Benchmark#2 down. P90X day 60 was today! That means I am just 30 days shy of finishing the program, but still a long way away from where I hope to be someday. My 60 day measurements saw a big milestone for me...but also a little disapointment. Of course I'm referring to the fact that I hit the major 20 POUNDS lost milestone, but I also know that if I had not slacked off for 2 weeks it could have been closer to 30. I also lost 7 total inches, including 2 more from around my belly. I'm getting smaller, but seeing my body starting to return to some type of respectable form is not without its drawbacks. Let me explain to you what I mean.
In our house, we have a spot on our wall with some of our favorite pictures from our wedding day. Brittani looked so beautiful, and it was such a great day. One major problem...I WAS A BIG FAT ASS! Here's the problem I have...in those pictures, I'll always be 304 lbs. My face is so fat that I couldn't even keep my eyes open when I smiled. It made me sad to think that someday my kids will want to see the pictures of our wedding day, and will see how fat and unhealthy their daddy was. I wish I could go back in time and take all those pictures over again after I lose all the weight I want.
Enough reflection, time to look forward. I'm approaching the next 30 days with one major goal in mind. I want to hit 30 lbs lost by day 90. My one concern is that with a new baby coming any day, Its going to be a real challenge to make time for my workouts each day. Its going to be tough, but I know that Brittani is behind me, and she knows how important this is to me. She has assured me that I will still have time...if I can stand to put my baby boy down for long enough!
Check out my day 60 results below. Still a long way to go but I like the progress I am seeing!!!Day 1
Day 60
You know the splash zone at Sea World? The first several rows where they give you the disclaimer "you will get wet". Well the splash zone at our house is about a 6 ft radius where the sweat flies during my workouts. I was going to work out tonight with no shirt on, but thought better of it when I considered my poor wife sitting on the couch, and the fact that she was well within the splash zone. Shirt or no shirt, I had a great workout tonight.
I had a great weekend of relaxing and pool time! Starting friday, we hit the pool for 3 days in a row. Olivia loves it, and since I'm losing weight, I fit in my boardshorts from a few years ago. I love that I saved a whole bunch of my clothes from years ago, with the plan that someday I would fit back into them. Well that day is today! I also have a whole bunch of golf shirts, t shirts, and dress shirts that I am hoping to fit into in a few more weeks. I can't wait until I can wear all these new clothes to work, and really show off the hard work that I've been doing.
I've been doing much better these last few days with my nutrition and with my motivation. I decided that I don't really need to make every single decision about losing weight. I was putting so much pressure on myself before, but now my attitude is a little different. I know I'm not going to lose the 80 lbs I want to lose in 90 days. I probably won't even lose that in 180 days. But 10-12 months down the road, I know I can be at my goal weight and living a happy and healthy life.
Today began my final phase of the P90X workout challenge. I started on May 14th, day 1 began with Chest/Back and I barely made it through the first workout. I wasn't even able to complete most of the pushups without dropping to my knees. I totaled 102 pushups, but well over 50% of those were from my knees, and I still struggled so much. My next week, i was determined not to spend any time on my knees, and when I couldn't push anymore, I simply stopped. In that second week, I was able to complete 74 REAL pushups.
I once heard that Chuck Norris doesn't do pushups, he does EARTH DOWNS! Chuck Norris has nothing on me after my workout today! Today, 7 weeks after that second workout, I started week 9 of my journey. That very same Chest/Back workout yielded 121 REAL pushups. The feeling that I have right now is unbelievable. Coming off the rough stretch that I have had these few weeks, and being able to perform (yes I consider it performing) at a high level, and see that much improvement in my workouts only makes me want to push harder through these next few weeks. For some people, the results of their hard work show up in the mirror, but since I have always considered myself an athlete, and a very competitive person, I am more motivated by seeing the increase in the numbers of reps or weight I am able to move.
Now my arms and shoulders are shot...barely able to move. Plans to grill a pork loin on the BBQ tonight, and enjoy my night at home with my girls. Hopefully we will soon be joined by our son Owen, who is set to make is arrival any day now. We sure do wish he would come already!
Man that last blog was really a downer! I'm done being that guy who sits and feels sorry for himself. I know I can do this, and I have 33 days left to prove to myself and everyone else that I have what it takes to finish what I have started.
As I think about what to write in this blog, I have decided that its important to go back and reflect on what has happened that last few weeks. Its been tough, and it really sucks having to own up to my lack of focus. I got distracted, but I'm not finished. A few days back, when I was having a particularly bad day, Brittani gave me a great piece of advice, that took a while to sink in. "Stop being sad about it and just fix it" she said (actually texted). Pretty simple piece of advice, but its really what I need to do. Whats done is done, can't fix it, can't change it, but I can make sure it never happens again! That's why tomorrow, the beginning of my final phase of round 1 of P90X, is going to mark my complete re-dedication to all aspects of the program. The diet is going to be cleaned up, I'm back on track with workouts, and I'm ready to finish this thing out strong.
What can you do to help? First off...if you see me with a cookie or a cheeseburger in my hand, I want you take it, slap me across the face with it, and then throw it away. I don't need that garbage in my body anymore. On second though, I don't want pizza grease and cookie crumbs on my face or in my hair, so you can skip the face slapping. The point is, I do need help with this. While I understand that each decision is my own to make, I can always use input and guidance from my friends and family. Thanks everyone for your words these last few days. Its great to know that I have inspired a few people, and that everyone is behind me and cheering for me! Love you guys!
The wall is up, and I don't know how to push through it. I'm sitting here at 6:05 am, sitting on the couch in my workout clothes, watching the food network when I should be working out. This is how the last 2 weeks have gone for me. I am really, REALLY struggling with motivation. I can't put my finger on why, but I have gone the last 2 weeks only hitting about 50% of my weekly workouts. I'm on day 54 of P90X, and I feel like I've completely lost my way.
The hardest part is not knowing what the heck my problem is. Today I was determined to get back on track, yet here I sit on my couch writing this blog, knowing full well that I should be doing Core Synergistics. I can only hope that in the next few days I can pull my head out of "you know where" and get this ship on the right track.
