Let's get Hammered and Chiseled!

In the beginning of this month, Beachbody launched a new fitness program, the Master's Hammer and Chisel. This week I finally tried it out myself. On Thursday I skipped my P90X yoga and did Hammer's plyo and today instead of Kenpo X I gave Chisel agility a try. Boy, what a pragram!

As you know, I've been now doing P90X for the past six weeks. So when I pressed play on Thursday morning to start Hammer Plyometrics, I got startled and though some stranger had walked into our house, 'cause I heard a strange voice. :) But in a second I realised, that the voice was coming from the tv and belonged to Sagi Kalev and I remembered I was about to get hammered :)

I've done the Plyometrics X now couple of times, but even though Hammer Plyometrics is only half the length, I was totally beaten after that. If you have thought that working out at home is lame and inefficient, think again! My maximum heart rate got up to 175! Some of the moves took a little time to figure out how they were meant to be done, especially since I don't have a chin-up bar so I use a resistance band instead. While doing burbees and chin-ups, I found it hard to get a hold of the resistance band after making a burbee. The pace in this workout is fast, so you don't have time to stay still.

Since it's been way over a month since my last 21 Day Fix Extreme -workout, it was nice to get back to a workout with Autumn Calabrese today with Chisels Agility. I chose the agility -workout for my second try out, 'cause it sounded like something a bit different.  And it sure was! In Chisel Agility you don't need any equipment, so it suits well even when not working out at your own fitness area. Some of the moves required a bit room, but you could also do them in a modified way, not moving around so much.

One thing I have really liked about Beachbody's programs is, that there is so much variety in the programs. I've gone to the gym for several years in the past, but I find that I'm always doing the same things with same equipment, which gets boring at some point (and usually leads to not feeling like going to the gym). The Master's Hammer and Chisel won't let you down on this one either: you do high knees, burbees, diagonal squat jumps and much more. So if you're looking for a new workout, why not give Master's Hammer and Chisel a try? Contact me, if you want more info :)

Transformation Tuesday

So today is my day 30 with P90X. And everyone doing Beachbody -programs knows that it's time for new pictures and measures!I keep telling all my challengers, that don't get disappointed, if the scale hasn't changed or the measures haven't gone done as much as you would have liked. Take pictures, compare them, and then make up your mind.
 
As I mentioned in my earlier post today, my measures hadn't really changed from day 0, even though I can feel myself getting stronger and I know I'm doing the workouts better with heavier weights and more reps than I did on day 1. So, before gettin upset about "not making progress" I took my own advice, took new pictures and made a collage with Day 0. And I don't feel one bit disappointed when looking at the pics (sorry for the bad quality of the pics, maybe Santa will bring a new phone with a better camera ;) ) For the first time ever, I'm starting to see show some abs and I can't believe these pictures are from my own body! This really makes me want to push even harder the next 30 days :)

 

Look back at Phase 1

I survived the first phase of P90X! When I first started with P90X, I was worried about two things: how will I manage the intense, long workouts and how will I be able to follow the nutrition plan.

After doing PiYo and 21 Day Fix Extreme, my workout times doubled with P90X. I started the program with the Lean -version, because the workouts seemed a bit easier. That probably was a smart idea. The 21 Day Fix Extreme had gotten me used to working with weights, so that also helped a lot to get things going. I was happy to see, that each week I could add reps or do the moves with heavier weights. The amount of push-ups was a bit of a shock -they sure are not my favourites!

I really liked that the workouts were quite different including tire runs, whacky jacks and dreya rolls. At the same time, some moves were included in several workouts, which gave me the change to just consentrade on my form instead of trying to figure out what was coming next or what the move was about.

And then the nutrition. I noticed already during week 1, that I really needed to eat enough to be able to push throuhg the workouts. Waking up in the middle of the night do to hunger was something I didn't want to do another time! My goal with P90X was not to loose weight, but to see, if I can do this intense program and to get a but more musscle. I'm not going for a fitness-model type, my goal is to get a healthy, fit body. One thing I feel I failed in my nutrition was the carbs. On many days, I had more carbs than what the guide said I should. The positive thing though is, that the second amount of carbs usually was full rye bread, so even though I was eating a bit more than I should, I made the healthier choises in carbs. Starting now with Phase two: Energy Booster,  I'm really happy to see, that I'm allowed to have two portions of carbs each day :)

As a result, I feel really confident in starting week 5 and Phase 2. I'm proud of myself pushing through the Phase 1 and giving my best everyday to each of the workouts. And my measures? Nearly all my measures were just the same as in the beginning, except I had lost an inch in both thighs and my arms (when flexed) were almost an inch bigger than in the beginning, so that shows that the arms are really getting stronger :)

For Phase 2, I switched to classic -version, since I wanted to try to different workout, especially the Plyometrics. The Plyo was something I first hated in 21 Day Fix Extreme, but with time, I fell in love with it.