Insanity P90X 26.2 70.3

Dig Deep

Been a while since I posted and you’ll be happy to know I’ve been digging deep and currently on Day 22 of Insanity.  I mentioned before that I’m not following the calendar verbatim since I’m taking weekends off and also substituting Recovery Days with Upper Body Weight Training, awesome workout by the way if you want to incorporate weights. Since I had two off periods (Christmas and New Year’s break, 3 days off each time) I’ve decide to use the Recovery Week as another week of Month 1 workouts.  I’ll take the weekend off and then jump right into Month 2 with the Max workouts.

My diet has been really good over the last two weeks and I lost a few pounds but not nearly as much as I was hoping for, however, I can clearly see and feel the difference.  I expect a decrease in weight come month 2 since the workouts are a bit longer and you burn even more calories with the workouts lasting about 10 minutes longer compared to month 1.  I’m going to start incorporating a bit more running over the next couple of weeks to really get the metabolism going and maybe a spin class or two as well.

More good news the lower abdominal pain is getting better by the day, I can actually sneeze and cough with very little pain.  I really think the pain was caused by fatigue with all the cardio I was doing for the Ironman.  Speaking of which I’m planning on doing a couple sprint Tri’s and 5k’s this year with my mind set on an Ironman come 2013, which one I just don’t know yet.

Till next time, I run do you?

Caught Up In Numbers

As you know I officially started Insanity a week ago and since Monday I have gained 5 pounds, how can this be?  I’ve been eating slightly better but not perfect by any means so why the weight gain?  Maybe it’s water weight, increased muscle or a combination of both, regardless I’m not going to get caught up in what the scale says, at least not right now.  If I continue to see an upward trend then I’ll make some changes, eat cleaner, drink more water, incorporate a few short runs throughout the week to name a few.  These changes will hopefully jump start my metabolism and with month two of Insanity lurking around the corner this should start the trend back downward.  One way to obviously tell if you’ve had true weight gain is by how your clothes fit and as of today I’m on the same notch in my belt and the clothes don’t feel snug, good signs

As for the Insanity workouts they are going along well, tried Max Interval Sports Training for the first time and it was very tough, a little longer than the first 30 days of workouts but a nice change of pace.  Today calls for Cardio Power & Resistance and I have one goal in mind, do more Power Jumps than last time,  I’m going to embrace them.  Overall I’m feeling good mentally about this round of Insanity, I just hope I can physically keep it up.  The lower abdominal pain hasn’t gone away but hasn’t gotten any worse either, keeping my fingers crossed that all holds together.

Till next time, I run do you?

I Hate Power Jumps

Day 2 of Insanity brings Cardio Power and Resistance, by now you guessed I hate Power Jumps, what gave it away

I know they are a necessary evil, gets your heart going, works your core and legs but man they kill me every time, give me a couple weeks and I’ll bang them out without hesitation.

Day 2 is in the books and I’m officially 3% finished with the program, baby steps and positive thoughts.  Speaking of positive thoughts or lack of, my buddy Joe who completed Insanity last year and looked great turned to the dark side and has let himself go AGAIN, he’s in a bad place right now.  We are texting as I update this blog and he’s making fun of his weight something I used to do when I was 70 lbs. heavier, snap out of it Joe, do it for yourself, wife and kids.  40 years old is right around the corner and this can spiral out of control.  What pisses me off the most is all the hard work he did, completing Insanity, eating well etc. and now it’s all for nothing.

As for my other friend Chris who has completed Insanity this year, he’s in the right mind set going to CrossFit this morning and getting p90×2 at his front door yesterday.  From what I can tell it looks intense, I may have to borrow it in 58 days.

Tomorrow calls for Cardio Recovery which I may substitute for Upper Body Weight Training or perhaps Max Interval Sports Training, hey anything is better than sitting on your couch and being lazy right Joe?

Till next time, I run do you?

Time To Get Insane Again

Since the completion of my Half Ironman which is just over two months now, I’ve done all kinds of workouts from circuit weights, running, biking, Insanity etc. I wanted to find out what would be the best program for me both physically and mentally, after some thought I’ve decided to go back to Insanity.  Why not, I’ve done it before and I know it works, if you haven’t seen my results click here.  The good thing is I’m way better off this go around since I weigh less and have a lot more definition, the results should be just as good if not better.  I’ll be modifying the schedule slightly since my workouts will be Monday-Friday with the weekends off, also on my recovery days I’ll substitute with either Interval Sports Training or Upper Body Weight Training. 

Diet is key, high protein, smaller portions and less junk is the formula I will go by.  The only break I will give myself is Xmas weekend which is 13 days from now, I’m confident even by then I’ll start seeing and feeling the difference.  Now you shouldn’t look to far ahead because you don’t want to lose sight of the goals in place but after Insanity I’m thinking of either buying Asylum or giving P90X a shot since I have yet to complete that program. 

So with that I did Plyometric Cardio Circuit today at the gym in the spare aerobics studio with my buddy Tom, was it tough, yes, however it wasn’t nearly as tough when you compare it to the first time almost two years ago.  Oh you should’ve seen my buddy do the Heisman’s, he’s got some work to do for sure.

Till next time, I run do you?

Struggle

I’m not going to lie to you, it’s been a struggle the past couple of days with my workouts, it’s not so much being motivated but the fact that I’m experiencing some discomfort/pain in the lower abdominal area.  This past summer when I saw my Dr. regarding a head cold I told him about the pain and he mentioned it might be a lower abdominal hernia and if it gets any worse I would know and need to get surgery.  I had the same pain last year and it eventually went away after I scaled back my workout sessions which is what I’ve done since my last post.  So is it a hernia or muscle strain?  Not sure, one thing I’m sure about is getting in a good sweat 3-4 x’s a week but just not at the level I’m used to. With that I decided to really test it out yesterday when I did the Insanity Plyo workout and overall the pain wasn’t that bad, had to modify a few things but overall I was pleased.  I’m taking today off and will be back at it tomorrow, hoping that over time my hernia/strain will heal.  One more side note, it hurts most when I run but doesn’t hurt when I weight train, weird right?  Oh well I’ll need to be a little more strict with the diet since my workouts have been lacking a bit. 

Till next time, I run do you?

90 Day Fitness Challenge

For those that are interested my buddy is holding a 90 day fitness challenge starting September 1st.  His goal is to create a community to help motivate each other to get fit, not to mention he needs to drop a few lbs.  Sorry Chris but I saw you at the beach Tuesday  

There is a $500 first place prize up for grabs along with 2nd and 3rd place prizes.  All you have to do is click on the following site:

 http://www.gettingstrongnow.com/90-day-fitness-challenge/ and follow the instructions.  

If you need some help I would recommend Insanity, P90x, Asylum or for you ladies out there ChaLEAN Extreme. Click on the above links or side bar banners to place your order and get it in time for the Sept.1st start. 

I’ll join in on the fun after my Half IronMan by doing some P90x and mix bag of cardio. 

Good Luck!

Till next time, I run do you?

Insanity Asylum Is Here

Man this looks absolutely sick, and if what I read is true than Asylum will make Insanity look easy.  I want to dive into this so bad but it will have to wait until this coming winter.  There is no way I can train for this half ironman along with the marathon and do Asylum at the same time, though I have no doubt that a program like this would help in performance in either of those events.  I’ll stick to traditional triathlon training for now. 

This is a post Insanity workout meaning you should graduate Insanity first and then jump into the Asylum workouts. I’ll probably do a month of Max Insanity workouts come December and then start Asylum in January 2012.  Thing I like about it the most is that it’s a 30 day program but I noticed it says Volume 1, does that mean there are others to follow?  I’ll let you know once I hear.

Till next time, I run do you?

Ironman Training, No Walk In The Park

So I put together my training program for the Half IronmMan and let’s just say it’s no walk in the park.  Needless to say I’m going to be hitting the gym frequently and early in order to get the bulk of the long training in.  Being a husband and father, I don’t want to take a lot of time away from my family so if I need to run 20 miles at 5 am before the kids wake up on the weekend then that’s what I’ll do. 

As you can see, click below, I have incorporated a lot of running in the program and that’s simply because I plan on running the NYC Marathon a month after the Poconos Half Ironman, now if I miss a 4 or 5 miler I’m not going to beat myself over it, what I can tell you is that I will work on making every long run, bike and swim since I know those are the ones that count most.  Also I may swap out days or workouts depending on my daily or weekly planning. 

I’ll also be doing a lot of training on the treadmill and stationary bike but like I mentioned above the long runs and rides need to be done outdoors and I will do my best to fit these in the early am hours on weekends.  Luckily the sun will be coming up sooner and sooner so by the time summer comes around I won’t be running or riding in the dark. 

Well there it is, oh and in case you are wondering bike and swim are minutes while running is miles.

Till next time, I run do you?

Bad Week Good Week

Last week was an absolute killer, I only got one workout in on Thursday, a great circuit weights and 6 mile run,that was the extent of my workouts last week.  My company put on it’s annual convention so I was in NYC from 11am Sunday to 7pm Wednesday.  My days during the convention consisted of waking up at 5am in order to help set up by 6am and then work the convention until 7pm, I then didn’t get back to my room until midnight after entertaining clients.  I guess if there was any good that came out of it workout wise was I was on my feet all day.  The negative, I ate like crap.  

That leads me to this week, I knew I had to bounce back with a strong week workout wise and diet.  I promised myself not to step on the scale Monday and wait until the end of the week because I felt as if I gained 5 or so pounds after such a horrible week before.  I broke that promise after my workout Monday and to much delight I didn’t gain an oz.  Even still I continue to have good workouts this week, here is what I’ve done so far and what I will do to wrap up this week:

1. Monday- 10 mile stationary bike & 4 mile run
2. Tuesday- 6 mile intervals, 44:50
3. Wednesday- 20 mile stationary bike
4. Thursday- circuit weights, 6 mile run, 40 minute swim
5. Friday- 20 mile stationary bike
6. Saturday- 10 mile road run
7. Sunday- off

Now the diet, I’ve made an effort to intake much more protein before and after my workouts and minimized the junk after dinner.  I need to concentrate on making better food decisions during the week so I don’t feel so guilty if I cheat a little on the weekends.  This weekend in particular will be tough since we are having my daughters 2nd birthday party at the house. 

I’m officially 2 months away from my Half Ironman 20 week training program so I will continue to increase my base with a little more concentration on swimming and biking.  I may even throw in a couple Insanity workouts throughout the week thanks to my brother in law who will be taking the Insanity challenge come Monday.  He got me thinking that since I have 2 months away from training why not build in some Insanity to help build more lean muscle.  Dig deep Joe, dig deep!

Till next time, I run do you?

Good Workouts Bad Eating

My workouts have been fantastic, in fact I ran 10 miles with my buddy Kevin Saturday morning and didn’t have any soreness during or after the run, I’m confident that riding the stationary bike and swimming have helped my running muscles considerably.  Then there is the diet/eating portion of training which has completely sucked for a lack of better words. 

Lets first discuss the good and that is my workouts, I’ve been averaging two 20-30 minute swims, 25-35 miles on stationary bike, 20-25 miles running and at least one circuit weight training session for the past 3 weeks.  The breakdown looks like this:

• Monday- 45 minute bike/15 miles
• Tuesday- Circuit Weights & 20 minute swim
• Wednesday- 7 mile run
• Thursday- 10 mile bike & 4 mile run
• Friday- Circuit Weights & 20 minute swim
• Saturday- 10 mile run
• Sunday- off

Now some of these distances vary but this is a good average as to what I’ve been up to.  I will try and stretch theses workout a little longer starting next week.  Note, for all the bike sessions I’ve been on the stationary.  My settings are level 25 (hardest) and interval hills, I really push myself, in fact I get out of the saddle for the hardest hills. Here is what my heart rate chart looks like during one of these workouts:

I know it’s hard to read but my average HR is 147bpm with a max of 166bpm and clearly shows when I’m out of the saddle climbing the hills.

I’m not going to spend a whole lot on the eating/negative because it’s a simple fix, discipline.  I need to eat smaller portions and STOP eating junk after dinner.  For the most part I do fairly well throughout the day it’s when I get home and the weekends which absolutely kill me.  Why is it that I feel the need to treat myself every night simply because I worked out that day?  I need to change my thought process and discipline myself when I have those cravings, it’s going to start today.

Quick shout out to my buddy Keith who is on Day 10 of Insanity, DIG DEEP buddy.

Till next time, I run do you?