself in a gym. They have workout sheets that are nicely constructed, which makes keeping track and seeing your progress easy and satisfying. It's hard, it's strength and cardio, and while it isn't for people wanting to build a ton of muscle (that's what a bodybuilding routine is for), it's great for people who are looking to build that first step of muscle (and you will).
 

dragonfliet

I write stuffs
Apr 24, 2006
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I don't bother with any of that. I just go out and run. It's a lot easier.

I would rather do anything other than run. Running burns fewer calories, works fewer muscles, is boring and destroys the cartilage in your knees. I'll take silly workouts or rock climbing, personally, but each to their own.
 

BillyBadAss

Strong Cock of The North
May 25, 1999
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Tokyo, JP
flickr.com
yeah I prefer running but I don't use a treadmill or track.
outdoor grass trails. flexible New Balance footie.

Me too. I use to run trails in The States, but they are hard to find in Tokyo without going outside the city, so I run streets and bike paths. I'm 38 and don't have any problems with my knees. I think the key is not over doing it. I run a day, and take a day off so my body can recover.