P90X Tips

Shit yeahs!

Workouts
It only gets easier! Don’t let the workouts stress you out up front. Just do your best, Tony does a good job (though he can be a bit too eager) of keeping you encourage. You gotta make friendly with the workouts, cuz you’ll be doing them often. The hardest part, honestly, like they say in the DVDs is “putting the ‘tape’ in”. Once you start, you can finish. As time goes on working out 6/7 times a week can be stressful. Just take an easy week if you have to, then pick it back up next week. It’s ok to extend a phase by a week if you need to.

Diet/Shopping
The diet rocks! It’s a true diet, teaching you how to eat and supply your body with fuel. You’ll learn a lot about your body and how it requires certain things. Jennifer and I both got cranky towards the end of Phase 1. All the food was pissing us off. Not that it wasn’t tasty, but our bodies wanted different. It’s normal. You’ll make it to phase two, the carbs will come back, and the sun will shine again. The first trip to the grocery store is expensive because you have to buy a lot of things (if you’re like me) you don’t already have. Spices, vinegars, oils, etc. They’re all foundational and will last months once you have them. Unless you’re already great at cooking, I recommend only trying to do a few items each week until you can master preparing all of the meals. Some take a long time to prepare. After a while we simplified the meals and their preparation. Finding time to workout and prepare 3 meals a day can be exhausting. We cheat by doing protein shakes almost everyday for breakfast. Phase 3 never really stuck with me. My body was happy with Phase 2. Feel it out for yourself.

Equipment
http://www.amazon.com/Everlast-Multi-Function-Chinning-Bar/dp/B00091RXN2/ref=acc_glance_sg_ai_-2_2_img
That’s the bar I had. I picked it up at a local Big 5. It was great, the only issue I had was that it didn’t allow me to do the really wide grip pull ups some of the p90x crew do. Beach Body sells their own p90x pull up bar which is sold for a reasonable price if you want to do the wide grip pull ups.

I didn’t personally like bands, use dumbbells. If you want to break the bank, I dream of these:
http://www.amazon.com/Bowflex-SelectTech-552-Dumbbell-Set/dp/B000BGKC4C

However, regular dumbbells work just fine and are what I used. For the various exercises, you’ll need a variety of weights. Also as you progress you’ll need more weight. I’d recommend a basic set of 5 and 10’s and then a 40lb adjustable set. They’re usually about $50 at Walmart or Target and you can buy additional plates. The reason why you should have a couple of sets is so you can quickly change between exercises. If you only have the adjustable set, you’ll be swapping plates all night.

I’d also get some push up stands, they really help with elbow and wrist popping. I just got cheap ones at Big 5 for like $10, they were fine.

Supplements
I endorse their supplement recommendations. Type that is, not brand. I haven’t tried any of the P90X brand supplements.

A multivitamin is required! I’d recommend one you can take twice a day as you’ll notice a much better boost in energy compared to only taking a vitamin in the morning. I was using Animal Pak, however, because of the price, I’ve recently changed to Adam. Any other Men’s daily multivitamin (two-per serving) will work. Just take one in the morning, one in the afternoon (or pre-workout).

Whey protein is a great way to get more protein in your diet. In fact, it’s really hard to hit proper protein levels without it. Optimum Nutrition’s is high quality and low price – plus they have many great flavors (also also many crap ones).

Protein bars are great and can save you from grabbing a burger when hungry. Just be careful, you’ll notice many are chock full of sugar or HFCS. Try to find bars that keep the protein-carb-fat ratio similar to the phase you’re in. High protein bars+low carb bars are out there, but can be tricky to find.

Recovery drink – this is just re-branded Endurox R4. It is supposed to allow your muscles to recover faster, rehydrate your body quicker, and increase your endurance in subsequent workouts. There is some debate on the effectiveness of it. I swear by it. It’s also tasty and I look forward to my recovery drink after every workout! There are a number of flavors, my favorite is Lime, with Orange in a close second, and I think Punch is kinda weird. Jennifer hates Lime, likes Orange, and loves Punch. It does contain some Creatine, if you are sensitive, it may upset your stomach.

That brings us to Creatine. Creatine works plain and simple. It allows you to work out harder and longer, and your muscles recover faster (so you’re not sore for tomorrow’s workout). You can do research on Creatine online. I’ve mentioned it in some other thread here. It’s generally safe. One problem I had with it years ago is that I pushed my joints too far rock climbing because my muscles were not fatiguing. I just kept going and going…eventually giving myself a case of tendinitis. Some recommend cycling it, others say it’s safe for daily usage. I cycle it to avoid repeating my mistake. When I’m lifting, I’ll be on for 4-8 weeks, then take 1-2 off.

Glucosamine – another debated product. Worked for me while I was not taking care of myself. Once I finished P90X I didn’t need it any longer. However, I’ve been slacking again, and now my knees hurt again. I just started taking it again two days ago and will stay on it till I have some balance in my joints.

I’d also recommend an Omega-3 supplement for heart health. 

Water. Your body needs lots of it. Drink it. I never realized before P90X how often I was dehydrating my body.

All supplements mentioned above can be purchased for a fair price at bodybuilding.com. Their forums are also great for getting advice on workouts, supplements, etc. Customer service and turn around time has always been great.

Torrent advice
Make sure you get all the workouts, fitness guides, and nutrition plans. In my experience, most torrents only have partials of the guides – make sure you also get one with PDFs, fuck 4000 JPGs. If you need help getting any, let me know, I can get them to you. There should be a workbook, a fit test, a calendar, the fitness guide, and a nutritional guide (Daily Journal, Intro, Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, Quick Options). I also have some commercial Excel spreadsheets that I found easier to use than the paper workbooks. It can track your progress, diet, etc. If you want, I can upload it. I paid like $10 for it.

Life After P90X
Since finishing the program 6 months ago, Jennifer and I now basically fluctuate between Phase 1 and 2 diets. When we just can’t eat another salad, we switch to phase two, when the thought of a sandwich makes us grumpy, we switch back to one. I finished the program at ~183 (I think). I got up to 190 around Thanksgiving, but I’m now back down to 185. I seem to hover around that most of the time.

From June to Sept. I continued to workout hard, taking on a weight lifting program focused on bulk. However, I limited my calories and so I did not see the expected muscle gains. I did have great strength gains though. After Sept., I took two months off. That has caused me significant losses in strength and cardio. In Nov. I resumed MMA/Jiujitsu training – doing so has only made me aware of how much I lost. I’m currently designing a sport-specific workout plan that will focus more on strength and rapid heart rate recovery. I’m gearing up this week and will probably start next Monday. I want to be competition ready in a few months.

After finishing P90X Jennifer took a Krav Maga and fight conditioning class 1-2 times a week. It kept her fit. She wouldn’t have been able to keep up in the class had we not done P90X. After Oct. she stopped going to class as her school load picked up. Between that time and Thanksgiving she’s gained a few lbs, but has kept close to her goal weight through continuing the diet. This coming Saturday she’s starting Muay Thai as she likes striking and wants a cardio based workout. She also occasionally does the polymetrics workout when she’s feeling restless.

I typically bloat up around this time of the year. I figure if I can make it though Winter without gaining much weight, by the time swimsuit season comes around again, I can get in really good shape.

Let me know if you have any other questions!

DO IT DO IT DO IT!!!