"Fitness Workouts Training What Have I Learned in Four Weeks?" Insanity: Day 26 of 60

Beachbody Insanity.  Tonight is the end of week four.  Next week is a recovery week and then it’s four more weeks of even more intensity on the workouts.  I am currently getting my head straight for it.  The last couple of days have been really successful as I adjusted my sleep, nutrition and hydration.  I also learned a few things about Insanity that BEGINNERS may want to read about…as it comes from the four week experience.

HYDRATION: I have drunk lots more water lately and it has helped.  It has been evident in many ways…I sweat earlier in the workout and more profusely.  I know…very pretty visual.  My muscles get warmer more quickly and I feel more flexible.  It has helped through things like the squat jacks.  Drink your water during the day and cut back on caffeinated drinks because they are diuretics (they dry you out).

NUTRITION: I had to adjust this too.  No adjustment to the Oatmeal/AppleSauce/Raisin blend I have in the AM.  Lunch changed a little.  From the book “Eat to Live” I got some good advice to add beans to my salad for protein and energy.  That has helped.  I also added about 4 more ounces of meat to dinner as a supplement to my Shakeology blend.  Before I blend up the Shakeology, I have chicken or some kind of fish.  The added calories has actually helped me push harder and it is showing up.

SLEEP: I have been exercising earlier in the PM.  This has allowed me to fall asleep by 11 to 11:30PM and is giving me more rest than what I have been getting the last three weeks.  Your body needs recovery time.

You have to discipline yourself to do these things or you are sabotaging your efforts.  I KNOW I have to and should be doing them and still kind of let it fall by the wayside.  You can’t if you want this program to work in a way that is both efficient and effective.  When it isn’t going right, it can feel very wrong.  What I mean by that is that if you find you have to force yourself through every workout, it will become something you hate to do and you will begin to find excuses to quit.  So take care of your habits and take care of YOU.

Now…for you BEGINNERS.

WATCH YOUR FORM!  My biggest mistake in this program was not watching my form on the exercises and just kind of adapting to the moves.  Just some examples here:

One.  In the first week, my calves and lower thighs were killing me.  Yes, there is a physical adjustment curve to the intensity of new exercises.  BUT, and this is a biggie, I really hurt the process by not stretching and not using the right form in the squat part of the routine…any squats.  Power squats, squat jacks, etc.  You name it.  Make sure when you squat that your knee is NOT out over your toe.  When you do that, your tendency is to be on the balls of your feet and your heel ends up off the floor.  It makes your calves tight and overworks that muscle.  Make sure your core is tight and your butt should drop back and down, not just down.  Make sure your heel is square on the floor.  Your knees should never be bent at more than a 90 degree angle or you will over stretch the thigh muscles above the knees.  It takes a while to get this form right but work on it or you will pay.  You want to get this right because if you don’t you will start to think it is just “too hard for you” and convince yourself that you should quit.

Two.  Stretching.  The other reason my legs were killing me is that I was not stretching properly.  Something they, in my opinion, do NOT emphasize enough is the “WHY” part of these stretches.  There is a lot of work impact on your (do I need to repeat this?) calves and lower thighs.  The calves in particular, need to be stretched properly.  Make sure in your stretches that you keep your legs straight.  When you have to extend the leg, extend it completely.  Don’t shortcut it.  If you do, the muscle stays contracted and tight and never properly loosens.  You will pay for that unstretched calf.  If you have to, stop the DVD and stretch until you feel you are ready.

ON GETTING “HEARD” OVER THE INTERNET:

 I try to do my blog daily.  On any given day, I get anywhere from 120 to 200 views on my blog for the various topics I have covered.  I am approaching 200 blog articles.  200 is really good, but can it be better?  How do you get your message out there when there are just so many?

I am trying an experiment today.  There are three words that are the most searched terms.  FITNESS, TRAINING, WORKOUTS.  I want to see if this blog post gets found a little better and read a little more.  Who knows…maybe we will get more INSANITY participants!

WORKOUT LAST NIGHT:  Cardio Plyometric Circuit.  Went real well.  Getting better at the Basketball drills.

WORKOUT TONIGHT:  Cardio Power and Resistance.  Last one of the first half!!

Have a great day!