p90x blog Archives - Wandering Dawn

P90X Masters!

I did it! I’m a P90X grad again, and I must say I’m happy with my results. I may not be able to do 10 pull-ups yet, and I don’t have the complete six-pack I had hoped for, but this round got me much closer to those and many other goals. A quick reminder that this is the second time in 9 months that I’ve done P90X. The first time was August – November 2010, and the second time was Feb – May, 2011. I took 2 months off in between but didn’t get around to taking the fit test for Day 0 the second time; that’s why there are only 3 results. Overall, I’ve noticed positive changes in my body composition. My weight hasn’t changed much, but I have lost inches and gained muscle. I think P90X is an excellent fitness program, and I’d recommend it for most people. (It’s really intense, so there are other Beachbody beginner programs you can look at doing first: http://www.beachbodycoach.com/SDFITNESSDIVA .)

For P90X, you have to be willing to commit, press play every day, and follow the nutrition plan. (Yes, follow the nutrition plan!) Enough with the chit-chat, let’s get on with my results! (Please forgive my tan lines!)

Day 90 - May 2011

Date                             8/23/10 – Day 0   11/22/10 – Day 90      5/4/11 – Day 90 x2
Weight                         110.4 lbs                 108.2 lbs                       108.2 lbs
Waist                            26.25″                     25.75″                           25.25″
Hips                              32.5    31       30

2nd Day 90 - May 2011

Pull-Ups                0.5                             6                                    7
Push-Ups                    22                             43                                   50
Wall Squat                  2’35”                         4’48”                          4’09”
In & Outs                    48                              125                                 155

Day 90 - May 2011

I had a lot of fun taking my Day 90 pictures this time. You can probably tell since I’m in 3 different outfits! I definitely feel toned and much stronger. I don’t have an accurate body fat % calculator, so maybe I’ll get it tested somewhere because I am definitely curious and it will be good to know for future measurements. I just know that I lost inches and gained muscle, and that is a good thing! I reached a BIG goal of 50 push-ups (not on my knees) which is probably my favorite achievement. Since I’m always striving for improvement, I want to be able to do 100 push-ups one day!

In summary, I feel strong, happy, and healthy. Thank you, P90X!! I can’t wait for P90X 2 to launch this fall because I will DEFINITELY be doing it! MC2 will definitely take my fitness to another level! Anyone else interested in doing that program with me later this year?

Day 0 - August 2010 Where are my muscles?

Stay tuned for a post about what I’ll be doing after my marathon training is complete! (I’ve been doing marathon training simultaneously with P90X.) Rock n Roll San Diego is only 1 month away!

We did it! La Jolla Half Marathon 4/17/11

I just got my PR at one of the most difficult half marathons in the US – La Jolla! I am bursting at the seems, I’m so happy right now. I finished with a time of 1:55:08! That’s nearly 20 minutes faster than my last half marathon in August, and 5 minutes faster than the goal I had set for myself of finishing in under 2 hours. How did I do it? Allow me to share my training journey with you.

I ran my first half marathon, Silver Strand, in November 2008 and absolutely hated it. I was miserable starting at mile 3 and said I’d never do one ever again. My time was around 2:17…Fastforward to 2010. I started running again and was craving a challenge. It had been 1.5 years since my only half marathon, and I figured I’d give it another try. My new friend Amber was a runner and triathlete, so she inspired me to get back into training mode and we started running together. Then, Nicole started running with me. We did some training runs for America’s Finest City and all ended up running at a different pace on race day. I was the slowest, barely beating my 2:17 finish time in 2008. I felt like I started off way too fast, so I slowed down after 5 miles, and the hill got me at the end. 2:13:50 was my time. I was happy to have finished, and definitely felt less miserable than my first half, but I still wasn’t satisfied. 3 minutes off my half marathon time from 2 years ago just wasn’t enough. If Nicole and Amber could run so much faster than me, I was convinced that I could too. I just needed a different approach.

With AFC behind me, I decided to introduce a new training program in my life. That program was P90X – an extreme at home fitness program based on muscle confusion. (You can find more info on it here: http://www.beachbodycoach.com/SDFITNESSDIVA .)
I give so much credit to my boyfriend for researching it and committing to do it. I was intrigued and asked if I could join him, so we started Day 1 together and stuck to the 90 day fitness program and nutrition plan. Over the next 90 days my body transformed into a very lean, mean, fighting machine! I toned up and was able to do pull-ups for the first time. My strength improved so much after P90x that we decided to do it again.

Results from the first time doing P90X

After 2 months off, in February we started P90X for a second time. That has been a huge part of my training regimen. We also joined the Vavi marathon training group which was huge for accountability. We run together 2x/week, and we’re supposed to do 2 runs on our own. Our coaches are very supportive and designed a great running program for us to follow. I layered marathon training of running 4 days/week on top of P90X 4 days/week (it’s normally 6 but I had to cut down), and the result was a PR at La Jolla Half Marathon! Not only was it a PR – I went from running 10+ minute miles to sub 9 minute miles – a huge improvement! It feels great. I am very proud of my boyfriend, Jeremy, who finished way ahead of me at 1:36:19! He hadn’t run much since our 2008 half marathon, but 2 rounds of P90X did a body good, and he had a killer time. Our good friends and couple Nicole and Mike started doing P90X around the same time we started it for a second time. They were impressed with our results and also wanted to become faster runners. Nicole finished in 1:54 and Mike 1:34. I am SO proud of all of us for PR’ing on such a tough course! The hills were still tough, but after passing several people on the steep upgrades, I knew my legs were more than ready.

Look who was waiting for us at the finish!

Key P90X leg workouts for improving your running time are Legs & Back and Plyometrics. I’ll admit that I didn’t do Plyometrics the second time around because I was running 4 days a week, but I kept in Legs and Back, and the other total body workouts, including 90 minutes of yoga, leading up to La Jolla. We’ve been working out 8 times/week, but our bodies are so much stronger because of it.

It’s hard to believe we only have 2 weeks of P90X to go! I’ll keep incorporating P90X workouts into my marathon training as we approach the 26.2 mile mark in June. I’d say the two programs work quite well together, wouldn’t you? Now, it’s time for a cheat meal and tasty treat!

Sprinkles Cupcakes - A Delicious Treat!

P90X Fitness Test Results and Pics

How I Conquered the La Jolla Half Marathon