The P90X Workout Diaries — Week 1
[*Note from the editor -- Zach Petersel is a featured MLB columnist for Bleacher Report, an all-around fitness/nutrition/sports nut, and a guest contributor for Lean It UP. Zach graduated from Indiana University in 2011 and will start grad school at Columbia University in the fall of 2012. You can follow him on Twitter @ZPetersel]
Welcome to The P90X Workout Diaries, a chronicle of my 12-week experience with the original P90X in-home workout system. These are going to be like the Vampire Diaries…just better!
Before diving into my P90X workout routine, I thought it was important to discuss my background and the ideas behind this program.
Who am I and what is P90X about? What is my previous workout experience? What am I looking to accomplish as I enter the intensity that is this 12-week process? The video below is just one of many success stories to come out of the P90X program.
To Begin, Who Am I?
My name is Zach Petersel. I am a 23-year-old, 5’6”, 130 pound male with solid workout experience in my past.
Me, August 2012, Week 1 - The P90X Diaries
I recently graduated from Indiana University where I would work out four times per week, but my routines were fairly repetitive and limited. I did everything, including various bench press exercises to work my chest, treadmill cardio to burn body fat, and used dumbbells to build the rest of my upper body (shoulder, biceps, tris), but I was never able to add the muscle mass or definition that I was looking for.
After I graduated, my workouts fell off a cliff.
Whether that was because I was working 60-80 hours a week, or simply had a lack of motivation after what I perceived to be minimal progress, I kept looking for solutions but was unable to find anything.
Until one of my friends told me about P90X.
What Exactly Is P90X?
The P90X 12-week program is designed to make everything as easy as possible for you, the consumer.
Not only do you get three months of pre-designed workout plans, but you also get a manual with meal-by-meal instructions (pictured below) describing how to eat healthy and spice up your diet. Even if you are someone who already takes great care of what you put into your body, there is always more to learn.
Take it from me, someone who already ate at least five times per day monitoring each meal — this book has a great variety of meals and it really helps plan out your day regardless of whether you work or not. After just one week on the program, I have already had at least four new meals I never tried before. If worse comes to worse and you grow tired of the workouts (I hope you don’t!), you can at the very least become an expert chef and impress your friends and family.
As for the workouts, Tony Horton and his staff become your new personal trainers.
Each workout is a DVD in which Horton shows you the proper form for each exercise, delving into simple moves for beginners, in addition to some advanced techniques for those who have workout experience and are ready to take on more.
Whether it is one of the six different types of push-ups, pull-ups, cardio moves, yoga moves, squats, you name it, the experience is catered to anyone and everyone as long as you put in the effort. The amount of individual attention you get through these videos, in your own home, makes the investment worth it right out of the gate.
On top of the individual attention and precise detail of each workout, another benefit is that the entire package does not cost that much!
Not only do you save money on monthly gym fees, which I have seen as high as $90 a month, you do not need to buy expensive equipment to perform the workouts. All I bought were resistance bands on Amazon for $5-$45, a pull-up bar for around $25, and the actual P90X DVD set. All-in-all, the total cost came out to around $200.
Recap — The Equipment You’ll Need
P90X DVD Set
Resistance Bands
Pull-Up Bar
Total cost: ~ $200
What Am I Looking To Accomplish?
TO GET BACK INTO THE GYM!
One thing I did not expect coming out of school was to be so consumed by my job(s) that I would lose time for the gym, but that is exactly what happened and I am sure the same has happened to many of you.
I currently have two jobs for BleacherReport.com, as both a News Alerts staff member on their Team Stream Mobile App and as a MLB Featured Columnist writing multiple articles each week. I also am about to start a Masters Program at Columbia University.
To say I do not have a lot of time is a great understatement.
What P90X gives me is the opportunity to consistently workout, despite being tied down with a lot of other responsibilities. Whether that is waking up a bit early to workout before heading into the office, or staying up a late and working out before bed, the gym is open on my time, and works around my schedule.
While I cannot guarantee that I will workout the six times per week or eat the exact meals suggested by the program, the ability to work out what I want, when I want on a healthy diet in-and-of-itself is an incredible luxury.
This workout system not only spices up my diet, but has completely changed my workout regimen. It opens up a world of possibilities and in just one week, I’ve already hit two huge muscle groups (legs and back) that I would have had no idea how to workout in the past.
I have never felt as satisfied leaving the “gym” as I have after my first week of workouts. Being able to take things at my own pace while receiving great instruction on new moves and exercises to hit muscles I’ve never focused on before is exciting and I cannot wait to see what next week brings.
Signing off for week one of the P90X diaries. Check back next week as I delve into some of the routines in greater detail and update my progress after week 2!
Follow Zach on Twitter @ZPetersel and Lean It UP on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest for real-time fitness/nutrition tips, advice, info and updates.
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