Round 3 / Day 99: P90X Core Synergistics

Thank God for Recovery Week. I'm beat.

Sadly, Core Syn's not exactly a cakewalk, and I wasn't looking forward to more push-ups today. But hey, at least I didn't have to go near the pull-up bar today.

Round 3 / Day 29: P90X Core Synergistics

The Squat Runs and Plank-to-Chaturanga Runs took more effort than I remembered, but otherwise, Core Syn wasn't too tough. I've always loved Core Syn; it keeps me moving, and the various push-ups and lunges make me feel like I'm getting an actual workout. But today, I was somewhat underwhelmed. I guess I was hoping for more of a challenge. I suppose that's the point -- I am starting a recovery week, after all -- but I'm already itching to get back into the saddle with a more intense workout.

Post-Round 2 Recovery Week: P90X Core Synergistics

I've sorely missed Core Synergistics, and was glad to kick off my post-Round 2 recovery week with this DVD. It's moderately challenging without being crazy-intense, and gave me a chance to recover while still getting a full-body workout. Along with Chest & Back and Yoga X, this rounds out my list of three favorite P90X videos.

Round 2 / Day 48: P90X Core Synergistics

I don't know if Adam just lost count or if he's full of shit, but 4G63t is right: Adam only does 12 Prison Cell Push Ups, and not the 18 that he reports to Tony.

This makes me kind of sad. It's like discovering that Santa Claus doesn't exist, that Mark McGwire got ass-injections of steroids, or that Milli Vanilli was a fraud.

Round 2 / Day 40: P90X Core Synergistics

I still love this workout, even though it's gotten progressively easier as my fitness level has improved. (Towel Hoppers used to leave me gasping for air, but after a month or so of working out with Insanity, jumping from side to side for a minute isn't particularly challenging.)

What keeps me coming back to Core Syn is the attention paid to the entire body -- upper, lower, and core -- along with its mix of resistance and cardio exercises. No other P90X workout is quite as well-rounded. If I had to choose just one P90X DVD, this is the one I'd pick to maintain my fitness gains. (Yoga X would be a close second. And while I'd keep doing Ab Ripper X as well, I don't need the DVD -- like most avid P90Xers, I long ago memorized the entire routine.)

Round 2 / Day 26: P90X Legs & Back + Ab Ripper X

I know, I know: according to my self-created P90X/Insanity Hybrid Schedule, I was supposed to do Core Synergistics today. But lately, I feel like I've been slacking a bit too much. It's been icy and wet outside, so I haven't been running. And while Insanity is crazy-intense, the workouts are relatively brief, so I'm not convinced that I'm getting the same calorie burn that I got during my first round of P90X.

(One easy way to confirm this would be for me to actually wear my heart rate monitor, but I hate having the plastic sensor strap around my chest -- once I work up a sweat, it starts sliding down my torso, and it's just a big pain in the ass.)

My eating habits are sliding, too -- I catch myself mindlessly stuffing handfuls of almonds and cereal in my mouth at all hours. (I'm addicted to whole wheat Chex with Trader Joes' roasted almond slivers.)

So today, I opted to do Legs & Back and Ab Ripper X instead of the (somewhat) easier Core Synergistics. Legs & Back has always been one of my least favorite P90X workouts, but it's grown on me in recent weeks. Still, I struggled to maintain my previous rep count on all the pull-up variations today, and my ability to balance on my left leg has declined since I finished Round 1. This is puzzling to me; I'd assumed that Insanity would have improved my leg strength and stability. Is it possible that I'm overtraining despite an overall decrease in my total exercise time?

Round 2 / Day 12: P90X Core Synergistics

I tried not to pig out last night, but it was still nice to get up early and dive into a full-body workout like Core Syn. I enjoy the various resistance and core-strengthening moves, and the fact that I don't have to do Ab Ripper X today. And even though I'm not a fan of Dreya Rolls, I've discovered that I can pop up with a twisting jump on each rep like Ms. Weber herself. (I look ridiculous, but I'm proud nonetheless.)

P90X Day 89: Core Synergistics

What's not to like about Core Synergistics? I've enjoyed it since first trying it in Week 4 -- it's a great, medium-intensity, full-body workout, and perfect for recovery weeks.  I'm even digging the prison cell push-ups (though I could still do without the plank-to-chaturanga runs). After tomorrow (Day 90!), I may not be consistently pressing "play" on all my P90X DVDs, but Core Syn will likely stay in regular rotation.

My only complaint? When it's time for me to flop around on the floor during Superman-Bananas, I'm already coated in a sheen of sweat, which means I end up slip-sliding across my mat and banging into things. I need more room. Alternatively, I need to put on a shirt.

And with that, 89 days are down, with just one to go. I wonder if Tony will miss me.

P90X Day 86: Core Synergistics

Certain things just don't mix well: oil and water, nails and tires, Pop Rocks and Coke, Billy Martin and Reggie Jackson, topless women and Disney cartoons, etc.

Also? Early morning Core Synergistics and alcohol consumption the night before.

Thankfully, it's Monday, which means we get our weekly "gourmet vegetarian dinner" from the aging hippies at the local macrobiotic society. It's no cure for a hangover, but at least I don't feel like I'm eating crap.

[UPDATED: I didn't know it at the time, but I was eating crap. Macrobiotic eating isn't for me. I've since gone paleo.]

Day 82: Legs & Back + Ab Ripper X

Over the past 12 weeks, I've formed a love/hate relationship with Legs & Back.

On the one hand, when performed in conjunction with Ab Ripper X, Legs & Back is one of only two P90X videos that offers a holistic, head-to-toe resistance workout. (The other is Core Synergistics, but it doesn't offer as much in the way of lower body resistance exercises.) And now that I'm done with Legs & Back -- actually, with all resistance-focused P90X workouts -- part of me is going to miss its full-body-blasting intensity.

On the other hand: NO MORE FUCKING PULL-UPS!!!*

*Until Round 2, that is.

P90X Day 54: Core Synergistics

Core Syn remains one of my favorite P90X workouts, but there's nothing like a vigorous, belly-flopping round of Superman-Bananas to make you throw up a little bit in your mouth.  I usually don't mind Superman-Bananas at all, but then again, I usually don't vomit yogurt while performing this move, either.

P90X Day 51: Core Synergistics

Although I'd already braced myself for a challenging Core Syn workout this morning, I'd forgotten all about the beast that is Plank-to-Chaturanga Run. Half of this exercise is perfectly fine; it just involves pumping your legs while in plank position -- just like the "mountain climber" move from elementary school P.E. class. But every 10 seconds, the pose switches: You have to bend your elbows while keeping them close against your sides like you're doing a military-style push-up, and hold that position (in yoga-speak, the Chaturanga Dandasana pose) while continuing to pump your legs -- only your hips now have to open up so that your knees don't slam against your arms. Like many moves that are painful and un-fun, the Plank-to-Chaturanga Run is probably a fantastic compound exercise, though the horror of it too fresh in my mind for me to wholly concede the point.

P90X Day 50: Yoga X

Yoga X is definitely getting easier, though it's by no means a cakewalk. I still wobble precariously every time I attempt the Warrior 3 poses (Warrior 3, Half Moon, Twisting Half Moon), and my version of Wheel looks more like a flat tire. But I'm tackling most of the other poses with confidence, even if my confidence is sometimes (okay, often) misplaced. I exercise the same way I dance: with too much enthusiasm and not enough coordination.

Now that Week 8 is here, I have mixed feelings about starting another recovery week: I've been looking forward to this break from the heavy-duty resistance training of Phase 2, but I also know from last time around that "recovery" doesn't mean "relaxation," and that I have a double-dose of Core Synergistics (and the dreaded prison cell push-ups) coming up. I know that it's important to give my aching body a week-long breather, but if my experience from last month proves consistent, the start of Phase 3 will be all the more difficult after taking it "easy" for a week. In anticipation of this, I've already penciled in "TOO FUCKING SORE TO MOVE" on my calendar for Week 9.

P90X Day 26: Core Synergistics

M and I split up our gym (a.k.a. garage) space this morning so that she could do her ChaLEAN Extreme workout on one side while I did Core Synergistics on the other. Even with two videos blaring at the same time, it wasn't hard to focus on the task at hand. After all, Core Syn demands one's full attention -- the moves come fast and furious, and are fairly complicated to boot (especially for a guy with a woefully deficient level of physical coordination).

Core Syn consists of:

• Stacked Foot/Staggered Hands Push-Ups
• Banana Rolls (mmmm, banana rolls...)
• Leaning Crescent Lunges
• Squat Runs
• Sphinx Push-Ups
• Bow-to-Boats
• Low Lateral Skaters
• Lunge & Reaches
• Prison Cell Push-Ups
• Side Hip Raises
• Squat X-Presses
• Plank to Chaturanga Runs
• Walking Push-Ups
• Superman Bananas
• Lunge Kickback Curl Presses
• Towel Hoppers
• Reach High & Under Push-Ups
• Steam Engines
• Dreya Rolls
• Plank to Chaturanga Isos
• Halfbacks
• Table Dip Leg Raises

This is a fantastic full-body workout. Near the end, when I was struggling to hold a chaturanga position, a rivulet of sweat trickled down off my forehead and formed an ever-expanding pool on the mat below my face -- a sure sign that my (sweaty) ass was thoroughly handed to me today.

P90X Day 23: Core Synergistics

I was getting a little cocky, thinking that Week 4 -- "Recovery Week" -- wasn't going to be intense enough for me. I even told myself that I was going to try to work in a few sessions of Ab Ripper X or do some resistance training (either lifting or working out with my trusty old TRX Suspension Trainer) this week, so as not to lose the momentum I've built up since starting Phase 1 of P90X.

After this morning's Core Synergistics workout, though, I've learned that the "recovery" in Recovery Week doesn't mean "relaxation." Some of the exercises in this workout (yes, I'm looking at you, Prison Cell Push-Ups and Plank-to-Chaturanga Runs) are killer, and I'm thankful that I didn't try to squeeze in a round of Ab Ripper X or weight training yesterday. Core Synergistics is a great combination of chest, back (without the pull-ups!), legs, plyo and ab work, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to keep coming back to this particular workout even after I'm done with the P90X program.

P90X Day 21: X Stretch

I kept hitting the snooze button this morning, but finally dragged myself out of bed and did an X Stretch session. It's fine, and I enjoyed the neck stretches, but I'm beat. I'm glad I didn't have to pound out another intense weight resistance or cardio session today. I'm looking forward to laying off the weights in Week 4, but I'm also starting to get a little apprehensive about Core Synergistics. I hear it's not what one would expect during a so-called "recovery" week.

Also: I have a feeling Tony's a big Tom Hanks fan. In X Stretch, he does yet another horrible Forrest Gump impression: "PAY-pull call MAY Forrest GUMP!" Indeed.