Dr: ‘Have you lost weight?’ Me: HAHAHAHAHA

Had my Well Woman (pelvic & pap) exam yesterday. -need to get a mammogram soon

The doctor was doing her interview — which has NEVER included ‘Have you lost weight?’ It wasn’t being read, it was whilst she was palpitating my glands and girlie bits.

Laugh? I thought I’d die! She looked at me like I was mental, which I am, so you know. I thought it was funny because I’m the biggest she has ever seen me but she also only ever sees me once a year and…

I’m telling you, p90x3 is making me look better. I still have padding that I’m not fond of, which isn’t normally there (I cycle sizes or as I put it: I’ma repeat offender) but I just look healthier. That’s cool.

And in case anybody was wondering because I keep referring to that programme, no. I don’t work for them, I  never received gifts and I’m not suggesting anybody buys it, even though I own the original and 3 (I own a LOT of fitness DVDs). Regular readers will recall that I often recommend FREE workouts or LifeFitRevolution.org, which is all the workouts you’d ever need and online coaching and nutrition for FREE. I’m just saying this p90x3 is my current amour.

Snow fun! And week 3 p90x3

We got more snow, which had been predicted but they called for flurries (non-accumulating) but it accumulated some. Big fun for Bobby and me!

Luckily, they dragged themselves out and bladed and cindered the county road, too. YEEHAW! I only saw one vehicle stuck in a median and they were probably driving on bald tires or like an ahole. If you drove sanely, it was grand.

Without realising it, I began week 3 of p90x3 yesterday. I thought about that this morning. I’ve recently posted about my progress, so I’ve got more of that to look forward to and when I get better on eating like a normal human, not a family of 4, it’ll show, too. I’m telling you, I adore the 30 minute format of this programme!!!

Speaking of prgrammes, I watched the first 4 epis of this season’s Shameless. Some people make a big deal out of it and it’s well-made but it’s very like our childhood (FS, Brother and me) in many ways. Not as bad most of the time, which makes it odd when people go on about how…shameless the characters are. Kinda like, ‘Glad you grew up on Disneyland. Don’t think you’d have survived the real world’ from us.

p90x3 progressing! And now my bad knee hurts

Isn’t that something? When your bad knee hurting feels like a good thing. My good knee, which has recently giving me actual worry, is still tweaked but far improved, thank you. After last night’s CVX (p90x3), my bad knee is talking.

It could be the weather, too. It was -9F this morning (-23C) and waves of winter storms keep coming. Laugh. If you live long enough, your joints will talk to you about the weather, too.

Where was I? I took measurements a week early and unsurprisingly, I’ve not gotten physically smaller, what-with the eating being what it is. The upside is that my previous ‘progress’ was getting incrementally fatter. I like being tight/ dense not fluffy and puffy. I also really like fritos and chocolate and almonds and pecans…

My body might not be getting smaller but at least it’s getting stronger and more flexible. I’m feeling good about that. It’s hard to have multiple goals and show results. I think being more FUNCTIONAL is best right now and thinning out will come as I feel better and better cos I’m happier about myself when I’m a size 4. At this point a size 6 would make me giddy.

I’m noticeably (to me) more flexible, which is fantastic. I’ve practised yoga since I was a toddler (my first teacher was of some notoriety and I didn’t realise that was a thing til I got a guru who studied with her in India and was super-impressed that she had been my early teacher). This doesn’t mean that ‘I’m good.’ It means that yoga is normal. It also means that I’ve been more advanced and understand that I’m not so good at other things. You keep practising because that’s all it is. Practise.

When I do no yoga for months on end, I lose flexibility and strength. When I’m in my element, daily practise for years at a clip, I’m a fairly bendy broadlette. When I started p90x3, I couldn’t touch my toes with a straight back and ‘straight’ knees (never lock your joints).

With virtually no effort (only doing p90x3, which is THIRTY MINUTES per workout — this is not that hard, people), I’m looking less like a wooden mannequin and more like a human who needs to work on her flexibility! This is huge.

I’m stronger. I keep increasing resistance. It’s not like I can say I’m swinging a 50lb kettlebell but I did swing a 50lb bag of salt the other day and I could NOT have picked it up in December. I was too out of shape–couldn’t pick up a 40lb feed sack for Bobby. Almost but not quite. Now, I can.

For CVX, I had previously done a ‘pretend’ basketball and that was enough, for realz. Last night, I used a 3lb weight for that cardio-vascular workout. The burliest men use 12lb. Three is light but it’s heavier than AIR. Hello?!?!

I’m really proud of myself. Also, shovelling snow is easier and doesn’t put out my back. ::touch wood::

Getting REGULAR strength conditioning (and working on that flexibility) is so important. I mean, I work at a desk job, with 2-3 miles of walking around the office a day. I need something extra and I’m so happy that I can do it in 30 minutes a day. Heck, I even take off 1-2 days now and then. Come back refreshed and see better results. I’m pleased as punch!

p90x3 update and more of what I’m watching

Things are going very well, indeed! Apart from tweaking my good knee –which sometimes gives me the gyp  I’ve been progressing. I started the first workout with a combo of 30lb bands for pull exercises and my (can’t recall amounts) 2nd up band from another set; both are red but very different. I couldn’t finish reps with that smaller red one, so I stepped down to the yellow, where I still fatigued.

I’m still using the 30lb pull but I’ve taken a huge step back when I use it. By step back, I mean physically making more distance, therefore more resistance. This is a big improvement! I’m also no longer kneeling but in a one leg lunge when I do it, which means my balance and leg is getting a little work when I’m doing pulls. While the yellow band is still hard, I’m thinking that I may move back to the smaller red one to see if I can keep up with it.

I’m still doing press ups (push ups) from the knee. I hate all the modifications but as the saying goes, wherever you go, is where you are. -huh? Yeah, I think I not only got the saying wrong but it doesn’t exactly fit what I meant

You begin where you are.

My balance is better. This is always a big thing for me. I need better balance and the whole programme works on that but several workouts focus on it.

Even in the yoga workout, I couldn’t stay up with them or complete each segment. Now I can. I’m even doing the bound posture they give and added a bound in another!

I’ve also narrowed down the knee-tweaker to Agility X. It’s not that it’s too ‘much’ leaping, more like too many direction changes and if you’ve done it, you know what I mean: left, right, cross, cross, left, cross, right…or figure 8, forward, backward, change direction figure 8, change direction, change direction, forward, change, figure 8, change, change…The idea is having you LISTEN and react quickly. I’d rather be able to have my knee work for things like sitting, going up stairs and walking. Call me crazy. YES I MODIFIED. I think that I may replace it with another workout or do some leaps but screw the directional changes. If anybody has done it, specific ideas for replacements?

Again, I watched about bunch of stuff this weekend:

• Bad Grandpa: avoid, for the love of all that’s holy
• Shooter: good, Bourne-esqe
• The Returned (French, I’m told an American version is being made called The Resurrected): episode one is all I’ve seen. Good so far. Intriguing.
• Girls: Not for me. I keep hearing good things. We’re 2 episodes in and I feel like it’s a female version of The Hangover. I know everybody is in love with the star / creatrix / producer. I’m not cutting her down. It’s not my thing. I’ll still probably watch the rest of the first series.

The Returned is the most promising and Shooter was trite but well done. I like looking at that Michael Pena.

 

1 Week p90x3 done, DynamiX

Dynamix sounds like a preferred recipe of GORP.

I was rather nervous going in, although I’d previewed it, since my good knee is hurting. I’m taking double naproxin sodium doses, hoping the joint sorts itself out. -that always works…shut up! It does, too, sometimes, by the grace of God

I could NOT do this on my right side down but left side down, could. Go figure.

Dynamix is about mobility, which we all need to support the stupid stuff we do. It helps us be stupider, which I’m always a fan of doing. I modified a little (lunges, stayed high, not dropping low) and a couple of times I wussed out before the set was done but mostly, I kept up very well. Don’t be surprised, at least if you’re out of shape like I am, your heart will be pumping with some of the lower body work and I think the low press ups in lunge position (forget what they’re called) also had my heart a-thumping.

Most of all, gentle readers -all 5 of you, thanks for stopping by!  that makes week ONE.

I’ve got a Bad Knee and a Good Knee (which sometimes gives me the gyp)

The Good Knee* is killing me. DAMN! Remember when I oh, so very shortly ago mentioned the I modified some moves and didn’t others? -shut up!

I was talking to a gym rat and she asked if I didn’t feel it when it happened. Ask somebody with chronic pain if they hurt.

Yes?

I realised that I was feeling ‘it’ in my joints but I do if I BREATHE. –whatevs

I don’t know which move but I have a sneaking suspicion it was the dribble left, jump shot, dribble right, jump shot (not what it’s called, I don’t think — TH has cutesy names for things and that’s cool but I just follow along and don’t care very much about what it’s called). That’s because I recall thinking, ‘Wot?’ whilst doing. Of course, I thought, ‘Wot?’ during a few things, including the back twist stretch. My back has been so spasmed that almost anything is near wrenching it. Scary, eh?

I’m also breaking down and emailing my nutrition tracking (oh, the embarrassment) to a couple of homies, Laurie and Sheila. We’ll see if that calms me down a bit. While I eat a lot, yesterday was far less than I normally would’ve snacked because I knew that I was going to send that!

Today is Dynamix, which is a combination of dynamic stretching and calisthenics. I previewed it and there’s a lot of knee-usage. Joint pain, children, is never okay. Never. I don’t want to just take off a day, I’d rather modify because there’s other good stuff in there.

 

* So-called because my Bad Knee was the first one injured, when I was 13 doing sporty BS. My good knee came along a couple years later when I fell down HARD on it on the ice. I’ve tweaked them several times, sometimes needing physio. I haven’t done operations because I’ll hold off forever, if I can. Having auto-immune disease means we not only recover slower but we get infections easier. It’s almost always better to not slice and dice an AIer. We won’t heal right anyway and it’ll take longer and we’ll die of MSRA blahblahblah.

P90x3 The Warrior, day 479

I was going to say what day but I’ve lost count, what-with the 2 days off. I just come back wherever I left off.

The Warrior is upper, abs, cardio/plyo and lower (I think, I’m still woozy).

It was good! I modified more than they did at times but I didn’t need to modify others. That made me feel like a Normal!

And my workout was fuelled by chili cheese Fritos. -shut up

I’ve got issues.

feeling really good but nobody else is (and p90x3 CVX)

Yikes! Okay, well I have caught ‘something’ about every 10 days for like 2 months but not counting those things, I feel pretty good!

Stomach flu is going around and so are colds and flu. Ugh! People! I’m the one with auto-immune diseases. Stop the madness!

I’m still rocking the programme I created* called Points N Paleo (paleo=whole foods minus dairy and legumes and points=a nutrition tracking system that’s PROPORTION based). I’m also not doing very well on choices considering I had dairy yesterday and faux grains (on top of everything that is healthy and good, it’s just I ate DOUBLE the points a human my size should). However, I’m doing great on P90X3! Well, again, I’m modifying and I had 2 days rest after 3 days on. This is probably the BEST plan for me, btw.

Last night was CVX (cardiovascular) and it’s nothing like any cardio you’ve done. It’s calisthenics but you can use a small weight (anything from a beach ball, which weighs very, very little to 12lb for the Big Boys), if you’re feeling sassy. I used a pretend basketball. -are the new readers gone yet?

At first, I thought it was boring but after about 7 or 8 minutes, I was so winded, my brain didn’t have time to think of anything but survival. Noice! I should add, the first set it’s calisthenics, the second, it’s plyos. I forget how many circuits there are.

I’ve forgotten what my point was, if I ever had one. Hrm. Well, I feel pretty good and I’m down a few pounds, though you know that I think the scale’s BS. I need to take measurements but I’d rather wait til I’ve done the first month of p90x3.

Effort (not outcome or accomplishment):

nutrition 5:10

fitness 9:10

* I created neither but I put them together and people wouldn’t normally do that! I’m not normal 🙂

Day 4, p90x3 The Challenge

I’m modifying like crazy (all press ups from knees, all pull ups using over-the- door band adapter, 30lb resistance) but still proud as punch!

I’m not the healthiest bird you’ve met and after 3 days ‘on,’ I had to take not 1 but 2 rest days. I’m still sore but I had fever and what-nought. Nobody ever got weaker for taking 2 days of rest, especially if they have auto-immune. Two weeks, yes, not 2 days!

My goals were 12 pulls and 8 presses as I believed that I could do a few sets. I did all 8 sets bit it took me a bit longer. Also, I took part I’m the burnout (I’d say drop set) of 1:3 and stayed in for 5 sets.

I feel really good about it!

P90X3, 3 days in and more whiskey

It might be a bad thing that when I post about P90X3, I also mention whiskey…I mean, any time. Now that it’s a pattern, I’ll have to remember to keep going 🙂 It’s about consistency, people. Both.

Talked about day one. Day two was Agility X and it’s targeted plyos (literally, targets on the floor–I laid down a yoga mat and eyeballed it because that’s good enough for me). Fun! Lots of heart-thumping. Day three was X3 Yoga, which I feared far more than the other workouts because I was so sore! I expected that I wouldn’t be able to get anywhere near position. What I ended up doing was spending the entire 30 minutes falling and stumbling all over the place. Room for improvement! –And ganking a muscle in my mid-back, which was super-tight. I’m not ganked out of working out but that’s a warning sign. Today is The Challenge, which is push-pull. I was looking SO forward to pulls because I need to work on my posture, so badly. Oh, my gosh. Help, please? Now that I’m aware that my back (as well as previously torn rotator cuff shoulders) is over-taxed, I should do a rest. ::sigh::  What’s funny is my idea of a rest is like, ‘Oh, I could do that short FitnessBlender Kettlebell routine! I want some HIGH PULLS, YO!’ Again, this isn’t actually rest?

Maybe I’ll just drink whiskey? I just learnt it’s only 70 calories per ounce. It’s practically good for you. Uisce beatha indeed!

iced-in Tuesday, started P90X3

No fun! I mean, a day off sounds good but not when you’re stranded and miss money. Wah! Nothing for it, MODOT focused on town/city and did us last. Nothing had been done — nothing — within 12 miles of the ranch by 10AM. I’m to be at work by 7:30AM.

Steve reminded me that I could be drinking. I’ve had a sinus thing (when you blow your nose, red comes out) -are the new readers gone yet?  for about a month.

Let’s digress for a tic: please don’t tell say go to the doctor. The owner bought us (with our money) a MONTH (January) of coverage but at several hundreds of dollars premium out of my pocket, it’ll cost $70 to see a doctor. Also, my GP retired (due to her continuing struggle with cancer), so I’m between GPs. It’s difficult, not as difficult as cancer but I’m saying now isn’t the time to fiddle faddle with doctors.

I got feeling worse a couple days ago, including fever. This could be autoimmune but it’s viral. Wah. I stayed home and drank whiskey in tea with honey. It didn’t make me feel better but as they say, I felt better about it.

I cut myself off around noon-thirty and by 17h, decided there’s nothing for my lack of having things to do than to…

Start P90X3! I did p90x (original) years ago. I love it and highly recommend it for those who want to get leaner and stronger in general. My problem with it was I went from one programme that did MAGIC to my body to losing muscle on P90X. I did the Classic method, btw. It’s not that I wasn’t working it, either. It’s just a different programme. It’s a GREAT programme. The one I’d come off of had done greater things for me. I got skinnier on P90X… That wasn’t what I wanted, though. I went back to the other programme but was in Idiot and got a couple of over-training injuries. I’ve never been in the same fighting form since!

The thing that sold me to try P90X3 even though I already own the original was THIRTY MINUTES?! Hrm…

I had to see it to believe it. It’s TRUE! Well, I only did the 1st day (Classic schedule) and previewed the 2nd (which was actually 30″+ but not much over).

Day 1 is Total Synergistics and it was so fun. Day 2 is Agility. It looks  Insanity-like with tons of plyos but they use targets on the floor for laser-precision in your bursts of energy. I will bounce around a yoga mat tonight and I guarantee it will all be highly modified. Unless my fever’s back. It’s only 30-ish minutes!