Should Women Do P90X?!?!?!?

A Girl's Guide to P90X
By Whitney Provost

Muscles are a girl's best friend. Not only do they raise your metabolism and help you burn more calories, they also keep you living strong. And they look beautiful. Well-sculpted shoulders and lean, tight legs carry clothes better and allow you to power through everyday activities with strength and stamina. How do you get a body like that? A program like P90X will do the trick.

I know this because I'm a P90X graduate. I can vouch for its muscle-sculpting, fat-blasting, and body-shrinking powers. Before I ever started working for Beachbody®, I finished two rounds of P90X and incorporated P90X Plus into my fitness routine. I still do P90X regularly, and Plyometrics is consistently in my cardio rotations.

I'm not a world-class athlete. I'm just a regular at-home fitness junkie. P90X has been helping me get the body I want—lean, tight, and strong but not bulky—and it makes me feel good.

Not sure if you're ready to tackle the X? Here are a few things to keep in mind.

Do your best and forget the rest. You'll hear Tony say this a lot throughout P90X, and it's important advice. All you have to do is lift as much weight as you can, and that's it. You're not in competition with anyone else. Don't worry if you can only lift 5 pounds while the women in the workouts are hoisting 15. Every time you Push Play, you'll get stronger, and before you know it, you'll be able to lift heavier than you ever have before. And don't be surprised if you find that you can do a few pull-ups at the end of 90 days.

Eat enough. A common mistake many active women make is undereating. With a program as intense as P90X, it's important to fill your body with enough healthy fuel to power through your workouts and help your muscles recover afterward. If you don't eat enough, your metabolism will slow down and your body will burn muscle for energy. Follow the P90X nutrition plan and take your supplements. They're designed to help you get the best results.

Don't be a slave to the scale. During a program like P90X, your body will go through a lot of metabolic changes. At first, your muscles may retain water as they react to the shock of the workouts and the recovery afterward. You may notice your weight going up for a short time before your muscles shed the excess water. As you continue with the program, you'll be building muscle and shedding fat, but the scale might not move downward as much as you want it to. Don't let that deter you. A pound of muscle is denser than a pound of fat, so your body may shrink even if your weight doesn't change that much. Keep in mind that muscle is a metabolism booster, so the more you have the more calories and fat you'll burn all day long.

You're not going to get bulky. Look at the women in the P90X workouts. They're all lean, strong, and feminine. Because women don't have enough testosterone to build massive amounts of muscle, it's nearly impossible for them to bulk up by lifting heavy weights. When women complain about feeling bulky, it's usually because they're new to a fitness program and their muscles are retaining water. If this happens to you, don't give up. Stick with your meal plan and workouts, and soon the extra bulk will go away.

You're going to love the way you feel. OK, maybe not when you're sore from working out, but as you get stronger and leaner, you're going to love how easy everyday tasks become, like lifting heavy objects, walking up and down stairs, or picking up children. And I can pretty much guarantee that you'll find yourself admiring your shoulders in the mirror or poking yourself in the belly to feel your tight abs. I do it all the time.

If you still have questions if P90X would be the right program for you send me a message. I've completed P90X a total of 4 times and I'm getting ready to start it for a 5th on March 8th.

Vicky

Don't Feel Like Working Out....

I have had one of those weeks at work. I haven't been able to get out of work when I wanted too. I've had to take work home so I haven't gotten the amount of sleep I need. I have had too many other things thrown on my desk this week so I haven't been able to get my regular work done.

Today was the worst day of the week. It was actually nice out tonight and I wanted to get outside for my run, I dread having to run on the "dreadmill". Tonight, of course, I got out of work late and by the time I got home it was almost 6:30pm. I had a three mile run on the schedule and all I wanted to do was climb on the couch and nap. Instead I went right to my workout clothes and got changed and logged into WOWY.

I got on the dreadmill and still didn't want to do the three miles. I decided that I couldn't make the three miles any shorter but I could crank up the speed and intensity and get it done faster.

After 24:35 minutes I had covered my 3 miles tonight. Was it hard to do? Yes, but it was one heck of a workout and not the workout I thought I would have tonight on my way home. After the 3 miles I was dripping sweat, I felt like I could do anything, and my energy was thru the roof.

So next time that you think you don't have the energy or don't feel like getting in the workout. Just get dressed, wowy and push play you will probably amaze yourself.

Have you Committed?

Four weeks ago I post that I had committed to myself, my fitness and my running. I've officially registered for the VT Marathon on May 30th. I sat down and planned out the next 5 months of training. Now 4 weeks into my training commitment how are things going....

• I've gotten in all of my schedule runs and many of them there longer than what I originally scheduled


• I've gotten in all my weight routines


• I've gotten in all of my weekly yoga routines


• I've had trouble getting in my extra cardio for the week.... to be honest I've only got it in two of the four weeks


• I lost 8lbs total in the four weeks...

I've just committed to my workouts and the nutrition followed. There are still big improvements I need to make in my nutrition. There are also new things I need to learn since this is the first I'm I'll be regularly running at least 12 miles on Sundays.

Start with the workouts and the changes will start to happen in your nutrition. You can't fuel your body for intense workouts with junk food. You will start to look for that nutrition that you body needs. So get to the starting line and commit to yourself and your workouts!!! It is good for your body, your health and in turn good for your family.

The Importance of Yoga...

I know that most of you starting P90X do not want to do Yoga and it is one of the longest and hardest workouts of the week. Check out this interview with Tony to see why it is just so important.

January Newsletter

January 2010 Newsletter

Am I Dedicated or Crazy ?!?!?

My training schedule this week had a 5 mile run today. I got up this morning and checked the weather on http://www.weather.com/ and this was the current temperature when I headed out for my run.

Yes you are reading that right. Only 3 degrees Fahrenheit!!!! Was I crazy to go out and run in that temperature? Well I'm sure most of you think that I am. I even thought that I was when I headed out to the running group in my car and it was only 5 degrees when I made it to the meeting point. There was only a group of 4 of us that showed up to brave the weather.

I was still thinking I was a little off my rocker at that point. The minute we started running the cold air hurt my lungs, but after a few minutes I settled in and it wasn't all that bad. I had bundled up with plenty of layers and only my face was cold. It was a hard run in the cold and I have to thank my friend Al for running with me, but when we were done it felt great. At 9am this morning I had finished my 5 mile run and had the rest of the day in front of me.

So was I crazy to go out? No, I'm just a runner dedicated to my training plan. If I didn't have a plan and goal then I probably would have just stayed under the warm covers this morning. Instead I followed my plan and I'm having an extremely productive day. So make your plans and stick to them that is the only way to make it to the finish line.

I Can't Believe My Eyes....

This is one thing I thought I would never see from the Creator of P90X. I guess he hadn't come up with Ab Ripper in 1996. Good thing for Tony that he meet Carl Daikeler only a few years later.





I hope everyone gets a good chuckle out of this.