P90X: The Good, Bad, and Ugly

Unless you have been living under a rock and haven't watched television in the past 7 years you have undoubtedly seen a P90X infomercial.  I ordered it several years ago and have completed the program 2 or 3 times.  I've started and stopped it a few times too.  So, if you are wondering what to expect here is an honest critique.

THE GOOD

The program is a beast.  There are really no "off days".  If you want a serious challenge this program will do it.  Yea, I know all of the Crossfitters hate P90X  - to each his own.  If you are don't feel like driving to the gym and having men or women gawk at you, don't want to contract ring worm, and don't want to wait for weights or have to wipe someone else's sweat off a bench P90X is a great option.

The pullup is one of the best exercises ---EVER.  You will have ample time to complete pullups and you will become much stronger over the 12 week program.  Pullups aren't easy but with practice and recovery you will probably double or triple your pullup results.

Yoga.  I've never had formal yoga lessons and its quite possible that the yoga in P90X is a watered down or hybrid version (I really don't know) but the introduction was great.  It definitely is a struggle (curse you twisting half moon!) but it turned out to be one of my favorite days. 

THE BAD

This is going to sound nit-picky but I absolutely hate the storage box.  Sometimes it is tough to slide the DVD's in and I think they will get scratched.  The container for Insanity is superior. 

The yoga video is WAY TOO LONG.  Not sure who has 90+ minutes to "waste" but it definitely could have been pared down to less than an hour.  The supplemental video sent when its ordered through a BB Coach isn't that good, either.

Tony, the host has a wacky sense of humor.  Sometimes he talks too much and tries too hard. 

All of the videos are too long.  Find a way to get them to between 45-50 minutes all of the time.  Most of the time it's the host talking and simply wasting time.  I want to get in and out not stand around listening to someone talk.

THE UGLY

Watching me do wall squats or attempting a "Dreya Roll".

All in all.  It's a very good program - highly recommended! The price is fair and the content is good -- just too long. 

Would You Rather?

Do you like the game “Would you Rather?”  You know, the game that puts us in weird situations and we are required to choose the lesser of two evils (at least in our opinion).  For example, would you rather play and always lose or never play? There are many eventualities and the questions are only limited to our imagination.

Yesterday a friend linked an essay to me about the “prosperity gospel”.  Well, it was supposed to be an essay at least.  The premise was flawed, the author continued to restate his thesis over and over, and his research was simply circular arguments and opinon.  Similar to the very thing, the prosperity gospel, he was attempting to refute.

I am no fan of the prosperity gospel – although I believe in prosperity.  I was looking forward to the essay and hoping to learn something but I didn’t.  The writer simply took about 4-5 pages to blast some of the people that spew the prosperity message.  I am actually quite concerned if this type of writing is what is coming out of a large seminary.  Yikes! Take the kid back to English 101 for Heaven’s sake.

I would like to ask the author of the essay the following question: If you were pastoring a church, would you rather have a family earn $21 million per year and give $3 million or have a family earn $30,000 and give $5,000? 

Often church “leaders” sound like communists and government bureaucrats.  They  are convinced they have a moral right to stick their collective hands into our checkbooks and extract as much money as they want.  Furthermore, these same people don’t want people prospering but they don’t want them poor.  They want them like Goldilock’s bed --- Just right.  But they define what just right is. 

I firmly believe people are generous – they really are.  Unfortunately, churches often seem like a bad investment.  Without a price mechanism and without a profit and loss statement there is no way of keeping score to see if a church or non-profit is doing well.  So the result is often out-of-control spending and increased pressure to give.  Offerings are squandered on bigger and better buildings and increased salaries. 

I don’t believe that God “wants” every person to be a millionaire.  I believe that God has made it perfectly clear in the good book how we can prosper or how we can enter into poverty.  The choice is ours.  Yes, the love of money is a root of evil but money is neither more nor immoral.  For a minister to beat people down for prospering or desiring to increase financially is simply insane. 

It’s easy to pull a few scriptures, throw in some communism, socialism, a couple of dashes of emotion and declare it the will of God.  The author, in his very weak essay, was no different than the people he was condemning (Copeland, Hagin, etc.)  Not sure why he didn’t quote Wesley…I guess that wouldn’t have supported his thesis.

If you are prosperous, thank GOD!  If you are struggling, learn how to be abased and find out how to turn the thing around.  You won’t become a millionaire by tithing (not scriptural but different post) and won’t by sowing seed.  If one could become a millionaire by sowing seed why don’t all the ministries that want your money just do the same thing?  Why, don’t they?  Because it doesn’t work. Work works. 

Saying Goodbye to Stinkin’ Thinkin’

I’ve taken the liberty to state that soul = mind + will + emotions.  Or, said differently, our soul is comprised of our mind, will, and emotions.  Today I want to focus on our minds.

Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

The American populace is overweight, obese, and in some instances morbidly obese.  We have TV shows such as the The Biggest Loser that inspire, we have companies like Beachbody, the Total Gym, Weight Watchers, hundreds of weight-loss gadgets, and many authors that write about weight loss but we are getting fatter and fatter.  Why?

Do not be conformed but be transformed.  One of the most difficult things for me to maintain a plant-based diet is the reaction of other people.  Overweight people telling me that “you can’t always deprive yourself!”  Really, so having my breastplate cracked open and having a surgeon insert stents into my arteries is a good thing?  “Oh, I made the broccoli salad just for you…it only has a little bit of bacon and mayonaisse in it. Why aren’t you eating it?”

Obesity is now the new normal, unfortunately.  People want to eat what they want, when they want, and blame the government for not having universal healthcare to fix all of the twinges in their hinges.  DO NOT BE CONFORMED!  Look around you at the epidemic of obesity.  You do not have to conform to it if you renew your mind. 

Think for yourself.  Don’t allow the latest fads to dictate how you live your life.  Carbs aren’t the enemy.  Eating a handful of bacon is not the answer.  Books like the South Beach Diet and Adkins diet are dead wrong and if you continue to blindly follow them you will be wrong and eventually dead.  Take some time to research for youself. 

I know the information is often cloudy but if you seek diligently you will find.  Continue to renew your mind and act upon the new found knowledge. It might just be the key to a long and satisfactory life.

TK