I can’t believe I’ve already started Phase 2 of my 2nd
round of P90X! These last four weeks of Phase 1 flew by and I must admit,
things are definitely different this time. Here are the key changes in my 2nd
P90X round compared to the first:
- P90X and Triathlon and Half Marathon Training. During my first round of P90X, I
blended P90X with marathon training. During the first phase, however, I only
ran about 1-2 times a week and the most mileage I put in was 8 miles. However,
during Phase 1 of P90X this time, I am consistently doing three double days a
week: 5 P90X workouts plus a bike, long run (8-12 miles), speedwork run, and 1-2
swims. I am competing in my first sprint triathlon on July 24 and my third half
marathon of the year in August. My focus is mostly the triathlon, with the only
real training for the half marathon being my weekly long run. - Blending Phase 1 and Phase 2 Diets. Most weekdays I’ll eat eggs and cottage cheese
for breakfast and salad for lunch, but on weekends (with long runs and other
activities involved) and occasional weekdays, I’ll end up following more of a
Phase 2 regime – more fruit and an extra carb. - Not as Strict on the Nutrition Plan. Going along with my “blended” plan, I’ve also
been less strict. With weddings, graduation parties, out of town guests, and holidays
(4th of July), I’ve allowed myself many more cheat meals than I did
during Phase 1 the first time. If you remember, I only cheated one time during
the entire Phase 1. Although so far in my second round I haven’t had a slice of
pizza, an ounce of fried food or any other large, greasy meals (ok except for
at the wedding and 4th of July), I’ve been a bit more lax on the
dessert side (I can’t resist!). However, I have been good about resisting treats at work, including
cake pops and cookies several times. I also have been logging my calories every
day (except some weekend days) and have stayed between 1,800-2,200 (more
calories on double days). - Coffee.
Oops. Mike and I gave up coffee cold turkey in round 1. We literally didn’t
have it for 90 days, with the exception of a half cup before the La Jolla half
marathon, which was in Week 12. This round, however, I’ve probably had coffee
on average three times a week. I include the creamer in my calorie tracker. - Shakeology Cleanse. I kicked off my 2nd round of P90X with the Shakeology
Cleanse.
Phase 1 Results:
Unfortunately I didn’t do any measurements (or even the fit
test) before starting this phase. I plan to compare my final measurements from
the first round to my final measurements of round 2, although admittedly there
were some changes between the time I finished Round 1 and started Round 2 (there
was about a month and a half in between where I was full scale marathon
training and tapering and I gained a few pounds from overindulging).
As explained in my Shakeology cleanse post, I weighed in
very heavy on Day 1 of Round 2. I actually weighed a little over 6 lbs more
than on my final day of P90X Round 1 (yikes!). However, I lost 5.8 lbs in three
days on the cleanse. I only gained one pound back from the cleanse the day
after I finished it (surely from the fact that I ate more real food). However,
since then, I haven’t lost any more, and in fact the scale is showing me 1-2 lb
weight gain (albeit a net 3-4 lb loss from that first day). This hasn’t been
encouraging to me in the slightest, and I know my sporadic faulty nutrition is
part. However, I also know that I have become significantly stronger in the
last 4 weeks, and I do believe that a large part of the gain is muscle mass. I can tell
a significant difference in my shoulders and arms and I am also able to lift
more and do more push-ups (30 now!) than I was able to at the end of Round 1.
My stomach is back to being toned and flat and I can easily complete Ab Ripper
with all the advanced moves again. Although the scale says I’m a couple pounds
above my previous weight, I definitely don’t think that it’s fat.
Learning to Ignore the Scale
That being said, I can’t help but be a little disappointed that
I haven’t lost more. I have been working very hard and I was hoping to see a
bigger move in the scale. My ultimate goal is to lean out more in order to
improve my running and triathlon race times, as I’ve read several times that
the leaner the racer, the faster the time. However, I need to remind myself
that the scale is just one measurement of success.
Robyn, a blogger I follow, wrote
a really interesting blog post a few weeks ago about body image and included a link to an article about Lolo
Jones, an Olympic hurdler who is 5’9” (my height) and weighs in at 160 lbs.
Click here to see a sexy semi-nude picture of this “heavy” girl. Knowing that I weigh significantly less than this woman and she is super lean
looking encouraged me to stop looking to the scale for results. Obviously after
the marathon when I slowed down my workouts and ate whatever I wanted, my
weight was telling me that I needed to make some changes, but when I’m consistently
working out and eating right as I am now and the scale isn’t moving, I need to
remind myself that it doesn’t matter. Easier said than done!
Phase 2 Challenges
Phase 2 definitely poses some challenges of its own. I plan
to continue my Phase 1/Phase 2 hybrid meal plan but I have two very non-P90X
friendly vacations rapidly approaching: a weekend in Vegas (i.e. major
drinking, no exercising, little sleep and
a steak dinner and who knows what else) and 5 days in an all inclusive resort
in the Dominican Republic (i.e. lots of drinking and eating). Luckily our Phase
2 rest week falls during the Dominican vacation and the Vegas trip is only 2
days long. As for rest week workouts, I plan to utilize the resort gym for a
few runs (the half marathon is just two weeks after we come back) and hopefully
get in a couple beach yoga sessions. In the end, I’m not going to kill myself
if it doesn’t work out. I deserve a vacation – from work and from working out
and careful eating. My goal is to exercise moderation. Hopefully being in a
bathing suit 24/7 will be enough motivation to avoid a second round at the
buffet!
Glad things are going so strong for you still! Keep it up! And, glad my post was motivating! You’ve obviously noticed my blogging absense… I’ve cut drastically back, partly because I’m discouraged with myself and partly becuase I just am so frustrated! I promise I’m here still, and still at my workouts, but with my leg injury I am only able to ride the bike (stationary) and barely do the elliptical! I can’t even walk on the treadmill for longer than 3 minutes! How pathetic is that! I’m stretching like crazy and hope to be back to running sooner rather than later. Its so sad! I am doing P90X weight workouts still as scheduled, but the legs day has to be modified, clearly. I do the upper body, but not all the leg moves on that leg! Stay tuned and I’ll be back to regular posts as soon as I’m not feeling like such a blob!
Aw! I’m so sorry to hear that your injury is not only putting a cramp in your workout routine but preventing you from blogging! Don’t be discouraged – I know it’s hard but you will come back from this! As a cardio addict, I know how hard it is to go without it but if you just compensate with strength training and reducing calories a bit, you won’t feel like a blog at all! Hope to read a post soon!