Round 3 / Day 71: P90X+ Upper Body Plus + Abs / Core Plus (+ ChaLEAN Extreme - I've Got Abs!)

I struggled a little bit during my morning session of Upper Plus. Every time I cycle off of a Recovery Week, I come back feeling a little...off. This was most evident in my pull-up sets -- I petered out much sooner than I expected. After finishing the workout, I decided to take a raincheck on Abs / Core Plus.

But feeling guilty, I decided to knock off Abs / Core Plus tonight, after the kids had gone to bed. I felt much better this evening; not only did I find Abs / Core Plus to be less than challenging (I much prefer Killer Abs from Tony Horton's One-on-One series), I joined M as she did the "I Got Abs!" workout from Chalene Johnson's ChaLEAN Extreme program. You wouldn't know it from Chalene's exercise garb (she's clearly a Bedazzler fan) or from the cheesy name of this video, but it delivered a pretty damn decent core workout.

Round 2 / Day 71: P90X Chest, Shoulders & Triceps + Ab Ripper X

There's nothing like a flawless set of Airborne Plyo Push-Ups to make you feel like a superhero.

And there's nothing like a gut-twisting, cramp-inducing session of Ab Ripper X to remind you that you're not.

P90X Day 71: Chest & Back + Ab Ripper X

Today's Chest & Back session is my last (until/unless I start another round of P90X, anyway), so I tried my damnedest to bust my butt.  I'm happy to report that over the course of the one-hour workout, I can now perform:

• 80 Standard Push-Ups
• 39 Wide Front Pull-Ups (17 unassisted, 22 assisted)
• 45 Military Push-Ups
• 33 Reverse Grip Chin-Ups (13 unassisted, 20 assisted)
• 60 Wide Fly Push-Ups
• 30 Closed Grip Overhand Pull-ups (9 unassisted, 21 assisted)
• 45 Decline Push-Ups
• 24 Heavy Pants (using two 35-pound dumbbells)
• 40 Diamond Push-Ups
• 25 Lawnmowers (using 40-pound dumbbells)
• 22 Dive Bomber Push-Ups
• 30 Back Flys (using 20-pound dumbbells)

Not too shabby for a guy who couldn't do a single Diamond Push-Up on Day 1, though I'd like to think I could still improve if I were to stick with P90X after my first 90 days are up.  (Not sure if I'll be able to muster up the commitment to start all over again, though.)