P90X Day 30

Note:  Be sure to check out my latest YouTube video summarizing my first 30 Days of P90X at the bottom of this posting.

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: Egg McMuffin, Sausage McMuffin, hashbrown from McDonalds; coffee
• Lunch: Salad with olive oil and red wine vinegar
• Dinner: Sushi

P90X Plyometrics
The plyometrics workout went great.  Today was the best I have ever done with this routine.

Summary of the first 30 days
All in all, I think I'm doing very well with the P90X program. The workouts are going very well.  I've only missed 3 workouts in the first 30 days: 2 Yoga X days, and yesterday's Chest, Shoulders and Triceps workout (I was sick yesterday).  Actually 2 of the 3 misses were in the last 4 days!  So I started off really strong, stumbled a little bit, but am now ready to make another push foward, and have as few misses as possible. 

My biggest obstacle to success is my diet. I've been saying for a while now that I really need to focus on it, and I do.  I'm just not quite there yet.  Eating better will definitely be a main focus over the next 30 days.  Hopefully by Day 60 my struggles with the diet will be a thing of the past.

I am also toying with the idea of doing the P90X Doubles program.  In case you don't know, P90X Doubles adds an additional cardio workout in the morning, 3 or 4 times a week, starting week 5 (the first 4 weeks of P90X Doubles is exactly the same as P90X Classic).  I think adding the addtional cardio workout will definitely help me lose some more weight, and I think I'm physically capable of taking on the extra workouts.  I'm just not confident I can get my lazy ass out of bed in the morning to do the extra workouts.  We'll see.  I'm going to give it a try.  Worst case scenario is that I can't find the time to do the extra workouts, and I end up sticking with the P90X Classic.  There is no downside to at least giving it a try.

My latest YouTube video... enjoy!

P90X Day 29

Sick Day
I did not feel well today.  I was going to try and push through it and today's workout, but I decided against it.  I'm going to get some rest, and get back at it tomorrow.

P90X Day 28

I was supposed to do Yoga X today, since I missed a workout on Friday.  Unfortunately I didn't feel up to it, and ended up taking a rest day today.

P90X Day 27

Eat Clean

• Not

P90X Core Synergistics
Today was supposed to be Yoga X, but since I skipped Core Synergistics yesterday, I decided to do that workout today, and tomorrow I'll do Yoga X.  This was my second time doing Core Synergistics, and I absolutely love it.  I think it is the best all round workout in P90X.

P90X Day 26

Today was a bad day.  I ate terribly, and I did not work out.  Don't want to make excuses but this was a tough week.  I'm going to call today a rest day, and then do today's routine tomorrow, and Saturday's routine on Sunday.  Definitely not something I want to make a habit out of, but I'll do it this once.

P90X Day 25

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: Low-fat blueberry muffin; coffee
• Lunch and Snack: Salad with olive oil and red wine vinegar
• Dinner: Cheese burger, fries and beer - night out with the wife... much needed after a really tough week (that isn't over yet) 

I didn't eat all of my salad for lunch (it wasn't very big), but I finished it at about 3pm in place of a snack.

P90X X Stretch
X Stretch is both relaxing and energizing at the same time.  I love it.

 

P90X Day 24

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: Florentine Breakfast Bagel from cafeteria at work (egg whites, spinach, low-fat cheese on a whole grain bagle); coffee
• Lunch: Blueberry muffin and fruit, green tea
• Dinner: Ham and cheese sub with small bag of Sun Chips, water

Not a great lunch or dinner... and I hate to make excuses, but I had a really long and crazy day at work.  I worked for over 13 hours today!  I'm just glad I didn't skip the workout!

P90X Kenpo X
Kenpo X went great today.  This recovery week is going very well... feeling energized, and can't wait to start pushing myself again next week.

P90X Day 23

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 2 Egg McMuffins and a hash brown; coffee
• Lunch: Salad with olive oil and red wine vinegar
• Snack: 8 almonds, green tea
• Dinner: Turkey chili with tortilla chips

Breakfast was bad, but I ate well the rest of the day... perhaps I have turned a corner with my diet?  Maybe?

P90X Core Synergistics
Today was my first time doing Core Synergistics, and WOW!  what a cool routine!  I really liked it.  I struggled a little with some of the exercises, but that was mostly because they were new to me.  I get to do this routine again on Friday, and I can't wait!

P90X Day 22

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: Pancakes with butter and pure maple syrup; 1 1/2 hash browns; coffee
• Snack: 8 almonds
• Dinner: Cheese and crackers

Today was a weird day, food-wise.  I didn't eat very well, but I also didn't eat very much.  I felt a bit out of sorts today, so I didn't have much of an appetite, and when I did eat, I ate whatever I seemed to be craving (i.e. the cheese and crackers).  Oh well... at least the exercises are going well!

P90X Yoga X
Today was the first day of my first "recovery and ab focus" week.  So instead of Chest & Back and Ab Ripper X, Yoga X was on the agenda for today... and it went great!  I wasn't really looking forward to it... it is such a long progam, but as they say, I simply "pressed play".  I dragged for the first few minutes, but after I started working up a sweat I really got into it, and it was a great workout.

P90X Day 21

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 2 fried eggs over potatoes, spicy turkey sausage, and onions; 2 slides 12 grain toast with butter; coffee
• Dinner: 2 PB&J sandwiches on 12 grain bread

P90X Rest Day
Rest Day. 

Week 3 Summary
I purposely skipped weighing in today.  I'm doing great with the exercises, but not so good with my diet.  I think weighing in would have been discouraging and demotivating.  So I'm going to keep plugging along with the exercises and try to improve my diet.  I'll weigh in again on Day 30.

P90X Day 20

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 2 fried eggs over potatoes, spicy turkey sausage, and onions; 2 slides 12 grain toast with butter; coffee
• Dinner: Crab cakes for an appetizer; Surf & Turf: 6oz Sirloin + 6 shrimp, mashed potatoes; 2 glasses red wine
• Dessert: Cheese cake, coffee

I went out to dinner with my wife tonight.  We had this planned for a few weeks, so I knew today was going to be a cheat day.  I had hoped that I would have eaten really well this week, to minimize the impact of this cheat day.  Unfortunately that was not the case.  But like I said, I'm not going to give up on improving my diet.

P90X Kenpo X
Good Kenpo X workout today.  Pretty much kept up with Tony and crew.

P90X Day 19

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 3 whole grain waffles with butter and real maple syrup, coffee
• Lunch: Ezekiel english muffin with peanut butter and Pollander All Fruit.
• Dinner: 4 very small slices of homemade pizza with turkey sausage and onions, 2 beers

Still not on track with my diet yet, but I will NOT give up.

P90X Legs and Back + Ab Ripper X
Back on track today after my first miss yesterday.  Legs and Back went well, as did Ab Ripper X.  I think I actually had more energy today, so taking an unexpected rest day yesterday was probably a good idea.... that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

P90X Day 18

Eat Clean
Breakfast: 2 bagels with cream cheese, coffee
Lunch: Salad with olive oil and red wine vinegar
Snack: 8 almonds
Dinner: Ezekiel muffin with peanut butter and Pollander All Fruit

P90X Yoga X
My first miss!  I could not complete Yoga X today.  My heart wasn't into it.  I was tired.  I had a tough day at work.  I tried to do the program, but stopped after about 15 minutes.  I am not going to get too down on myself over this.  I'm going to go to bed early, and then tomorrow I'll just push play!

P90X Day 17

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 2 egg w/ cheese biscuits and a hashbrown from MacDonalds, coffee
• Lunch: Small chicken quesadilla w/ cheese, salsa, sour cream, and tortilla chips, unsweetened iced tea
• Snack: 8 whole, raw cashews; banana
• Dinner: Jasmine rice with General Tso Chicken and broccoli

I did ok on my diet today, not great, but ok.  Obviously I have to stop going to MacDonalds for breakfast, but I ate fairly well after that.

P90X Shoulders and Arms + Ab Ripper X
Today's workout went great!  I really like this routine.  Still at 18 reps for the Ab Ripper X exercises.  I think I'm going to be at 18 for a while :-)

P90X Day 16

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: Pancakes w/ butter and real maple syrup, turkey sausage links, coffee
• Dinner: 3 slices of frozen pizza w/ pepperoni, beer
• Dessert / Late night snack: TBD

I did lousy on my diet today.  I said I was going to really focus on my diet this week, and I have not.  I really need to pick it up.

P90X Plyometrics
Today's Plyometrics work out went great!  I did not have to pause the DVD, and I kept up with Tony and team on many of the exercises.  The rest of the exercises I did between 10 and 12 reps, which typically would take about 20 seconds, which left me with an extra 10 seconds to rest before the next exercise.  This is the best I've ever done on the Plyometrics routine.

P90X Day 15

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 3 organic whole grain waffles with butter (bad) and real maple syrup, coffee, vitamins and supplements
• Lunch: Ezekiel english muffin with peanut butter and Pollander All Fruit, banana
• Dinner: Salmon, asparagus, whole wheat couscous
• Dessert: If I have any type of dessert or late night snack today, it will most likely be low-fat vanilla yogurt with fresh berries

P90X Chest and Back + Ab Ripper X
Chest and Back is definitely not my favorite P90X routine.  The push-ups tend to be pretty difficult for me, but I did really well today... and I don't have to do this workout again for 6 weeks!!!  How sweet it that?  Ab Ripper X is still going well, 18 reps per exercise.

P90X Day 14

Eat Clean:

• Breakfast: Slumgullion: scrambled egg whites with potatoes, spicy Italian turkey sausage, hot pepper, onions; toast made from leftover organic whole grain french bread; coffee
• Snack: 8 almonds
• Dinner:  Ezekiel english muffin with peanut butter and Pollander All Fruit, apple, seltzer

P90X Rest Day
Even though last week I stated that the X Stretch would not be optional for me, I decided to take a complete rest day today.

Week 2 Weigh-In Results

• Weight: 236.3 lbs (down 4.3 lbs from Day 1)
• Body Fat: 77.4 lbs (down 2.8 lbs from Day 1)
• %Body Fat: 32.8% (down 0.6% from Day 1)
• BMI: 34.2 (down 0.6 from Day 1)

Week 2 Summary
I have to admit I'm really disappointed with my weigh-in results this week.  I had a great week exercise-wise, but I only lost a 1/2 lb.  Granted that's better than gaining a 1/2 lb, but considering how much weight I need to lose, I should be losing at least a few pounds each week.  I had way too many cheat meals this past week.  For the upcoming week, I am really going to focus more on my diet.

P90X Day 13

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: Go Lean Crunch cereal with almond milk, banana, vitamins and supplements
• Snack: 8 almonds
• Dinner: Homemade pizza on an organic whole-grain, locally baked french country bread
• Late evening, small meal: TBD

I slept in this morning, and didn't eat breakfast until almost 11am.  I therefore skipped lunch, and ate an early dinner.  I'll probably have a small meal around 8pm this evening, just to make sure I don't walk hungry and craving something in the middle of the night.

P90X Kenpo X
I love me some Kenpo X.  'nuff said.

P90X Day 12

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 6oz of egg whites scrambled, Ezekiel english muffin, coffee, supplements (mutlivitamin, vitamin c, potassium, fish oil omega 3, b-complex)
• Lunch: Ezekiel english muffin with peanut butter and Pollander All Fruit, apple
• Dinner:  Cheat meal at 99 Restaurant with my son - 1/2 order of potato skins as an appetizer; fillet mignon, fries, asparagus, Sam Adams Winter Lager; ice cream sundae for dessert 

I finally got around to taking my viatmins and supplements today.  Still need to tweak what I'm taking, and I need to make it a habit so that I take them every day!  My son and I had been planning dinner out for the past few days, so I worked this in as one of my cheat meals this week.  Even though I did slip up a few times this week with my diet, I still allowed myself this cheat meal.

P90X Legs and Back + Ab Ripper X

Today's work out was great!  I had struggled with this program in the past, but I did really well with all of the exercises today.  The wall squats are still very difficult, but I try my best and hold them for as long as I can.  Today I did 18 reps for EVERY Ab Ripper X move.  I am so happy!

 

P90X Day 11

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 2 Egg McMuffins and 1 hashbrown from McDonalds (yuk), coffee
• Lunch: Salad with olive oil and red wine vinegar
• Snack: 8 almonds, banana, green tea
• Dinner: Salmon, couscous, broccoli
• Dessert/snack: TBD

I really went off track on my diet for breakfast, stopping at McDonalds on my way into work.  But I think I recovered well, and ate very clean the rest of the day.

P90X Yoga X

Yoga X was a bit of a struggle today.  I was a bit tired when I started... then my DVD player crapped out on me after about 15minutes, so I had to deal with technology for about 10 minutes before I could get restarted.  After restarting, I struggled a little during the first half of the program, but the second half went pretty well.  I got through it all, so I'll chalk that up as a victory.

P90X Day 10

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 6oz egg whites scrambled, Ezekiel english muffin, coffee
• Snack: 8 almonds, banana
• Lunch: Ezekiel english muffin with peanut butter (just peanuts) and Pollander All Fruit
• Dinner: 3 small slices of homemade pizza w/ turkey pepperoni
• Dessert/snack: TBD

Was going to have fish for dinner tonight, but was lazy and decided to have some leftover pizza that my wife made for the kids.  A bit of a slip up, but I'm not going to kill myself over it.

P90X Shoulders and Arms + Ab Ripper X

Of all of the P90X routines, the Shoulders and Arms program is the easiest for me.  Which was a good thing, 'cause I was a little worn out before I worked out today.  But by the end of the warm up I felt energized and breezed through the program.  Ab Ripper X went great as well.  I'm up to 16 reps in just about all of the moves.

P90X Day 9

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: Rolled oats with hot water, protein powder, walnuts, raisins and maple syrup; coffee, Vitamin C, multivitamin
• Lunch: Left over turkey chili, baked black bean tortilla chips
• Dinner: Homemade squash soup (very clean, vegan), salad with grilled tempeh, Kikkomen Ponzu lime dressing
• Dessert/snack: TBD

I don't think I mentioned this in any of my previous posts, but I also drink a lot of water each day. I have a 40oz stanless steel Klean Kanteen, and I probably fill it 2 times a day with filtered water.  I also drink black coffee with breakfast each morning (no cream, no sugar).  I'll typically have one or two cups of green tea each day, and occaissionally a flavored seltzer water (just carbonated water and natural flavors).  It's important to stay hydrated, and I adhere to the adage:  Do not drink any calories!

P90X Plyometrics
Plyometrics went great today!  I was able to increase the amount of time/reps that I did for each exercise, and I only had to pause the tape twice.  I definitely pushed myself a little harder today, and I still feel pretty good.  My guess is that in a few more weeks, I'll be able to  keep up with Tony and crew.

P90X Day 8

Week 2 is off to a great start!

Eat Clean:

• Breakfast: Ezekiel english muffin with peanut butter (just peanuts) and Pollander All Fruit, coffee
• Lunch: Banana, 8 almonds
• Dinner: Turkey chili, sesame blue corn chips, seltzer
• Dessert/snack: TBD

P90X Chest and Back + Ab Ripper X

Day 8 went well.  The Chest & Back routine was a little easier this time through. I did a few more push ups on some of the sets and I'll be increasing the weight I use on the "Heavy Pants" exercise next week.  I also continue to improve on Ab Ripper X.  I'm now doing 16 reps per exercise; up from the 12 I did on Day 1.  Onward and upward.

P90X Day 7

Note:  See the bottom of this post for my latest P90X YouTube video.

Eat Clean:

• Breakfast: Pancakes w/ butter and pure maple syrup, coffee
• Lunch: Ezekiel english muffin with peanut butter (just peanuts) and Pollander All Fruit, 2 hard-boiled eggs (just the whites)
• Snack: 8 almonds
• Dinner: Ezekiel cereal with blackberries and almond milk

P90X X Stretch
I finished up my first week of P90X by doing the optional X Stretch routine... for me, X Stretch will not be optional.  It was wonderful, almost relaxing. After doing the stretches, I feel GREAT!

Week 1 Weigh-In Results

• Weight: 236.8 lbs (down 3.8 lbs from Day 1)
• Body Fat: 77.5 lbs (down 2.8 lbs from Day 1)
• %Body Fat: 32.8% (down 0.6% from Day 1)
• BMI: 34.2 (down 0.6 from Day 1)

Week 1 Summary
I did not miss any workouts this week, and I feel that I ate pretty well.  I still have some improvement I can make with my diet, but I'm pleased so far.  I've lost almost 4 lbs, which is great.  I know I have a LONG way to go, but my body is starting to feel tighter, which is a great feeling, and is very motivating.  But the thing I am probably most pleased with, and most excited about, is that I am still soooo motivated to keep this up.  I can't wait until tomorrow's workout!

P90X Day 6

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: Homemade breakfast sandwich - 2 eggs over easy with 3 turkey sausage links, 2 slices of American cheese, ketchup on a sesame bagel, coffee
• Lunch: 2 slices of "tropical pizza" (toppings: ham, bacon and pineapple)
• Dinner: Hot (spicy) turkey sausage, peppers and onions on a hoagie roll

I had a lunch planned with several friends, so I knew today was going to be a bit of a cheat day as far as my diet was concerned.  Fortunately, I didn't go crazy and binge on a bunch of junk food... I cheated just a little... so I don't feel so bad. I also weighed myself early this morning (official weigh-in for the week will be tomorrow) and I'm down 3 1/2 lbs since starting P90X, so I'm feeling pretty good about my progress so far.

P90X Kenpo X
Kenpo X is great.  I trained in the martial arts for over 10 years, so I definitely have a soft spot in my heart for the type of training on this DVD.  Once again, since this is my first week back on P90X, I took it a little easy today.  Many of the exercises in this program are performed for 30 reps.  I did 20 reps.  At the end of the routine I was not completely wasted, so next time I'll step it up a bit!

P90X Day 5

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: Scrambled egg whites, spinach, low fat cheese on whole grain bagel, fruit cup, coffee
• Snack: Green tea
• Lunch: Chicken parm sandwich on whole grain chibatta roll (w/ lowfat mozarella cheese and fresh basil), carrot sticks on the side (instead of french fries)
• Snack: Yogurt with blueberries, raspberries, strawberries and small amount of almond granola
• Dinner: Salmon, 1/2 sweet potato, broccoli

The cheese and bread in my breakfast and lunch were not the cleanest things, but I was pressed for time and had to grab breakfast and lunch at the cafeteria at work.  These were two of the healthier choices.

I've been neglecting to take my vitamins and supplements.  Need to get back on track with those starting tomorrow.

P90X Legs and Back + Ab Ripper X
Day 5 was great!  I was a bit worried about today's session, as during my previous attempts at P90X I struggled with these leg exercises.  So I took it a bit easy today (but not too easy).  I did 12 to 15 reps on many of the exercises where Tony and team did 25 reps.  For the wall squats I did 45 and 30 seconds respectively... so not too bad.  I continue to improve on Ab Ripper X.  Today I did 15 or 16 reps on most of the moves instead of the 12 I had been doing during the first two days of Ab Ripper X.  Before I know it, I'll be doing 25 reps like on the DVD.

P90X - Day 4

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 6 oz of egg whites scrambled, 3 turkey sausage links, coffee
• Lunch: veggie-chili/rice leftovers with sesame blue corn chips, 12 oz can of seltzer
• Dinner: Hot (spicy) turkey sausage, peppers and onions on a hoagie roll (the roll was not clean), seltzer
• Dessert / late night snack: TBD, probably cereal w/ almond milk or Ezekiel cinnamon raisin toast.

P90X Yoga X
Yoga X is awesome!  I have done it few times before (during my previous attempts at P90X) and struggled with it, but I really enjoyed it today. At 90 minutes, it's a bit long, but it is well worth the investment of time and effort.

So far this round of P90X is going great.  I know it's only Day 4, and I have 86 more days to go, but I'm feeling very motivated to stick with it!

Namaste!

P90X - Day 3

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 4oz of egg whites scrambled with spinach, black beans and cottage cheese, Ezekiel english muffin (no butter), coffee (black)
• Snack - Banana, 6 raw unsalted cashews, green tea
• Lunch - Ezekiel english muffin with peanut butter (just peanuts) and Polland All Fruit, apple
• Dinner - Can of Amy's Vegetarian Chili over rice*, sesame blue corn chips on the side, 12 oz can of seltzer (carbonated water, natural flavors)
• Dessert - TBD

*Only ate half of the chili/rice dish.  Will probably have the leftovers for lunch tomorrow.

P90X Shoulders and Arms + Ab Ripper X
I love the Shoulders and Arms workout!  My arms need a lot of work, and I think this program is really going to do the job.  Very motivating!  Ab Ripper X went well... better than on Day 1.  Still sticking to 12 reps per exercise (instead of 25).  Will think about upping that number a bit during week 2.

P90X - Day 2

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: 4oz of egg whites scrambled with spinach and black beans, 1/2 of an Ezekiel English Muffin (no butter), coffee, multi-vitamin
• Snack: Banana
• Lunch: Ezekiel English Muffin with peanut butter (just peanuts) and Pollander All Fruit, 2 hard boiled eggs (just the whites)
• Snack: 8 almonds, 2 prunes
• Dinner:  Baked salmon, broccoli, sweet potato
• Dessert: TBD (but will be clean)

P90X Plyometrics
The plyometrics workout went great!  It is definitely one of my favorites.  Most of the exercises last for 30 seconds each.  For about 1/2 of them I am only able to do about 20 seconds.  But that just gives me a 10 second rest before starting the next exercise.  Over the coming weeks I'll look to improve on these exercises and do the full 30 seconds for each one.  There are several 30 second rest periods (5 I think) in the program.  I paused the DVD during each of these for an additional 30 seconds of rest.

At this point, I am not feeling at all intimidated by P90X.  I still have my concerns about the amount of time commitment it is going to take, but I will make this the number 1 priority in my life for the next 3 months.

P90X - Day 1

Day 1 of P90X is in the bag... and it went very well.

Eat Clean

• Breakfast: Go-Lean Crunch with almond milk, coffee (black, no sugar)
• Snack:  Banana
• Lunch: Ezekiel English Muffin with natural peanut butter (just peanuts) and Pollander All Fruit
• Snack: Apple
• Dinner: Turkey burger with pickles, onions, and dijon mustard on an Ezekiel English Muffin
• Late night snack / dessert:  TBD (maybe some cereal with almond milk or Eziekiel cinnamon raisin toast)

P90X Chest and Back + Ab Ripper X
I did well on all of the exercises, and did not have to pause the DVD at all. I still have a lot of room for improvement on the push-ups, but I'm not worried.... I'm sure in about 3 or 4 weeks I'll be up to 20 reps per push-up exercise (currently around 8 to 12 reps).  For Ab Ripper X, I did 12 reps of each exercise, instead of the 25 on the DVD, but again, I'm sure I'll improve on this in the coming weeks.

Below is a "P90X Confessional" video that I made on YouTube.

P90X - Before Measurements

Prior to starting P90X today, I took my "before" measurements.  I also took "before" photos, but they are pretty gross.  If I'm successful in this endeavor, and I get into great shape, and my "after" photos look good, then perhaps I'll post the "before" photos... or maybe not...

I used a Weight Watchers scale to weigh myself and get my body fat measurements.  I don't know how accurate the scale is for measuring body fat, but I have noticed that the readings appear to be consistent (if I weigh myself mutiple times in a row), and if I'm working out and eating well, the numbers seem to go down.  So I'm going to track my body fat using this scale, as it's the best option that I have.

So here are my "before" measurements from the Weight Watchers scale:

• Weight: 240.6 lbs
• 80.3 lbs of body fat (oh my!!!! disgusting)
• 33.4% body fat (oh my!!!! disgusting)
• 34.8 BMI (don't know much about BMI, but my scale measures it, so I'll track it for now, and learn morea bout it as I go on)

I also took other body measurements that I wish to track:

• Upper arm (middle of bicep) - Right: 14.5"
• Upper arm (middle of bicep) - Left: 14.5"
• Chest: 47.5"
• Across belly button: 46" (again, disgusting!)
• Hips: 42"
• Mid-thigh - Right: 24.25"
• Mid-thigh - Left: 24.25"
• Calf - Right: 16.5"
• Calf - Left: 16"

Wish me luck!

What Happened to the 4-Hour Body?

About 6 months ago I tried following the 4-Hour Body program by Tim Ferriss, and quite frankly it did not work for me.  To be truthful, I honestly believe that the program does work but it was too difficult for me to stick with it.  I was able to follow the program for 2 weeks and lost about 8 lbs, but the lack of variety in the diet made it too difficult for me to stick it out any longer.  The promise of the weekly cheat day was not enough to keep me motiviated.

Over the past few months I've been eating fairly well, but not as good as I should and I've been exercising fairly regularly, but am now ready to kick it up a notch.  I know, I know... this probably sounds like a "New Years Resolution" thing... but I have some additional motivation that I'm hoping will help me stick with it.  During this coming summer (2012) my son and I are planning on thru-hiking the 273-mile Vermont Long Trail (see my Long Trail Blog).  This is an undertaking not to be taken lightly, and I have to be in shape before that trip.

So I'm using the Long Trail hike as motivation to eat better and get in shape.  I will not be following the 4-Hour Body, but will Eat Clean by following the recommendations in Tosca Reno's books.  For exercise I'll be doing P90X.  P90X is an extremely rigourous exercise program.  I've tried it in the past, and managed to stick with it for 4 weeks.  This time I have to complete the entire 13-week program!  The most difficult part of P90X is the time commitment.  It's approximately an hour to an hour and 15 minutes, 7 days a week (day 7 is an optional flexibility routine).

I'm starting today (January 2, 2012) and will try to post to this blog each day.  I have to admit that the blog postings may not be the most interesting things to read, but I've created this blog to publicly commit to completing P90X, and to Eat Clean.  So, please, please, subscribe to this blog, and post some comments to help keep me motivated.

Thanks for following my story.  Be sure to check out and subscribe to my YouTube Channel, and follow me on Twitter @farmer_diddley.

Steve