Round 3 / Day 1: P90X+ Upper Body Plus + Abs / Core Plus

And away we go.

For the inaugural workout of Round 3, I decided to start with Upper Body Plus and Abs / Core Plus from P90X+. This was my first gander at P90X+, which is marketed to P90X grads who want to "break through plateaus with intense new cardio, muscle chiseling, and ab/core-ripping moves to ramp up your results." In all-caps, Beachbody screams: "TAKE YOUR WORKOUT TO THE NEXT LEVEL!"

And if that doesn't convince you to try P90X+, "Jason Scheff, lead singer of the band Chicago, scored all-new music exclusively for P90X Plus while completing his first round of P90X!" (Jason who? I haven't listened to Chicago since the 8-track era, but what happened to Peter Cetera?)

More -- including a full review of Upper Plus -- after the jump.

Round 2 / Day 1: P90X Chest & Back + Ab Ripper X

Here we go again.

After my first Tony-free week in months, I was actually looking forward to jumping back into P90X. But that was before I realized the challenges awaiting me this morning. For starters, my body -- not yet adjusted back to being in California -- wasn't happy about being dragged out of bed at 3:45 a.m. Hawaii time. Also, after having spent a week in humid, 80 degree weather, the crisp chill of my garage made me wince. And when I finally popped in the Chest & Back DVD and started exercising, I realized that I couldn't quite crank out the same number of reps that I did just a few weeks before. Ab Ripper X was no walk in the park, either. I still managed to do respectably, but all in all, this morning's workout was a bit frustrating and humbling.

And I anticipate an even more humbling experience tomorrow, when I get my ass handed to me by Shaun T. I still shudder when I think about the Insanity fit test. Yeesh.

P90X Day 1: Chest & Back + Ab Ripper X

Holy shit. That was the most intense upper body workout I've had in a while -- even though it barely involves the use of weights (other than my own body weight).

Granted, before today, I hadn't been diligent about exercising my chest and back. I typically rush through a few sets of presses, flys, and rows, and then call it a day. Usually, the TV in our home gym is on, and I spend too much time between sets distracted by episodes of The Wire on DVD (which I've seen before, but cut me some slack -- it's the best TV series of all time). In sum, I've been fucking around instead of focusing on my workout.

Clearly, fucking around is not an option with the P90X Chest & Back program. Sandwiched between a few minutes of cardio warm up, ballistic stretching and cool down time, the core program consists of twelve upper body exercises, each of which is done 'til you can't do no more. And then you repeat the entire workout.

The Chest & Back routine includes:

• Standard Push Ups
• Wide Front Pull Ups
• Military Push Ups
• Reverse Grip Chin Ups
• Wide Fly Push Ups
• Closed Grip Overhand Pull Ups
• Decline Push Ups
• Heavy Pants
• Diamond Push Ups
• Lawnmower
• Dive Bomber Push Ups
• Back Flys

And repeat! That is, until you crumple into a puddle of your own sweat.

Ab Ripper X was next -- it's only 16 minutes long, but after an hour of Chest & Back, I was barely able to squeeze out the 339 reps required to get through this core-strengthening workout.

I'm exhausted, but this is exactly what I needed: A good, old-fashioned, boot-camp-style ass-kicking. I still have 89 days ahead of me on this program, but I can already tell that this is going to be fun.

"Before" Photos

As part of the P90X program, I'm supposed to take "Before" photos of my jiggly body to motivate me into really committing to the plan. According to the guidebook, "[t]he P90X train is about to leave the station, and [your] body is going to leave some baggage behind," so I need to take snapshots of the junk in my trunk before it disappears.

Let's hope P90X delivers on the promise of losing my baggage, because otherwise, this is going to end up being one hell of an embarassing post. This is probably shocking news for you, but I'm not in the habit of going shirtless in public.

I don't think you're ready for this jelly, but in the spirit of employing humiliation as a self-improvement tool, behold my "Before" photos.

(Click on the image above for full resolution)

I'm regretting this already.

[UPDATE: My Day 30 photos are here, my Day 60 photos are here, and my Day 90 photos are here.]