Hey everyone! My name is Austin & I started P90X on Monday.

I weighed in at 184.8 lbs. and 20% body fat (according to my electronic scale). I measured a 34" waist.

First impressions of P90X are awesome! The workouts kill me, but it's all going to be worth it in the end! The diet is pretty easy to follow as well. I just had to make some changes and just need to stick to them.

Day 1 - Chest & Back - did it pretty well, but had to do modified Push ups on the knees to get the 15 reps I was looking for, and same thing with the pull ups, I had to use the chair to get my 10-15 reps for pull ups.

Day 2 - Plyo - Killed me, but I made it through & did every workout straight through. Plyo is really important to me because I like to play basketball. Hopefully it'll increase my verticle leap and lateral movements.

Day 3 - Shoulders and Arms - This workout was hard, but I was not very soar the next day. i think it's because of the fact that I didn't have the right dumbells for some workouts.

Day 4 - Yoga X - OMG THAT was crazy... but I finished the entire thing! I definitely need to work on my flexibility and balance.

Tonight is my first attempt at Legs and Back. Gonna try some pull ups without the chair first, and add it when I need it. I'll report back soon!

Day 5 - Legs & Back - I did it pretty well for the most part. I'm gonna need some heavier weight though for some of the exercises, and I had to do modified 1 leg wall sits. I started Ab Ripper X at 15 reps per exercise today, becuase of a tip another poster on these boards said. I'm gonna go up to 16 tonight when I do Chest & Back, then go up 2 every time I do the workout until I get to 25.

Day 6 - Kenpo X - I did it, got my heart rate up, but I didn't really give it my all. At one point my heart rate did get up to 170 but it was rarely there. I gotta bring it next time!

Day 7 - Rest - I didnt' do X Stretch & this morning I weighed in 2 pounds heavier than Saturday. My first week is done & I already feel better about myself!

Chest and back tonight! I'm gonna bring it!

I'm pretty soar from Chest and back last night. I forgot my worksheet, so I was really dissapointed that I couldn't gauge what I did last week compared to this week. I kept a record so I'm going to add them to my sheet when I get home from work. I know I up'd the weight though because I only had 25's before & I was using 30's last night.

As for food I had
Breakfast - 3 Eggs, 2 cups of Strawberries - .5 Protein, 1 Fruit
Snack - Protein Bar
Lunch - 1 cup: Srimp Alfredo Pasta with Wheat Rotini, 2 chicken Tenderloins, 1 cup Green Beans - 1 Carb, 1 Fat, 1.5 Protein, 1 Veggie
Dinner - Small Ceasar Salad with 1 Chicken Breast - 1 Veggie, 1 Fat, 2 Protein
Afterworkout Drink - 1 8 oz Glass 1% Milk

Last night I did Plyo and I brought it!!! I had to modify some of the running squat jumps by putting my hands on my thighs, and stopped early a couple times, but for the most part, I gave it my all and killed the workouts! It was such an improvement over last week!

Food Stats for yesterday were ok... I cheated & had a Doughnut as a snack in the morning... no good!

Breakfast - 3 Scrambled Eggs, 2 Cups Straberries - .5 Protein, 1 Fruit
Snack - Doughnut
Snack - Protein Bar
Lunch - Sliced chicken Sandwitch on high fiber wheat bread w/ mustard, 1 cup Green Beans - 2 Protein, 1 Carb, 1 Condiment, 1 Veggie
Dinner - 1 Pork loin Chop, mixed greens salad - 2 Protein, 1 veggie
Workout - Plyo baby!
Recovery Drink - 8 oz Skim Milk with 1 Scoop Whey Protein - 1 Dairy

Totals - Protein - 4.5, Carbs - 1, Dairy - 1, Fruit - 1, Veggies - 2, Snack - 1, Protein Bar - 1, Recovery Drink - 1

Weight this morning - 179.2lbs!

I have to try to get more protein, I'm supposed to be at 7 points per day.

Today I work both jobs, wont be home until after 9pm. Gonna do Shoulders & Arms & go to bed!

Last night I did my Shoulders and Arms workout & Ab Ripper X.

I bought some 20lbs weights last week so I felt a lot more comfortable. I was able to match the reps I did last week, or surpass them with 20's where last week I was using 15's. There were some exercises I did fewer reps or did the same with lower weight this week than last, but I think that was because this week I was really concentrating on my form, and last week, I was probably just trying to cheat and use my bodyweight more to assist getting the weights up.

Today I'm sore, but not that sore, I'm sure it will get worse throughout the day.

Food Stats yesterday were pretty decent, except I did have 2 servings of carbs. Here's the breakdown:

Breakfast - 3 Scrambled Eggs, 2 Cups Straberries - 0.5 Protein, 1 Fruit
Snack - Protein Bar
Lunch - Turkey Wrap with Mayo, Lettuce & Cheese on Wheat Tortilla, Polish Sausage with White Bun, Ketchup & Yellow Mustard - 2.5 Protein, 2 Carb, 1 fat, , 1 Dairy, 1 condiment
Dinnner - 1 Grilled Chicken Breast, 1 Cup steamed Veggies - 2 Protein, 1 Veggie
Workout - Shoulders and Arms w/ ABRX!
Recovery - 8oz Skim Milk w/ 1 scoop Whey Protein - 1 Dairy

Totals: Protein - 5, Dairy - 2, Fat - 1, Carbs - 2, Fruit - 1, Veggies - 2, Protein Bar - 1, Recovery Drink - 1

Weight this morning - 178.4!

Still struggling to get more protein, I just gotta add more chicken to my diet. Tonight is Yoga... BRING IT!

Last night was Yoga X. I did SO MUCH BETTER THAN LAST WEEK!!! I had better balance, could stay in the warrior poses for the entire time or nearly the entire time (towards the end my quads were on fire!), and I didn't straighten my legs more than 3 or 4 times total! I had better balance and more flexibility! On the single leg Hamstring stretches, I was grabbing my heals with both hands!

I still have to work on the strength/flexibility because the exercises like the toe lock for example, I still have trouble even doing the 2nd modification of keeping the leg straight without even grabbing the toe.

Here's the BAD news... the diet yesterday was as Charles Barkley would say "Turrible!" It started off great, but by the time I got to my workout, it was already too late...

Breakfast: 3 Eggs, 1 Cup Grapes - 0.5 Protein, 1 Fruit
Snack: Protein Bar - 1 Protein Bar
Lunch: Grilled Chicken sandwich on wheat bread with mustard, Steamed broccoli & cheese - 1.5 Protein, 1 Carb, 1 Veggie, 1 Dairy
Snack: 300 Calories of Peanuts (This is where it starts getting bad...)
Dinner: Subway 6" Oven Roasted Chicken on wheat bread with Lettuce, Pickles, Spinach, Mustard, salt & pepper - 1 Protein, 1 Carb, 1 Veggie
Dessert... a huge Waffel Cone of Cake Badder Ice Cream with Brownie, Sprinkles & chocolate syrup... Let's call it - 5 fat, 5 carb, .5 Protein, 1 Dairy...
Workout
Recovery Drink - 8oz Skim Milk, 1 scoop Whey Protein - 1 Recovery

Totals: 3.5 Protein, 7 Carb, 5 fat, 2 Dairy, 1 Vruit, 2 Veggie, 1 Protein Bar, 1 Recovery Drink

Weight this morning - 180.0lbs.

Obviously I've gained weight because of the Cold Stone... but it coulda been worse. No more cheating for me! I feel terrible! LOL

Legs and back tonight after I work both jobs! Day off tomorrow so I have all day to do Kenpo X! Bring it!

I did really well on Legs and back on Friday. I definitely brought it and really concentrated on my form. I was able to do 1 or 2 more pull-ups than I did last week, and was able to add more weight or reps to my leg workouts.

Being that it's Monday, I can't remember what I ate, but I know I stuck to the diet the entire day.

My Weight Saturday morning was 177.4 lbs!

Saturday, I was supposed to do Kenpo X, but I opted to play basketball for about an hour instead. It wasn't the best idea being that I had just done legs and back the night before. I didn't have my legs, so I sucked pretty hardcore for most of the games I played. I got in 5 pickup games though, so I worked myself pretty hard.

I didn't follow the diet at all really that day though. It was my first day that I didn't follow it at least to some degree. I had WAY too many carbs, not enough protein, and too much fat.

My Weight Sunday Morning jumped up to 183lbs.

Yesterday I did the X Stretch for the first time since the day before I started this program. I am definitely more flexibile than I was when I started. Other than that, there's not much to report...

Food:

Breakfast: 3 Scrambled Eggs, 1 Cup Green Grapes - 0.5 Protein, 1 Fruit
No Snack
Lunch: Salad w/ Romain Lettuce, Grilled Chicken, 1 Hardboiled Egg, Ranch Dressing - 1.5 Protein, 1 fat, 1 veggie
Workout - X Stretch
Recovery - 8oz Skim Milk with 1 scoop Whey Protein - 1 Recovery Drink, 1 Dairy
Dinner - 2 3oz Chicken Breasts, 1 Can Baked Beans - 3 Protein, 2 Carb, 1 Veggie

Total: 5 Protein, 1 Fat, 2 Carb, 1 Fruit, 2 Veggie, 1 Dairy, 1 Recovery Drink

Weight this morning: 181.2lbs.

Tonight I begin week 3 with chest and back! It's back to basics & I'm gonna bring it!

Holy pushups Batman! I'm doing pushups!!! Hell yes! Week 1 I was doing all of my push ups on my knees, week 2, I was doing most of my push ups on my knees, last night, I did NO push ups on my knees, and either matched or surpassed my week 2 total reps including the ones I did on my knees!

To the nay-sayers: THIS PROGRAM WORKS!!!

Pull ups, I was about the same, but I changed my modified pull up so that I am pulling more weight so that it works my muscles more. I did do more reps though. I'll be doing them without a chair in no time!

My Diet was decent yesterday as well (except for the doughnut... LOL).

Breakfast - 3 scrambled Eggs, 1 cup green grapes - 0.5 Protein, 1 Fruit
Snack - 1 Doughnut
Protein Bar - 1 Protein Bar
Lunch - 1 Turkey Sandwitch with 6 oz Turkey, 1 slice mild cheddar cheese, 2 slices of wheat, high fiber bread, 1 cup low-carb yogurt - 2 Protein, 1 Dairy, 1 Carb, 1 fruit???
Dinner - Small Garden Salad with 6 oz of Chicken, 1 hardboiled egg, 2 oz Ranch dressing - 1 Veggie, 2.5 Protein, 1 fat
Workout - Chest and back & I brought it!
Recovery - 8oz Skim Milk with 1 scoop Whey Protein

Grade: A-

Weight this morning: 179.4

I'm going to the first Suns Pre-Season game tonight, and then I have Plyometrics afterwards! Sounds like a great night to me!

I forgot to add a garden salad with low-fat italian dressing to my lunch - that's 1 veggie, 1 condiment

Totals were: 5 Proteins, 1 Fat, 1 Carb, 2 Fruit, 2 Veggie, 1 Condiment, 1 Snack, 1 Protein Bar, 1 Recovery Drink

Austin congrats. Keep up the good work. It's great to make that move with the push ups. Very soon you will be doing the one handed push ups.

Derrick

I'm hoping so! I haven't seen the vids yet, but I hear there are 1 handed push ups in the chest shoulders triceps videos in weeks 5-7! I'm excited for them!

The more I venture into this program, the more I find myself slacking on the diet. As I type this, finishing up a really good tasting doughnut, I try to remind myself that it is just 2 more weeks of eating 1 serving of carbs per day, but it is still hard to match my thoughts with my actions...

With that being said, yesterday was Plyometrics. I worked all day and went to the Suns game so I didn't get to the exercise until around 10:30pm & got to bed around midnight only to get up at 5:15am this morning to get to work early so I could make it to my second job on time. The workout was great! I pushed myself very hard and was able to increas my jump height, not put my hands on my quads as often, and jump greater distances, especially in the second round of each exercise group!

My nutrition plan was average at best.

Breakfast: 3 eggs, 1 cup grapes, 1 doughnut - 1 Protein, 1 Fruit, 2 carb, 2 fat
Snack: Protein Bar
Lunch: Teriyaki Chicken and white rice - 1 Protein, 4ish Carbs
Dinner: 9oz of Lean Steak, 1 Salad with low fat italian dressing - 3 protein, 1 veggie, 1 condiment
workout: Plyo
Recovery: 10oz Skim Milk with 1 scoop whey protein - 1 recovery, 1 dairy

Total: 4.5 Protein, 4 Carb, 2 Fat, 6ish Carbs, 1 dairy, 1 fruit, 1 veggie, 1 protein bar, 1 condiment, 1 recovery drink

Weight this morning: 179.0lbs.

On a side note, I am really starting to notice definition in my upper body and core. I still have a long way to go, but It is DEFINITELY noticable now! It's very exciting!

Shoulders and Arms... The glamor muscles. They're what are exposed when you wear a tank top! I really hate Tony Horton sometimes... I'm a terradactyl "Caw Caaaawwwww!" Are you kidding me???



There we go. Now you ARE a terradactyl, thanks to one of my favorite bloggers, Fitbomb! www.fitbomb.com

Anyway... on to Shoulders and Arms. I was able to increase my weight and/or reps again with these arm exercises. I'm no longer using bands for the switch grip tricep kick backs and started using my 10 pound dumbbells. Hopefully by the time I get to this exercise in week 8, I'll be using much higher weight! I was really surprised when I found myself doing 20 reps of curls with 20 pound weights, so I decided to bump it up to 25 in round 2 and did 12-15 reps with 25's!!! That actually got me really excited because it just proves that I'm getting stronger!

I started calculating my diet using www.fitday.com and it's really working out well so far.

I took in 2135 calories (yuck!), 92g Fat, 127g Carbs, 189g Protein
Fat: 39%
Carbs: 23%
Protein: 37%

Overall Grade: B-

I think I have to start replacing my dressings and condiments with Low-Fat versions because that fat statistic is killing me even though It was the fewest in grams, it was the highest percentage of calories! Very eye opening actually. I'm going to work on it today, and keep the fat down.

I was so busy last night that I had to eat a late dinner. I didn't have enough time between dinner & bed time to do yoga x so I dediced to skip a workout for the first time in my program. I'm not letting it get me down because there is a yoga class at the gym at my work this afternoon. I'm going to take my lunch break to do it. After work I have...work again at my second job. After that, I'll do Legs and back & I'll be all caught up!

My diet yesterday was pretty bad. I ate out all three meals, and didn't spread my meals out very much. I had these results:

Calories: 2475
129g Fat, 171g Carbs, 146g protein
Fat: 47%
Carbs: 28%
Protein: 25%

Overall grade: D

The shocker here is that I didn't even take any protein yesterday, and I still managed to eat almost 2500 calories. I really need to concentrate on not eating out and eating fatty foods like wings and pizza. Today I'm officially starting over with my diet and going to do things the right way.

Like I said earlier, today I will do Yoga at lunch, and legs and back tonight. It's gonna be killer but I gotta catch up!

I'm just a couple days behond you, Austin.

It's amazing how hard it is to get up to your calorie target when you eat clean foods and how easy it is to rack up calories like crazy when you eat out.

yep, I feel the same exact way! When eating in, I am struggling to eat 1500 calories a day, but if I eat out, the calories soar!

Well I finally got back on track last night with Core Synergistics. I haven't been posting because I've been on vacation, and haven't been at a computer. I didn't really stick to any diet, and cheated a little bit but it was not all that bad, I still had a few decent meals here and there. I did bring my DVD's with me though so I could do them on the road. I did Yoga on Monday, and last night I did Core Synergistics & ate a good dinner.

My diet is officially starting over today with my last week of phase 1.

I did Core Synergistics for the first time ever last night. It was not as intense as the other workouts, but it was definitely very different, and very fun! At one point my heart rate was over 170! I had to calm down... haha!

I didn't gain too much weight over the weekend, if anything. This morning i still weighted 179.4lbs. I was happy. It's only going down from there!

Last night I did Kenpo X & I really pushed myself to do the moves with passion and force. I really got into it & killed most of the workouts... though my kicks are not that great, LOL! Even after doing all of that though I don't feel like this exercise works me out enough. My heartrate gets up, but then drops back down to normal. I guess this is good because it's shocking the body with rapid heart rate adjustments, and my body weight showed, after I ate more calories than I should, I still lost 2.5 pounds between yesterday morning and this morning.

My diet plan:

2144 Calories (over goal of 2100 or less)
31% Protein (Under goal of 50%)
35% Fat (Over goal of 25%)
33% Carbs (Over goal of 25%)

Grade: B-

Today, I'm trying to get my shift covered at my night job to go play basketball with my buddies, and then I think I have X Stretch tonight? I can't remember... I'll report back tomorrow though.