Jell-o BodyI feel like I’m making gains but not as much body fat loss as I’d like. However, it’s probably because I took the “Recovery Week” a little too literally and missed the Tues – Sat workouts. Christmas threw me off. But I’m back on track now! Today was back and Bis and Ab RipperX. I feel pretty good. Altought my arms feel a bit like Jell-O right now.

I always have liked Phase II. I think I like the Mon and Wed DVDs from Phase II better that Phase I.

I have yet to try my homemade custom hybrid DVDs yet. I will work them in next week when I’m back to work. I’ll use them as a second workout of the day.

My updates are few and far between lately but just know that I am still bringing it!

Till next time… Bring It!!

week 2/52 lord help meWhat a difference two weeks makes. My Doc said that my back should be better in two weeks and he was right. I feel like I’m back to 100%. I did all the P90X workouts this week and the only modification I made was to skip Ab RipperX. I felt like I should take it easy on the lower back and feared that ABX would put too much strain on it. I’ll add ABX back in when I start Phase II.

Phase I is coming to and end and the upcoming week is recovery week.  It will be challenging because it is also Christmas week and I’ll be seeing relatives and partying… and eating. It will take a lot of will power to control myself but I will do my best.

I’m also thinking about making my own hybrid-cardio workout using P90X and P90X Plus moves. I will edit them into one awesome workout and use it as a second workout of the day. I’ll let ya know how it goes.

Till next time… Bring it!!

Nick Vujicic 49I get knocked down, but I get up again. I love that song, and there’s a good message in it. And here’s a very inspirational video about this very subject. Only a couple minutes long and well worth watching. It’s Nick Vujicic speaking about being born with no arms or legs and why it’s so important to keep getting up. 

So how does this relate to this blog post? Well, a little over a week ago I had terrible back and leg pain. I could not bend over and touch my knees without excruciating pain shooting down my back and legs. I was convinced that I had a ruptured disc in my back so I went to the doc. My doctor diagnosed me with back strain and told me to lay off of the exercise for a couple weeks.

I was right in the middle of P90X Phase 1 and could not see taking a couple weeks off and starting again. So I took 2 days off. I pushed my workout back by a couple days, took plenty of Ibuprofen and rested a bit. By the middle of the week I was doing modified workouts and making sure not to put too much strain on my back. This week I feel like a million bucks. Good as new.

So the moral is this. No matter how bad you think things are, keep trying. Keep getting up when knocked down.

This is my last week of Phase 1 before recovery week. I’m really looking forward to next week. More cardio and more Yoga. My body needs Yoga right now.

Till next time… Bring It!!

Natural treatment options for lower back painRecovering from back strain. Yep, isn’t that always the case. You’re back on track, working out, eating right, and then something comes up that can potentially throw you way off course. That’s what happened to me. But I won’t let it!

I’m not sure what the triggering event was, if there was one. But Saturday I started to feel a bit of lower back pain and by Saturday night it was extreme. When I would bend over to touch my knees the pain would radiate down the back of my legs. It was even worse on Sunday. Was it because I did KenopX on Saturday?

The pain was bad enough to wake me on Saturday and Sunday nights and cause me to lose an hour so of sleep.

I went to see the doc on Monday. He’s diagnosis is that it’s a sprain/strain and not a ruptured or herniated disc. His thinking is that because the pain is equal in but of my legs it is probably not very serious and just a strain. He prescribed Ibuprofen and Vicodin. I am using the Ibuprofen but decided to skip the Vicodin.

So I rested on Monday and did Monday’s Chest and Back workout on Tuesday after work. I modified it heavily, skipping moves like Heavy Pants and Lawnmowers. I also skipped Ab RipperX because my doc said to lay off crunches for awhile.

Today I will attempt to do PlyoX, but will modify when I need to.

I’m going to keep working out as much as I can because I HATE laying off for a weeks and then getting the damn DOMS all over again.

Hopefully I’ll be back to normal within a week or so and be able to bring the intensity once again.

Till next time… Bring it!!

kenpo world championshipsDay 7 and I’m going strong. I was off of work all last week and I really concentrated on working out and on my nutrition. I lost 3 lbs already.

I gave up coffee on Monday and had caffeine withdrawal headaches Tues, Wed, Thurs and Fri. I got rid of them by working out. It worked to snuff out the headache like magic.

Today is KenpoX and I’m really looking forward to it.

One other thing that I’m thinking of doing is to create some hybrid cardio workouts from exercises used in P90X and Tony’s One on One workouts. Then I will do them as a second workout in the afternoon.

Till next time… Bring it!!

Pyramide du régime méditerranéenI’m pretty sore today, but I have done P90X enough times to know what to expect. The first week is always Hell. Lot’s of DOMS. And chopping wood yesterday probably did not help.
I held strong with my diet today. Still eating clean.
Mike French said something pretty cool to me on Twitter today. He wrote “Doug, it takes a bit of time. Make your nutrition as important as your workouts and the results happen FAST!” Awesome words!
So that’s what I am going to do. REALLY concentrate on nutrition. Make it as important as my workouts. And make them both VERY important. I’ve been in shape and I’ve been out of shape. I like being in shape sooooo much better.
So who’s with me? Let’s make nutrition AND our workouts close to the top of the priority list!
Bring it!!
Heavy LiftingWe I have managed to completely lose all of my hard earned fitness and gained a bunch of weight as well. I’ll blame it on traveling for business. My derailment started sometime around last May. I was traveling a lot, eating junk, drinking too many beers, and not exercising regularly. I gained over 20 pounds and look and feel like crap.
I have a slew of minor medical aliments all related to diet and fitness. It's time to get my life back!
I started P90X again and am eating clean.
So here it is, another round of P90X… Let’s call it a Comeback!

I missed the shoulders and arms workout on Day 17 because I could not get up early enough to workout and then we had birthday festivities in the evening so I did not workout then either.

On Day 18 I did yesterday’s Shoulders and Arms and ARX workout. But… I mowed the lawn first and ran out of time for the entire workout so I just did 1/2. All the exercises once instead of twice. Then about 1/2 of ARX.

Till next time… Bring it!!

I was derailed for a few days. As usual, travel got the best of me. I missed YogaX on Thursday (day 11), then I missed Legs and Back on Friday (day 12), and then I missed KenpoX on Saturday (day 13.) Day 14 was a rest day and would have been a great day to make up a workout, I didn’t do it. Instead I did yard work all day.

But today I got back on track and did my day 15 Chest, Back and ARX workout. I really love this one. I like body weight exercises a lot and this day consists mostly of push-ups and pull-ups.

Tomorrow is Plyo.

Till next time… bring it!!

I had a great Shoulders and Arms workout today. The hotel I'm in has a very nice workout area complete with free weights.

I'm not watching my diet very well but I'm very happy that I am able to keep on track with my workouts.

Till next time... Bring It!! 

Monday was day 8 and I stayed on track and did the Chest and Back workout. Altough I did have to modify it a bit. I'm staying somewhere that does not have and equipment for doing pull-ups so I skipped the pull-up excersizes. I was able to increase my reps on most of the exercises.

Tuesday was day 9 and I did Plyometrics. I had to do it in a hotel room so I felt like it was not as good of a workout as it could have been but it still felt great to get it in and stay on track.

Till next time... Bring It!! 

Well, that’s it, my first week of this round of P90X is in the books. I decided to rest yesterday and do KenpoX today instead. My wife is still hanging with me and we had a great workout today. I always sweat a bunch during that workout and today was no exception.

Till next time… Bring it!!

Vomit Sign.I need to start working out in the morning again. All this week I have been working out after work and I have felt a little queasy during the workouts. I’m thinking it’s because I eat late lunches and then a snack shortly before being done with work. Today my wife and I did Legs and back and I literally thought that I was going to vomit during the entire workout. My wife is doing great and barley sweats during these workouts.

This has been a great week but at the same time it has been a frustrating week. I did P90X/P90X + for over a year and was feeling pretty good about my fitness. Then I went a couple months where I had spotty workouts and occasional runs. I have lost so much fitness in that short period of time. There are some pull up exercises where I can only do 1/2 of what I used to be able to do. And Plyo just about killed me.

The thing that keeps me going is the fact that I know it will get easier and easier everyday I continue to exercise.

Till next time… Bring it!!

YogaX was the workout of the day but I did Tony Horton’s Fountain of Youth Yoga instead. I didn’t wake up in time to do my P90X workout this morning so my wife and I did Fountain of Youth after I mowed the lawn. I really needed it, I have been very tight. My entire body is suffering from DOMS but is getting better little by little.

I am looking forward to Legs and Back tomorrow.

Till next time… Bring it!!

Today was Shoulders and arms and ARX. But WOW am I sore today. I am still feeling the DOMS from Monday’s workout, I can barely walk from Tuesday’s Plyo, and now I’m sure that on Thursday I will be hurting due to today’s Shoulders and Arms workout. I can’t wait until next week so I don’t hurt as much.

My wife is still hanging with me and it’s great to have someone to share this with.

Till next time… Bring it!!

Jump on the base pointWell, I’m officially on a roll here. I’ve made it two whole days! But seriously… Plyometrics kicked my butt today! Wow, it’s been way to long since I have done that workout and I felt it big time. There were only a few of exercises that I could not complete all the reps on so I felt pretty good about that. But I did feel like I was going to vomit during the second 1/2 of it. I think I ate too close to the workout.

My wife was there by my side today. She did great and it was nice to have a partner to do it with. And I think having her there helped me push through a few of the exercises.

Till next time… Bring It!!

Well I’m calling this Round 5 but it’s probably more than that due to the failed rotations of P90X Max and some other hybrid workouts that I tried.

I think that I have been away from P90X workouts for at least a month and I felt it today. I just got done with Chest, Back and Ab RipperX. My arms are toast but I feel great. Working out always makes me feel so good. Given that fact I can not figure out why I keep drifting away from it now and then. Maybe I’ll figure it out some day.

My wife has decided to join me for this Round. Well, at least Phase 1 of this Round. I’m not sure if she will like it enough to stick with it. I’m hoping that we can drive each other and help each other stay on track.

Well, wish me luck!

Till next time… Bring it!!

Western Park WagonSo if I had to be honest about my workout schedule lately I’d have to say that I fell off the wagon. Sure, I still run 2 to 3 times a week but that’s not enough for me. So I’ll keep running and wait for the wagon to circle around and hop on when it does. Maybe that wagon will have INSANITY painted on the side of it.

Keep Bringing it!

It’s bee awhile since I wrote a blog post. I have been traveling for a couple weeks and as usual my workouts suffered. The good news is that I have been running more lately. I love running it has always been my constant.

Today It was raining when it came time for me to workout so I did Tony Horton’s One on One Super Cardio. It’s a great workout and I was wasted when done.

My diet has been very good since I’ve been home. I am not doing a structured workout right now. I am thinking that a round of good ‘ole P90X is in order. It’s what I find the easiest to stick to.

Not much more to add.

Till next time… Bring it!!

I ran again today even though I was a little sore from the day before. I did my usual 3.83 mile route again. When I got back I did some shoulder and biceps lifting.

I love working out.

I ran 3 miles while on a business trip last and it felt great. After that run I went back to the room and did Ab RipperX (ARX) from memory, but I modified it a bit. I did the first ARX move and then 30 normal push-ups. Then the second ARX move and then 30 normal push-ups. The the next move from ARX followed by wide push-ups. You get the idea. What a great hotel room workout, I was spent when done.

Today it was beautiful here and I was compelled to go for a run. I did 3.83 miles. I miss that feeling, then one you get during the run. The trance like feeling that the rhythmic motion of running gives me. I think I’ll start running more.

When my run was done I did push-ups and pull-ups for about 30 minutes.

A great way to kick off the Summer.

Till next time… Bring it!!

Today was Super Cardio and what a super workout it was. It was my first time doing it and it was a killer. I was not a huge fan of the third round, consisting mainly of Kenpo moves, because it was not intense enough for me. But all in all a great, and quick, workout.

Till next time… Bring It!!

Banned Mercury-in-Glass ThermometerYesterday didn’t go so well, I woke up feeling like I was coming down with something and then shortly after I woke up my youngest daughter woke up and vomited. I felt groggy and flu like all day so I decided to take the day off. I skipped YogaX.

I felt much better today, not 100% but better none the less. I did P90X Plus – Total Body Plus today and I love that workout. I always end up with a nice big puddle of sweat on the floor after I do any of the P90X Plus routines and today was no exception. I could tell that I was a little off today but I still managed to bring it.

Make the most of your day and always be thankful that you are alive and be thankful for the level of health that you have, it could be worse.

Till next time… Bring it!

I worked out after work today, it was P90X shoulders and arms and ab ripperX. I skipped the Tricep exercises in shoulders and arms because my triceps are still feeling DOMS from Monday’s workout.

All in all great workout and I can barely move my arms now.

Till next time… Bring It!!

I had a great workout today. I woke up early and got my morning workout in, it was Plyo Legs. Tony really puts you through the paces on this one. It’s been 14 hours since the workout and I’m already sore.

Diet was great again today.

I have some travel coming up soon. I really, really, really must try to maintain my diet and workouts while gone.

Till next time… bring It!!

Fight Club DVDYes, I missed working out on Friday, Saturday and Sunday of last week. So what? I’m getting tired of killing myself if I miss a workout or two. I will try to be more consistent but I’m not going to beat myself up in my head or on this blog. At least that is my goal, I’ll see how long I last.
So today I started the P90X Max workout. Basically P90X plus the One on One with Tony DVDs. Today was 30 – 15, the Upper Body Massacre. It was an hour of push-ups and pull ups. And then I finished it off with ARX. Man was I toast. I didn’t do as many reps as Tony but I did end up doing 234 push ups and 86 pull ups. OUCH!
I just hope I am OK tomorrow, my right elbow feels a bit tweaked. Tomorrow is a new workout for me, Plyo Legs.
Till next time… Bring it!!

Well I actually woke up in time to get my workout done this morning and it felt great. Today was Upper Plus and Ten Minute Trainer Abs. My arms are like noodles from that Upper Plus workout.

I have been doing a Hybrid P90X workout from Mark Briggs and I like it but I think I may change and do another Mark Briggs workout. I think it’s called P90X Max? Anyway it incorporates P90X, P90X + and some of the “One on One with Tony Horton” DVDs. It looks pretty cool. I found it on the Beachbody community forums.

 

Phase 1
Week 1-3

1. 30-15, ARx or Killer Abs
2. Plyo/Legs
3. Shoulders & Arms, ARx or Killer Abs
4. Fountain of Youth or Yoga X
5. Total Body+, (Abs can be added if necessary.)
6. Super Cardio
7. X Stretch

Recovery Week
Week 4

1. Fountain of Youth
2. Core Synergistics
3. Kenpo Cardio
4. X Stretch
5. Mammoth UML
6. Fountain of Youth or Yoga X
7. X Stretch

Phase 2
Weeks 5-7

1. Chest, Shoulders & Triceps, ARx or Abs/Core+
2. Intervals or Plyometrics
3. Just Arms, Killer Abs
4. Fountain of Youth or Yoga X
5. Road Warrior, ARx or Abs/Core +
6. Super Cardio
7. X Stretch

Recovery Week
Week 8

1. Fountain of Youth
2. Core Synergistics
3. Kenpo Cardio
4. X Stretch
5. Mammoth UML
6. Fountain of Youth or Yoga X
7. X Stretch

Phase 3
Week 9 & 11

1. 30-15, ARx or Killer Abs (I have not done Killer Abs yet).
2. Plyo/Legs
3. Shoulders & Arms, ARx or Killer Abs
4. Fountain of Youth or Yoga X
5. Total Body+, (Abs can be added if necessary.)
6. Super Cardio
7. X Stretch

Week 10 & 12

1. Chest, Shoulders & Triceps, ARx or Abs/Core+
2. Intervals or Plyometrics
3. Just Arms, Killer Abs
4. Fountain of Youth or Yoga X
5. Road Warrior, ARx or Abs/Core+
6. Super Cardio
7. X Stretch

Recovery Week
Week 13
1. Fountain of Youth
2. Core Synergistics
3. Kenpo Cardio
4. X Stretch
5. Mammoth UML
6. Fountain of Youth or Yoga X
7. X Stretch

So tomorrow is Yoga and I am going to follow the above schedule. Wish me luck!

Till next time… Bring it!!

Rolex Daytona Cosmograph 1652/3 - Movement macroToday was Kenpo Cardio Plus. And once again I did not get up on time to workout in the morning. I’m waking up earlier and earlier but my internal clock is still broken. Well, maybe not broken but it sure is out of whack from traveling.

I worked out after work. It was a pretty good workout but I don’t particularly like Kenpo Cardio. I feel uncoordinated in many of the moves and just don’t feel like I get a good workout. I always work up more of a sweat in good ‘ole KenpoX.

Diet was pretty good today. All in all it was a good day.

Till next time… Bring it!!

Mickey and Donald Alarm ClockToday I did Interval Plus and Ten Minute Trainer Abs. What a great workout. Although I could tell that I lost some fitness. I had to stop short in some of the Interval Plus moves. I was DYING!! My inner voice was saying things like.. “ARE YOU FRIGGIN NUTS!?!” and “You should NOT be doing this.” I ignored it and pressed on.

I did my workout after work today because once again I could not get up at 5am. I kept turning the alarm clock off. That’s two days in a row now. My goal for tomorrow is to get up on time and get that AM workout in. And to make that happed I must get to bed early.

Till next time… bring it!!

The State Of The NationAbout two weeks! Two weeks is what it seems to take to go from athlete to couch potato. I read that above quote years ago and although it is not exactly accurate it sure does hold true for me throughout the years. I find that if I take two weeks off that I have lost quite a bit of fitness. Luckily I can get back to where I was a lot quicker than a couch potato can.
So the past two weeks I have been traveling and completely blew my diet and did not stick to my exercise routine. I feel terrible. Both mentally and physically. My gut is bloated, my face is bloated, and I gained at least 15 pounds. I’m ready for a change.
I started my new P90X/P90X + hybrid workout today. I did not get up in time for a morning workout (was I trying to sabotage my workout?) so I did it after work. Today’s workout was P90X Plus Total Body. I felt like I was going to vomit when done. I lost a few reps on most exercises, my fat belly got in my way in some exercises, I felt like crap. I so want to get back to where I was just 2 short months ago. You see, for the past 2 months I have been away from home for a total of 4 weeks. And for me that means eating like crap and not exercising for what adds up to one full month.
It’s time for a change.
And I stumbled on a great Mark Briggs post about eating, I think I’ll try some of his ideas.
Wish me luck…
Till next time… Bring It!!

Today was supposed to be a rest day but I am unable to do tomorrow’s workout tomorrow so I did it today. It was Chest, Shoulders, Triceps and Ab RipperX. I felt very strong during this workout and really brought it. Increased reps on many exercises. Overall a great workout and a great feeling knowing that tomorrow’s workout is done.

Till next time… Bring It!!

foggy karate kickI did KenpoX today for the first time in a while and it felt great. I always work up a fantastic sweat from that workout. And it’s amazing how good you feel after a workout like that. it just sets the tone for the rest of the day.

Diet was pretty good today too.

Till next time… Bring it!!

Legs and Back today but I skipped Ab Ripper X. I have been sleeping in a bit lately and because of this I have missed all of the AbX workouts this week.

The legs and back workout felt great and I added at least one rep to each of the pull-up exercises.

Diet good today.

Till next time… Bring it!!

ZenToday was YogaX day but I decided to replace it with Tony Horton’s One on One Yoga workout called Fountain of Youth. I really liked this one. Very casual, still a good workout, and only about 45 minutes. I will still do YogaX but when I oversleep and when I travel I will do Fountain of Youth.

Have a great day!

Till next time… Bring It!!

the price to payDay 72 was yesterday and it was Plyometrics. It just about killed me. I had to skip last week’s plyo workout and I REALLY felt it. I really brought it and I was a bit queasy at the end. This workout never gets easy!

Today was Day 73, Shoulders and Arms. I got out of bed a bit late and missed Ab RipperX. That’s one of my problems lately, I can’t get out of bed in the morning. But hey, at least I have managed 3 workouts in a row this week, That’s better than last week! And I love this workout. Heck, there aren’t many that I don’t love.

After this week I have 2 more weeks left of this Round. I have decided that I will do a P90X and P90X+ hybrid workout. I’m really leaning towards a workout I found on the Beachbody forums. It was created and posted by Mark Briggs. I hope I’m not violating some type of copyright here but I’ll post the workout below. Some friends have asked for it and this is the easiest way I can figure out to get it to them.

So until next time… Bring It!!!

Week 1

1. Total Body Plus
2. Interval X Plus and TMT Abs
3. Kenpo Cardio Plus
4. Upper Plus and TMT Abs
5. Yoga X
6. Core Synergistics
7. Rest or X-Stretch

Week 2

1. Chest/Back/ARX
2. Plyometrics
3. Shoulder/Arms/ARX
4. Yoga X
5. Plyo Legs (One on One)
6. Kenpo Cardio Plus
7. Rest or X-Stretch

Week 3

Repeat week 1

Week 4

Repeat week 2

Week 5 (RECOVERY)

1. Yoga X
2. TMT Total Body 2 (4 rounds)
3. Kenpo Cardio Plus
4. TMT Upper Body (4 rounds)
5. X-Stretch
6. Interval X Plus and Ab Ripper 200
7. Rest or X-Stretch

Week 6

1. Upper Plus and TMT Abs
2. Core Synergistics
3. Interval X Plus
4. Yoga X
5. Total Body Plus
6. Kenpo Cardio Plus
7. Rest or X-Stretch

Week 7

1. Chest/Shoulders/Triceps/ARX
2. Plyometrics
3. Back/Biceps/ARX
4. Yoga X
5. Core Synergistics
6. Kenpo Cardio Plus
7. Rest or X-Stretch

Week 8

Repeat week 6

Week 9

Repeat week 7

Week 10 (RECOVERY)

1. Yoga X
2. TMT Total Body 2 (4 rounds)
3. Kenpo Cardio Plus
4. TMT Upper Body (4 rounds)
5. X-Stretch
6. Interval X Plus and Ab Ripper 200
7. Rest or X-Stretch

Week 11

1. Upper Plus and TMT Abs
2. Core Synergistics
3. Interval X Plus and TMT Abs
4. Yoga X
5. Total Body Plus
6. Kenpo Cardio Plus
7. Rest or X-Stretch

Week 12

1. Chest/Back/ARX
2. Plyometrics
3. Shoulders/Arms/ARX
4. Yoga X
5. Plyo Legs (One on One)
6. Kenpo Cardio Plus
7. Rest or X-Stretch

Week 13

1. Total Body Plus
2. Interval X Plus and TMT Abs
3. Core Synergistics
4. Yoga X
5. Upper Plus and TMT Abs
6. Kenpo Cardio Plus
7. Rest or X-Stretch

Week 14

1. Chest/Shoulders/Triceps/ARX
2. Plyometrics
3. Back/Biceps/ARX
4. Yoga X
5. Core Synergistics
6. Kenpo Cardio Plus
7. Rest or X-Stretch

Week 15 (RECOVERY)

1. Yoga X
2. TMT Total Body 2 (4 rounds)
3. Kenpo Cardio Plus
4. TMT Upper Body (4 rounds)
5. X-Stretch
6. Interval X Plus and Ab Ripper 200
7. Rest or X-Stretch

It took me quite awhile to get out of bed this morning, I even contemplated staying in bed and not working out at all, but get out of bed I did. And I’m happy I did because I had a great P90X Chest and back workout today. I really like that workout. Lot’s of pushing and pulling.

My diet was OK today.

Plyometrics tomorrow!

Till then… Bring it!!

I just got done with P90X Legs and Back and Ab RipperX and I feel a bit queasy. That’s a good thing right?

Ok, here’s what’s up, I’m getting very tired of falling off the wagon and then climbing back on again. I’m not too sure what my problem is. I did so good for over a year and now I am struggling to stay on track. I have gained 10 pounds since the two business trips in March that started me down this rocky road. I think that I am ready to be on track again now. I’m tired of falling of this wagon. The scary thing is that I have another two weeks of back to back business trips in the near future. And history shows that I don’t do too well while away.

In the last 9 days I have done 3 of my P90X workouts. Not good. Time to get with it.

Yesterday I ordered Tony Horton’s Fountain of Youth Yoga DVD from here and can’t wait for it to arrive. It’s supposed to be awesome and a bit shorter than YogaX.

I’m also seriously looking into changing my diet a bit and leaning more towards Mark Sisson’s primal diet. I’ll let you know how that goes.

Till next time… Bring it!!

I woke up on time today and did YogaX. It feels great to be back on track. But wow am I still in pain from Tuesday’s PlyoX workout. It amazes me that I can still feel this sore after more than 48 hours. I can barely make it up and down the stars. OUCH!

I could tell that it had been awhile since I did Yoga, it was sloppy. But I felt great when done.

Till next time… Bring It!!

AGRR 4058I may actually be on track! I woke up on time this morning and did my Shoulders, Arms and Ab RipperX workout. I could tell that it has been awhile since I did Ab RipperX, it was tough to get through.

Diet was pretty good today.

Till next time… Bring It!!

DerailDay 57 is the start of Phase III but it was delayed by about a week. And to make matters worse, I am still way out of whack with my internal clock and having a hard time getting to bed early enough to get up at 5 am for my workout. With the time change and then being in the central time zone for 3 out of the 4 months in March it really threw me off. Yesterday I over slept and missed my workout. I never got it in. Not a great start to Phase III. My diet was pretty good though.

Today is Day 57 and I slept in again but at least I still got my Plyo workout in after work. And boy was it a killer! Slaking off for a couple weeks really set me back. I had to stop most of the Plyo exercises 10 seconds short. It’s amazing how much fitness you lose just from taking a week or so off. I was dying during the workout. If I can walk tomorrow I’ll be surprised.

I’m ready to be back on track. Tonight I got all my worksheets together and I’m all set for Phase III now.

I’m not too sure how I’m going to do it but I must figure out a strategy for staying on track while out of town on business. I was in Dallas, TX last week and ate horribly and didn’t workout once.

Well, better late thank never. Phase III here I come!

Till next time… Bring it!!

Cowboy GearDay 56 marked the start of Phase III and I rested. I was supposed to do the KenpoX workout that I skipped the day before but I never got around to it. I’m still working out but I feel very off track. I’m reminded of something A friend of mine used to  say about situations like this. He would say “Uh o, the wheels are coming off.” He explained it by saying to imagine a stage coach rolling down a very steep hill bouncing high in the air as it rolled faster and faster. And just before it began tumbling out of control and finally breaking into a million pieces… the wheels would come off. That’s a bit how I feel right now.

It always amazes me at how little it takes to knock me off track. Just two weeks ago my diet was great, I was logging every morsel I put into my mouth. I was working out twice a day a few times a week, I was keeping up with my P90X worksheets, and then it happened. I had to travel for 2 weeks. It totally took my momentum away. And just like a big bolder, once it stops rolling it is hard to get it started again.

Like I said, I am still working out. But my diet is not great. I did Day 57’s chest and back workout and felt great. As a matter of fact, it has been 2 days now and I’m still sore. And then on Day 58 I really brought it for Plyo. That was yesterday and I can barely walk today. Today was Day 59 and I did one of my favorites, Shoulders and Arms. But… I have not done Ab Ripper X in about a week and a half. :o( I have been sleeping in too late to fit it in during my morning workout. Now that the time has changed I am finding it harder to get to sleep early enough to wake up on time.

So I have to get my momentum rolling again. Unfortunately I have some more travel coming up soon and it will probably set me back again. It’s a real bummer. I often dread even going to visit family for a day or two because I know that it has a good chance of derailing me. It has happened before. I’m great if I can just stay at home and do my daily routine. I guess that is just not realistic.

I’ll continue to fight the good fight.

One thing that I have stopped doing is logging into WOWY.com for my morning P90X workouts. I really only did it in an attempt to win the daily prize but I recently found out that you have to be a paying member to win now. Well, you don’t HAVE to be a paying member to win. You can complete the “short” online entry form every day for a chance to win. But I’ll tell ya what, they really want to give you some incentive to be a paying member and made that form a giant pain in the butt! So I’m done with WOWY.

I’m hoping that after this next trip that I’ll be back on track. Diet and all.

On a positive note I was pleasantly surprised to see that @Tony_Horton is now following me on Twitter. How cool! You can follow me to.. @Dugrhill

Till next time… Bring it!!

Cowboy GearDay 56 marked the start of Phase III and I rested. I was supposed to do the KenpoX workout that I skipped the day before but I never got around to it. I’m still working out but I feel very off track. I’m reminded of something A friend of mine used to  say about situations like this. He would say “Uh o, the wheels are coming off.” He explained it by saying to imagine a stage coach rolling down a very steep hill bouncing high in the air as it rolled faster and faster. And just before it began tumbling out of control and finally breaking into a million pieces… the wheels would come off. That’s a bit how I feel right now.
It always amazes me at how little it takes to knock me off track. Just two weeks ago my diet was great, I was logging every morsel I put into my mouth. I was working out twice a day a few times a week, I was keeping up with my P90X worksheets, and then it happened. I had to travel for 2 weeks. It totally took my momentum away. And just like a big bolder, once it stops rolling it is hard to get it started again.
Like I said, I am still working out. But my diet is not great. I did Day 57’s chest and back workout and felt great. As a matter of fact, it has been 2 days now and I’m still sore. And then on Day 58 I really brought it for Plyo. That was yesterday and I can barely walk today. Today was Day 59 and I did one of my favorites, Shoulders and Arms. But… I have not done Ab Ripper X in about a week and a half. :o( I have been sleeping in too late to fit it in during my morning workout. Now that the time has changed I am finding it harder to get to sleep early enough to wake up on time.
So I have to get my momentum rolling again. Unfortunately I have some more travel coming up soon and it will probably set me back again. It’s a real bummer. I often dread even going to visit family for a day or two because I know that it has a good chance of derailing me. It has happened before. I’m great if I can just stay at home and do my daily routine. I guess that is just not realistic.
I’ll continue to fight the good fight.
One thing that I have stopped doing is logging into WOWY.com for my morning P90X workouts. I really only did it in an attempt to win the daily prize but I recently found out that you have to be a paying member to win now. Well, you don’t HAVE to be a paying member to win. You can complete the “short” online entry form every day for a chance to win. But I’ll tell ya what, they really want to give you some incentive to be a paying member and made that form a giant pain in the butt! So I’m done with WOWY.
I’m hoping that after this next trip that I’ll be back on track. Diet and all.
On a positive note I was pleasantly surprised to see that @Tony_Horton is now following me on Twitter. How cool! You can follow me to.. @Dugrhill
Till next time… Bring it!!

Desk Renaissance Marriott Austin TexasThis has been the longest I have gone without writing some blog entries. Mainly because I was traveling and I don’t want to post about my hotel workouts, essentially letting people know that I am not at home.

I was traveling 2 weeks in a row, something I rarely do, and it threw me way out of whack. The first week I was in D.C. and I tried to keep up by writing my entries in MSWord with plans to later post them in my blog. Here are those entries…

3/1/09 - Day 42 This was a rest day and I did rest. Mainly because I am sick.

3/2/09 - Day 43 I did Chest and shoulders and ABX. Did it in hotel room in after noon. Skipped second workout because sick.

3/3/09 - Day 44 Was Plyometrics. Did it in the morning in hotel. Felt good and am starting to feel better. In the afternoon I did Interval Plus in hotel room. Was able to bring it 80% today. Almost back to normal.

3/4/2009 - Day 45 Today was Back and Biceps. I really hate working out with the resistance bands! I  did what I could but I really don’t see how people use these things and get a decent workout in. I guess that they are better than nothing.

3/5/2009 - Day 46 – YogaX day. Skipped it and ate like crap.

3/6/2009 - Day 47 – Skipped today. Ate crap. Traveling is so hard for me. I always lose momentum and the will to eat right. I must work on this!

3/7/09 - Day 48 – Ran outside today. Great run. Ate too much garbage though.

3/8/09 - Day 49 – Took day off. Ate a TON of garbage. Again!

3/9/09 - Day 50 – Flew to Memphis today. Did Chest Shoulders Tris, abx in morning before flight. This was supposed to be a recovery week but since last week was basically a recovery week I have decided to repeat last week and not have a true recovery week. Although I will be in a hotel again this week so it’s hard to say how good of a repeat week this will be. My diet realty suffered last week. I was sick and away from home and craving carbs. I ate way too much garbage. I have decided to really crack down on my diet and get serious.

3/10/09 to 3/14/09 – Day 51 thru Day 55 –

My diet was very bad days 51 thru 54.

On Day 51I ran 3 miles on the hotel treadmill.

On Day 52 I did Back and Biceps in the hotel gym and had a great workout using their dumbbells. My arms were VERY sore the following day.

Day 53 I ran 4 miles on the hotel treadmill.

Day 54 I took the day off

Day 55 – Hmmm.. the day is not over yet. Diet has been spot on today. Still time to workout. KenpoX? Or run? I’ll let ya know tomorrow.

OK, that catches my up with my posts. Time to really focus on diet this week. More traveling soon so I need to figure out a plan to better handle travel workouts and diet.

Till next time… Bring it!!

Desk Renaissance Marriott Austin TexasThis has been the longest I have gone without writing some blog entries. Mainly because I was traveling and I don’t want to post about my hotel workouts, essentially letting people know that I am not at home.
I was traveling 2 weeks in a row, something I rarely do, and it threw me way out of whack. The first week I was in D.C. and I tried to keep up by writing my entries in MSWord with plans to later post them in my blog. Here are those entries…
3/1/09 - Day 42 This was a rest day and I did rest. Mainly because I am sick.
3/2/09 - Day 43 I did Chest and shoulders and ABX. Did it in hotel room in after noon. Skipped second workout because sick.
3/3/09 - Day 44 Was Plyometrics. Did it in the morning in hotel. Felt good and am starting to feel better. In the afternoon I did Interval Plus in hotel room. Was able to bring it 80% today. Almost back to normal.
3/4/2009 - Day 45 Today was Back and Biceps. I really hate working out with the resistance bands! I  did what I could but I really don’t see how people use these things and get a decent workout in. I guess that they are better than nothing.
3/5/2009 - Day 46 – YogaX day. Skipped it and ate like crap.
3/6/2009 - Day 47 – Skipped today. Ate crap. Traveling is so hard for me. I always lose momentum and the will to eat right. I must work on this!
3/7/09 - Day 48 – Ran outside today. Great run. Ate too much garbage though.
3/8/09 - Day 49 – Took day off. Ate a TON of garbage. Again!
3/9/09 - Day 50 – Flew to Memphis today. Did Chest Shoulders Tris, abx in morning before flight. This was supposed to be a recovery week but since last week was basically a recovery week I have decided to repeat last week and not have a true recovery week. Although I will be in a hotel again this week so it’s hard to say how good of a repeat week this will be. My diet realty suffered last week. I was sick and away from home and craving carbs. I ate way too much garbage. I have decided to really crack down on my diet and get serious.
3/10/09 to 3/14/09 – Day 51 thru Day 55 –
My diet was very bad days 51 thru 54.
On Day 51I ran 3 miles on the hotel treadmill.
On Day 52 I did Back and Biceps in the hotel gym and had a great workout using their dumbbells. My arms were VERY sore the following day.
Day 53 I ran 4 miles on the hotel treadmill.
Day 54 I took the day off
Day 55 – Hmmm.. the day is not over yet. Diet has been spot on today. Still time to workout. KenpoX? Or run? I’ll let ya know tomorrow.
OK, that catches my up with my posts. Time to really focus on diet this week. More traveling soon so I need to figure out a plan to better handle travel workouts and diet.
Till next time… Bring it!!

Day 40 was Legs and Back and Ab RipperX. I felt great that morning and my lower back pain was even gone. I am so blessed that I heal quickly. It seems that whenever I get a small injury that it’s gone in a couple days. In the afternoon I ran 4 miles. I had planned on doing some of the P90X Upper Plus exercises but my schedule got rearranged and I ran instead.

Day 41 and I feel like I’m coming down with something. AGAIN!!! Man, I work at home and never leave the house. How do I keep getting sick?!?! It must be due to the fact that I have a pre-schooler in the house. She’s always bringing stuff home. And by stuff I mean germs! Ugh! I really can’t afford to be sick right now so I went out and bought some ZiCam. I usually don’t believe in the stuff but right now I’d try just about anything because I CAN’T be sick!

And because I was sick today I craved junk like you would not believe. Carbs, carbs, carbs! I’m surprised I only ended up at 350 calories over what I burned for the day.

I was scheduled for KenpoX today but was really dragging. I was going to skip it altogether. Then I decided to try one of the oldest tricks in the book. I told myself that I would go downstairs (to my workout area) and put the heart rate monitor on, and just workout for 10 minutes. Ha! Try it. Once you start you can’t stop! I started working on the heavy bag. I did that for about 15 minutes and had a good sweat going. Then I did my own cardio routine. I just made it up on the spot. Once you’ve done P90X and P90X + a few times you have an arsenal of awesome exercises to draw from. Thanks Tony! I just started doing some of my favorite moves. Super Skaters, Pike pull-ups, jumping jacks, prison cell push ups, and so on and so on. I even made up some of my own moves. What a great workout. By the time I was done 45 minutes had passed my heart rate was way up there and I had burned 550 calories.

I do feel a little pain in my right collar bone after my heavy bag work. That happens to me often when I over do it on the bag. Hopefully it will be like the rest of my injuries and go away quickly.

Tomorrow is a rest day but I plan on doing a long/slow run. I am only running 2 days a week now. One day for intervals and one long run.

Till next time… Bring It!!

NamasteDay 38 was Back and Biceps and I must have strained my back during the workout because I'm feeling a bit of a twinge in my back. I did my favorite exercises from Total Body Plus in afternoon and got a great sweat going.

Day 39 and I’m still feeling some back strain. I slept in today and only had time for 45 min of YogaX. It was a nice workout but I did not sweat as much as last week for some reason. After work I ran intervals on the treadmill.

I’m doing a pretty good job of burning more than I’m eating but I have 3 business trips coming up soon and I’m worried that I will not do so well when not at home. My workouts and diet always fall apart when I’m away.

Till next time… Bring it!!

Conehead babyToday was Plyometrics and I really brought it today. I had a great workout and even took the afternoon off.

I have been reading a lot about diet and exercise lately and thinking that I’m working a little to hard. I need to concentrate more on diet. I want to lower my percentage of carb intake and increase fat and protein. Good fats that is.

Here’s a great article by someone that who’s opinion I highly respect Washboard Abs on a High-Fat Diet, No Ab Workouts and No Cardio and it has shed some new light on the topic for me.

I cheated a little at dinner tonight. Today is Fat Tuesday and my wife bough a King Cake and I could not resist and had a 190 cal piece. I still kept my calories lower than what I burned today though.

Till next time… Bring it!!

What I've Been ShovelingDay 35 was a rest day and I did rest. From P90X anyway. I ended up having to shovel some serious snow. I wore my heart rate monitor to see how many calories that I burned while out there and was surprised at how many it was. 704 calories burned!

Today, Day 36, was Chest, Shoulders, triceps and ABX. I’m modifying the workouts and bit and decided to skip ARX this morning and do Abs/Core Plus after work instead. And instead of running after work I did a modification of Upper Plus. I just did the workouts that I like. Combat push-ups, 360 chaturanga run, etc.

I think that instead of doing a full P90X plus as a second workout in the after noon that I will do a modified version of it and on two of the days I will run. I can’t give up my runs all together.

Also, I’m focusing more on my diet and with the help of suggestions from others (thanks Boomer!) I’m starting to understand the nutrition aspect better.

That’s it. Till next time… Bring It!!

Determined or Crazy 157/365Today was a very cool day. A full day. The coolest thing was that I got to participate in the 100th episode of the Power Blast Podcast with Perry Tinsley. He Tweeted asking people to join him for the pre-recording of his 100th episode and I just could not pass it up. It was a pretty cool episode where Perry went over some of the details about how he got started and then he had some past guests speak about their experience on the show and some of their favorite episodes.

And he even asked me and another fan if we had any comments. The other person was much more eloquent than I was. I kinda choked but pretty much just thanked him for all that he does. He is a very interesting and inspirational person and you should check out the Power Blast Podcast some time.

Today’s workout was KenpoX but I decided to swap it for Kenpo Cardio Plus. I needed a change.

I also shoveled some snow today, to the tune of about 450 calories and then ran for 1/2 an hour. The running was mainly just to “tune up” my heart rate monitor and adjust the Zones it uses to track my heart rate and the calories I burn. I burned a TON of calories today and am starting to get scared that I am overtraining. But one problem. I’m addicted! I can’t stop!

OK, something I have been struggling with lately is the whole calorie/nutrition thing. I want to lose body fat so, from what I read, I need to burn more than I eat. But I also read that in order to put on muscle, which is something else I want to do, I need to eat more than I burn! I am so confuzed!

And I also read that my running may be sabotaging my muscle increase and that interval and strength training are better than long slow runs.

So I got this crazy idea that I would do a P90X/P90X Plus hybrid workout. Maybe P90X in the morning and then in the afternoon, instead of running, I would do a P90X Plus workout. I really miss some of the P90X Plus exercises and this would allow me to work those back in. I have not quite determined which workouts I’ll do in the afternoon but I should know more tomorrow.

So, if you think I’m crazy please let me know. And if you have suggestions please let me know, I’d love to hear them.

Till next time… BRING IT!!!


Par e' Parvaz...Legs and Back flew by today. I felt great throughout the workout and increased reps on many of the pull-up exercises. However I did sleep in again and had to do Ab RipperX before my after work treadmill run.



Not much else to add. I feel great and my weight is slowly dropping again now that my diet is in check.



Till next time… bring It!!!


Yoga On The MountYogaX was the workout of the day and I actually woke up early enough to get all 90 minutes in. This was a great workout today and I worked up more of a sweat than I usually do. After work I did 4.25 miles on the treadmill and worked some intervals in.

Diet is still in check. Calorie intake is being kept at least 500 below what I burn. Protein intake is close to 1 gram per pound of body weight.

Life is good.

Till next time… Bring It!

100% Gold StandardToday was Back, Biceps and Ab RipperX (ABX) and it felt great. I increased reps on almost all exercises. I overslept a little this morning so I did not have time for ABX. I ended up doing ABX before my run after work.

I am doing great on keeping my calories in check so far. The next thing that I am focusing on is getting the proper amount of protein per day. I have read in a few places that we should shoot for one gram of protein per pound of body weight. I am having a hard time hitting that so I am going to have a protein shake as one of my daily snacks. I buy the Body Fortress Whey Protein and it has 52 grams of protein for two scoops. I’ll try that for awhile and see how it goes.

Till next time… Bring It!!

Tired ColaToday was PlyoX and it’s still kickin my butt. You would think that after doing it for one year it would be much easier. Well, it’s not! It’s an awesome workout that gets me every time. I was dog tired afterwards.

It feels great to be done with recovery week and working out again. This is Phase II for me now.

After work I got a 4.25 mile run in on the treadmill. I can’t wait until spring when I can run outside again.

Well my diet is back on track. Two days in a row with over a 500 cal deficit. Right on track.

Till next time… Bring It!!

Bem aperadoBack in the saddle again.. YES! Wow it is always great to get back into the real workouts after recovery week. I felt great and very strong during today’s Chest, Shoulders, Tris and ABX workout. One thing that I’ll have to watch is that I heard a little crunching sound in my right shoulder while I was doing (attempting) one armed push-ups. No pain, just strange noises. It scared me a bit but since there was no associated pain I think I’ll be OK.

I did great with my diet today and because of that I feel great too. And I got in a second workout today, a 4.8 mile run on the treadmill and now have a nice big calorie deficit going. If I keep this deficit going for 7 days I can be back in a deficit for the month. Right now I am 10,000 on the plus side for the month. Not good!

Till next time… Eat Clean and Bring It!!

_DSC0757This week was a recovery week for me and I did some recovery and some sabotage. I was traveling this past week and I have been finding it VERY hard to stay motivated while on the road lately. Despite my best intentions I eat terribly and don’t hit all the workouts with the commitment that I should. I will be traveling a bit more in the near future and I must commit to eating clean while on the road. That, and I MUST do better at getting the workouts in.

I did workout most days of this recovery week and some days I even did double workouts by getting in a treadmill run in during the evening but I was not as perfect as I wanted to be.

I’m tracking my calories lately and I am way over my daily allowance for many days in a row now. I must do better.

So for the next two weeks, before traveling again, I will really concentrate on double workouts, eating clean and burning what I eat.

I had a great Beachbody experience tonight. As I was catching up on email tonight I saw a Tweet come in from Perry Tinsley of the very inspirational Power Blast Podcast. The Tweet said “Join me in 45 minutes 6:00 CST for an online BB presentation!” so I clicked on the link and was treated to a very motivating conversation and presentation from Perry himself. It was pretty cool to talk to him directly as I have great respect for him and his dedication to his body, his diet, his podcasts and his Beachbody business. We chatted a bit and he went through a new Beachbody coaching presentation that he put together with his team. I am still on the fence about becoming a Beachbody coach but after that presentation I am leaning a bit closer to taking the plunge. It was great to talk with him and if you ever get a chance you should check it out. He does these once a week so follow Perry on Twitter at http://twitter.com/perrytinsley.

So till next time… Bring It!

I’m still feeling a bit under the weather but better than yesterday. I did KenpoX today and really brought it. I felt strong throughout the workout.

Tomorrow starts a recovery week for me and the timing should be pretty good, being sick and all.

I have done a great job keeping my calories very low today. I’m trying to make up for yesterday.

Well, till next time… Eat Clean, burn what you eat, and Bring It!!!

Bad day all around today. First off, I’m sick. Like VERY sick. Like groggy, dry hacky cough, runny nose sick. I woke up at 3 am and could not get back to sleep because I was sooo hungry and felt so crappy. I have been famished all day. I can’t get enough food. And I made some bad food choices today. That seems to happen when I am sick.

So I skipped working out today and made today my rest day. I will do KenpoX tomorrow.

One more negative thing that happened today was that up until yesterday I was only at a 300 calories deficit for the week/month. I was trying to eat 500 calories a day less than what I burn in a day. And because I did not workout today and I ate a ton of food, some of it junk, I am 1443 calories over what I burned for the week. All that hard work for naught. And to further depress me I track a running total of where I should be if I actually did eat 500 fewer calories than I burn in a day and today I should be at –3500 for the month. I’m actually 1443 on the plus side so I’d need to make up (burn or not eat) 4943 calories to be back on track.

To turn this into a positive I’ll think about it this way.

1. This is EXACTLY why I needed to start tracking my calories. Without tracking I would have no idea where I stood and would just be wondering why I am at a plateau


2. I created an Excel spreadsheet to better track my calories eaten vs burned and now I will have an easier time figuring out where I stand. So all in all I am in a better place right now.

So now I know where I stand.

Until next time… Bring It!!

Day 18 was YogaX and it went pretty well. I felt stronger than last week for sure. I have been skipping the Warrior three sequence because I ended up with pretty bad ITBS from doing it but I ended up doing my best to complete the Warrior three sequence during this workout. It wasn’t too bad while doing it but the following day, today, I feel a bit tender in the spot that used to give me trouble.

Later in the day I did 4.5 miles on the treadmill.

Today is Day 19 and was Legs, Back and AbX. I had a rough night of sleep last night and I feel like I am coming down with something and had a hard time getting out of bed this morning. I almost talked myself into sleeping in but my conscience got the best of me and I rolled out of bed. I was too late to do both Legs and Back as well as ABX but I’ll do ABX after work before my run. I had a great Legs and Back workout today and increased my reps on all pull-up exercises by one pull-up.

Till next time… Bring it!!

Today was P90X Shoulders, Arms and Ab RipperX. I love this workout, the glamour muscles. I felt good and strong again this morning but I did feel that slight, and I mean very slight, pain in my right rotator cuff. Mainly in the first set of Overhead Shoulder presses and it seems to go away as the workout progresses. Nothing much to worry about but I will be watching it.

After work I did 4 miles on the treadmill.

Till next time… Bring It!!

Today was a PLYOtastic kinda day. I really love Plyo and I felt great and string today. Good sweat, wonderful workout.

After work I got 4.5 miles in on the treadmill. I was just thinking today that I have been getting double workouts almost consistently for weeks now. Love it.

My calorie counting is going well, I’m really getting into it.

Well, that’s all for today.

Until next time… Eat Clean, burn what you eat, and Bring It!!

Super Bowl XLIIIDay 14 was a scheduled rest day but I knew that I would be eating and drinking some high calorie/fat stuff at a Super Bowl party that evening so I decided to workout. Twice. I started with shoveling show and then ran 4.6 miles.

And then I totally went overboard with food and drink. I need to learn to splurge without getting totally out of control. Like did I really need a brownie AND a piece of chocolate cake both with ice-cream? I would have been fine with one scoop of ice-cream and a fork full of each of the other deserts. In the past I would have felt a little bummed because I knew that a splurge like that will set me back a bit but now that I have been tracking calories and see what damage I did on that splurge I think I’ll have a new outlook.

To make up for last night and get back into a calorie balance or deficit I now I have to limit myself to 2000 calories for the next two days and shave 200 calories off of the 3rd. Sheesh. I get it now! And that’s on top of my two daily workouts!

Today is Day 15 and I woke up on time (despite only getting 6 hours of sleep) and felt great. I think that all of the sugar and carbs I had last night gave me some energy in some way. Probably filled my glycogen stores. I had a ton of energy this morning and felt very strong, and added a few reps to many of the moves. It was not worth the extra calories but I sure did feel good this AM.

Well, gotta run, literally, and get my second workout of the day in.

Till next time… Eat Clean, burn what you eat, and Bring It!!

Today was a KenpoX day for me and I love that workout so it flew by pretty quick. My glutes are hurtin pretty bad from Friday’s Legs and Back workout but I was still able to “Bring It” during today’s workout. I still may do a second workout today but have not made up my mind.

I have started to do something new. Even though my Clean Eating manifesto states that I will not count calories I have started to count calories. I did my Clean Eating for 3 rounds now (90 days) and I am going to deviate just a little by counting calories. I hit a plateu and was wondering if I was getting enough calories per day, or maybe even too many. So I created a free account at Spark People and started tracking my calories. I tried quite a few online calorie trackers and found Spark people to be very intuitive for me and easy to add and modify foods. So I found out that I am getting enough calories. And with my occasional splurges I may be getting to many. So I have started tracking them just to get a better idea of where I stand. I am trying to get my body fat to a pretty low level and have learned 2 things so far. Number one, it can not be done by exercise alone. And two, it can not be done just by exercising and eating clean. I have always know this, and quoted it often, but now I am starting to really realize how true it is. And by “it” I am talking about this… In order to lose weight you must burn more calories than you take in. That’s it. Bottom line. It’s that simple. So that’s my next step. I want to ensure that I am burning more than I take in.

And if that does not get the job done I’ll begin watching my ratio between carbs, proteins and fats.

If you want to check out my Spark People  “Spark Page” here it is… http://my.sparkpeople.com/Dugrhill

Till next time… Eat Clean, burn what you eat, and BRING IT!!!

I had a hard time getting out of bed this morning once again. But I did get out of bed and in time for one hour of P90X, Legs and Back. Not enough time for Ab RipperX so I did that after work before my 4.5 mile run.

I starting to wonder what’s going on with my sluggishness in the morning. At first I thought it was due to being off of my usual schedule for a week due to travel. But I have been back on track for a week now and should be getting enough sleep. I’m wondering if I am not eating enough calories. I think I am but since I am not measuring them I am not sure. I also feel as if I have plateaud with my weight again. This is Soooo CONFUSING!! Oh well, I am not going to stress about it too much. I’m sure it will all work out.

Till next time… bring It!!

Happy P90X Birthday to me!! Today marks one year of doing P90X/P90X Plus. It actually does not surprise me that I have made it a full year. When I started I had no intention of doing this for just 90 days. I was ready for a life changing and life-long program. And wow did I find it in P90X! I can honestly say that I feel better than I have at any other time in my life. And I’m hoping that it will only get better.

I just finished up my second workout of the day and I feel great. Once again I had a terrible time getting out of bed this morning and because of this I only had time for one hour of YogaX. I skipped my least favorite parts of this DVD. But it was still a tough workout. And as a matter of fact I almost quit 15 minutes into it. I was just so sluggish this morning. But I stuck with it and made it through an hour.

I can’t wait until next week because I’m hoping that I’ll be over the DOMS by then. I’m just so sore everyday.

My second workout of the day was a 4 mile run on the treadmill and it felt great.

Till next time.. Eat Clean and Bring It!

Yesterday was Day 9, PlyoX and it kicked my butt as it always has. After work I ran 3.6 miles on the treadmill.

Today, Day 10, was off to a slow start. I had a hard time waking up and by the time I got rolling I only had time for Shoulders and Arms and had to skip Ab Ripper X (ABX). I’ll do the ABX and a run after work.

I am pretty sore today, partially from Monday’s Chest and Back workout and partially from Plyo. I was very stiff this morning but still had a great workout. One thing that I’ll have to watch is my right rotator cuff. It feels a bit tweaked this morning, I’ll baby it a little and see if it goes away.

Till next time… Bring It! 

I was a bad, bad boy. Week two of this round was a total wash and I am going to repeat it. I ate very poorly over the past 7 days, not my usual Clean Eating. I did run 4 out of the past 7 days bust missed 5 out of 6 P90X workouts. I could come up with excuses such as “I was traveling and the hotel gym was lousy” or “I was away on business and found it hard to find time to workout” but in the end those are just lame excuses.

The one high point of last week was that I was able to run outside on Thursday of last week. I was in Jacksonville, FL and on the last day it was warm enough for a nice run outside. I ran a bit over 4 miles and it felt terrific! It has been months since I had been able to run outside.

So that’s the re-cap of last week. Too much drink and bad food and not enough exercise. But I am back on track today and starting another 30 days of Clean Eating.

So this week will be a repeat of P90X week 2 and then I will press on.

Today’s workout was great! I did Chest, Back and ABX after work. I always have a bit of extra energy when I workout in the afternoon. It’s just too dangerous to leave the workouts until after work, things come up and get in the way too often.

Till next time… Eat Clean and Bring It!!

Today was a well deserved “Take care of Doug day.” I started it off by sleeping in, I’m off today due to MLK day. Then my usual breakfast of oatmeal, walnuts, raisins, rice milk and honey. Mmmmm. A couple hours after breakfast I did today’s P90X Chest, Back and ABX workout. I had my Recovery Drink and then I thoroughly clean my basement workout area. Everything from the mirror to getting on my hands and knees and washing my rubber flooring and then I even washed my yoga mat.

Then an apple as a snack. Shortly after that I ran a tad bit over 4 miles on the treadmill followed by a nice tuna salad. Then a very long hot shower.

And now I’m getting ready to head out for a massage. It’s been awhile since I have had one and I figured that with all these double workouts that I could really use one right now.

All in all it has been a great day.

Till next time… Bring It!

Today was a scheduled rest day but I have a hard time resting. So I shoveled snow for an hour and then ran for about 4 miles on the treadmill.

I’ve been shoveling snow everyday for a good five days now. I enjoy the exercise but COME ON!!! 5 days in a row?!?!? Enough snow!

Till next time… Bring It!!

Day 5 was Legs/Back and Ab RipperX (ABX) and I had forgotten what a killer workout Legs and Back was. I got a late start and was unable to squeeze in ABX in the morning so I did it after work and then did 5 miles on the treadmill. After 30 minutes of snow shoveling of course. Shoveling is getting to be a daily routine. I even consider it exercise and have been logging it as such ever since last year.

Day 6 was KenpoX. Man was I sore today. I could barely get out of bed because my legs and glutes were hurtin from the Day 5 Legs and Back routine. I managed to get through KenpoX just fine and decided that it and the 30 minutes of shoveling that I did today were enough of a workout.

I’m still doing great with eating clean and I’m on day 17 of my 3rd 30 day rotation. (in other words 77 days so far)

Till next time… Bring It!!

Today was YogaX. My back issue is still bothering me a bit and I had to take it easy during some moves and skip some all together. When I started this workout this morning I thought for a few minutes that I may have to scratch the workout for the day because of my back. But I kept going and my back felt better and better as the workout progressed.

Later in the day my wife gave me a quick massage and then put some Icy-Hot on it. It feels much better now.

After work I shoveled snow for a couple hours and then ran 5 miles.

I am starting to feel like I’m getting tendonitis in my right elbow. Too much shoveling?

Till next time… Bring It!!

Still fighting major DOMS today. Also fighting flu symptoms. I laid in bed for a while this morning and tried talking myself out of getting up and working out.  Luckily I did not succeed and I got up and worked out. When I was up and moving around I realized that I felt better than I had thought. I didn't get moving in time to do today’s Ab RipperX following Shoulder’s and Arms. I had just enough time for shoulders and arms. I’ll do ABX after work before I get a treadmill run in. That is.. after I shovel a bit.

Oh, before I forget, I did have something strange happen during today’s workout.  3/4 of the way through I got a huge knot in my back. It was on the right hand side about 1/2 way down my back and it HURT! I almost went upstairs to wake my wife up to have her massage it. I stopped the DVD and stretched and it got a little better. Good enough to finish the workout.

My wife did massage it for me later in the day but as of this writing I still feel it quite a bit.

Till next time… Bring it!!

PlyoX was a bit more than I could handle today. I’m sure that there are a few factors that were affecting my performance this morning and they resulted in me have to stop short on a couple of the plyo moves today. For one, I have only had just under 6 hours of sleep each of the past two nights. Two, I feel like I have a cold or flu. And three, I have serious DMOS today from yesterday’s Chest and Back workout. So needless to say it was a rough workout.

This cold/flu thing is what is zapping my energy the most. It seems like I get sick every couple of weeks. Must be my kids bringing this stuff home from school. The good news is that I usually kick the stuff in a couple days.

Because I feel like crap, and it’s my wife’s birthday, I decided not to do a second workout today. I shoveled for about 15 minutes tough.

Till next time… Bring It!!

Wow.. I had forgotten what a fantastic workout P90X was. Not that P90X Plus was not a great workout, because it is, but they are two very different workouts in my opinion. P90X Plus concentrates on more reps and more cardio and is great for leaning out. I find that I put on more bulk during P90X Classic.

Anyway, I did chest and back this morning and my biceps and chest have been wasted all day. What a great feeling. I was able to increase reps by at least 2 or 3 on every exercise. I guess P90X Plus did help to build strength too.

I am really looking forward to this round. I want to concentrate on going heavy.

Well, I’m off to do workout # 2 for the day, 4 miles on the treadmill.

Till next time… Eat Clean and Bring It!!

Fast Lane Daily ClapboardWell, that’s a wrap. Ninety days of P90X Plus under my belt. I really enjoyed P90X plus, it helped me lean out quite a bit and it was a great change of pace from good ole P90X. I really slacked off quite a bit in the last 5 days and missed a couple scheduled workouts, and did not stick to my Clean Eating very well in these past 5 days either. I blame it on traveling. I REALLY find it hard to stick to my diet when traveling. I can usually stick to my workouts pretty well but the diet is tough when traveling. Unfortunately I have some more traveling coming soon.

I am due to post some pictures soon, I guess that I’ve just been too lazy to take them and then post them. I guess I’m also a bit frustrated because I was on such an awesome role before I left on vacation. I don’t regret vacation because it was awesome as well, but because of vacation and then business travel I lost a bit of ground.

But, not to fear! I am excited about starting a new round of P90X tomorrow. I spent some time today printing out all of my workout and food tracker worksheets for this round and am psyched about starting it.

My goal for this round is to put on some bulk while leaning out a bit more. This is no easy task as many people say that those two things are contradictory. But I will try my best and go as heavy as possible with the weights while Eating Clean as much as possible.

So that’s it for this chapter of P90X Plus. Tomorrow will be P90X Round 4 Day 1.

Till next time… Bring It!!


Day 86 - I was scheduled for PlyoX today but the hotel that I am staying in does not have a workout room that is very accommodating for Plyo. Too small and too crowded. So insead I elected to do 4 miles on the treadmill. Later in the afternoon I did another 4 miles on the treadmill as a second workout. 



Day 87 - Today's workout was Total Body Plus. I started out with a 10 minute treadmill run as a warm-up. Then I attempted to do as much of the workout as possible but ran into trouble because the workout room did not have a pull-up bar and was too crowded to do the workout. So after doing some curls and presses I went back up to my room and finished the workout the best I could. It was a pretty light workout but a workout non-the-less. 



I hope to get a run in after our classes this evening as my second workout of the day. I have been eating pretty clean this trip and am happy about that and that I've been getting in two workouts a day. One thing that I'm not too happy about is not logging my workouts into the WOWY gym this week. The timing has just not worked out.



Till next time... Bring it!



I'm feeling a bit under the weather and because of this I felt a bit off during today's Upper Plus and Abs/Core Plus workout. But, it sure did feel good to be back at home and working out in my usual space.



Later in the day I flew to D.C. As soon as we landed I headed to the hotel fitness area and did 40:00 minutes on the treadmill. Felt great.



Tomorrow I think I'll try Plyo in my room. Either that of a run on the treadmill. I'll wait to see how I feel.



Till next time... bring It!!


Ugh. My first day back in the Midwest and I feel like I’m coming down with a cold. I have felt like crap and have been tired all day. I planned on doing yesterday’s missed Kenpo Cardio but did not feel up to it so I just ran a little over 3 miles on the treadmill.

I’m traveling again tomorrow so I hope that I feel better in the morning. I must try to stick to my clean eating better this week, I have not been eating very clean the past 5 days.

Till next time… bring It!

Day 82 was a great workout! I did the P90X Plus Upper Plus and then substituted Abs/Core Plus with Ab RipperX. I worked out in the hotel gym again and this was the first time I did P90X while listening to music on my MP3 Player and not the actual workout DVD. It was a very nice change of pace and the music motivated me more than the DVD audio does. I’ll have to try that more often. I’m bummed that I forgot to log into WOWY.com for this workout though. :o(

Day 83 was a total loss. I had to get up at 4AM to fly home and did not get home until 7PM. Too tired to workout when I walked in the door. I’ll do today’s Kenpo Cardio tomorrow, followed by a long run.

I got some great news when I arrived home tonight and checked my email. I have the BEST Beachbody Coach in the world! Coach Michelle is my Beachbody coach and she ran a contest last month for the people that she coaches. She was offering a tub of P90X recovery drink to the person who worked out in WOWY more than anyone else in December. Extra points were given if you brought someone new to the WOWY Gym with you. Guess what? I WON!! Woo Hoo! THANKS Michelle! I love that stuff!

If you’re looking for a Beachbody coach I can highly recommend Michelle. Check out her blog here… http://improvinglifetoday.com

Till next time… Bring It!!





Day 80 was Total Body Plus and despite not being able to follow my workout
on my Zune due to Z2k9
I was able to follow it with the P90X Plus worksheet that I brought along. The workout
was awesome as usual.



Later in the day I went for a 30 minute run along the ocean. Running in the
sand is very hard and awkward. It was an awesome workout.



Day 81 was New Year's Day 2009 and I was scheduled to do YogaX but took the
day off.



I have not stuck to my Clean Eating diet very well on vacation. I have been
pretty good but not great.



Till next time... bring It!!!