“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!!

“One week down..” LesMills Combat: Day 6 of 90

Finished up the week with Combat 30 and Pump Challenge last night.  I haven’t felt good the last couple of days.  Lots of flu and cold are going around and my body has been aching.  I have been hitting the Vitamin C and taking on excess calories to fight the symptoms.  As I write this on the train, coughing is going on all around me.  It’s like I’m riding in a human petri dish.  Also, the first week of a new program, my body always responds strangely as it accommodates itself to the new stuff.  There is also the diet adjustment.  I was actually going to skip last night and, at the last minute, thought that if I push through and do it, I will accomplish two things.

First, every workout program requires discipline.  As you start out each new program, whatever your program might be, you cannot come off the blocks with excuses.  It’s important to be rigorous when you start in the expectations you have for yourself.  It sets a bar.  Excuses are real easy.  Ask anybody.  They’ll think one up for you because 95% of the population has them to spare.  The first thing I knew I was doing, by pushing through, was setting my personal bar.  It’s important.

The second thing I wanted to do was keep my body in a rhythm.  When you are “setting the bar”, the rhythm is critical.  If you don’t put the pattern in place, life will set one for you.  At that point, you are no longer in control.  Then you can go right back to looking for excuses…because they will grow.  Next thing you know, you are a “resolutionary.”  What is that?  That’s the person that every gym, workout program and diet system is looking for.  The person who has a great intention, seals it with a financial commitment (which is what the big three are really looking for) and then fails to follow through. 

The gyms are the biggest culprits.  There are commercials every two minutes in January.  What were you expecting?  Someone had to buy up all that excess ad time now that the elections are over!!  They KNOW that 90% of the well-intentioned will be crowding annoyances in the gym for about three weeks.  Then, they will disappear, leaving monthly commitments of $10 to $35 in their wake and lots of unused time on the new equipment that was bought.  Perfect.  Collect the money and the equipment doesn’t get used!  It’s just like when YOU bought the exercise machine and then had it become a giant dusty clothes rack.  Except, with the gym membership, you now have more room in your house!

So, I wanted my body to know that I am serious.  I am not a resolutionary.  It isn’t easy.  It’s not supposed to be.

The first week of Combat was pretty good.  I am enjoying it.  What am I feeling?  First, I am sore in some new places.  My thighs and hip flexors are especially tender.  The workout is heavier on the legs than most.  They do not really stretch before the programs, which is something I may have to integrate.  It’s hard to get the most out of the kicking routines without a good warmup…especially if you are stiff from the last one.

The oblique muscles around my ribcage are also sore.  There is a lot of punching that, if you are doing the forms right, involve a good deal of body rotation as you are doing your uppercuts and hooks.  Those two types of punches, compared to the jabs, use a ton of your oblique muscles, and I am feeling it.

The HIIT routines are tough.  Good workouts with plenty of pushup and weight add-ins.  The Power and Plyo were tough but doable.  I did not finish every set of each one, but I was very close.  I will be there this week.

I am also doing the Pump Weight Workouts as well.  I am not doing the side routines…just the Pump Challenge, Burn, Shred, etc.  I am using them to augment Combat.

Then, of course, there is Ab Ripper X, which needs a lot of improvement.  I will say this, though.  Doing them on sore obliques is a challenge.  I will get there.

 
So, week one is in the books.  Feels great to be back.  I like Dan and Rach (short for Rachel) better than I liked Shaun T.  I also like all the supporting castmates.  Different body types and no shleppers.  Week two is coming up starting tomorrow and today is my off-day.  That means a 17 minute ARX and then I am done.  17 minutes?  God.  You can do anything in 17 minutes…right?  Over and out!