P90 Review Day 1

If you follow me on Facebook, you already know this. If not, you're about to...

2014 has stunk. Seriously. Bad year.

The absolute kicker was when my stepdad, Ken, was diagnosed with stage 4 esophageal cancer in March. To see this man, who was my dad in all respects except DNA, be crippled by this horrible disease took a huge toll on me. It took 6 months for the cancer to take over completely. He passed away on Sept. 20 and the cause of death was Esophageal Cancer. 

I HATE YOU CANCER.

SCREW YOU CANCER. 

You know what??? I can do better than that...

EFF YOU CANCER.

Ok - I feel better now. But really, I don't. 

You see, over the past 6 months I was consumed by everything but MYSELF. I ate poorly. I skipped workouts. I gained TWENTY POUNDS.

TWENTY POUNDS!!!

To say that I'm embarrassed would be the truth. To say I feel like junk would be another truth. To say that I am horrified that all my new clothes are VERY snug would be factual. 

And you know what - here's another truth. I'm not a failure. I will not let this setback define me. I will NEVER become the person I used to be. I REFUSE to QUIT!

So, what am I doing to get back on track??? Well, this morning I started Tony Horton's new workout program, P90. It's like P90X but without the X, a.k.a the extreme. The program is designed to be a gateway into health for EVERYONE. Yes - even the person that hasn't worked out in YEARS!

There are two plans to this program: Sweat and Sculpt. I am doing the Sculpt schedule because I am a weight lifter at heart. I love love love lifting weights. I also plan to get the deluxe workouts too add into the rotation. I like some extra variety.

This new 90 day program is broken down into 3, 4-week segments. They are simply called A, B, and C. Each segment has a Sculpt, Sweat, and Ab workout. They all also include the ever popular "Saturday Special" which I have yet to do...

This morning was Sculpt A. It consisted of push-ups, rows, presses, curls, kickbacks, lunges, walking push-ups, chin pulls, side squats, swimmer presses, rocket launcher curls, tricep kickdowns, and kayak back lunges. I was able to do everything without modifications. 

To get myself back in the swing of things, I went VERY light on the weights today. 5's and 8's. As I progress, I'm sure I'll be back to my normal 10-20's. Actually, I can't wait for that!

I found all of the workouts to be basic and effective. I was sweating like a pig by the end of the 28 minutes. This program is going to be all about how intense you make it. Use light weights or a light band and make lots of modifications and any beginner can do it. Use heavier weights with modifications the other way (to make the exercises harder) and all of a sudden seasoned athletes will find this program challenging! That's one of the best parts - it's so versatile!

The only thing that might require some extra modifications in the beginning is the push-ups. The modifier only goes down a little bit but she is still on her toes. If you need more of a modification, then you should go down to your knees for the push-ups until you are ready to be on your toes.

My ABSOLUTE favorite part about this workout was how the workouts were explained. Tony would talk through the workout while the screen would go to two people doing demonstrations of the moves. There were even arrows pointing to what Tony was talking about.

I can't wait to do this workout again on Wednesday because I am going to up my weights and resistance band (for pull-ups/push-downs)! I am ready to make some changes to my body!

If this program sounds like something you might be interested in, please fill out a challenge group application. I will get back to you asap and we can figure out, together, whether P90 is the right choice for you. If it isn't, then we will find a workout program that you will LOVE!