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[Harry Potter]

Are there any modified P90X2 workouts that remove phase 3 (PAP)? I've already completed X2 once, but in my opinion, Phase 2 is the best of the three phases. I've restarted the program again, cut Phase 1 down to 3 weeks, and now I'm stretching Phase to 6 weeks. However, I'm not sure what to do for the final 3 weeks if I don't want to do PAP again. Is there some blend of Phase 1 and 2 I can incorporate or should I just keep doing Phase 2 for an extra 3 weeks?

Also, has anyone tried X2 Chest + Shoulders + Tris or V-Sculpt? Are either of these a better workout than X2 Shoulder and Arms? I don't have any resistance bands and I seem to recall needing those for V-Sculpt.

If you don't want to do PAP I'd just do phase 2 for the last 3 weeks. Or you could incorporate a week from the last month of P90X in there.

I did both of those workouts twice on my first go of X2. I wouldn't say they are necessarily worse or better than shoulders and arms. Just different. I do really like V sculpt tho. You will need a band for it.

 

[JumpingTheGun]

I ordered the original P90 about two months ago. Got myself the VIP package (god knows why) with the big tub of juice powder, the protein shakes, the bands, the pull up bar etc....

And I've been a total bitch and havent started it yet. The pull up bar is built and ready and everything is out in my livingroom taunting me, it's just that I'm completely pussying out on starting because 1) the immediate diet change and 2) Ive been out of shape for at least four years. I'm afraid I'm either going to have a stroke midway through or seriously injure myself. It doesn't help that I'm a habitual pot smoker and beer drinker as well so cutting out the liquid bread is going to be really hard.

The thing is that I really need this. It's just excruciatingly tough to wrap my head around the fact I can't eat what I want or drink for awhile. I've always sucked ass at discipline and self-control..

I really need to fucking to do this.

 

[Psychotext]

Some people here might disagree with me... but why not ease into it? Maybe just eat a bit more sensibly rather than taking on the full-on diet but still do all of the exercise? That, or really go for the diet and maybe do only three quarters of the exercise?

But do something.

 

[JumpingTheGun]

That could work, the thing is my co workers and some other that I know that have done and are doing it say that it's all or nothing. I thought that was part of the philosophy? Full dedication..

 

[Psychotext]

That's the ideal, but sometimes the real world isn't ideal.

 

[Hawkian]

Keeping track of stuff at www.myfitnesspal.com has been quite helpful for me. It's more motivating to have numbers and goals to work with for me- gives me incentive not to overeat or skip exercise.

 

[BeautifulMemory]

That could work, the thing is my co workers and some other that I know that have done and are doing it say that it's all or nothing. I thought that was part of the philosophy? Full dedication..

Full dedication because people stop easily for many reasons: it's too hard, cost too much, not enough time, etc. Diet because you will really want to feed your body nutrition as any of the workouts is hard and extreme. Also, it you want the maximum visual result of your body, you gotta do the diet. Otherwise you will feel much better but look relatively the same, and this is when some people complain about not having enough changes

All that being said, when you take on P90X, you are taking on a different lifestyle. So really, like any of the exercises, you gotta make it work for you. If it means not doing the diet part first, then so be it

 

[Deadly Cyclone]

Going to have to extend phase 3 on X2, last week I could only get in 3 days, same this week as I am out of town Thurs-Sunday.

I plan to take a mini break and go running the first 3 days this week for a bit of a change. Then back to phase 3 for 2-3 solid weeks before I can call myself a P90X2 grad.

 

[rkn]

The thing is that I really need this. It's just excruciatingly tough to wrap my head around the fact I can't eat what I want or drink for awhile. I've always sucked ass at discipline and self-control..

I really need to fucking to do this.

Just IMO, but getting, and more importantly staying fit isn't one of those "for a while" things, it is a lifestyle change - doesn't mean you can't have the things that you've always had, but if those are your vices and made you what you are today, it won't work in the long run. Just something to mull over.

 

[KingGondo]

That could work, the thing is my co workers and some other that I know that have done and are doing it say that it's all or nothing. I thought that was part of the philosophy? Full dedication..

I just finished my first week of P90X, and I found that simply committing to the program itself helped me change my bad habits.

If you want to survive the program, it's hard to without getting sleep, eating well, and cutting back on vices like alcohol and smoking (weed for you, cigars for me).

Find the time when you're most temped to indulge in a few beers or a toke, and schedule your workout for that time. Not only will the healthy stress relief of the workout replace the stress relief of the alcohol/THC, you simply won't feel much like having any the rest of the day.

I struggled/struggle with the same thing, but it was surprisingly easy to alter my habits after starting the program. The program is difficult enough to require certain lifestyle adjustments, which is key IMO.

 

[Harry Potter]

Wow, 50 pages!

 

[Freedom = $1.05]

Wow, 50 pages!

Your browser isnt X enough if it can only handle 50 posts at a time!

 

[KingGondo]

Your browser isnt X enough if it can only handle 50 posts at a time!

Tony Horton browses this entire thread on one page.

Now that's Bringing It.

 

[RubxQub]

Still no P90X2 grads, eh? Really curious to hear how the program lives up to the first one and if you'd recommend getting the second one.

 

[Harry Potter]

Your browser isnt X enough if it can only handle 50 posts at a time!

I'm too worried I'd smash my face.

 

[Harry Potter]

Still no P90X2 grads, eh? Really curious to hear how the program lives up to the first one and if you'd recommend getting the second one.

I finished a couple weeks ago. My review from a few pages back:

P90X2 in the books. It was an interesting program. I really loved a couple new things they introduced that I will use in all workouts from here on out. 

•The foam roller is a great tool. I was using it while I was watching TV sometimes to work out any hot spots.

• Collette

• I loved NIS stretching. Felt like it opened me up more than any other stretching I've done before. 

• X2 Ab ripper. I found it to be harder and more effective than Ab ripper X. I'll definitely replace the old with the new when I do P90X again. 

•There was a great variety of pull ups this time around that I liked. Some very difficult but challenging. 

• Collette 

•X2 Yoga. You magnificent bastard. I'll never go back to Yoga X. It's kinda sad I guess but I feel like I get enough out of X2 Yoga. I know I'll never be amazing at it like Ted McDonald. 

• The program strengthened my core extremely well. I believe it's marketed more as a core strengthening program than X was and it did precisely that.  

Onto the bad. I never felt like this program pushed me like P90X did. The moves weren't as difficult. Cardio is almost non-existant. Don't get me wrong, there is hard stuff in there and X2 never claimed to be harder than X. I also don't think I'd recommend this workout to anyone who wasn't planning on using a stability ball and medicine balls. So much of X2 focuses on core and balance and I don't believe you get the full results without using those tools. Which makes the program quite expensive. 

I'm going to give it another go towards the end of the year. Next time I'm going to change the schedule up a bit. I just did  4 weeks of each phase. Next time I'm going to do 5 weeks of Phase 1 & 2 and just 2 weeks of Phase 3. I feel like the real meat of the program is in those two phases (especially Phase 2). 

In conclusion, if you're a fan of Tony and P90X you will enjoy this program. Great core moves. I saw nice results in areas where I wasn't getting any before. Like those muscles Brad Pitt had near his pelvis in Fight Club  I hope my review was informative andgood luck to the rest of you!

 

[JumpingTheGun]

I just finished my first week of P90X, and I found that simply committing to the program itself helped me change my bad habits.

If you want to survive the program, it's hard to without getting sleep, eating well, and cutting back on vices like alcohol and smoking (weed for you, cigars for me).

Find the time when you're most temped to indulge in a few beers or a toke, and schedule your workout for that time. Not only will the healthy stress relief of the workout replace the stress relief of the alcohol/THC, you simply won't feel much like having any the rest of the day.

I struggled/struggle with the same thing, but it was surprisingly easy to alter my habits after starting the program. The program is difficult enough to require certain lifestyle adjustments, which is key IMO.

That's really great advice. Thanks so much. The workout would have to begin as soon as I get home from work, which is when my vices kick in.

 

[JumpingTheGun]

Full dedication because people stop easily for many reasons: it's too hard, cost too much, not enough time, etc. Diet because you will really want to feed your body nutrition as any of the workouts is hard and extreme. Also, it you want the maximum visual result of your body, you gotta do the diet. Otherwise you will feel much better but look relatively the same, and this is when some people complain about not having enough changes

All that being said, when you take on P90X, you are taking on a different lifestyle. So really, like any of the exercises, you gotta make it work for you. If it means not doing the diet part first, then so be it

OK well when you mean "doing the diet", do you mean following the EXACT diet plan thats in the manual? While I don't have problems fixing chicken or fish or vegetables (which is what I would be eating primarily, next to fruit), is it really necessary to fix the "tilapia with lemon dill sauce and wild rice etc", as well as the other complex meals? What if I stuck to simply eating certain varieties of fish, chicken, fruits, vegs, and some red meat? I'd like to think sticking to a diet of those, combined with the vigorous workout would be fine.

 

[BeautifulMemory]

OK well when you mean "doing the diet", do you mean following the EXACT diet plan thats in the manual? While I don't have problems fixing chicken or fish or vegetables (which is what I would be eating primarily, next to fruit), is it really necessary to fix the "tilapia with lemon dill sauce and wild rice etc", as well as the other complex meals? What if I stuck to simply eating certain varieties of fish, chicken, fruits, vegs, and some red meat?

What you described about certain varieties is called the portion control approach, it's what a lot of us use. It's totally fine. The challenge is really have total control and discipline about what and how much you eat..

For example, the diet guide gives you a selection of food for each type (protein, carbs, dairy). The first phase of the diet is called fat shredder. Roughly it is 700 calories of protein, 360 calories for dairy, 200 calories of vegetable. So you got to plan your day's diet around that, so you got be careful of what goes into your stomach even if common sense says you can have more.

The most common example is fruit. You can only have one apple a day. Thats it.

And anything else outside of the diet that will compromise your calories and health is no-no. You follow the diet strictly.

 

[Psychotext]

Seems I'm not quite ready to come back. I doubt I'll be able to move tomorrow.

 

[KingGondo]

That's really great advice. Thanks so much. The workout would have to begin as soon as I get home from work, which is when my vices kick in.

That's what I've been doing, and it's worked great for me so far. Instead of a beer and snack when I get home, I do P90X and it sets me up for the rest of the evening to be healthy.

I eat healthy dinners because I don't want to compromise my hard work, I don't have beer because I don't want any, and I get more sleep because the workouts are exhausting.

The most important first step is to just dive in. You can always get guidance as you go along.

 

[BeautifulMemory]

DC, HP, or Steelo. Since I'm coming off P90X and jumping straight into X2 with 3 days OD rest, do I need to do fat shredder again? I like the phase 2 diet much better and my protein intake is already pretty high

 

[Hawkian]

DC, HP, or Steelo. Since I'm coming off P90X and jumping straight into X2 with 3 days OD rest, do I need to do fat shredder again? I like the phase 2 diet much better and my protein intake is already pretty high

Well... doesn't that depend on whether or not you want to lose weight?

 

[BeautifulMemory]

Well... doesn't that depend on whether or not you want to lose weight?

See I don't know because X2 is more or less designed specifically for X graduate. Ideally I want to lose body fat. I'm 5'5 and 144 last time I weighed

 

[SteeloDMZ]

I did energy booster, but now that I started phase 2 I switched again to endurance maximizer to see how that works since the schedule is more intense.

And speaking of which, Chest + Back + Balance killed me. If the original Chest and Back was a 9.5/10 in terms of difficulty, this felt like a 15/10.

At least I got better at X2 Ab Ripper.

 

[Aruarian Reflection]

See I don't know because X2 is more or less designed specifically for X graduate. Ideally I want to lose body fat. I'm 5'5 and 144 last time I weighed

I'm in a similar situation. I'm 5'10" and 155 so I don't want to lose that much weight, if any. I just want to get my body fat down and hopefully decrease that layer of fat over my abs. So I should be doing fat shredder, right?

Only having the equivalent of 2 slices of bread and 1 fruit a day is pretty tough for me to meet my calorie requirements. Protein bars and shakes help though

 

[vatstep]

Man, second time doing Plyometrics — worked up QUITE a sweat. I was literally dripping, and it wasn't even nearly as hot today as it was last week when I did it. I guess it was due to the fact that I know all the moves now, so I was able to really bring it on all of them without having to get the form down first.

I love the bonus round moves, they're a lot of fun.

 

[Harry Potter]

DC, HP, or Steelo. Since I'm coming off P90X and jumping straight into X2 with 3 days OD rest, do I need to do fat shredder again? I like the phase 2 diet much better and my protein intake is already pretty high

It's really up to you. I don't see any harm doing the energy boosting phase for the first two months of X2 and then just end with that last diet phase (I forget the name).

 

[LaneDS]

Man, second time doing Plyometrics — worked up QUITE a sweat. I was literally dripping, and it wasn't even nearly as hot today as it was last week when I did it. I guess it was due to the fact that I know all the moves now, so I was able to really bring it on all of them without having to get the form down first.

I love the bonus round moves, they're a lot of fun.

I look like a tremendous goon when I have to pretend to throw a baseball with my left hand. I'm pretty much "dogging it" for that move and the basketball one; kind of use that section as a cooldown.

On a different note, I get to see my surgeon tomorrow morning who will hopefully give me the green light to get working out again this week; fingers are crossed.

 

[BeautifulMemory]

It's really up to you. I don't see any harm doing the energy boosting phase for the first two months of X2 and then just end with that last diet phase (I forget the name).

How about doing energy boost for all 3 phases? I don't ever see myself doing the high carb one

 

[BeautifulMemory]

 

[DrForester]

Going to start the diet, and do some basic workouts over the next few weeks to prepare to start (The bonus cardio workout from the P90 series on the P90X intro DVD looks like a good palce to start).

Any other recommendations for good food recipes? The phase one options are pretty thin, especially for dinner. I'm on the road for my job, so lunch consists of Subway (and my Roast Beef 6" is listed as acceptable fast food in the back). Breakfast is fast and quick, usually cereal or oatmeal.

 

[SteeloDMZ]

You went with the "cactus" rumble roller? Prepare yourself for a delicious pain. It hurts so good, but you do feel great afterwards.

 

[commish]

Interesting. I have never heard of P90X (where have I been, right?), as I just go to the gym instead of these types of programs. However, I've been trying to get my better half to work out more, so I'm interesting in doing this with her. Plus, it looks interesting!

Two questions. First, dumbbells or resistance bands? Is one better than the other?

Second, yoga... do I have to do the yoga part?! No desire to do 1.5 hours of yoga, but then again, it's probably the only part my gf will enjoy! I guess I can try it.

Also, this might be a stupid question, but what happens when the 90 days are over? Do you start over? Is there a maintenance program?

 

[LaneDS]

Interesting. I have never heard of P90X (where have I been, right?), as I just go to the gym instead of these types of programs. However, I've been trying to get my better half to work out more, so I'm interesting in doing this with her. Plus, it looks interesting!

Two questions. First, dumbbells or resistance bands? Is one better than the other?

Second, yoga... do I have to do the yoga part?! No desire to do 1.5 hours of yoga, but then again, it's probably the only part my gf will enjoy! I guess I can try it.

Also, this might be a stupid question, but what happens when the 90 days are over? Do you start over? Is there a maintenance program?

I started with resistance bands but found that many exercises were difficult to do with just the bands, so I bought a pair of 15 lb dumbbells which work much better for most exercises, but there are a few where that weight is either too much or too little, so dumbbells will likely be a better but more expensive solution.

Yoga- it's fantastic and you should try it. I expected it to be the easiest workout and it in some ways is one of the hardest. It'll work your flexibility and strength in ways a regular lifting workout at the gym just can't do, and if you give it a chance it might surprise you. Others can certainly provide a better answer than that.

Can't give an answer as to what to do when you finish, as I'm still working through the first 90 myself, but I think doing it again or doing a similar program (X2, Insanity) or some mix of programs would probably be good. Getting through 90 days and then doing nothing, obviously, isn't going to do you any favors so nobody will be recommending that.

 

[SteeloDMZ]

It all depends. If you are someone who travels a lot and doesn't have a regular place to exercise, then bands may be the way to go. If you learn how to use them, they are the real deal. They might not give you the same results as dumbbells, but they are a great option. They are also a little bit harder to use for certain moves.

As far as the Yoga goes, which HAS to be the most asked question by everyone, yes, you do have to do it. The creator of this program has mentioned many times that if he had to choose one workout for the rest of his life, it would be Yoga. I think is great; it gives you flexibility (which allows you to have a better range of motion when doing basically every other move), it gives you a great stretch, it makes you burn calories, and it's just a good time. Some can, understandably, be overwhelmed by one hour and a half of leg burning moves, but have in mind that you can modify all the time as long as you are doing your best.

Finally, P90X is designed to be a life changing program. You can do it one time and get great results, but that's not the purpose of it. The purpose is to change your life style, from the way you exercise, to the way you eat (and more). If you finish it, you can keep doing another 90 days, and another 90, and another 90, etc. The beauty of the program is that it never gets easy (and anyone who says otherwise is lying). Why? Because as soon as you master a move, then you push yourself harder and do a variation that gives you a better pump.
You can also start doing other programs like Insanity, or play some sports, or start doing P90X2; it's all up to you, but you gotta keep the philosophy of eating well and being consistent with your workouts (at least 5 days a week).

Hope that helps.

 

[commish]

Thanks for the quick responses!

I will try the yoga! We'll see how that goes...

I will pick up some resistance bands as well as some dumbbells. Something like this enough?

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000VCDXNS/?tag=neogaf0e-20

I have no idea how much weight is needed.

Looking forward to starting!

 

[vatstep]

I have that CAP barbell set, plus a pair of neoprene ten pounders, and a variety of resistance bands — this combo does the job for me. I'm a weakling, so I don't really need more than twenty pounds per weight on many moves, but when I do, resistance bands do the trick. It does help to have a couple of pairs of dumbbells so that you don't have to switch the plates out frequently, but it's not the end of the world if you need to do that — just takes a minute or so. You can also get add-on plates if you're looking to add more weight, which is nice.

 

[SteeloDMZ]

You should get 3 sets of dumbbells:

- One that feels very easy
- One that gives you a burn with a higher amount of reps
- One that gives you a real burn with only 6 reps

As for bands, if you have a Sports Authority near you, I'd absolutely recommend getting the generic bands they sell there. I bought a 40 pounds (orange) and a 70 pounds (green), and they have worked amazingly well.

 

[BeautifulMemory]

3 weeks of Phase 1
6 weeks of Phase 2
3 weeks of Phase 3

I really liked phase 2, felt more like P90X. I think you should definitely do at least 3 weeks of phase 1. Evaluate how you're doing and decide whether or not to move onto the next phase or not. You really can't go wrong with what you do.

So, I quickly skimmed through the fitness guide. It looks like P90X2's schedule is far more flexible and up to the user. Did you do the recovery week at all? I am guessing they are making it on the need-basis because there are two recovery days already during the week. Any advice on that?

Tomorrow is the 90th day for P90X!

 

[criesofthepast]

There are worse ways to spend your money, man. Good on you for taking your health seriously. Nice purchases!

 

[Aruarian Reflection]

If you have a little cash to spend, I would recommend adjustable dumbbells like the Bowflex SelectTech (which I have). Mine have a maximum of 50 pounds each and they are adjustable by 2.5 increments. So you can set it to 10 pounds, 12.5 pounds, 15 pounds, etc. Saves a lot of space compared to a giant rack of dumbbells, plus you get finer control over weights.

They're expensive but are a good investment IMO. And even if you want to get rid of them later, they should be easy to sell on Craigslist. You can check your local Craigslist and pick up an used set to save some cash

 

[Psychotext]

I've said it before, but if I was starting from scratch I'd certainly go that way rather than having my floor covered in random dumbbells (which ended up costing me more anyway).

 

[Deleted member 1235]

If you have a little cash to spend, I would recommend adjustable dumbbells like the Bowflex SelectTech (which I have). Mine have a maximum of 50 pounds each and they are adjustable by 2.5 increments. So you can set it to 10 pounds, 12.5 pounds, 15 pounds, etc. Saves a lot of space compared to a giant rack of dumbbells, plus you get finer control over weights.

They're expensive but are a good investment IMO. And even if you want to get rid of them later, they should be easy to sell on Craigslist. You can check your local Craigslist and pick up an used set to save some cash

got myself a set. they're great. I'm worried about breaking em though, my first set was dropped in transport and it shattered the inner plastic ring so it couldn't pick up weights.

Haven't actually used em yet, as I'm doing insanity at the moment. want to drop off some fat, then I might start with p90x again. Made it to day 67 last time. SOOO GUTTED I didn't finish.

I'm being much more careful with the diet during insanity though.

 

[FOOTE]

If you have a little cash to spend, I would recommend adjustable dumbbells like the Bowflex SelectTech (which I have). Mine have a maximum of 50 pounds each and they are adjustable by 2.5 increments. So you can set it to 10 pounds, 12.5 pounds, 15 pounds, etc. Saves a lot of space compared to a giant rack of dumbbells, plus you get finer control over weights.

They're expensive but are a good investment IMO. And even if you want to get rid of them later, they should be easy to sell on Craigslist. You can check your local Craigslist and pick up an used set to save some cash

I have these too. The only thing I don't like about them is that when you're in the middle of these workouts you have to be able to change the weight fairly quickly so you don't fall behind the DVD. Some of the workouts give you the time needed to switch, if needed, others sort of don't. Sometimes I do wish that I had a set of dumbbells, but with that said these are great and save loads of space.

 

[Hawkian]

http://i.imgur.com/O2nsq.jpg[/IMG]

http://i.imgur.com/iJCJe.jpg[/IMG]

So much money reflected in these two images! Enjoy the goodies man.

Let me know what you think of Shakeology! My Lean1 shake stuff will be here tomorrow.

As far as bands/dumbbells, I've used bands only for the first two phases of P90X (oh god I'm about to be starting phase 3) and they are definitely effective. I had very little upper body strength to start out and wasn't going for bulk size at all though, so they were a good fit. Some moves definitely are tougher to do with them and the band variation move isn't always explained well (or at all) in the video, my one pet peeve with them. I'd like to have some adjustable ones but cost was a factor in starting out- I got a pull-up bar and band set for $50 shipped.

That reminds me, I should still call Black Mountain and get the free extra-heavy band...

On Yoga- commish, if you can get your hands on it, Yoga X2 is excellent and only 65 minutes.

 

[criesofthepast]

I started p90x weak as fuck so I'm just borrowing dumbbells for the first go through the program because I know if I buy weights now I'll outgrow them so fast and just be a waste of money. I honestly started using 5lb dumbbells. That's how little strength and muscle I had. Around 6 weeks in I can do 15lbs for most exercises. Again, this is still probably way light compared to a lot of you but for me it's progress and I'm glad I have people to borrow dumbbells from because they're way overpriced and I don't have the money.

Hopefully with summer coming and garage sale season starting I can find a good cheap set of 15-50lb dumbbells which should be good forever because I don't think I'll ever be able to do more than 50lb in any p90x exercise I've done up to this point.

 

[Harry Potter]

So, I quickly skimmed through the fitness guide. It looks like P90X2's schedule is far more flexible and up to the user. Did you do the recovery week at all? I am guessing they are making it on the need-basis because there are two recovery days already during the week. Any advice on that?

Tomorrow is the 90th day for P90X!

I didn't do a recovery week. Never felt like I needed it. But if you feel like you do then definetly do it. As for your earlier question, if you like the results you are getting from your current diet plan than I'd suggest you stick to that. I only followed the P90X diet once (then went on to do my own diet) and I never felt like energy was an issue in any of the phases if that's your concern.

The cactus roller looks awesome! Look forward to hearing your impressions on it.

 

[commish]

If you have a little cash to spend, I would recommend adjustable dumbbells like the Bowflex SelectTech (which I have). Mine have a maximum of 50 pounds each and they are adjustable by 2.5 increments. So you can set it to 10 pounds, 12.5 pounds, 15 pounds, etc. Saves a lot of space compared to a giant rack of dumbbells, plus you get finer control over weights.

They're expensive but are a good investment IMO. And even if you want to get rid of them later, they should be easy to sell on Craigslist. You can check your local Craigslist and pick up an used set to save some cash

$300+ is just too much! Maybe I can find them cheaper.

 

[BeautifulMemory]

There are worse ways to spend your money, man. Good on you for taking your health seriously. Nice purchases!

So much money reflected in these two images! Enjoy the goodies man.

Let me know what you think of Shakeology! My Lean1 shake stuff will be here tomorrow.

As far as bands/dumbbells, I've used bands only for the first two phases of P90X (oh god I'm about to be starting phase 2) and they are definitely effective. I had very little upper body strength to start out and wasn't going for bulk size at all though, so they were a good fit. Some moves definitely are tougher to do with them and the band variation move isn't always explained well (or at all) in the video, my one pet peeve with them. I'd like to have some adjustable ones but cost was a factor in starting out- I got a pull-up bar and band set for $50 shipped.

That reminds me, I should still call Black Mountain and get the free extra-heavy band...

On Yoga- commish, if you can get your hands on it, Yoga X2 is excellent and only 65 minutes.

I didn't do a recovery week. Never felt like I needed it. But if you feel like you do then definetly do it. As for your earlier question, if you like the results you are getting from your current diet plan than I'd suggest you stick to that. I only followed the P90X diet once (then went on to do my own diet) and I never felt like energy was an issue in any of the phases if that's your concern.

The cactus roller looks awesome! Look forward to hearing your impressions on it.

Thanks everyone for making me feel better of course right after the purchase my car is in the shop. Good-bye wallet!

I'm still playing with Shakeology. Definitely fulfilling. Thick, and lacking in taste by itself. I'm going to try with bananas soon. But check out the nutritional value when you can, it packs a bunch.

And HP thanks for the clarification. As for the diet I just like a balanced approach more and I don't know how much more weight I need to lose since im just coming off P90X and I think just the body fat needs to be tweaked.

And Commish weights are expensive so $300 is not bad at all given you need various weights to play with. Lots of moves require different weights