I just finished the P90X Yoga DVD (Well, not finished per se....) and it is rough. Flexibility is definitely one of my weakest points. I made it through the first half or so, and then the poses became quite difficult for me! But hey, hopefully by the end of the program I will be able to finish the whole DVD. That's a great goal to have!
The Yoga DVD starts with some breathing and warm-up stretches, then dives in to sun salutations. These sun salutations are the foundation of the entire yoga video. A sun salutation is performed between every single sequence, which can get a little old. They start out simple with basic downward dog, plank and upward dog, then adds warrior one and two. The program continues with triangle poses that then started to tweak my back a bit.
The twisting poses are uncomfortable for me, but it should get easier as I get more flexible. I don't want to push it too early and pull something, so i am taking it easy and stopping when it seems too much. Right now my downward dog is definitely not a pretty picture. My heals are nowhere near the ground. Man the yoga is tough! I have a lot of work to do on this one!
I have decided that I will take my "before" picture on Sunday, as that will be exactly one week in. I can then continue to track my progress at 30, 60, and 90 days.
Today is also my first day of work at GNC. I suppose I should go get ready!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
P90X Lean! Here we go!
Everyone has seen the infomercials about it, and a lot of folks have finished with fantastic results. Sadly, many more have attempted this program and encountered road blocks like injury, fatigue, and time constraints. I am not going to say they failed, just that they have yet to succeed. Yes, I am talking about P90X!
Last summer Erik and I purchased P90X and began the P90X classic program. We lasted about 2.5 weeks before my knee started bothering me, and his shoulder started to hurt. To avoid further overuse injury we put the program on hold, vowing to return to it and complete the full 90 days. Now it is winter, and with no lovely weather drawing us outside and away from the workouts we are back in action and ready to take on the challenge with P90X Lean!
Three days ago we decided to give P90X another go around. Here is our progress so far!
Day 1: chest and back +ab ripper
Man, I could barely lift my arms yesterday because my chest muscles are so sore. Killer workout!
Day 2: plyometrics
My legs are definitely sore today, but not as brutal as the chest and back
Day 3 (Today): Shoulders and arms + ab ripper. And we came to a decision regarding the program....
The last time we tried P90X classic and ended up injured, so this time around we will be completing P90X Lean. Lean is a higher cardio, lower impact workout regime than the Classic. instead of Plyometrics (which is all jumping) they swap in Cardio X. There are also less push-ups and pull-ups in the first month of the Lean program. By doing the Lean, we hope to avoid overuse injury and complete the full 90 day program. If at some point Lean is no longer challenging enough, or if Erik wants to lift more and develop his chest (I could care less about developing my chest, lol), he can sub in the Chest and Back disc for some of the core synergistics days in the Lean program.
To be successful in this program I need to get my nutrition back in gear. With winter upon us we have been making really yummy, but kind of rich food. Erik made a huge pot of fabulous chili that is amazing on a piece of wheat toast, but we have also been making a ton of rich Indian food and probably overdoing the tacos/burritos. We plan to make a lean beef stew and freeze a bunch of it. Now that we have started P90X I should be more motivated to eat leaner and healthier. Especially since working out after eating junk feels so nasty. I am totally amped about this endeavor!
I also start a new job at GNC tomorrow, so I will be able to get discounts on various supplements that will help us through the program. I have another interview in the morning with a new gym in town. If all goes well I will land that job as well (+ free gym membership). So I would work part time at GNC and part time at the gym. I will have everything set up for an awesome winter of indoor fitness to pair with snowboarding and snowshoeing, and get super fit for the spring/summer!
I will try to post some before pictures on here at some point. I want to post progress pics at 30 and 60, then after the 90 days I can throw some after pictures up. How exciting!
Last summer Erik and I purchased P90X and began the P90X classic program. We lasted about 2.5 weeks before my knee started bothering me, and his shoulder started to hurt. To avoid further overuse injury we put the program on hold, vowing to return to it and complete the full 90 days. Now it is winter, and with no lovely weather drawing us outside and away from the workouts we are back in action and ready to take on the challenge with P90X Lean!
Three days ago we decided to give P90X another go around. Here is our progress so far!
Day 1: chest and back +ab ripper
Man, I could barely lift my arms yesterday because my chest muscles are so sore. Killer workout!
Day 2: plyometrics
My legs are definitely sore today, but not as brutal as the chest and back
Day 3 (Today): Shoulders and arms + ab ripper. And we came to a decision regarding the program....
The last time we tried P90X classic and ended up injured, so this time around we will be completing P90X Lean. Lean is a higher cardio, lower impact workout regime than the Classic. instead of Plyometrics (which is all jumping) they swap in Cardio X. There are also less push-ups and pull-ups in the first month of the Lean program. By doing the Lean, we hope to avoid overuse injury and complete the full 90 day program. If at some point Lean is no longer challenging enough, or if Erik wants to lift more and develop his chest (I could care less about developing my chest, lol), he can sub in the Chest and Back disc for some of the core synergistics days in the Lean program.
To be successful in this program I need to get my nutrition back in gear. With winter upon us we have been making really yummy, but kind of rich food. Erik made a huge pot of fabulous chili that is amazing on a piece of wheat toast, but we have also been making a ton of rich Indian food and probably overdoing the tacos/burritos. We plan to make a lean beef stew and freeze a bunch of it. Now that we have started P90X I should be more motivated to eat leaner and healthier. Especially since working out after eating junk feels so nasty. I am totally amped about this endeavor!
I also start a new job at GNC tomorrow, so I will be able to get discounts on various supplements that will help us through the program. I have another interview in the morning with a new gym in town. If all goes well I will land that job as well (+ free gym membership). So I would work part time at GNC and part time at the gym. I will have everything set up for an awesome winter of indoor fitness to pair with snowboarding and snowshoeing, and get super fit for the spring/summer!
I will try to post some before pictures on here at some point. I want to post progress pics at 30 and 60, then after the 90 days I can throw some after pictures up. How exciting!
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Holidays, and losing a friend.
Wow, have I been busy! The holidays are such a crazy time, I am definitely ready for a little break. Over thanksgiving Erik and I went mountain biking in Fruita, CO and Moab, Utah, then flew to PA to visit his parents.
Christmas has been an exciting affair. I flew out to Santa Barbara for two weeks to visit with family and be generally overwhelmed by rich food, drink, and social interaction. Now I am back in Boulder and am pretty much wiped out. I pick up Erik at the airport today and am very excited to see him. However our happy reunion comes with a veil of sadness. Our first pet, Ping pong, has passed away. :(
Ping pong was a Chinese dwarf hamster that I purchased over a year ago when I was feeling very isolated and lonely out here in Colorado. She helped me through some rough times, and while she was small, she was a great comfort. She loved her yogies and running on her wheel. I had trained her to crawl into my hand, but if I wasn't holding a treat she would generally bite me. While i was training her to come to my hand, she was training me to have a treat! She was the best hamster anyone could want. Her quirky personality and would always shine through. Adorable. She had a good long life for her species, and was very well loved. She will definitely be missed.
You will always be loved and remembered.
Christmas has been an exciting affair. I flew out to Santa Barbara for two weeks to visit with family and be generally overwhelmed by rich food, drink, and social interaction. Now I am back in Boulder and am pretty much wiped out. I pick up Erik at the airport today and am very excited to see him. However our happy reunion comes with a veil of sadness. Our first pet, Ping pong, has passed away. :(
Ping pong was a Chinese dwarf hamster that I purchased over a year ago when I was feeling very isolated and lonely out here in Colorado. She helped me through some rough times, and while she was small, she was a great comfort. She loved her yogies and running on her wheel. I had trained her to crawl into my hand, but if I wasn't holding a treat she would generally bite me. While i was training her to come to my hand, she was training me to have a treat! She was the best hamster anyone could want. Her quirky personality and would always shine through. Adorable. She had a good long life for her species, and was very well loved. She will definitely be missed.
You will always be loved and remembered.Thursday, November 19, 2009
Mountainbikes, Snowboards and hiking boots, oh my!
It's been a little while since I have posted here, but for good reason! I have been busy living life, which aside from my current lack of incoming funds is pretty sweet right now.
Erik and I went on a mountain bike ride a couple weekends ago up at Hall Ranch in Lyons, CO, and man is that some sweet singletrack! The ride up is pretty mellow, and the ride down is a ton of fun. I've heard that Hall Ranch is some of the best singletrack in Boulder County and I'd have to agree. With plenty of water bars and natural features, it keeps you on your toes. The section of tight switchback at the bottom is great for whipping around those corners. I'd say cornering is my weakest point, so that little tight section is great practice and a lot of fun! We saw a group of deer on the way up. Very cool.
A deer at Hall Ranch
Erik's friends Jimmy and Kayna stopped through on their way from Montana to Texas and we went on a nice hike up to the Flatirons. It was a perfect day for it. Now I think it would be more of a snowshoe than a hike. Speaking of, it's about time to break out the snowshoes!
It has been snowing in the Rockies!
In case you didn't get the memo, it has been a great early season here so far! We have already had 3 big snow storms, and many of the ski resorts are already open. I have managed to make it up to the mountains twice so far. Once to Loveland and once to Breck on opening weekend!
The loveland trip was pretty sweet. Erik's friend hooked us up with a couple of free passes and the snow was very good for this early in the season. I bet it is even better now. The drive up was a fiasco, however, and I ended up out of the car pushing the escort up a section of I-70. We will never take that car in a storm again! We ended up buying chains in a small town off the highway, so we were able to make it to the resort with a couple hours left to ride. It was all worth it though to shake the rust off the old legs and get back into the groove!
Breck was a ton of fun. I drove up with my friend Jen and we got to the resort at ~11am. There were crazy long lines, but the slopes were pretty open! We went on a couple runs, then met up with some friends and had a margarita. On our last run we cut a corner and got some powder turns in! I was nervous that I was gonna trash the base of my new board, but the call of sweet powder won me over and I decided to risk it. It totally paid off, and we got some great turns in with no damage! Hooray!
Erik and I are going to head to the mountain this weekend with the snowboards, mountain bikes, and hiking boots and see what adventures we can get into. The plan is Friday snowboarding, then out to Fruita, CO or Moab, UT for some riding. Hopefully we can get out to Moab and hit the Whole Enchilada, but the top might not be open due to snow. There are a ton of good trails out there though, so we will have a blast!
Then it's off to the East Coast for thanksgiving. I just got a bunch of new clothes with some giftcards I had laying around, so I am super stoked. I got a sweet argyle sweater and a bunch of Roxy long sleeved thermal shirts, so I am ready for winter! I'm off to Costco to return some stuff now.
Check back soon for an update of the Thanksgiving break festivities!
Erik and I went on a mountain bike ride a couple weekends ago up at Hall Ranch in Lyons, CO, and man is that some sweet singletrack! The ride up is pretty mellow, and the ride down is a ton of fun. I've heard that Hall Ranch is some of the best singletrack in Boulder County and I'd have to agree. With plenty of water bars and natural features, it keeps you on your toes. The section of tight switchback at the bottom is great for whipping around those corners. I'd say cornering is my weakest point, so that little tight section is great practice and a lot of fun! We saw a group of deer on the way up. Very cool.
A deer at Hall RanchErik's friends Jimmy and Kayna stopped through on their way from Montana to Texas and we went on a nice hike up to the Flatirons. It was a perfect day for it. Now I think it would be more of a snowshoe than a hike. Speaking of, it's about time to break out the snowshoes!
It has been snowing in the Rockies!
In case you didn't get the memo, it has been a great early season here so far! We have already had 3 big snow storms, and many of the ski resorts are already open. I have managed to make it up to the mountains twice so far. Once to Loveland and once to Breck on opening weekend!
The loveland trip was pretty sweet. Erik's friend hooked us up with a couple of free passes and the snow was very good for this early in the season. I bet it is even better now. The drive up was a fiasco, however, and I ended up out of the car pushing the escort up a section of I-70. We will never take that car in a storm again! We ended up buying chains in a small town off the highway, so we were able to make it to the resort with a couple hours left to ride. It was all worth it though to shake the rust off the old legs and get back into the groove!
Breck was a ton of fun. I drove up with my friend Jen and we got to the resort at ~11am. There were crazy long lines, but the slopes were pretty open! We went on a couple runs, then met up with some friends and had a margarita. On our last run we cut a corner and got some powder turns in! I was nervous that I was gonna trash the base of my new board, but the call of sweet powder won me over and I decided to risk it. It totally paid off, and we got some great turns in with no damage! Hooray!
Erik and I are going to head to the mountain this weekend with the snowboards, mountain bikes, and hiking boots and see what adventures we can get into. The plan is Friday snowboarding, then out to Fruita, CO or Moab, UT for some riding. Hopefully we can get out to Moab and hit the Whole Enchilada, but the top might not be open due to snow. There are a ton of good trails out there though, so we will have a blast!
Then it's off to the East Coast for thanksgiving. I just got a bunch of new clothes with some giftcards I had laying around, so I am super stoked. I got a sweet argyle sweater and a bunch of Roxy long sleeved thermal shirts, so I am ready for winter! I'm off to Costco to return some stuff now.
Check back soon for an update of the Thanksgiving break festivities!
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
First snow in Boulder! Whaaaat?!
It is my day off today so I thought I would catch up on some blogging. This last weekend we had some crazy weather here in Boulder. I woke up on Saturday morning and was greeted with this view from my balcony:
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Winter wonderland!
Quite the snowy site! This much snow in early October? What is the world coming to? I was expecting snow from the weather report, but not quite so much! I have been riding my bike to work as I live extremely close, but today with all the snow I decided to walk. Here are some shots of the walk across Scott Carpenter Park that morning:
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Bike path through Scott Carpenter behind the sledding hill. There were a few kids out sledding! :)
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More snowy bike path!
It is now sunny and crisp out, with some high clouds. This weekend we will be hitting the low 70's! Quite the switch. Colorado has some serious weather! You know what they say, "If you don't like the weather in Colorado, wait 5 minutes!"
Well, I'm off to contact my landlord to get the heat fixed. We just can't manage to keep the pilot light lit, and if this crazy weather keeps up, we will definitely need the heat. Especially since Erik is recover from a very sudden but brief onset of pneumonia. He is doing much better now and is on antibiotics, but he was really sick for a couple days. His midterms and this crazy weather must have lowered his immune system. I'm glad he is better though. So stay warm and stay healthy everyone!
Bye!
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Winter wonderland!Quite the snowy site! This much snow in early October? What is the world coming to? I was expecting snow from the weather report, but not quite so much! I have been riding my bike to work as I live extremely close, but today with all the snow I decided to walk. Here are some shots of the walk across Scott Carpenter Park that morning:
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Bike path through Scott Carpenter behind the sledding hill. There were a few kids out sledding! :).jpg)
More snowy bike path!It is now sunny and crisp out, with some high clouds. This weekend we will be hitting the low 70's! Quite the switch. Colorado has some serious weather! You know what they say, "If you don't like the weather in Colorado, wait 5 minutes!"
Well, I'm off to contact my landlord to get the heat fixed. We just can't manage to keep the pilot light lit, and if this crazy weather keeps up, we will definitely need the heat. Especially since Erik is recover from a very sudden but brief onset of pneumonia. He is doing much better now and is on antibiotics, but he was really sick for a couple days. His midterms and this crazy weather must have lowered his immune system. I'm glad he is better though. So stay warm and stay healthy everyone!
Bye!
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