“Ab Ripper X: Back in the Saddle Again!” LesMills Combat: Day 11 of 90

Today was my break day.  So very quickly, I did ARX as usual.  It is coming along.  I don’t jump right into the next exercise, I am taking small 20 second breaks between the exercises.  This is allowing me to recover enough to complete the entire circuit without breaking down on an exercise.  Now that I am doing complete exercise sets, I will begin to close the break gap and, voila, BACK IN THE SADDLE!

“Getting Stronger” LesMills Combat: Day 10 of 90

I did Combat 45 and Pump Challenge last night.  Before I did that though, I built a step bench so that, when I do the weights, I can get my elbows lower and get better chest extension.  I could feel the work even more…always a great thing.

Combat 45 is really good and I am getting to a point where, now that I know the routine, I can focus on form and intensity.  I know things are going well when I am sweating and my breathing is at a steady but quick interval.  I can feel it more as I put my entire body into the punch and kick moves.

It’s not enough to just throw the arm out there.  That’s not the way this works.  You have to put the torque of your body as well as the driving of the legs into your kicks and punches.  You will begin to feel the strength increase as you do this.  You will also notice that you more closely conform to what you are seeing the Instructors do on the video.

One criticism.  Seriously, would it be a DicksDiet review without some criticism?  Stretching.  Or the lack thereof.  I think they need to do more stretching prior to the workout.  It’s an area where P90X excels, Insanity is okay, but LesMills Combat is lacking.  I have begun doing my own stretching (thanks Tony Horton) before the workouts to get warm and not pull any muscles.  It really helps before the routines where you have to use your legs.  And there are a lot of them.

One thing I do NOT have a criticism for…yet.  The instructors on the DVD.  All really good, all really giving it their all so far.  No one slouching.  It’s what I like to see.  Nothing worse than working your butt off while someone on the DVD just plays along.

That’s it for today…it’s break day!  So that means Ab Ripper X tonight!

“The Next Day” LesMills Combat: Day 9 of 90

I am starting to get back into the rhythm.  I can feel it.  Friday (Day 7) was my rest day which, as you followers of my blog will note, I am doing Ab Ripper X.  It was not any easier than when I did it last Tuesday.  Maybe tomorrow night (Tuesday again) it will be easier.

Saturday was “Combat 30” and “Pump and Burn.”  All is well as manic Dan and Rach are pushing me.  Sunday was HIIT: Power.  I am happy with my progress but there are times when I have problems finishing routines.  I have to remind myself of a few things.

The first thing is, I’m fifty years old.  It’s not an excuse but the right diet, workout rhythm, and supplements (creatine and protein) are essential to getting stronger again.

The second thing is, these programs are SUPPOSED to be hard.  And they are.  I constantly compare any new programs to P90X.  It’s because it was my first program and the one I had the most physical change in.   

When I finished it, many things were coming much more easily to me.  The thing I keep forgetting is how hard it really was in that first two months.  I mean, it was brutal.  My body literally broke twice and I was seeing a chiropractor to get through those first 8 weeks.  I keep forgetting that.

At one point in P90X, I dropped out of a pullup and tore something in my shoulder.  I had to switch to bands for the workouts and be careful to work that shoulder back up to where it should be.  More than once, I tweaked my back.  The one time I won’t ever forget is when I was in a lunge and stretched and there was a grinding noise in my hip joint like when you twist a turkey leg off the turkey at Thanksgiving.  I wiil tell you, your body is not supposed to make that sound.

My point is, none of this is easy.  The goal is to see the improvement and the starting point is all that counts.  Tonight, I am making a “step bench” so I can do the bench presses and not have my elbows hit the floor.  I need about 6 inches between my back and the floor.  Tonight is Combat 45 and Pump Challenge (I think).

Have a great day!!