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Beachbody Workouts |OT| Gaf Does P90/X/X2, Insanity/Asylum, T-25 and More!

Blech, keep feeling like I'm about to tear one of my calf muscles in that last bit of the calf raises (toes in). Not happy as I really messed up my right calf back in my sporty days and I don't want to do it again. =/

I've honestly never done weighted calf raises in my life before p90x and I can say now after about a month into it that they're one of my favorite exercises in the program. Legs & Back is my favorite day. I'm used to jogging and walking everywhere and using my legs a lot but ive honestly never felt the calf muscle the way I do with calf raises. Didn't even know that muscle could feel that way. It's hard to explain but I laugh out loud everytime I finish calf raises once I reach the point near the end of my reps where my calf muscles feel like they're about to explode or rip in half. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be pushing through that feeling or it's the sign to stop. Right now I stop there. I reach that point a good 15 seconds before Tony and crew finish the exercise. Anyways I just love being able to feel a muscle working like that.
 
I'm facing a dilemma here and hoping maybe P90x GAF can help out. I should be starting my phase II recovery week today, but I will be going away on vacation next week for 5 days. I'm not leaving until next Wednesday, so I'd get in all 6 workouts as scheduled, but I'm debating doing a 4th week of Phase II and than doing a recovery week after I get back from vaca. Does this sound like a plausible plan or should I stick to the schedule? Doing the P90x workouts while away isn't viable, but I do plan to take advantage of the gym at the resort at least 2-3 days while I'm there.

Also, I'm debating picking up a set of Powerblock Sport 5.0 adjustable dumbbells, anyone using these here? I've ruled out the Bowflex selecttech because of the sheer size and reviews complaining about cheap plastic parts that break.

Any help is appreciated.

Hey, I use the Powerblock Sport 5.5 for P90X (and general workouts). I like them a ton. There is maybe a move or two where I'd feel more comfortable using traditional dumbbells (one or two where you lift them over your head), but in general they are awesome.

If you're gonna get them, I'd highly highly recommend you spend a bit extra and get the 5.5 instead of the 5.0 set. The 5.5s go from 5-55lbs in 2.5lb increments, whereas the 5.0s go from 5-50lbs in 5lb increments. I find the 2.5lb increment perfect for progressively increasing the weight as I get stronger. I think 5 lb jumps would be too big for certain workouts, IMO.

I got a couple of free small dumbbells (5lb, 8lb) and I use them once in a while for intensive exercises (like that one where you make arm circles 40 times while holding weights). I have not regretted getting the sport 5.5s for an instant, and the pins are metal so they seem sturdy enough. It's also really quick to switch weights once you get the hang of it (the 2.5lb increments take a bit more time).

As always, YMMV. Try them out if you can.
 

eosos

Banned
Well, I bought it. Can't wait to start! Kind of nervous about keeping up with the diet plan though. I have to wait a month due to school though.
 

LaneDS

Member
Visited home this weekend, thus bringing my three weeks of eating perfectly to a crashing halt, but I kept my sugar intake at least semi-tolerable and did two P90X workouts and ran three miles while home, so hopefully it'll balance out well enough. Looking forward to recovery week, getting back to my place, and then getting back on track.

Those Powerblock things look pretty great, but they're more expensive than I would have hoped. My two 15 lb barbells do not cut it for some exercises though, so maybe it's a worthwhile investment.
 
Visited home this weekend, thus bringing my three weeks of eating perfectly to a crashing halt, but I kept my sugar intake at least semi-tolerable and did two P90X workouts and ran three miles while home, so hopefully it'll balance out well enough. Looking forward to recovery week, getting back to my place, and then getting back on track.

Those Powerblock things look pretty great, but they're more expensive than I would have hoped. My two 15 lb barbells do not cut it for some exercises though, so maybe it's a worthwhile investment.

Resistance bands are probably a good cheap alternative, but I can say I am very glad that I purchased the Powerblocks. I'm gonna keep them for as long as they last, which seems to be a long time. Worst case scenario I could replace the pin if need be, but they are several years old now and are good so far.
 
If I was starting out again I'd go with the powerblock style things. They're expensive, but I've easily spent £300 on individual dumbbells over the years, if not more.
 

vatstep

This poster pulses with an appeal so broad the typical restraints of our societies fall by the wayside.
So I finished up with P90MS for the second time on Friday and decided to celebrate by eating whatever the hell I wanted this weekend. I don't feel too bad about it, as I've done a ridiculous amount of walking over the past three days — something like twenty miles (and I am a very fast walker). I'm exhausted now, and my left ankle is fucked up; I really need to wear better sneakers when taking long walks. Hopefully it'll be all better a week from now.

To start my recovery week (cardio only, no resistance training) before P90X, I went back to Sweat 3-4 from P90. It's a pretty good workout after not having done it for a while, although it's just funny to go back to... Tony was much less goofy, a bit leaner than he was pre-P90X, and the overall production is just so chintzy, ha.

A couple of P90X questions:

Do you guys have suggestions for a cheap yoga mat, preferably available on Amazon? I've just been doing the yoga routines in the other videos on the carpet because they're like five minutes, but figure I should get one for P90X. The cheapest ones have a lot of negative reviews for being too slippery, so I've been hesitant to order one of those. I'm already planning to order an exercise mat for Ab Ripper X, as my fucked up tailbone almost certainly will not be able to handle doing most of those moves on the floor, but I think it'll be too thick to use for yoga.

And is anyone doing, or has done the videos without a pull-up bar? I'm thinking of using bands plus a door anchor for those moves. I just don't think a bar is going to work on the door frames in my current apartment. Hopefully I'm not wasting too much of my time by doing the program without legit pull-ups...
 

lenovox1

Member
Do you guys have suggestions for a cheap yoga mat, preferably available on Amazon? I've just been doing the yoga routines in the other videos on the carpet because they're like five minutes, but figure I should get one for P90X. The cheapest ones have a lot of negative reviews for being too slippery, so I've been hesitant to order one of those. I'm already planning to order an exercise mat for Ab Ripper X, as my fucked up tailbone almost certainly will not be able to handle doing most of those moves on the floor, but I think it'll be too thick to use for yoga.

The YogaAccessories 1/4" Extra Thick Deluxe (what is it, a hamburger?) is the cheapest mat that gets largely favorable reviews on Amazon. And for these cheaper foam mats, you want them to be thick. They'll be more comfortable to use and they'll last a little longer.
 

BeesEight

Member
Those Powerblock things look pretty great, but they're more expensive than I would have hoped. My two 15 lb barbells do not cut it for some exercises though, so maybe it's a worthwhile investment.

A friend of mine had them. Would love a set but I've already invested in adjustable ones with multiple weight plates. They're a pain to adjust mid routine.
 
Vatstep, all I know is I think I've gotten a lot of my muscle definition in my biceps and shoulders and arms so far after a month from doing pull ups. I started not being able to do maybe more than 1 if that and did all assisted with the chair for 3 weeks. Just this past week on week 4 I attempted to do un-assisted and was shocked I could do about 4 of them. May not seem like a lot but for me going from 0 to 4 in a month was huge. ASSISTED PULL UPS DO WORK!! So I deffinitely wouldn't worry about bands being a half assed replacement for a bar. In my opinion id say just do them any way you can. Just don't skip them entirely because I'm now a believer in how effective they can be. My results could be from push ups but I kind of half assed those up until this week so I think its the pull ups.

My arms and back and shoulders are seeing good gains after a month. Probably because they had no muscle at all to start with so I'll be seeing big noobie gains most people who had some muscle wouldn't see so early on. My chest and stomach need the most work right now.
 

SteeloDMZ

Banned
Doing P90X2 Balance and Power reminded me
of my first P90X workout; pitiful numbers and questionable form. I swear I wanted to take a knife and stab my stability ball.

lol
 

eosos

Banned
Quick question, does anyone here take creatine supplements while doing p90x? I was planning on taking it and was just wondering how it affected others.
 
I just completed my first day of Power 90 and came dangerously close to throwing up. Still, I managed to complete all the exercises without taking a break so I'm proud of that. Looking forward to tomorrow to see what Sweat 1-2 is all about.

It's funny that only a few hours ago I was thinking of skipping Power 90 and going straight into P90X. Clearly, I have a long ways to go before I'm ready for that.
 
I just completed my first day of Power 90 and came dangerously close to throwing up. Still, I managed to complete all the exercises without taking a break so I'm proud of that. Looking forward to tomorrow to see what Sweat 1-2 is all about.

It's funny that only a few hours ago I was thinking of skipping Power 90 and going straight into P90X. Clearly, I have a long ways to go before I'm ready for that.

Hey! You are doing great. Trust me, it will be soon when you feel ready for p90x. I started off doing P90 without being able to do one chair dip in level 1-2, and two and half months later I jumped into p90x. And now, I'm two weeks away of being done with p90x for the first time
 

Hawkian

The Cryptarch's Bane
I jumped right into P90X and it wrecked me at first, and I still do a lot of modification but it's much more tolerable every night now.
 
Just finished Day 1 of Week 7 (well... I still have to do Ab Ripper, but I digress).

I came on here to say that I hate Shoulders, Triceps, and Chest sooo bad. Those pushups have consistently wrecked me all three weeks. In particular the 4 fast - 3 slow thing; I can hardly even finish the second set of fast pushups, and on the video they still continue for like 45 more seconds.

I'm making sure to improve by at least one rep on each exercise each week (and I've mostly succeeded at that), but holy cow I hate this workout.
 
Today was my first day of P90X. I ran through Power 90 and took a week off. Lost 13 lbs and took about 5 inches off of my gut, but didn't really get ripped. Most of that was probably due to not really following any kind of proper diet. Trying to follow the nutrition guide, and I'm feeling like that's going to be the hardest thing for me. I hate most fruits and vegetables, and practically live off the carbohydrate list. lol
 
Today was my first day of P90X. I ran through Power 90 and took a week off. Lost 13 lbs and took about 5 inches off of my gut, but didn't really get ripped. Most of that was probably due to not really following any kind of proper diet. Trying to follow the nutrition guide, and I'm feeling like that's going to be the hardest thing for me. I hate most fruits and vegetables, and practically live off the carbohydrate list. lol
I was the same way, but since I started P90X I've been craving veggies. I try to make a stir-fry, quick and easy.
 

Aruarian Reflection

Chauffeur de la gdlk
I just started P90X after warming up with Power 90 for a few weeks. Any suggestions on my nutrition? I'm 5'9", 160 pounds. According to the guide, I should be getting 2,400 calories - level 2. I'm not anywhere close to that. Lunch is probably the most difficult for me and I'll likely add some grilled chicken to my salad. I'm tempted to just eat an extra Clif Bar since it's easy.

This is a typical day. Dinner alternates between turkey burger, salmon burger and chicken wraps

3p1GC.jpg
 

SteeloDMZ

Banned
Try adding more protein from meats (chicken or fish) and consider eating a good fat like natural peanut butter. Also add more beans to your diet, since they are great carbs with good protein too. Eat lentils.
 

D23

Member
anyone here doing p90x/insanity hybrid? insanity pure cardio is soo much better than kenpo x, my god that was some crazy workout, i dont think i ever sweat that much before.
 

Alfarif

This picture? uhh I can explain really!
Have you heard of people who drowned and died on their own puke? I wouldn't recommend it!

I got about 3 minutes into it and fall face first on the floor in front of everyone. Quite possibly the funniest thing I've ever had happen in my life.
 
Fuck I am so sorry to hear that. What's your plan?
Initially, Ibuprofen and a Radox bath. Past that... I don't know. I certainly wont be doing my allocation of Yoga X today. Could try massaging the area (right hand side of my lower back) and see what that does.

I guess I might just have to drop my calorie intake by a meaningful chunk for at least a week so I don't screw up my progress and just hope that it doesn't take too long to get better.

I got about 3 minutes into it and fall face first on the floor in front of everyone. Quite possibly the funniest thing I've ever had happen in my life.
/thumbs up

:D
 
Initially, Ibuprofen and a Radox bath. Past that... I don't know. I certainly wont be doing my allocation of Yoga X today. Could try massaging the area (right hand side of my lower back) and see what that does.

I guess I might just have to drop my calorie intake by a meaningful chunk for at least a week so I don't screw up my progress and just hope that it doesn't take too long to get better.


/thumbs up

:D

Hey, I might be talking out of my ass here, but maybe you can take this opportunity and try the foam roller thingy that they use in P90X2. Or are you doing that already?
 

Caerith

Member
I second the foam roller for taking care of tweaks. It's worked for me on occasion, but it probably wasn't too serious to begin with.
 

Ill Saint

Member
Just got a hell of a lot worse. I sneezed last night and something went crunch... now I'm in agony. Fucksake. :(

How did you get the initial injury? Be very, very careful with your back. Don't even consider foam rolling or any other exercise if it's not just a tweaked muscle or nerve.
 

Hawkian

The Cryptarch's Bane
Ugh, man, I need to start getting more sleep.

edit: Just caught up- damn Psychotext, be careful. If it's still painful after a couple days I'd definitely have it looked at rather than just trying to work through it.
 

DrForester

Kills Photobucket
Stuff in the OP still accurate regarding accessories, pullup bar and resistance bands and such?

Hearing enough good things that I think I'm ready to get off my butt and get in shape. Thinking of going with P90X as it seems a bit more comprehensive.
 

DrForester

Kills Photobucket
And ordered. Got it from Amazon, as it was the same price after shipping and tax were added to the regular site, and I get the free prime shipping.
 

Deadly Cyclone

Pride of Iowa State
Enjoying PAP in phase 3 of X2 so far. They really throw some different moves in there, upper had me sweating a ton yesterday and my hips were sore from lower already. Those Tony Triangles are killer. :p


As far as diets/eating goes, I am trying to evolve my habits because I rarely get enough calories outside of the weekend. Issue is I already spend a good amount on food, so I don't want to buy a ton of extras. Right now during the week I am around 1300-1600 calories usually. I don't get hungry though, which is odd. The almonds as snacks and things like that help.

I really just need some good (cheap) work lunches and breakfasts to add. Hard to cook anything here so it needs to be pre-made. At this point I'm doing Muscle Milk for breakfast every day, and a can of progresso soup with and orange for lunch.
 

Hawkian

The Cryptarch's Bane
And ordered. Got it from Amazon, as it was the same price after shipping and tax were added to the regular site, and I get the free prime shipping.
Welcome welcome. Did you get your equipment stuff yet?

Chest/Shoulders/Arms killed me last night; no real improvement in my push-up numbers since last week. :( Then I failed to get enough sleep again, but whaddyagonnado
KuGsj.gif
 
Started P90X for third time last night. I'm mixing in some stuff from X2. It's been awhile since I've watched these videos. I forgot all about Tony's orange fake tan in Chest & Back. Good stuff.
 
Started P90X for third time last night. I'm mixing in some stuff from X2. It's been awhile since I've watched these videos. I forgot all about Tony's orange fake tan in Chest & Back. Good stuff.

Btw...your door pics. Ugh. Maybe I will just do regular pull ups when and if I do p90x2 lol

I live in an apt I don't think I can do what you do lol

Btw is there a good tutorial on how to use the roam foller? I have been thinking about it but I don't want to buy p90x2 yet (if I do I want the ultimate!)
 
Btw...your door pics. Ugh. Maybe I will just do regular pull ups when and if I do p90x2 lol

I live in an apt I don't think I can do what you do lol

Btw is there a good tutorial on how to use the roam foller? I have been thinking about it but I don't want to buy p90x2 yet (if I do I want the ultimate!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJLxruO3su0&feature=youtube_gdata_player

This video will give you a good idea. So anyplace where you are sore just rest that spot on the foam roller and let gravity do the rest. You don't actually roll on it (but that can feel good). It's more about applying pressure.
 

LaneDS

Member
Welcome welcome. Did you get your equipment stuff yet?

Chest/Shoulders/Arms killed me last night; no real improvement in my push-up numbers since last week. :( Then I failed to get enough sleep again, but whaddyagonnado
KuGsj.gif

I'm of the mindset that if you're pushing yourself hard through these workouts, eating right and resting when you can, you shouldn't worry too much about not seeing big improvements in reps. Seems like the results will follow in due time.

DrForester, good choice and good luck! Four weeks in here myself and I love it. If you commit to the program (including diet) you'll feel "like a million bucks" (and you'll be full of stupid Tony quotes in no time).
 
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