I swear I did Kenpo last night, but I had to go to E.'s mom's to do laundry until 2:30 in the morning immediately after finishing my workout, and her internet could use some P90X itself if you catch my drift. It was fun, I like that workout more each time I do it. As I've gotten used to the movements and routine, I can get more into the boxing element of it, which I like and appreciate. I'm much snappier in my punches, my kicks are higher, and my coordination is getting better as well. My balance is still a work in progress as the moves get faster or more complicated, but that might get better as my core gets stronger, I don't know. I'm happy to be getting more full-bodied about it, though - more controlled hip rotation, deeper and more consistent horse stance.
Today was a lot less fun and a lot harder. The main difficulty I've been having is that my right elbow has been bothering me. There's a very sharp pain when I do certain movements or begin to strain. The last three reps of every exercise are supposed to be difficult, but that's also when my elbow starts hurting (and sometimes it hurts just a few reps in, depending on the workout) so I am torn between getting a good burn and preventing my arm from exploding into confetti. It's also my weak arm, so it might not be wise to workout just my left side while this joint heals, because I'll just become increasingly off-balance, but I also don't want to stop working my upper body all together. It doesn't hurt on all exercises, and it isn't always on things that involve a lot of elbow usage or extension (though that doesn't feel pretty either), for instance variations of the fly lift hurt, and that's coincidentally perhaps my most difficult weight lifting move in the whole P90X series. It's been hurting for about 4 or more days now, but today's been the first day that has excessively used the arms - it's was perhaps 2/3 push-up variations and 1/3 weight lifting variations focusing on the title muscle groups, or at the very least it was half and half. The whole hour series is quite hard if you Do Your Best and Forget The Rest, and makes Ab Ripper X seem like a good cool down, at least at my fitness level right now. Oh well. I'll figure it out.
On a different note, I've gained weight, but can only assume it's all muscle. I get weighed every three months, and this time, full discretion, I weighed in at 156. Last time, I weighed in at 153, and six months ago I was at 148. However I am leaner looking and feeling. E. and I discussed it, and he felt around my midsection and said that my fat feels a lot softer, and there is a definite wall of rock hard abs not too far beneath the surface. This isn't an issue of all-importance, but it's interesting to think about in the sense that my body is like sucking all the nutrients and blood out of my fat to create more muscle, rather than just a seemingly endless vortex of fat and organ and mush-muscle.
Also, it makes me think about shows like The Biggest Loser, which had it's Season Finale tonight and I actually stayed home and watched it before doing tonight's workout, rather than watching it on Hulu in chunks before and after work like I usually do. On The Biggest Loser, people's fitness success is measured solely on weight loss and not on BMI, or inches, or strength and cardio increase, or digestive health. So many things make up a healthy human besides a number on a scale and what it's doing, and in a fitness regimen that isn't just a diet, it's important to remember that, to remember that your goals are not scale related but more rounded, more reasonable.
I've convinced a few friends who may or may not be reading this to start P90X, some of them athletes, some lapsed athletes, and others not very athletic in the past, and want to end this blog post by giving them a good nod and a high five for challenging oneself physically and mentally, for setting a goal and working towards it. I hope this blog works, if not an inspiration for them, as motivation to stick to it, just like it is motivation for me.
Tomorrow, I hope to remember to talk about Daily Mantras. Feel free to remind me.
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