Before you begin the program, I just wanted to share some tips, advice, and things that have worked for me through my first two rounds of P90X. P90X isn't a quick fix, diet scheme. If you do the work it will work for you. In other words, you'll get out of it what you put into it.
1) Decide. Commit. Succeed. It says it right on the box and throughout the provided books. Its a simple phrase, but a powerful one. You've already done the first part. You've decided. Now you just have to commit and you WILL succeed!
2) Take the dreaded before photos. I know, I shied away from taking them because I was terrified of what I'd see, even though I saw it every day in the mirror. There was just something different about photographic evidence of my bad choices. But, I did it. I took the pictures and I can't tell you how empowering they've become.
3) *Tom Hanks as Woody in Toy Story voice*..."Workout buddy! If you don't have one, get one!"...Ok, granted, Woody was talking about a moving buddy in the movie but in all seriousness a workout buddy makes a big difference. Having someone else keeps you motivated and accountable. I'm not saying you need to find someone to come to your house every day and work out with you but even if you can connect with someone online and just talk to each other each day about your workouts it will make a huge difference.
4) Nutrition is the key. Beachbody spent countless hours and money putting this information together for you. That is why you bought it after all, because it was a complete package. It takes all the guess work out. You wouldn't buy a new home theater system and only hook up one speaker, right? Its the same thing here. Use everything that P90X provides. You can use the meal plan or the portion plan. Either way will work but you have to use it...learn it....live it. Plan your meals, know what you're going to have to eat each day so you're not scrambling to put something together or worse, stopping at one of those fast food chains that got us where we are in the first place.
5) Preview each disc before you do it. I always watched tomorrows workout the day before so I knew what to expect. If there were moves I wasn't sure how to do I could practice them before hand, that way I wasn't wasting time staring at the screen like "What? How do I do that move???"
6) Unless you're already an athlete, don't expect to be able to keep up with Tony and his crew right out of the box. It will come with time but its very important not to get discouraged.
7) MODIFY. Let me say that again....MODIFY. This is the single most important thing to remember when you are starting out. When I started, I could not do a push up on my toes to save my life. I used Tony's mantra and said to myself "I currently struggle with push-ups" instead of riding the "can't" train all the way to Failville. I started out doing "girl" push ups - I am a girl after all- and as I got stronger I could do 1 or 2 from my toes and the rest on my knees. Before long, 1-2 turned into 4-5 and then 10-12. Stick with it, modify where you need to. Listen to your body.
8) Drink plenty of water throughout the day and get enough sleep at night. Your body will thank you.
9) Be prepared to be sore. It will happen. As it says in the workout guide, your muscles are taking a lactic acid bath. I slept with a heating pad and a bottle of Tylenol for the first week or two. Its important to know that being sore is normal, but that you need to push through. If you stop BECAUSE you're sore, you will never get past the point of being sore. A good recovery drink helps a lot. If you don't have a coach, let me know and I can get you a sample of the P90X Results and Recovery Formula that Tony recommends.
10) Get a Coach, such as myself (shameless plug, I know), and join the Beachbody website. Its free and there is a ton of great information and support. If you want access to things like the meal planner, which even prints a shopping list for you, there is an upgraded membership available.
11) Write it down...Use your worksheets. Write down what weight you used, how many reps you did, if you used a chair for pull ups or did push ups on your toes. It only takes a second and lets you track your progress. You will be amazed at the changes you will see in your numbers over the 90 days.
12) Don't obsess over the scale. I admit, this one is VERY hard for me. I have a number in my head and I want that scale to show it to me. The scale is not your friend. Period. Use your measurements, how you feel, how your clothes fit, as a more accurate gauge. In the last phase of my first round, I only lost about 4 pounds but I dropped 2 pants sizes. I was re-shaping my body whether the scale agreed or not.
13) The 90 days goes by quickly. So quickly in fact, that you probably don't notice some of the subtle changes until you reach day 90. You put your dreaded Day 1 photo next to your Day 90 photo and it all comes together. You've changed more than just your exterior. You've changed on the inside as well. You're a different person. You're energized, excited, healthy and empowered!
14) Have faith in the process. Believe in yourself and keep pushing play. You can do this!!
I hope that some of this information is helpful. I know that anyone can succeed with P90X as long as you show up, push play and eat right. Feel free to check out my transformation video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9qXcZh97-Q and follow me on our Facebook page www.facebook.com/buildingblocks4life
Be sure to follow my blog for a review of each workout disc too!
Jennifer Block. Independent Team Beachbody Coach
