6-27-17 (Tuesday) HY: P90X3 - The Challenge + X3 Ab Ripper + Splits + TCF.

6-27-17 (Tuesday) HY: P90X3 - The Challenge + X3 Ab Ripper + Splits + TCF.

I started the second round of X3 Resistance today.  But since there was one day already filled out on Total Synergistics, I am passing that routine and going straight to The Challenge.  So all the worksheets will be in line in the same week.  I guess I'm a little OCDish that way.  I just bugged me that that one worksheet would be off by a day.  ANYWAY...

Tony said at the beginning to up my numbers, so I did.  I was actually feeling that last time's numbers were just right, but I decided to give them a little nudge up.  So, I went with 8 Pull-Ups and 28 Push-Ups.  That is +1 and +3 respectively.  The last time I did this routine was about two weeks ago and I crushed the Pull-Ups, but I had a lot of trouble with the Push-Ups.  This time, I was able to do a lot better with regard to strength endurance.  Complete Pull-Up Sets in the first half were 4 for 4.  I was very happy about that.  I almost made it 4 for 4 on the Push-Ups, too, but on the last set the burn was too hot, so I tapped out at 21.  But I finished in only one set.  Then the reversal happened.  In the third and fourth rounds, I had to tap out on every Pull-Up set.  I was able to get up to at least 5 reps every time.  But I was able to finish my number in one pickup set not a bunch of little sets like last week with the Push-Ups.  Round 3 was good for the Push-Ups, but Round 4, not so much.  I had to tap out on both Push-Up sets but finished with one set.  I feel like I really crushed it today.  Especially the Burnout!  I was able to add two mini-sets to my 1/3 total.  Up to 11 mini-sets, up from 9 last time.  I was able to actually keep it going the whole 2+ minutes, no breaks or breathers.  But I was feeling the heavy pump from the third move on.  And when it came time for the Cooldown, I was so pumped, I couldn't straighten my arms clasping behind my back.  Pump and Burn City, People!

I upped the intensity for my abs as well.  I graduated from RevAbs Merciless Abs, and went with Tony, too.  I could feel my abs and core work, along with my shoulders, lats, and arms.  It is almost a full-body routine.  But I got my burn on especially on the last two moves.  BRUTAL STUFF!!!  The Splits and Flow were awesome.

In the end, I torched a nice 780kcals.  I was able to get everything done in just over an hour.  I'm happy to get things done in less time.

6-26-17 (Monday) HY: T25 - Beta: Speed 2.0 + Splits + TCF.

6-26-17 (Monday) HY: T25 - Beta: Speed 2.0 + Splits + TCF.

Unfortunately, no tennis today.  Fortunately, no tennis today so I can get in a round of T25!  I want to do at least one round of a Shaun T cardio routine to keep up my arch and leg strength and endurance up, but it hasn't worked out that way because of tennis and Pickle-Ball.  So I'm happy to take advantage of times when I can do some Shaun T cardio.

I really wanted to keep moving, so I went with a Speed routine.  To me, if memory serves, 2.0 is even more brutal than 3.0.  So I wanted to Push it a little harder today.  I was also really curious about how far I could get.  Was a Straight 25 even possible several weeks removed from my last Shaun T workout?  Quick answer, NO!  Right from the get-go, my calves and arches were tested.  I was actually pretty surprised that I made it through the entire Round 1, all three levels without a break.  I was able to make it through the first move of Round 2 Level 1, but with the second move also a hopping Up and Back move, my arches and calves just couldn't take anymore, so I tapped out at 16:10.  I got through Level 1 but had to tap out as Level 2 began at 13:00.  I took a couple more little breaks after that, but I made it to the end.

The Splits and Flow were "CHOICE!"

In the end, I torched a satisfying 730+kcals.  That was about right.  I usually burn around 1300kcals over 2+ hours of tennis.  It was a good day with a good workout.  I do love me some tennis and Pickle-Ball, but I hope I have more chances to do Shaun T again, soon!

6-25-17 (Sunday) HY: P90X3 - Complex Upper + RevAbs - Merciless Abs + Splits + TCF.

6-25-17 (Sunday) HY: P90X3 - Complex Upper + RevAbs - Merciless Abs + Splits + TCF.

Today was a good day for the most part.  I went out with my wife in the morning and got my case of 100% pure coconut water. YEAH!!! I'm set for the next few weeks for good and fast hydration.  We came back, had lunch together and then I started getting ready for my workout.  Today's routine completes my first round of X3 Resistance.  It was a good round, so I think I'm going to do it for a few more times.  With routines like The Challenge and today's routine, I'm loving the pump and burn.

I forgot how this routine went, so I had to watch first the new moves (that were actually renamed old moves) to learn them, so I was rewinding a bit to get the moves down.  The first move, Slow-Mo Chin-Ups is a killer.  Slow Chin-Ups are too tough for me to do without the assist, so all the Chin-Ups and Pull-Ups today were done with the Green Assist band.  In the first round, being fresh, I was able to get through all the reps without a break.  But in all the following rounds, I couldn't finish.  So I took a mid-set break in the rest of the sets.  I went as far as I could and tapped out when I couldn't go on.  But I got back into it and finished the 12 reps.  As for the W Pull-Ups, it wasn't as slow as the Chin-Ups, but I still took it slow.  I was also really focusing on activating my back muscles instead of just relying on my shoulders and arms.  I'm going to feel that tomorrow!  Anyway, you can see the split on the worksheet below.  The second move, I was able to do all the reps without a break in all four rounds.  The minor change was in round four.  I added 4 reps for a total of 12 reps.  I was so out of breath, but happy I could push it. Move 3. Lunge Thrust Press, this was another move that I was able to complete in all four rounds, but in the final round, I added 4 reps for a total of 16 reps.  Another move that knocked the wind out of me.  I needed that doubled over posture to catch my breath.  The final move, the Push-Up Bird Dog Crunch, I was able to complete all the reps in all the rounds.  I was thinking to add 4 reps in the last round, but couldn't.  I was too bushed and worn to do the bonus reps, so I just did the original set count.  That blew me away, the way Tony was adding the static holds all over the place.  The Burnout was killer.  For all five moves, I was able to do the reduced number or reps.  A true burnout if I do say so myself.  My rep count for the Burnout run through was as follows: 6-8-8-6-8.  FINISHED!!! DONE!!! NO MORE!!!

I took a little time after the cool down to catch my breath, but then I got right into my ab work.  Back to work with Brett.  It was tough because I was feeling my lower back pain.  But it did help me to find where the pain was radiating from, and it just so happens to be from the lower right back.  Doing the V-Ups was a bit painful, but once I gutted through it, the pain was reduced a little.  A few changes, I for the first move, I did all three rounds as the Sweeping V-Ups.  No hands on the ground.  The second move also kept up with Brett on this one.  and the Spice round, same as usual.  At the beginning of the routine, my back pain was pretty bad, but by the middle of the second round, I felt strong and kept it going.  I did have to tap out in the second and third round.  I ended up tapping out at 8 and 9 reps.  But I still, after a quick breath, Got back into it.  The V-Ups are always a killer.  Got a great burn in the core today.

The Splits were good.  I was able to maintain the distance.  But the pain is still present, which it should be.  And the Flows were, as usual, on point.

In the end, I torched a good 930+kcals.  I'm a bit bummed that I didn't hit a Grand, but I was close.

6-23-17 (Friday) Pickle-Ball.

6-23-17 (Friday) Pickle-Ball.

Pickle-Ball Day is BACK!!!

Very excited to play again.  We got started a little earlier than usual because I was able to get everything set up and my playing partner (from now on I'll call him Dan) was able to end his class on time and get to the gym quickly.  I was like we had never taken a two-week break.  We got right back into the game.  We warmed up quickly and got into the match.  The first two games were pretty close in score but very different in play pace.  I won the first game 15-13 but the game only took about 10 minutes.  We talked about why that was on the changeover and discovered that we both went on long and medium sized point runs and there wasn't a lot of contested serves.  There was a total of 28 points and only about 8 - 10 changes of serve.  Well, we talked about it, so wouldn't you know, the second game made it to 1-1 and then we got stuck.  We changed serve over 10 times before I went on a little run to break the 1-1 tie.  The second game took almost 30 minutes.  There were a lot of awesome rallies and some incredible gets and WOW shots.  Very entertaining game.  Thankfully I took that game also, 15-12.  The, I went off, and totally destroyed Dan in the third game.  I took the score up to 12-1, then I stalled out.  He came back some to get to 12-6, then I just shut the door and closed out the game, 15-6.  But Dan was clearly off in the third game.  He was spraying shots everywhere.  He hit so many service returns into the net it wasn't even funny.  We finished the game in less than 10 minutes.  Then it was my turn, I went off the boil.  In the final game, I just couldn't get anything started.  I served fine, but I was just spraying shots everywhere but in the court.  I scraped together a few multi-point runs, but nothing more than 2 points at a time, while Dan was putting runs of 5 points and more together.  But it was a competitive game because it took over 20 minutes.  I lost it 8-15.  3-1 isn't a bad record for the day, so I was happy.  I will say this, I tried to not let it affect my play, but my glutes and legs were really sore.  I was really feeling yesterday's lower body workout.  Also, my back was feeling a lot better.  Still not at 100%, but no tweaks today.

In the end, I torched well over 1050kcals.  So glad to get back into Pickle-ball.

6-22-17 (Thursday) HY: P90X3 - Complex Lower + Power 90 - Ab Ripper 200 + TCF.

6-22-17 (Thursday) HY: P90X3 - Complex Lower + Power 90 - Ab Ripper 200 + TCF.

I was on a really tight time crunch today because I had a recruiting event at my school and I got out a lot later than usual.  I was considering not doing resistance today and just doing a T25 Cardio, but I raced home and figured I'd have just enough time to get in a resistance routine.  But I had some trouble finding the disk and getting my computer to work so I got pushed even more.  Long story short, I was late to my night class by about 15 minutes.  But luckily it worked out because the students just happened to be late as well and came in just as I was getting settled.  WHEW!!!

Back to the workout.  I wanted to do lower body today so Complex Lower was it.  Complex Upper on Sunday will complete my first round of X3 Resistance.  I forgot how to do this routine, so I accidentally started the first Complex with a higher-than-recommended weight.  So, I didn't increase the weight with each Complex.  Instead, I maintained the weight through all four rounds.  I used only two sets of weights, 7.5kgs and 5kgs.   With the weight staying the same, each weighted move got tougher with each round. But not as it should have, I guess.  Normally, I would have carried out the progression thus 5-6.25-7.5-10kgs for the heavier and something similar with the lower weight.  But keeping the weight was still tough.  I was thinking to go up to 10 for the last round, but my legs were already pretty fried so I didn't/couldn't.  There was one improvement if memory serves.  The last move of the Complex, The Stabilizer, I remember just barely being able to keep my leg up for the full 5 count at the end of the move, but today, I was able to keep both sides raised up high and stable.  I was happy and a little shocked at that.  I could feel the pain/cramp coming, but it never materialized into a full blown pain or cramp.

Legs thoroughly burned out, time slipping fast, I went to an "Old-Faithful".  Keeping form as clean as possible, I went through all 10 moves as methodically as possible, not rushing, but not taking any breaks between moves.  Twice near the end, I tapped out because of ab cramping, but I breathed it out.

I actually did rush through my Flow and rushed to shower shave and shine for my night class.

In the end, I torched just under 650kcals.  It was a fun evening.  We ended up having a going away party for a student who is leaving.  We all went to sing karaoke.  My first time in about 2 years.  Fun evening!

6-21-17 (Wednesday) HY: P90X2 - Recovery and Mobility + TCF.

6-21-17 (Wednesday) HY: P90X2 - Recovery and Mobility + TCF.

Today was my mid-week recovery day and I was in need of this day after two tough resistance days sandwiching a tough tennis day due to my back issues.  So I got into the routine and everything was fine.  This time, I did the whole routine, unlike Monday when I just did the foam rolling part and the stretching.  The diagnostic moves felt good at both ends and foam rolling was awesome.  But the big thing that was different today than all the other times was when I was rolling out my left shoulder.  As I have said before, my left shoulder has been having some pain issues.  Well, as I was rolling it out, I suddenly heard a "POP" sound and a sharp pain shoot out from the front of my shoulder.  I stopped the micro-movements and just sat.  The pain lasted for only a moment and then the weirdest thing happened.  My shoulder felt a lot better.  I'm guessing it was like a tendon was out of place or something and today's rolling snapped it back into place.  There is still some pain, but it is significantly less.  I also think that my range of motion increased a little bit.  So, I will foam roll as much as I can and hope that the pain issue resolves quickly.  Oh, I also didn't quite double the lower body roll, but I did add a minute or so to it.  The Flow to close felt a lot smoother and lighter than ususal.

In the end, I burned just over 220kcals.    Very relaxing routine and workout.

6-20-17 (Tuesday) HY: P90X3 - Incinerator + ChaLEAN Extreme - Extreme Core Circuit + Unlock your Tight Hip Flexors + TCF.

6-20-17 (Tuesday) HY: P90X3 - Incinerator + ChaLEAN Extreme - Extreme Core Circuit + Unlock your Tight Hip Flexors + TCF.

Well, today was quite an ordeal.  If you remember, I talked yesterday about my back hurting.  Well, after tennis, it just got progressively worse until I could barely stand up straight.  I took some medicine for it and hoped for the best.  When I woke up this morning, it was still painful, but at least it didn't feel any worse.  But I still couldn't stand up straight.  So as I walked, I looked like a hobbled old man.  But the more I walked, it seemed to stretch out my back and I slowly came to be able to stand up straight again.  But then I'd sit for a while, then upon standing up, I was bent over again for a little while.  When I got home, I was seriously considering just taking it easy today and perhaps even the rest of the week.  But that thought didn't last very long.  Instead, since it was resistance day today, I thought to just modify like crazy and really protect my back.  So that is what I did.
The progression of moves in Incinerator is actually really good, and I didn't have to modify too much.  I was intending to go a little lighter overall but ended up doing just a little below my max.  The only modifying it did was on moves like move 5. Rocket Launcher Rows, I rested my upper body on my leg instead of supporting with core strength.  But on move 11. Pterodactyl Flys, I went on my Swiss Ball.  I didn't want to risk that upper body angle making my back worse.  Then I did the same on move 18. Rocket Launcher Kickbacks, went on the Swiss Ball to protect my back.  I could feel a huge difference in my back during the Svenson Vinyasa.  My Up-Dog wasn't anywhere near the range of motion I usually get.  I did make one minor mistake on move 14. Kneeler Curls.  I didn't pay attention and I thought that since this was a weighted move, the rep count was 10.  I didn't realize that it was a max rep move until I finished my 10 reps, started getting up and Tony and the crew were still pumping out reps.  I probably could have done another 3-5 reps.  I was very happy to get 10 clean reps in on the Pull-Ups and Chin-Ups within the 30 second time limit.  And that was with full extension.  But the move that probably surprised me the most because of its brutal nature and the serious burn was move 9. Monkey Pump.  I was only using 4kg dumbbells.  I thought it would be a walk in the park, and for the most part, the first 4-5 reps were pretty easy.  Then I hit the proverbial wall and the last 3-4 reps were incredibly brutal and my shoulders were feeling that major BURN!!!  I can usually touch my elbows together in front but with the work from the previous 8 moves, I was too pumped to be able to touch my elbows.  Awesome routine! I extended the time of the routine passed 30 minutes because I stopped to learn several moves, then rewound the DVD then started over again with the crew.  Major pump and burn today.  With minimal back tension.  That was the goal.

Still in back protection mode, I went with Chalene's Ball Abs.  And I got a great burn and the only back pain I felt was during the warm up when I was supposed to extend.  I went a little too far and the nerves let me know so I backed off.  But it was a great maintenance routine.  But I could feel my abs were stronger because I didn't feel the need to tap out during the routine at all.

I decided to go with the Unlocking my Tight Hip Flexor routine and I really pushed it, especially on the kneeling moves.  I felt really good and I felt that I did actually open up my hip flexors.  I was pushing it in as many angles as I could.  Painful, but good, and I was able to protect my back.  The Flow felt really good, too.  When I have to keep my back straight, I seemed to move smoother and with purpose.

In the end, I torched only 655kcals.  But the results I was feeling were awesome.  The best surprise of the workout was the fact that quickly on, my back loosened up and I was able to stand up straight during 95% of the workout.  No more excuses to hide behind.  Back pain SCHMACK PAIN!!!

6-19-17 (Monday) HY: Foam Rolling + TCF + Tennis.

6-19-17 (Monday) HY: Foam Rolling + TCF + Tennis.

Today is the second time for me to not be lazy in the morning. Or more specifically, a Monday morning.  I had a shake for breakfast and then did a long foam rolling session.  I was following P90X2's Mobility and Recovery DVD.  I just didn't do the whole routine.  Instead, I did the little yoga warm up, skipped the mobility moves, then went straight to the foam rolling.  But I doubled the leg time and the upper body time. So that is over 30 minutes, then I did the stretching moves at the end of the routine.  Then I did my Flow.

In the afternoon after class, I went to tennis.  Last week was awesome! Today was... NOT!  I was 3-2 on my service games, I hit at least one double fault in each service game, 2+ in the games I lost.  My service returns were either in the net or missed the racket sweet spot by a mile.  ZERO poaches and Zero aces.  I did have several service winners, but still.  I didn't put away at least 5 shots that I should have put away... The list goes on.  Finally, I lost both sets I played, 3-6, 5-6.  Close, but my partner and I were both just not feeling it tonight.  There were several "FLASHES" of brilliance, but nothing sustained.  Too many let downs after awesome shots.  All of that trash notwithstanding, it was fun.  But it would have been even more fun if we had won at least one set.  One possible reason/excuse is that a few minutes into getting to the gym, I noticed my back started to hurt.  I just felt like I wrenched it without doing anything that would actually wrench it.  Usually, I know what I did that triggered the pain, but this time, I was fine all day, then, it was.  I think I was babying it all night.  But I didn't say anything to the other players.  Then, there was the dead heat.  The gym was like a sauna.  But we all had to play in it so that was on me.  Next week, unfortunately, no tennis on Monday.  So I'll have to find another time to play.  But since rain is in the forecast, I probably won't be able to play with my wife because we can only play on outside courts.  Hmm, how can I get in some tennis next week?

In the end, I torched 1369kcals.  Burning it up on the court!

6-18-17 (Sunday) HY: Yard Work + P90X3 - Eccentric Upper + RevAbs - Merciless Abs + Splits + TCF.

6-18-17 (Sunday) HY: Yard Work + P90X3 - Eccentric Upper + RevAbs - Merciless Abs + Splits + TCF.

It's Father's Day!  So, I called my parents in the morning here (the day before there), and we talked for a long time.  When I called, it was cloudy.  I was thinking it would hold until after the call so I could do the yard work with no direct sun.  But by the time we ended the call, the sun had broken through and was beaming brightly.  So, I got on all my garb and went out and did the lawn.  It had to be today because the forecast for the next week was rain.  It is rainy season now so I probably wouldn't be able to do it for a couple weeks.  I was lucky to get be able to get to it now before the weeds/grass got out of control.  But it was hot, and after everything was all done and the lawn was clean, I felt exhausted.  I had lunch, and then I was just feeling totally wiped, so I took a nap.  I was a lot longer than I had anticipated and even after waking up, I still wasn't feeling all that motivated.  So, I had a little snack and watched some TV.  I didn't want to push my workout too late so when I felt a little better, I started getting ready.

I still wasn't feeling motivated, but once I hit play, I was in!  That "Just Do It!" attitude came flowing back and I just hit it hard.  I was glad to get back to some Pull-Ups as well.  But the Pull-Ups in this routine are three times as hard because they are eccentric.  Three count down and one up.  We are supposed to do 10 reps, but I could only do 8 before tapping out.  But I went back and did the final 2 reps.  Chin-Ups a few moves later were the same story.  Move 10. V-Pull-Ups, I was fried, so I went with the Green Assistance Bands.  Even then, I still almost tapped out at 8 reps, but I kept it together till 10.  The last set of Pull-Ups, move 14. Vaulter Pull-Ups, I stuck with the Green Assistance Bands.  A couple notes, I crushed all the sets of Push-Ups.  But the last 2-3 reps saw a reduction in explosive power.  There were several moves in Rocket Launcher position.  What I did that Tony did not do is that I switched legs after 5 reps.  I just wanted to keep that balance.  I was very happy that I was able to stick with the 12kgs for the arm moves.  I thought about dropping to 10kgs on the later moves but felt good with 12kgs still.  All the moves were good.  I got a good burn on the last few reps, but only one move made my right shoulder pop and hurt.  Move 15. Pterodactyl Flys.  Even with only 5kgs, that downward resistance was still more than enough to cause the joint to pop.  So I played with the angle until I found a more pain-free angle.  During the Burnout, I didn't use the Pull-Up Assist band.  BRUTAL STUFF!!! I was feeling so pumped and jacked.  Really got it going today after that slow start.

Moved right into Abs and pushed for a full range of motion.  No Cheating!  The first round was great.  Straight through all the moves.  But I tapped out at 9 reps on the V-Ups.  My abs just screamed out due to the cramping pain.  Then I tapped out at 6 reps on the third round Spicy V-Ups.  And I pretty much tapped out on each move in the final round. Burn BUrn BURN!!!

Splits and Flow were perfection with a scream!

In the end, I torched a good 972kcals.  I would have liked to have started with a good positive and motivated attitude, but I definitely got it in transit.  Good start to what I hope will be a good week.

6-16-17 (Friday)Tennis.

6-16-17 (Friday) Tennis.

Today would normally be Pickle-Ball day, but since my playing partner is still away, I was planning to go with a T25 routine today.  Something to keep my arches and ankles on their toes.  But I got a text from my wife at noon saying she wanted to play tennis in the afternoon and if I could make it.  My plans changed and I went for the tennis.  Apparently, my wife didn't feel like she got enough tennis in on Thursday (her club day) because there were too many members and only one court.  So members were shifting in and out rather quickly.  So no one really got to play that much.

We started playing a little before 5 pm and were planning to play till 6 pm, but that plan also changed.  About 30 minutes in, I noticed that my wife was not moving as well as usual.  We took a short break and then we tried to play again.  But only about 15 minutes later she said she was feeling so exhausted and hot and she was shaking.  That happened to me once and the reason was that I was short of calories.  She was busy running around all day and didn't eat anything before we went to play.  So, I ran to the nearby supermarket got some calorie bars and bread for her.  She gobbled them down and 10 minutes later she was feeling a lot better and stronger so we tried playing on.  We ended up playing another 90 minutes.

As far as our play, I was hitting the ball back to her or as close as I could to her and she pretty much ran me around the court practicing her shot placement.  That would have been fine, but there was one huge fly in the ointment.  My glutes and legs were screaming soreness.  In the morning, I was fine, but as the day wore on, they started to tighten up and I was feeling the soreness come on strong.  I would stretch whenever I could, but by 5 pm, I was really feeling it.  So, running around the court was a little slower than I normally would have liked.  I was also trying a new tactic with my wife and that was to come in on every short ball and volley back everything she would hit at me.  But several times she would lob me and running back was just painful.  Near the end, I just watched the ball sail in over my head.  We both had a fun time.  The little hiccup notwithstanding, we had a good time.  The weather was perfect as well as the temperature.

In the end, I torched over 1000kcals so I was happy to hit a grand.  Fun way to workout and finish my week.  Happy Weekend, everyone.

6-15-17 (Thursday) HY: P90X3 - Eccentric Lower + RevAbs - Merciless Abs + TCF.

6-15-17 (Thursday) HY: P90X3 - Eccentric Lower + RevAbs - Merciless Abs + TCF.

Well, I made a little switch to my schedule.  I swapped Thursday and Friday around.  I had forgotten that I had moved Pickle-Ball to Friday, but even though there would be no Pickle-Ball this Friday, I wanted to keep the schedule.  I also wanted to snag two off days from resistance training over the weekend.  Upper body was still feeling the effects of The Challenge, especially in my Triceps.  So I really wanted to do some focused lower body work.  ChaLEAN Extreme is more of a synergistic program working both lower and upper body in each routine.  But Tony focuses way more on one or two muscle groups with his resistance routines.  From counting the worksheets, P90X3 has 6 resistance routines, Total Synergistics, Incinerator, 2 Eccentric, and 2 Complex.  If I stick with my regular schedule, I hope to go through all six at least 3 times.  Today was my return to focusing on my lower body. To sum up the experience... "OUCH!!!"

As I started, I looked at the bottom of the worksheet and saw "13" on the last move.  I was thinking, "Ha! Only 13 moves, no wonder it's only 30 minutes.  Easy stuff."  Famous last words.  I was also thinking that I wouldn't go too heavy with the weights.  Which is why the first move is only 17kgs.  I will go heavier next time, but I was thinking of this move as still a warm up move.   I went down a little for the Lunges.  And what I failed to see is that 10 of the 13 moves are double moves so I'm actually doing 23 moves.  Anyway, back to the Lunges.  Tony said at the beginning of the routine that Range of Motion is key, so I decided not to cheat on my range of motion.  So, I went down until my back knee touched the floor.  Going down that far was tough, but I was still fresh.  Sumos were fine, and this time I went up to 22kgs.  But it was easy because it was only with one dumbbell.  Weighted Pistol worried me.  This move looked really tough on the knees.  I felt really unstable and I wasn't able to go down as far as I would have liked.  Weight was average, but since my balance was off a bit, I was tilting and twisting at a weird angle as I went down.  Also, I wasn't really able to "EXPLODE" up.  I felt good on the first three moves, but the slow "3-count" then the exploding up on the Weighted Pistol move was almost impossible.  I was able to come up faster than going down, but no exploding.  Oh, I also mixed up the worksheet switching the weight number and rep number.  Like an idiot, I did that for the next few moves.  The next two moves were of the Cramping variety.  They seem easy, but holding my leg up for that long, and then pushing the range of motion, I came recklessly close to cramping in my glutes.

Is there a difference between Albanian Squats and Bulgarian Lunges?  They both have one leg back and elevated.  I would guess that the Albanian should have the leg elevated but to the side instead of the back.  But I went with Tony and just about hit a cramping failure again.  And again, no exploding up.  I could explode up if I didn't go as low as I did, but then again, working on range of motion.  Almost cramped up with move 8. Adductor Lunge.  I was breathless after both sides on this one.  Holding those weights and controlling the movement so slowly, MAN, that is BRUTAL!!!  Cross Reach was the one move in the later stages that I actually felt good and clean about... That is until about rep #8.  From rep #9, the near cramping started to set in, and my lower back started screaming.  But I muscled out the last couple reps.  Thank goodness there were only 10 reps.  Move 10. TT Plus was like move 9. fine to begin, then almost cramping on the last few reps.  That cramping feeling came on so quickly especially on the left that I was losing my balance in side plank.  TOUGH, TOUGH, TOUGH!!!  I am not happy with Bridge Kicks.  I feel I should be able to do that move better, but I just don't seem to have that big a range of motion on that move.  I can't even get straight from my knees to shoulders.  The dumbbell weight didn't really matter,  I just wasn't opening up.  Form seemed fine, just not open.  For the Hip Flexor Splits, I didn't use my Push-Up Stands.  I stayed on the floor and it became more if an Ab routine, even though I was trying to focus on my outer thighs and glutes.  If there is one issue I have with this routine, it is this, it just doesn't have enough Calf work.  Move 13. Calf Dog is a nice move for beginners, but there was hardly any resistance even with my opposite leg stacked.  I was playing with my angle to try and get more tension, but no big change.  But there was a little something something at the end, but not much.  I wish there were just maybe, a couple more moves that targeted the calves.  But other than that, WHAT A WORKOUT!!! My legs were like jelly.  I took a little extra time today to stop, watch, and learn the moves, AND for quick breathers.  By I was out of breath several times during this routine and need that extra few moments to recover.  Also, to shift around my weights.  Take a look at my worksheet.

I moved quickly into Abs.  I was sort of in a time crunch so I sped up the routine a bit.  I still did the moves on the slow count, but I cut short the stretch breaks and chatter periods.  I made it through the first two rounds just BARELY without any extra breaks, but I only made it to 6 reps on the "Spicy" V-Ups.  I tapped out then went to 10, took a breath, then finished it out.  The second "Spicy" move was fine, but the last move wasted me.  I just barely made it to 6 reps before collapsing back.  Also, I got back to using the 4kg dumbbells so my arms and shoulders were really feeling it.  Good Cramping style in 12 reps today.

Moving into the Flow, everything started off normally, but doing the Flow with good stable form was very difficult.  My quads were just laughing at me as I Flowed.  My legs were quivering like a wet poodle.  But I made it through without falling on my butt!

In the end, I torched another modest 650+kcals.  I hit what I wanted to hit so I was happy.  Upper and Lower bodies are coming back into balance.

6-14-17 (Wednesday) HY: P90X2 - Recovery & Mobility + TCF.

6-14-17 (Wednesday) HY: P90X2 - Recovery & Mobility + TCF.

I've wanted to do this routine for a few weeks, but due to my sleeping later than planned, I ended up in a time crunch, so I had to do a shorter routine.  Today, I woke up rested and refreshed... AND SORE.  After The Challenge yesterday, I figured I'd be sore today, but I did not think that my triceps would be the muscles most sore.  Also, I was still pumped, especially in arms and chest.  That sensation is a first for me.  I didn't know what to think about it.  I wonder if this is a turning point for me.  Also, my flexibility seems to have reached a new level.  Just last month or a couple months ago, when I would do my mid-week recovery, and I would do the forward hang to touch the ground, I'd be about 3 inches from the ground.  But after a few minutes of shaking it out and some dynamic and static stretching, I would be able to touch the ground with my fingertips.  Now, I can go straight to my fists and lower right from the first stretch.  I'm really happy about that as well.

Today, my right shoulder was feeling a little gimpy so I was looking forward to the foam roller.  Calves were loaded with hot spots, but I think I got a lot of them to release.  Everything felt really good.  I felt much looser afterward.  But rolling out my triceps when the upper body series began was brutal.  I'm still not sure if the pain was from the soreness or from the hot spots.  I had to back off quite a bit because the pain was too much.  The Frog and Pigeon were good, but I still need to work on opening up my hip flexors.   I'm thinking I'll need to go back to that stretch program.  The Flow was also really smooth.  It was nice because since I was so loose, I was moving very well.

In the end, I burned a modest 250+kcals.  But the best burn of the week!

6-13-17 (Tuesday) HY: P90X3 - The Challenge + RevAbs - Merciless Abs + Splits + TCF.

6-13-17 (Tuesday) HY: P90X3 - The Challenge + RevAbs - Merciless Abs + Splits + TCF.

Back to a normal schedule and a regular full workout.  Nothing out of the ordinary today, got home as usual, around 5:30 pm and relaxed a little with my daughter watching cooking videos.  We commented about how fattening some of the recipes were, using a ton of condensed milk and heavy cream.  Finally got to my workout.

I'm not going on the regular P90X3 schedule, rather, as I said on Sunday, I'm just picking out the resistance routines and going over them.  I haven't decided yet how many rounds, but at least 2.  Also, I'm just going with the BeachBody order as listed on the WOWY SUPERGYM list.  So today, The Challenge was up.  Honestly, I was nervous about this one because of the rapid succession of pull/chin-up sets on the worksheet.  I remembered this particular routine being probably the toughest of the bunch.  So, in choosing my reps number, I went a little lower than I remember doing last time.  I didn't take the time to look up what I did before, but I believe I did 10 on the Ups, and 30 on the Push-Ups.  Today, I decided on 7 on the Pull/Chin-Ups and 25 for the Push-Ups.

The first circuit was fine, but it was after the third move that I really started to feel the pump rushing on.  From then on, my upper body felt huge.  Arms, Chest, Back, Shoulders.  It is three hours after finishing the workout as I type this and I am still feeling a huge pump.  Thankfully, the Wide Pull-Up was the first variation.  Any later and my shoulder would have given me so problems.  But I powered through just fine.  The Push-Ups were also fine.  The second circuit was when it started to get tough with the Push-Ups.  The Chin-Ups were still fine, giving me a huge arm pump, but the Military Push-Ups were a problem.  I had to take little breaks, as you can see below, to get to my 25 reps.  Oh, and for the Push-Ups, I was using my stands, but followed Tony's advice of not going too much lower than 90 degrees at my elbows.  But the breaks were done in Plank, I didn't go to my knees or leave Plank.  But rather, it was a catch-your-breath break.  The third circuit with those Close Grip Pull-Ups was tough, but I managed to stay on the bar all the way through.  Thankfully, the Wide Push-Ups were up.  They are the easiest, but still, I needed the little breaks at the end.  The Final circuit was actually pretty good considering I was fried.  The Vaulter Pull-Ups were actually a bit easier, but still, I was brought to the brink of failure.  More breaks on the Push-Ups, but I got further into the set than previous Push-Ups.  The BURNOUT was tough as well.  I decided to go with Parallel Grip (HORN) Pull-Ups and Wide Push Ups.  I was happy to get 9 sets of the 1-Pull-up-3-Push Ups.  Of which I chose Wide Push-Ups.  I was a little worried I wouldn't last the whole time, but I did it. I was extremely pleased with my pump and exhaustion.

I moved right to abs and the routine I chose is tougher than I had originally though.  The first round was fine, but I could feel the pressure coming on.  The second set, I couldn't complete the first move (V-Ups) straight.  I had to tap out at the 8th rep, then finish the set.  Then the pain from the last set was intense.  The third round was brutal and spicy.  But the burn came on pretty quickly and stuck with me all the way through.  Core STILL feeling the effects.

The Splits and Flow were also a great way to finish off this workout.

In the end, I torched a good 750+/-kcals.  The considerably shorter routines are going to affect my calorie burn, but this is the schedule, so I'm going do it.

6-12-17 (Monday) HY: Splits + TCF + Tennis.

6-12-17 (Monday) HY: Splits + TCF + Tennis.

Well, today was sort of the beginning of a new practice for me.  On Mondays, I usually have the mornings off so I just sort of wake up late, relax, watch some baseball or some news, then saunter off to work around noon.  But I was feeling bad about missing my Splits and Flow yesterday, so I decided to do my splits and flow in the morning.  So I got up earlier than usual, had a Shake, then had a good Splits Stretch and Flow session.  I didn't wear my HRM so I was just getting into each stretch and really trying to pulse down lower into each move.  It was nice, actually to do it with no pressure or worry of it getting late.  The Flow was also nice to do with no pressure of having to finish by a certain time.  Just a free session.  I got a nice little sweat going, but I didn't want to take a shower, so I just sponge bathed myself before heading off to work.

Tennis today was probably one of the best if not THE best showing I've had since I started playing regularly in April.  During the warm up, I didn't feel it.  I wasn't able to control the ball, I was netting often, out too often, couldn't maintain a rally, everything was just... off.  I don't even think I hit a practice serve in.  The person receiving my serve made the joke, "Today, is an off day for your serve, eh!"  Well, it sure seemed that way in the warm up.  Then we started the match.  Once the game started, I guess something clicked and everything was suddenly ON!  I was making shot after shot, volley after volley.  I usually can't get my timing or see the ball well enough to poach, so I don't, but today, I was poaching like crazy.  My ground strokes were solid, going exactly where I was placing them, I was hitting volleys at unreturnable spots, and my serve, although I hit only one ace and two double faults over the whole match, I hit like 75% service winners, unreturnable serves.  I didn't lose any service games, and I was supporting my partner very well.  It wasn't perfect, by any means, but I was making good choices that for the most part paid off.  I did get burned a few times.  I was playing very aggressively today, pushing to take the net first, and I got offensively lobbed a couple times.  But by the end of the night, my team had won, 6-3, 6-1.  It felt good tonight.

In the end, I torched a good 1300+kcals.  My legs are feeling pretty tired at the moment, so I'm looking forward to sleeping.

6-11-17 (Sunday) HY: P90X3 - Total Synergistics.

6-11-17 (Sunday) HY: P90X3 - Total Synergistics.

The decision was made.  I will be using the resistance routines in P90X3 on my resistance days, and the cardio routines when I don't have either tennis or Pickle-Ball.  The way my schedule is working out is one of two ways: 1. Sunday - Tennis with my Wife, Monday - Club Tennis, Tuesday - Resistance, Wednesday - Mid-week Recovery, Thursday - Pickle-ball/Cardio, Friday - Resistance.  or 2. Sunday, Tuesday, Friday - Resistance, Monday - Tennis, Wednesday - Mid-week Recovery, Thursday - Pickle-Ball/Cardio.  Those are the two patterns that I am following right now.  1. has two resistance days while 2. has three resistance days.  The reverse is the same for Cardio days.  So I am happy with either.

Today was a rainy day so definitely no tennis, so I was able to think about it and go over my options.  My main reason for going with X3 is time.  I don't have a lot of time during the week so I would like do maximize my family time when I can.  I am thinking of going back to the original P90X during summer vacation when I can do my workouts during the day.  But that is a couple of months away, so I'm staying in the moment.

The last time I did X3 was almost exactly one year ago.  So I'm glad to be getting to it.  As I was saying on Friday, I was wishing for a routine that mixes cardio and resistance.  Well, it turns out that this routine, Total Synergistics is one of those types of routines.  I was surprised at the Pump and Burn I was getting throughout this routine.   The first move was fine, but I was used to doing it at a much slower pace with ChaLEAN Extreme, so I got a little behind and had to go a little overtime to get the 12 reps in.  I wanted to match the last run through.  The second move, Crescent Chair, I stuck with Tony and did only 6 reps.  I was wondering how I did 8 reps before.  Move three was Pull Knee Pull.  I actually did the 8 reps to match the last time's count, but I still had time so I added 2 more reps.  From there, everything went pretty well, and I was able to pretty much keep up with Tony and the crew.  Move 7, another set of Chin-Ups, I did the 10 reps to match the previous total, but I had to tap out at 8 reps, take a break, then get the last two.  It is just a tough move.  I needed to have a lot of control.  This routine also has some really tough ab moves, so I pushed on those and maxed out, or should I say I Cramped out.  For the weighted moves, I used two different weights, I used 7.5kgs and 4kgs.  From move 9 on, I matched every move from the previous time.  Except for the final move, Move 14. Warrior Squat Moon.  Previously, I had done 8 reps.  Today, I did 8 reps, but I had to tap out at 6 reps, shake out my glute, then finish out the last 2 reps.    It just started to suddenly cramp up and I could hold my leg up anymore.  But I was very pleased with how this routine really worked my total body.  My balance was pretty good, too.  I was feeling all sorts of burning.  I am very happy with the choice I made.

Since the X3 routine had some good ab moves, and my abs were already feeling pretty worn, and I couldn't motivate myself to even do Ab Ripper 200, I figured I had done enough.  I was planning to move on to the Splits and Flow, but while I was doing to preliminaries, I was called and had to go.  So That was it for the day's workout.

In the end, I torched a nice little 540+Kcals.  I figured it was a good start to the week.  I felt satisfied.

6-09-17 (Friday) HY: ChaLEAN Extreme - Get Lean Intervals +TCF.

6-09-17 (Friday) HY: ChaLEAN Extreme - Get Lean Intervals +TCF.

I was looking for another filler routine to end the week on.  I really didn't want to start a new primary program on a Friday.  Finally, I found the prefect one.  I think I have done this routine only once before several weeks/months after acquiring it.  And since I was in the middle of another program at the time, I didn't really think to much about it.  But it came back to mind today quite suddenly and I unretired it.  

IT WAS THE BOMB!!!  I was saying before that I wish there were more routines that mix Cardio and Resistance.  This is the second one in the ChaLEAN Extreme program that perfectly does this.  If there were just 5-6 more routines of this caliber on which a program was built, I would be a happy guy.  But today, my was in constant BURN MODE.  The cardio moves were short but intense.  The resistance moves made me hit failure every set, and I also added my own spice by doing a set of Pull Ups every 5 minutes or so.  Usually I do 10 sets, but today, I only did 6 sets, but I did 10 reps per set.  The major burnout set today was on Shoulders.  Again, I was just using 4kgs, but doing up and around 30+ reps, I had to tap out, shake out, then get back into it.  The original time of the routine is close to 45 minutes, but with the added Pull-Ups, it ended up being just over 1-hour.  There were times that I had to rewind the DVD after learning the move, and a few times after a move that I needed a little extra break.  But it starts off with that killer Thigh Toner move.  My outer thigh and gluts were SCREAMING right from the start.  There was also a jump rope move that I thought would be tough because of the focus on the calves, but I guess the Shaun T training prevented it.  I felt strong all the way through.

Since I added to the routine and increased the time, I was in a bit of a time crunch so I only had time for the FLOW at the end.  It was clean and smooth, so I was happy to end on a calm note.

In the end, I torched around 950kcals.  That's a big number for a much shorter than regular workout.  But I love it!!!

6-08-17 (Thursday) HY: PiYO - Sweat + TCF.

6-08-17 (Thursday) HY: PiYO - Sweat + TCF.

Today was kind of an odd day in that I had somewhat of a business trip or a business engagement.  I had to go and observe one of my students teach an English Class at a local elementary school.  Then, after the lesson, give feedback for and an evaluation of the lesson.  That pretty much took the whole morning and I didn't eat lunch until about 2:30 pm.  Then I had some errands to run for work and I got home at the usual time.  But since I was in the city, I ate lunch with my wife.  We were planning to go for a nice "Protein-Rich" meal, but then my wife remembered that one of our favorite Italian restaurants has a special price for women on Thursday, so our plan suddenly changed and we went to the Italian place.  It was a buffet-style restaurant and the food is delicious.  I didn't eat as much as I used to, but I still ate too much.  I thought I had it under control, I felt fine.  I had already decided to finish and was just drinking some water when suddenly my stomach felt like it popped a button and I felt like I was about to burst.  I couldn't move for a few moments.  But finally, when I was able to move, we left.  I had what felt like a localized cramp in my stomach for about 90 minutes after we left.  And I couldn't do anything but sit when I got home.  I planned to go to my tennis club in the evening, but that was out the window.  I finally started feeling better around 8 pm.  But still felt bloated.  But the good thing is that I didn't feel heavy.  I just ate a lot of the vegetable dishes, or should I say too much.  I did have their pizza and pasta, but mostly salad and for some reason a lot of broccoli.  I did have a few tiny doughnut holes and some soft-serve ice cream for dessert.  And the sweetest most delicious fresh pineapple EVER!!!  Not a lot of oil or fat.  Even the pizzas didn't have that much cheese on it.  And if you know Japanese style pizza, you know how small they are.  I didn't eat the crust and the base crust is almost paper thin, so I really didn't have a lot of carbs either.  Oh well.  We ended up having a really good time.  We walked around the city running some errands so that helped a little.

As I said, I felt better around 8 pm so I decided that I have to do something, but I knew I wasn't able to handle even just 25 minutes of T25, so I decided to go with PiYO.  The first two sections were fine, I was able to keep up with everything Chalene instructed, and I wasn't feeling sick or anything like that.  But once we got to the Power section,  OH MY GOODNESS!!! My legs were feeling it.  And there was some good cardio there as well with those Burpees.  I was happy that I felt really strong on all the Push-Ups, but that very last set in the Stretch and Strength section pretty much brought me to failure.  It was a great workout.  Then, the Flow was on point.  But I'm losing a little balance with regard to time.  The Right-Start Flow is naturally a little faster than my Left-Start Flow.  I'll need to work on evening that out and controlling my movements better.

In the end, I burned a light 468kcals.  Nowhere near the Grand+ I was expecting had I gone to play tennis, but I still feel I made the better decision.  I think next week will be back to normal. (KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK)

6-07-17 (Wednesday) HY: P90X3 - X3 Yoga + TCF.

6-07-17 (Wednesday) HY: P90X3 - X3 Yoga + TCF.

Another mid-week recovery day is upon me and the night before I was planning to do X2 Recovery and Mobility.  However, that plan changed because I woke up late and didn't have the time.   Hence, the quick change to X3 Yoga.

It was kind of nice because since the switch was so sudden, I didn't go into the routine with any expectations.  I was just totally in the moment and it turned out to be one of my best sessions to date.  All my regular "Trouble Spots" were way improved.  Mainly, my right side Half-Moon Pose, Extended Leg with Toe Bind, and Crow.  I felt really stable on my right side Half-Moon.  I started to try to look up, but that was asking a little too much so I stayed looking down and was happy with the newly experienced balance.  The Toe Bind also felt really stable even with the leg out to the side.  There were a couple bobbles, but I held it strong on both sides.  Then, my Crow felt incredibly light.  I went up and just stayed up.  A couple toe taps but held the position the whole time.  I was very happy with today's recovery.  Plus, I felt really light all day, and Wednesday is my busiest day of the week, so that is saying something.

In the end, I burned only around 260kcals, but I felt awesome.

6-06-17 (Tuesday) HY: Insanity - Upper Body Weight Training + RevAbs - Mercy Abs + Splits + TCF.

6-06-17 (Tuesday) HY: Insanity - Upper Body Weight Training + RevAbs - Mercy Abs + Splits + TCF.

I still haven't decided which program I'm going to use as my primary next, so today, I am using a "Filler" routine.  This is one of my favorite routines because it is short and mixes resistance and cardio for that extra big burn.

There are 14 moves in all, but I added 4 moves to the mix. Yep, I added my Pull-Ups sets.  This time, however, I didn't do a set before each move, but simply added it to each circuit.  There are four circuits each with three rounds.  Each subsequent round goes up in weight and down in rep count.  On the worksheet, since the reps have basically been decided to be that 12-10-8 progression, I didn't write the reps.  But on the first move of each circuit, I wrote the kind of pull-up I was doing and the reps and the number of sets.  The four variations were regular: Wide Front Grip, Parallel Grip (Horn), Close Front Grip, and Chin-Ups.  Each had three sets, but the last variation was four sets so I could close it out with a strong burnout set of Chin-Ups.

I was a little worried because this routine has a few moves that could really hurt my shoulder.  But the shoulder moves were basically fine except for one, move # 13. Bent Over Row Fly.  The Row was fine, the Fly was fine, but lowering the dumbbell out of the fly position, again it felt like a tendon was snapping out of position then back in.   Lots of pain, so I had to adjust the angle of my lowering the dumbbell.  It was odd because once I found an angle that eased my pain, I was finished.  I lowered a lot of the weights from last time at the beginning of the routine but got back to the previous weight by the end of the routine.  But my basic plan was to use the first two rounds as sort of a warm-up, then go heavy on the last round.  That system worked well I think, but on a few moves, I think I could have gone a little heavier on the first two rounds.  I still had some gas in the tank by the third round.  I'm sure I'll come back to this routine again.  The cardio moves were all okay.  I stayed with Shaun T and crew.  It was a great Upper Body Workout.  My biggest question was why did Shaun stretch out the legs at the end of the routine instead of stretching the upper body.  I got a great burn.

I went right into abs and chose a deceptively tough routine.  It seems easy, but if done right one can cramp quickly and hit failure.  I was doing well, until the final round, the SPICY ROUND!  That last set of V-Ups, I had to tap out at 10 reps, then after a quick breath, I finished out the 15 reps.  I got the burn I expected.

The Splits and Flow were, as usual, on point, clean and smooth.

In the end, I torched a nice 1100+kcals.  I love that Resistance/Cardio-in-one type of workout.  THE BURN IS REAL!!

6-05-17 (Monday) Tennis.

6-05-17 (Monday) Tennis.

Today was my regular tennis day!  Glad to be able to play regularly again.  I wish I could play regularly in the second semester, too.  But since I have no class on the smaller campus then, no joy.  So I'll just make the best of it now.

I think that time playing with my wife was a great warm up for me last week because I played great and served great last week.  This week, without that playing time with my wife on Sunday, I felt the difference.  Plus, my chest was rather sore from yesterday's workout, so that may have had a little influence on my play today.

Today was a 50% day.  I lost every other service game and won each following game.  I wasn't serving badly, but the shot choices afterward were just not good.  Plus, I was just unable to get into a rhythm.  I lost my first game pretty badly, but I did have an ace in that game.  In my next service game, it went to 40-40 so the next point was the deciding point.  We play using No-Ad Scoring to keep the time down.  I hit a CANON SERVE!!! BOOM!!! Right at the body and although there was a little contact, there was no chance that ball was coming back.  Felt so good.  There was one other shot that I read perfectly, but it was risky.  My partner hit a really short lob right to the net person.  I felt he was going to go down the middle, so at the last moment, I moved to the middle and hit the most awesome reaction volley EVER!!!  Everyone was speechless that I had actually gotten that ball back.  Unfortunately, we lost that set 5-6.  The one shot that was so off today was my service return.  The serves I was getting weren't that hard or placed particularly well, but I was either netting them or hitting them out.  I was pretty vexed by that.  If I was just hitting the returns better, I'm sure we could have won more games and possibly the set.  The second set was bad.  We went down 0-4, but then I won my next service game and then broke in the next game.  We got it to 2-4, but that was all.   It was a lot of fun, but it would have been more fun if I had won at least one set.  Oh well.

In the end, I torched another Grand+.  1160+kcals to be precise.  It was a good day, and I'm loving it!

6-04-17 (Sunday) HY: ChaLEAN Extreme - Lean Circuit 3 + I've Got Abs + Splits + TCF.

6-04-17 (Sunday) HY: ChaLEAN Extreme - Lean Circuit 3 + I've Got Abs + Splits + TCF.

Today was a bit odd.  I was expecting my wife to want to play tennis like the past couple weeks, but when I asked her, she said she didn't feel like it.  So, I had to do a mental U-Turn and prepare for a week-beginning resistance workout.  For me, it is a little more complicated than it sounds.  But, I finally got to it in mid-evening.

This is the final workout with ChaLEAN Extreme as my primary routine.  I'm still debating which program to make my primary program next.  For now, P90X and Body Beast are leading the options, but P90X3 is a close second.  But for today, let's close it out strong!

The last time I did Lean Circuit 3, I changed up the Pull-Up sequence to fewer reps and between every move.  I've maintained that through the last go through of the Lean Circuit, so I'm keeping it for the last routine as well.  I did a total of 10 sets. Sets 1-3 were Parallel Grip and each set was 7 reps.  Sets 4-6 were Close Grip Pull-Ups, each set was 6 reps.  Sets 7-8 were V-Pull-Ups, each set was 3x2 reps. And the final two sets were Chin-Ups, 7 reps, then 10 reps.  They all felt really good, and I felt strong with all the variations.  I actually wanted to do more reps on the V-Pull-Ups, but my left shoulder didn't allow for it.  But it's feeling a lot better.

As for the regular routine, since I was feeling strong, I went up in weight on a few moves.  Starting with move #1.  Up 2kgs and felt good.  That weight was back to the original weight.  The next move I raised was move #5.  Chalene doesn't actually use weights on this move, but since I've done this move with weights in Body Beast, I went for it here.  Last time I used light weights so I tried the Body Beast weight, 7.5kgs.  That about killed me.  I was so winded afterward, it was no joke.  Plus, I use the screw-on type weights and the stopper came loose so I had to be extra careful not to let the weight roll out from under me when going up to Side Plank.  Move #6 went up 2kgs.  I really had to fight for the last few reps.  My front shoulders were SCREAMING at the end of the routine, and they were majorly PUMPED!!!  This really felt like a great workout and coupled with the extra Pull-Ups, the intensity was out of this world.  I was thinking to add one move, the Band Upper Cuts, but by the time I was finished, I had had enough.

I went right into Abs and I CRUSHED it!!!  Again, no breaks and burned out on each move.  Lots of breathing it out.  But the really brutal part was the Push-Ups.  My shoulders were just SCREAMING OUT!!!  But even on the last reps, I was failing, but I muscled through.  Felt great to complete the routine.

Splits went well and the Flow was smooth and clean.  Really happy about today's workout.

In the end, I torched a good 1050+Kcals.  Glad to open the week with a Grand burned.

6-02-17 HY: ChaLEAN Extreme - Lean Circuit 2 + I've Got Abs + TCF.

6-02-17 HY: ChaLEAN Extreme - Lean Circuit 2 + I've Got Abs + TCF.

I took the day off from work today so I could go and watch my wife at her tennis lesson.  She was saying that one of her coaches was teaching an unusual form and wanted me to come and see it.  So, we parked right next to the court and I watched from the car.  Now that I see the coach's style of play, I can help my wife sift through basic form and personal taste form.  As a teacher myself, I generally don't like saying another teacher is flat wrong, but there are times when one has to call a spade a spade and help the would-be student out.  This is one of those times.  I won't say anything to him directly, but I will correct what he has been teaching my wife.  After the lesson, my wife and I went out to do a little shopping and ate out.  I had a guilty pleasure.  I had the seasonal Starbucks Frappuccino, Strawberries & Cream.  Luckily, here, they only offer it in the Tall (small) size.  Then, when I got home, I relaxed a while, then got to my workout.  Oh, I also should mention that when I got up this morning, my right Hip Flexor was incredibly tight and painful.  Bearing weight was extremely painful initially, but with a few steps, it became bearable.  Standing up from the sitting position was the worst today.

Today's target muscles were Shoulders, Back, and a little Legs.  And of course core, which is the blanket focus the Lean Phase.  I've really liked the way I've been doing the Pull-Ups these past few resistance routines, so I decided to keep it going today.  The four variations are written on the worksheet, so I just did a set before each regular move and then at the end.  A total of ten sets, 3-3-2-2 of the variations.  I increased the reps a little, but the last variation, I went full set and did 10 reps in each set.  The very last rep brought me to failure.  But I felt strong during all the sets.  And I'm really happy that I stuck with the full range of motion.  As for the regular routine, I pretty much kept everything the same.  I had a few issues though, with move #3.  Single Hamstring Curl with Lateral Raise.  First of all, for some reason, I was have some major balance issues.  My leg would go up, arms up, then I'd start tipping to one side and would have to catch myself and put my foot down quickly.  It happened more times than I would like to recount, on both sides.  Then, the weights, same as last time, seemed heavy today, especially on my left shoulder.  A bit painful, it was.  So I was happy that the next shoulder raise move went down in weight.  The lower weight was much better but still tough.  The next issue was with move #4. Runner's Lunge with Double Arm Row.  The move itself was fine on both sides, but the issue came with the Extreme Set.  It was just the rows, still bent over, and still with the heavy weight.  During the slow set, I felt a little tweak in my lower back.  Then for almost all the rest of the routine, I felt pain there at certain twisting or bending angles. I was really worried.  But I think I was careful enough so that the pain subsided by the end of the routine, and I don't recall any pain during the abs routine.  WHEW!!! Dodged a bullet there.  The final issue was with move #6. Plank with Single Arm Row.  The right side was fine, killed the abs.   But the left side had the same pain on the negative side of the move.  The first rep, OMG the pain on the lowering of the weight.  I also felt a little "Snap" sort of like a tendon snapping back into position.  I had to adjust the angle at which I was lowering the weight a bit.  That "Snapping" feeling happened on the first 3-4 reps, but lessened with 5-6, and didn't happen after that.  The pain also decreased, but I was careful to control the weight on the way down.  The rest of the routine went smoothly.  I felt good and strong throughout.

I moved right into abs.  Today was the first time for me to actually CRUSH this routine!  I kept up with Chalene, I stayed at her pace, I hit all the transitions, did all the reps, and took no breaks and did not rewind the video.  All the while burning out my abs.  I got a new burn sensation today because I finally was able to control the movement of my core.  Not just jerking up and falling down.  That burn is REAL!!!

I was in sort of a time crunch so I moved right to the Flow and flowed right out of my workout and into the shower.  Felt really good afterward and now.

In the end, I torched a good 1107kcals.  My room was really hot, so midway through, my wife came and turned on the AC.  The calorie count would probably be a little higher, but I probably would also be exhausted from the heat.  Anyway, Great way to crush my workout today, finishing the week successfully.  Happy Weekend, everyone!

6-01-17 Pickle-Ball.

6-01-17 Pickle-Ball.

IT'S BACK!!!

Pickle-Ball Day has returned with my co-worker's return from his homeland.  Thankfully, the issue that motivated his sudden need to return home has been resolved for the moment, but there is an ongoing issue that is hovering over him. But for now, he is back and we are back at it.  He returned on Tuesday and today is Thursday.  He said he could play, but his head and body are still on a plane somewhere over the Middle East to Asia.  That condition notwithstanding, he was itching to play.

Long story short... *SWEEP!!!  I finally got that monkey off my back and took the first game.  I jumped out to an early small lead, 5-0, then he started to come back and got to  8-5.  Then I finally was able to turn on the gas and run off a series of points to take the first game 15-8.  We played a total of four games, and I took them all at 15.  My opponents points were 8, 5, 8, 12.  The first three games I played pretty well.  Dictating points and placing my shots.  The fourth game was supposed to be a big win.  I had a 12-3 lead, then he started to come back and he clawed and scratched his way back to 14-12, but I finally closed it out.  I was getting nervous during his comeback, but I managed to stay in control of my emotions and closed it out.  What's that?  You noticed the "*" in front of the "SWEEP"?  Yep, I felt the need to put it there because I don't feel it was a clean sweep.  My opponent was jet lagged and not in top condition so I will not say it is a clean sweep.  I want to sweep our games on a day when we are both in top condition and playing our best.  Only then will I remove the asterisk.

In the end, I torched a satisfying 960+kcals.  It was great to get back to playing Pickle-Ball.  I've really missed it.

It is JUNE, so here is my MAY Workout Calendar.  I was happy to be able to stay consistent all month.

Just a reminder, the green days are the intense Beachbody workout days, while the orange days are Tennis, Pickle-Ball, and mid-week recovery days.  Fun month for sure!

5-31-17 HY: ChaLEAN Extreme - Dynamic Flow Yoga + TCF.

5-31-17 HY: ChaLEAN Extreme - Dynamic Flow Yoga + TCF.

Today is my mid-week recovery day.  After yesterday's resistance workout, I knew I would need this today.  My biceps are screaming, and my triceps are moaning!  Feeling their Pump still today.  

As I was going through my workout library, I saw Chalene's yoga routine.  I had done it only once before, so I figured I'd give it another go today.  In the video, Chalene is wearing weighted gloves, so I used 1kg weights.  ZOWWY!  My shoulders were screaming near the middle.  I started off pretty well, but when I got to the point where I had to hold Warrior 2, pulse three times then raise my arms above my head.  The first time I couldn't raise my arms so I lowered them to give them a break, but the rest of the reps I raised them.  The Flow Yoga is nice because it doesn't have those moves like Crow.  So today was a good break.

The Flow was fine with no hiccups.

In the end, I burned a nice little 265+kcals.  Modest but refreshing.