Bringing It Again With P90X!

One of my biggest goals post marathon is to get my muscles back. After I completed P90X in 2011 I was really happy with my strong, toned body. I continued to strength train through the rest of the year but once heavy Ironman training started, I really only had time for an occasional core workout and some yoga. After the Ironman I strengthened a bit with Dailey Method but then during peak marathon training, all I dedicated any non-running time to was core and yoga again (1 yoga class a week and 1-2 core sessions a week, usually P90X Ab Ripper).

Now I finally have the time and the motivation to get my “beachbody” back. There are two big motivators for me getting back to some serious strength training. First, I know a strong body prevents injury. I think my serious strength training from 2011 helped keep me injury free through 2012, but now that we’re a few months into 2013, those muscles have faded and aren’t doing much good anymore.

Second, the clearly vain part of it all – I want to look great for my wedding and bachelorette party. I really loved my body post P90X – it was toned and tight yet feminine and I want that look back for the upcoming celebrations.

Mike had already started a fresh round of P90X after he ran the Surf City Marathon and he just wrapped up Phase 2. Lucky for me, he started Phase 3 last week so I was able to jump on board with him for the workouts. I eased into them and did not complete the intense plyometrics workout the first week since I was only a week and a half out from a very intense marathon and I knew I should not be pushing it. Instead, I only completed the three main strength training workouts and then supplemented with a little yoga and running on my own. This week I do plan to do the plyometric workout and I will wrap up phase 3 of P90X with Mike over his final 3.5 weeks.

Once Mike is finished with the program, I’m not sure if he plans to start a new round. My plan as of now is to continue to incorporate the three main strength training workouts (two involve upper body exclusively and one focuses on legs and back and all three finish up with an intense 15 minute “Ab Ripper X” workout) while also running three times a week and starting in late June/early July, start cycling again. I do plan to race the Solana Beach Sprint Triathlon in late July, but I don’t plan to focus on triathlon training. Strength training is going to be my priority this summer. My second priority is to work on running speed by doing tempo runs, track workouts and hill repeats (not all in one week). I will be running shorter distances at higher intensity.

I did take some “before” photos for this round of P90X and I didn’t need to take the fit test to realize how much strength I’ve lost. Although I’m up to five pounds lighter than I was on the above Day 90 photos, those five pounds and then some are definitely muscle. I can no longer do a pull up and I can barely do 20 push-ups on my feet before having to go to my knees (I was able to do 2 pull ups and over 30 push-ups after P90X last time). I purposely didn’t push myself too hard last week during my first time through the workouts again since I am conscious of the fact that I am still recovering from the marathon, even if I can’t feel the fatigue anymore. Despite the “moderate effort,” I was still VERY sore post workout, especially my chest after Chest and Back and glutes after Legs and Back.

So far I’m loving the feeling I get during and after my P90X workouts and I can’t wait to see how my strength improves as I continue. Last time I did P90X I also saw some great improvements in my running and I’m hoping that the added strength from the weight lifting as well as agility and power from plyometrics also boosts my running as well!