P90X Abs Core Plus

I finally got around to trying out another P90X Plus video, Abs Core Plus. After my last Kenpo X disappointment I guess I wasn't all that thrilled to try more. But since my husband is out of town and I'm out of our normal routine I thought it was a good time to give it a whirl. I had expectations that I wouldn't be able to keep up. With the nice weather and the endless home chores, we've fallen off the P90 bandwagon. I figured I would do my fair share of cheating, with no work-out buddy keeping an eye on me, but was I ever surprised. I did every move on the video and I must say, I did them pretty effortlessly. I didn't even break a sweat and I enjoyed the whole thing. Ok, maybe not the whole thing.

The only parts that I found uncomfortable and difficult were the hanging moves. I did the first 3 or 4 sets with no gloves, which was unbearable. I don't have a nice cushiony bar like the folks on the video and my already-sore painting hands were being shredded. So I threw on some gloves for the remaining hanging sessions, but I still couldn't figure out how not to swing. I must have the wrong technique because my body seemed to swing much more than it should. I'll have to work on that.

Overall the video was excellent. The moves are all one minute each with no idle chatter in between. You just flow from one move right to the next without wasting any time. The 20 minutes flew by and I was pleasantly surprised at how well I did. I can say, without a doubt, that it's yoga that has keep my abs and core in tip top shape. Many of the moves involved balancing and I found them easy as can be. Yoga is solely responsible for my balance and stability. I will definitely add this video to my normal weekly routine.

P90X Plus - Ouch!

Holy @$&% I thought I was ready for P90X Plus, but I guess I was mistaken. Today was my first attempt at it. Seeing as I breezed through most of the regular P90X I figured, "How tough can they be?" Well, let me tell you . . . tough!

Granted, I only tried one video and it was Interval. Actually, it was an accident too because I intended to do Total Body, but put in the wrong DVD. Since I don't yet know one from the other, it made no difference. Interval was an interesting approach. I think there are approximately 15 different exercises and you perform them at three different 20 second intervals. You start off at a nice manageable pace, then you move up to a little higher intensity, followed by (of course) 20 seconds of butt-kicking hard work.

I made it through the entire first half and was feeling pretty good about myself. But when Tony said that we were going to repeat the exact same sequence I think I cried. I was so not ready for that. I got through another 4 or 5 exercises, but with much less umph than I did the first time around. I think I was suffering from my typical problem. I didn't have my work-out buddy and I'm just not as driven when I work-out alone. Nobody's looking so I'm gonna cheat. But I still feel good, none-the-less, that I even attempted it. And based on the fact that I was sweating when I was done, I obviously worked hard. Most of the regular P90X sessions didn't make me sweat at all.

I am curious to see what the rest of the videos are like and will, no doubt, be checking them out shortly.

A P90X Dream Come True

So I've been planning to try to maintain my new found P90X-induced strength and endurance. I had all kinds of good intentions of continuing to do at least one video per week, or at the very least Ab Ripper during one of my lunch breaks. Sadly, I've done nothing in the past month even remotely P90X related.

But recently I talked to my friends over at Ultimate Fitness Gear. They informed me about a brand new Tony Horton video series called "10 Minute Trainer." This sounds WAY too good to be true. I was enticed and ordered up not only the 10 Minute workouts, but also the P90X Plus videos. A girl can dream, right? I'm not quite as excited to give those a try, but I'm filing them away for some indoor winter torture.

I am, however, planning to test drive these new 10 minute work-outs starting next week. Granted, I'm not a good test case for losing weight. All I'm interested in doing is maintaining my strength and cardio without the huge time commitment that P90X involved. So stay tuned to see how it goes.