Wow. I was starting P90X Lean program Phase 2 and was still interested! I felt a great sense of accomplishment on completing the first 30 days of Phase 1 and saw results. Sixty days to go and I couldn’t wait!
Phase 1 was about getting my body accustomed to doing the movements and learning how to complete each movement with good form. In P90X Phase 2, it was time to focus on repetitions and failure, and start increasing the weights I was using.
One mistake I made during this phase was not eating enough. In addition to P90X, I was hiking, trail running, and walking dogs at the shelter for several hours. Tony Horton reminds us during workout sessions to make sure we eat enough. I finally had to increase the number of calories I was taking in – all good, healthy food of course.
I started increasing the weights for all exercises. I went from the five-pound weights for shoulder presses to eight pound weights by the end of Phase 2. For triceps kickbacks, I used three-pound weights and increaded to five-pound weights. Don’t laugh! These weights may sound light to you, but they were sure weren’t for me!
When I first started doing the push-up routines in Phase 1, I could barely do five, even though I was on my knees! By the end of Phase 2, I was doing 12 on my knees and could see big differences in my chest muscles.
Kenpo X, one of my favorite exercise routines, was fun, fun, fun! My kicks were getting higher and I had better control over the movements.
Overall, I saw real gains during this phase. The P90X workout was still interesting and fun. On the weekends, I looked forward to rising at 6:30 am and pushing play! I felt great, was working hard, and seeing results. What could be better than that? P90X was like a wake up call for my whole body.
One thing I did not enjoy so much was that the Ab Ripper X workout followed a workout like legs and back. After doing a rigorous workout, I was pretty burned out. Instead, I modified the order of things by doing Ab Ripper X a few hours later or the next day. But I got it done!
As I mentioned in Phase 1 of my P90X review, each phase is divided into 4 weeks. The fourth week is a “recovery” week. By recovery week, I was ready to ease up a little on the workouts – my body was definitely tired. In recovery week, you get to do these exercises, repeating a couple of them to complete 7 days:
- Yoga X
- Core Synergistics
- Kenpo X
- X Stretch
- Cardio X
I love the Core Synergistics, a total body workout with cardio, stretching, and resistance. I was not a big fan of the Yoga X because it is 90 minutes. Although I had done lots of Yoga in classes and at home, I was never of fan of the 90-minute yoga classes. But I must admit, the yoga poses did wonders for my body, especially my back.
By the end of Phase 2, I could see my muscle tone taking shape even more, the results of my hard work and Tony Horton’s muscle confusion training methods. I can’t emphasize enough, you get out of P90X what you put into it.
Stay tuned for Phase 3, where I talk about my experience in the last phase of P90X.
As you read this P90X review, keep in mind that this workout may or may not be for you. If it is, go forth and Bring It! If not, there are many other Beachbody programs for you to choose from. Here’s to healthy, fit living!
