Music Monday

Training for my first-annual-sprint-triathlon begins April 1, 2013.  I am currently in my prerequisite training stage which consists of the following: Monday - P90X; Tuesday - Insanity; Wednesday - P90X; Thursday - Insanity; Friday - P90X; Saturday - running, and Sunday - Yoga X.  On Monday and Wednesday evenings I swim.  I'm still building my swim endurance and working on form but I am improving each week.

I like P90X but at times it goes way too long, unnecessarily.  Tony Horton loves to talk (dude should have a radio talk show!).  I'm often complete with my sets before he finishes talking about the set.  I don't like to dilly-dally and can't do 15 pullups yet.  So, I do my 5-6 and FF the disc to the next set. I can usually do the entire workout and knock of 10 minutes.

Insanity is the polar opposite.  Shaun T is always pushing people to speed up and get into place.  "Hurry up people we gotta stretch!"  The cardio is phenomenal and I love his pace.  The cardio in P90X.. not so much.  I don't like Cardio X, Ken Po, or Plyo X so I mix-n-match with Insanity. Insanity for cardio and P90X for strength.

I've never really enjoyed running but I am determined to pull this Sprint triathlon off successfully.  As I've mentioned before I prefer to listen to music when running. Probably won't be able to during the race but for now I'll use whatever I can to keep my motivation level high.  Here is another song I've added to my running playlist.

Don't let the "strange" cover fool you.  Solid band with a great message.

Obese Indignation

At the risk of being way too transparent I type this post.  I'd be the first to freely admit that eating healthy is difficult and requires diligence and discipline.  Maybe I am making excuses for my wanton, holiday behavior but I think it's extra tough for those of us that do not eat plants based on ethical/moral reasons (ie vegan) or religious (7th Day Adventist).  The plant-based diet I follow is solely based on willpower and I was sadly running on empty for quite some time.

I began following a plant-based diet in 2011 after getting negative cholesterol results.  I was diligent.  I had a re-test date etched in stone and really wanted to get that number down to a manageable level.  Before converting I read Engine 2 Diet, The China Study and You Can Reverse Heart Disease.  These three books helped me immensely and gave me some ideas on how to prepare tasty food. 

I then stumbled upon the book Eat to Live.  That gave me increased motivation to not only get and keep my lipids under control but to lose excess weight.  I followed Dr. Furhman's diet and the weight began to fall off.  To be fair I was also doing a P90x and Insanity hybrid exercise routine.  The results were remarkable but surprisingly not everyone was thrilled.

I began to get back handed compliments on a regular basis.  "Oh my God! If you lose any more weight you're going to blow away."  "Let me introduce you to my new friend, Slim Shady." Sadly, I still was about 5 pounds too heavy!! Unfortunately, the comments began to wear me down and my food choices began to deteriorate.  I didn't eat meat or dairy but began to fall into the processed food and booze trap.  The weight slowly began to reappear.

I was at the Y swimming last night and decided to weigh in after my laps were complete.  I knew I was up but wanted to quantify the number.  I'm not really big on scales but was sure I was inching to close to an area I worked to hard to flee - and I was right.

I've allowed the opinons of unhealthy people to get me off the mark of staying healthy and living a long, pain free life.  I've allowed back handed compliments to break my focus on what's really important to me.  Being healthy is one of my core values.  I don't want a spare tire, muffin top or love handles.  I don't want to be dependent upon Lipitor, Cialis, insulin, or BP medicine.  I don't want stents, back surgery, or to test my sugar daily. So I'm declaring my freedom today.

I declare my freedom from back-handed compliments.  I declare freedom from caring what people think (other than my doctor) of how much I weigh.  I've seen too many people die prematurely based on poor eating and exercise habits and I am not going to be in that statistical category. 

I'm free and will begin dropping the weight again.  Next fat person that says to me, "If you lose anymore weight you are going to blow away", I'm going to say, "No, I won't fat ass I'll just hold on to you!" 

Okay, I'm too nice but I just might be thinking it. :)

Selling Snake Oil

I am a huge fan of P90X and Insanity.  The workouts are legit, intense, and can be completed several times.  However, Beachbody is proving they have devolved into a stereotypical, multi-level marketing purveyor of snake oil with its latest product - Ultimate Reset.

Our bodies are designed to organically and naturally detoxify - that's why we have certain organs.  I've seen where Beachbody coaches have begun to pimp this new plan as well.  "I've lost 17 pounds and have never felt better."  Isn't that really an indictment against the other snake oil product, Shakeology?  If a Beachbody coach is holding fast to P90X or Insanity and eating correctly wouldn't they be in shape and not need to lose 17 pounds? Why push an unnecessary product?

I've totally lost any and all respect for Beachbody and Product Partners, LLC.  Their goal is to make money at the expense of a gullible and ignorant populace that truly desires to live a healthy life.  People have bought into to the lie that supplements are the answer when they are most definitely not.  The entire staff of Beachbody from Carl Daikeler down to the newest MLM coach should be ashamed.

People, the answer is simple.  Eliminate processed foods from your diet.  Eat as many vegetables (fresh, frozen, organic and non-organic) as you want.  Eat a variety of fresh or frozen fruit.  Stop shying away from beans, nuts and seeds - eat them, baby!

Exercise is vital.  Start moving on a daily basis.  Yes, I love P90X and Insanity.  Since I am so PISSED at the underhanded way Beachbody is attempting to separate you from your money I no longer recommend purchasing P90X or Insanity from Beachbody.  Find a used copy on eBay.  Or begin to walk, jog, or run.  Do push ups, pull ups and dips.  Do playground exercies such as jumping jacks and skipping rope.  Anything is better than nothing! There are plenty of free workouts on You Tube.

Time to kick unscrupulous companies like Beachbody to curb.  They are not as concerned about ending the trend of obesity as they are lining the wallets of the owners of the company.  Nothing wrong with making a profit but when a company begins to sell lies then the line is crossed.

Insanity: The Good, Bad, and Ugly

If you really want to sweat, if you really want to push your body then Insanity is the workout for you! 

GOOD

Of all of the prior Beachbody products I have purchased the packaging for Insanity is in a league of its own.  It comes in a binder similar to a book and the DVD's are pressed in like pages.  Very nice. 

If you buy the kit from a BB coach you get the "Fast & Furious" DVD as a bonus and it's awesome.  In less than 25 minutes you have warmed up, stretched, and pushed yourself to the max.  Great for days when you're in a hurry. 

All of the routines are challenging.  It's nice seeing "professionals" falling over, gasping, and holding their sides during the exercises too.  Of course, I prefer some more than others but in my opinion Insanity is much better than P90X. 

There isn't one DVD that is >60 minutes. The ab video is shorter and more intense.  The stretching in Insanity is about 3-4 months longer than P90X too. 

Shaun T is the antithesis to Tony Horton.  Don't get me wrong, I love TH - he is more of an encourager.  Shaun T is more like a drill sargent.  Both are good for different things.

BAD

Not much to complain about hear so I will have to nit-pick to find anything.  In one DVD one of the "professionals" spits all over the gym.  It is absolutely disgusting.  That should have been edited and she should have been kicked out! NASTY.

Doing the "Fit Test" and then exercising is kind of silly, I think.  The recovery week is extremely boring.  Doing the same routine for 6 days is excruciating. 

Some of the exercises chosen seem kind of odd to me.  It's kind of like, "really, that's the best you could have thought of on this day?" 

UGLY

Again, nothing ugly about the routines (except the spitter).  The ugly is me after doing Pure Cardio.  It is not a pretty sight but it is effective.

Definite buyer!