Day 15- Chest and Back Week 3

Just got done with chest and back. Pushups and pullups. I think I didn't wait long enough after lunch before I exercised. I was feeling kind of nauseated. No fun! But I made it through the workout. I even went up a bit on some of the exercises. I wish Matt was here to do it with me. Those pushups and pullups are so much more fun when he's doing it with me :)

I'll wait to do ABS until I get home from school this evening, before I eat dinner. I'm just too pooped right now. I should get more sleep at night...maybe once school is done for the semester it won't be so rough when Matt has duty!

Anyways, I'm going to take a shower and do something I've been meaning to do for the last couple of days-Shave!

Day 14-Break

Once again, the break comes at a perfect time. I got to sleep late, and Matt let me sleep in a little. But the most exciting thing....I woke up Wednesday morning, climbed on the scale, and it read..........wait for it...............128.6!!! I am in shock that my body is still getting smaller. I've had some people tell me I shouldn't be trying to lose any more weight. That I look great, I'm already skinny enough. I don't think they understand. I didn't do some sort of crash diet, or fad diet. I just got healthy. I watch what I eat. In fact, I eat more food (although not more calories) than I did before. I cut out the junk. I guess the way I look at it is this--If I am doing what I should, eating right, exercising, and still losing weight, then maybe I should be losing weight. Even though I've lost about 22 pounds this YEAR, that is 22 pounds in 113 days, which means about one pound every five days. That's not a whole lot. And my body fat percentage is still higher than it could be. I mean, 26-27 % is not unhealthy or low. I still have several percentages to go until I am in the "athlete" range, right?

OK, I'm going to stop ranting and raving now. I'm happy with my body and I'm excited to see the changes in it. I am also excited to continue to see the changes. Although, now that I have those awesome size 4 pants, I'll be sad to grow out of them ;)

~Pam

Day 13- KenpoX

Butt kicking, can I just say that? Woke up early, at 430am and tried to do it with Matt. But his back is still hurting, so he went for a run instead. I kept going, sweated a LOT, and had an overall good time. Matt says I'm looking really good. :)

Anyways, I have homework. I'm glad the workout is done with for the day. And tomorrow is Rest, although I will probably do StretchX with Matt, if I can talk him into it.

Later,
Pam

Day 12- Legs and Back plus Abs

Ok, so I've actually only done half the workout so far. But I'm going to finish up right after I finish this blog post. My nephews came over and didn't let me finish..*sigh* but I did have fun chasing them around. I woke up this morning and got on the scale. I've been a little frustrated lately, b/c my weight has plateaued and I haven't been able to break past the 130 pound mark. Well, this morning I broke that barrier in a big way! My weight is....


129.4!! And my BF percentage is 26%!

How cool is that! It is really exciting for me. I've been working hard, and it really pays off when I can see the results. I know I shouldn't obsess about the scale. And I've been trying not to. But since we started changing up the diet, I've been nervous. What if my weight starts going back up? Am I not eating enough? Too much? Well, I think I have my answer. Just keep at it, and the results will come.

Ok, I'm going to finish up my workout so I can eat some lunch and get some homework done.

Later!

Pam

Day 11- Yoga

So, yesterday I did yoga all by myself. There's something about getting into the asanas and feeling the movement of my body. I can definitely tell a difference between when I first started the program and now. Before, I would have to take breaks during the sun salutations. Now, I just flow with it. That isn't to say that it isn't still challenging. It is! But, my body is stronger and I'm able to do so much more!

I went shopping yesterday as well. For the first time in my LIFE I bought size four pants. And they fit me! They look damn good, if I do say so myself. I went over to Kate's to show her what I got, and Donna and Ester were there. They were really impressed with the two pairs of shorts and the pair of pants I picked up. The pants were normally $50, and I got them for $14.00. You can't beat that, now can you?

:) I feel so happy right now. I feel great, and I feel like I look great too. My body is still changing and making improvements. That's what it is all about!

~Pam

Day 10-Shoulders and Arms

This morning we did Shoulders and Arms. I tried really hard to push myself. Unfortunately, Matt aggravated a back/neck injury, so he wasn't able to finish. I pushed it out and finished strong. I upped my weight on some, but mainly concentrated on good form. :)

I'm making some popovers for breakfast. I should check on them. Maybe we'll do ABS later today. We've decided that our posture sucks, and we need to change it. So we're both going to work on better posture. I think it will make our quality of life better! That's going to be my real goal for this round. That, and losing at least 5 more pounds.

Later.
Pam

Day 9-supposed to be Plyo

So, yesterday was supposed to be Plyo. But when Matt got home, he wanted to go for a bike ride. He said to me, "Are you ready to ride fast and far?" Well, I was. And after a few hiccups with my bike, we got going. And boy did we go! We rode 12 miles in 55 minutes. I remember when we used to ride and we were lucky to get 10 miles in an hour. Now we were averaging 12 miles an hour. :) I can tell that my body is stronger. I felt much better riding than I have in a long time. And I wasn't overly working. I worked up a sweat, my heartrate was up, but it was nice. I wish I would have worn my heartrate monitor. That way I would have known for sure that I was working like I needed to. I think we did pretty well. And I feel good about the workout.

:)

Pam

Day 8--Week 2 Chest & Back

This morning I woke up with stomach pain. So I wasn't going to work out first thing. My sister visited for a couple hours, and by the time she left I felt ok. So I worked out before lunch. Pushups and pullups. What else can I say? I pushed myself really hard with the pushups AND pullups. I tried to pace myself and then push hard for the second round. I was able to do even more on the second round than the first. It was crazy! Of course, I can't do a whole lot of pushups, so I do about 10 regular, then do as many as I can on my knees. Seems to work for me. Those DiveBombers are killer, aren't they? With the pullups, I tried to give good declines at the end of every set. I have a feeling that my chest and back are going to be sore tomorrow. Good thing it is Plyo. I'm not sure if Matt's going to do it with me. We'll see. If that is the case, I'll do it later in the day.

Anyways, I'm going to do some measuring for the Helm Health Club challenge tomorrow morning. I'll probably post my numbers on here just as a reference.

I'll do Abs with Matt when he gets done with Chest & Back this evening. He's doing it right now :)

~Pam

Day 7

Thank goodness for rest days. Give my body some time to recover. It has been a rough week, but I climbed on the scale mid-morning and, I couldn't believe it, my body fat percentage was down to 25.4%!!!! And my weight is hovering around 130.5 lbs. Not too shabby, huh? Just one quarter of my weight is fat? Since when did that happen? Considering I started this thing at over 33% body fat. Holy cow! I'm feeling great. I'm glad to be back into the routine of working out. I love the fact that tomorrow I will start week 2. :)

Anyways, I think I'm gushing too much. I'm just excited. I was worried b/c we decided to branch out on our menus, and I wasn't sure how that would work out. Seems to be working. I'm almost into the 120s. !!!! Incredible!

~Pam

Day 6-Kenpo...I feel like I've been kicked in the butt, literally.

Woke up early to do Kenpo. I don't know if it was the rest week or what, but holy cow, my butt hurts so bad! My legs are sore, my butt is sore, and I had a great workout with Matt doing Kenpo. That's probably the most fun exercise that we have. I ran an extra mile yesterday, for the Helm Health Challenge. So on top of Legs & Back, plus Abs, I ran that mile. Crazy, crazy.

I feel pretty good. I'm glad I got the workout out of the way early. Now I am going chase my nephews around for a little bit.

Later,
Pam

Day 5-Legs & Back

Holy cow! My legs are sore! But the great thing about Legs & Back is that it is not only legs. It is also pullups. Today, I tried something a little different. First of all, when I did my pullups, I tried to do them faster. I realize I do them slowly and my arms get tired. So I did them quickly. Then, on my last rep for each exercise, I picked both legs up off the chair while I was at the top, and SLOWLY let myself down. I'm hoping that helps me get closer to my goal of doing an unassisted pullup. :) Let's cross our fingers, shall we?

My plan is to do Abs later this evening, with Matt when he gets home from work tonight.

~Pam

UPDATE: I did Abs with Matt, after running a mile for the Helm Health Challenge. How much fun is that? Anyways, I almost was able to do some of the Oblique V-ups. Those are so hard, but I think I've been doing them wrong. I haven't been using my legs enough. So, next time, I'll try something a little bit different. ~Pam

Day 4- Hooray for Yoga

Ok, yoga could not have come at a better time. My entire body is sore. But Yoga stretched me out, and I feel ready to face another strength day tomorrow. I even felt well enough to ride my bike with Matt over to Kate's for Easter dinner :) I feel great, but I have to keep this short b/c we're going to watch a movie together before we have to go to bed. My advice to anyone doing this program- get at least 8 hours of sleep a night. Oh, and DRINK YOUR WATER, PEOPLE!

:)

~Pam

Day 3-Shoulders and Arms plus Abs

Ok, so I procrastinated a little this morning and didn't workout until starting at 10:30. But when I got up for the second time this morning at around 9am,I was preparing to workout, but realized I was STARVING. I decided to eat first, and then workout. So I worked on my blogs a little bit, and started the workout at 1030 instead. That's ok, it worked out for me. Now I'm done with the workout and it isn't even lunchtime yet. Matt has duty today, so we didn't workout together :( Tomorrow we'll do Yoga together.

Anyways, about the workout. Well, my arms are definitely feeling it. But I went up in weight on almost every exercise, which is exciting. I even got to try out Matt's new weights so I didn't have to keep switching the weights on my set so much. So between the three weights (mine, the 8 lb dumbbells, and Matt's) I was pretty efficient. The doorbell rang about halfway through, but I checked out who it was and decided not to bother answering it. It was probably proselyters. *Shrug* Don't know why they would bother here. I was undecided about whether to go ahead and do Abs after the workout. I didn't feel like it. I was pooped and wanted a break. But I went ahead and did it and now I'm glad b/c I'm all done for the day. Yeah!!!!

I feel great. I feel like my muscles are getting some definition. And that's what Matt told me yesterday. He has started to see my muscles sticking out! That's so awesome.

Well, Yoga tomorrow. Even though it is 1.5 hours long, I always feel great afterward. I'm going to work on a menu for next week. Now that we have those new cookbooks, I should be able to find some recipes that will work great.

So, tomorrow it is.

~Pam

Day 2-Plyometrics

So, today is day 2. Am I less motivated than yesterday? Nope. Not a bit. I mean, I did put off exercising until later in the morning than I had planned, but it worked out just right. And that was only because I picked up a good book (big mistake on my part.) I did Plyometrics today. Holy cow! Only thing I can say about that is...."You can do anything for 30 seconds!" I ended up burning 446 calories, probably more since I didn't put on the heart rate monitor until I had almost finished the warm-up. That's almost one complete meal's calories for me! I still need to drink my second recovery drink for my mid-morning snack. It amazes me how each time you do the exercise it gets harder. Shouldn't it get easier? No, and this is why. Because as you get stronger, you can do more of the exercises more correctly. So you end up working harder and harder as the time goes by. Pretty cool, if you ask me. My heart rate monitor won't fit me for too much longer if I lose any more inches around my ribs. It is as small as it can go.

I can't believe how much my body has changed. I am wearing the exercise pants Matt got me while I was on deployment. They were a little tight on me then, but they still fit. Now, they're loose and look great! It makes me feel so good knowing that I've been able to accomplish what I've done so far. And there is a whole lot more I could go with this. I'm EXCITED.

Anyways, enough rambling. Tomorrow is, I think, Shoulders and Arms, which should be good. That is always a good workout. I have to get used to the fact that Matt and I will probably not be working out together as much as we did in Round 1. I'm kind of on my own. But now it is up to me to Bring It all by myself. Can I do it?

I think so! In fact, I know so. I'm determined. Look out bathing suit! Look out beach! Here I come. And its going to be pretty!

~Pam

Round 2 Day 1

YEah!!! We started again! We woke up this morning at 5am and got this thing going. I'm so excited! I feel like I've gained something that has been missing for the past week. I never thought I would say that I miss working out, but I have. I feel fantastic this morning. We did Chest & Back, and I did Abs afterward. I'm pretty proud of myself for my ability to do so much more than I have before. That week of rest was essential. My body has been able to recover from Round 1 and now I'm ready to BRING IT!!!

I don't even know what my weight was this morning. I have decided that I'm not going to focus on weight this round. I'm just going to focus on improvement and inches/body fat %. I guess I should have had Matt measure me this morning too, so I could see my starting numbers. But I'll just have to go on my numbers from the end of last round, I guess.

Anyways, I'm looking forward to tomorrow. Woohoo! I'm glad to be back in the game again. Let's get this going!

~Pam

PS. Breakfast for this morning will be: P90X shake with toast and jam. Lunch for today will be: Salad Nicoise Pita. Dinner will be: I think Fish with wild rice and salad or vegetable. I've already had my "Morning Snack" with my Recovery Drink, but my afternoon snack will be Ice Cream. :)

Countdown to Day 1

I can't tell you how excited I am to be starting the whole process over again. I thought that I would get to this point and not really want to do it. But I really liked the structure of having to workout every day. Right now, I feel like there is something missing in my life. During Round 1, I just took it for granted that I would workout every day. Then, if I did something physical on top of that, it was just bonus. Now I really need to watch what I eat every day and make sure I'm doing all that I should be doing. Once Round 2 starts up, life will get much simpler-there won't be any thought about it. There simply will be the morning workouts. My body is ready. My mind is ready. Is it Thursday yet????

~Pam

Welcome to the Spring P90X Challenge

This blog is here to help us all achieve our goals! When we start on the 9th of April, it will give a place to let everyone know that you did your work out for the day, to ask questions, and to hold your self accountable. Pam and I have included all of our old blog posts to help with any questions and maybe motivate everyone a little bit.

-Matt

Day 90 - Wow

All I can say is wow, lets look at Pam's progress from Day 0 to Day 90:



If you want her numbers they are amazing and they are in her post below, if you want to see all of her pictures you can Click Here!

-Matt
PS: I haven't gotten my pictures yet, maybe later!

Day 90-P90X is done?

Seriously? Can it be done? At least Round 1, that is. I'm kinda excited, but I also don't know what I'm going to do with myself for this week off. I can't imagine not working out tomorrow. That's just too weird. I'm really excited to post my results. Are you ready for this????? Well, here goes:


I'm actually really excited to see how much further I can go. Right now my motivation is pretty low, but I'm swamped with school, and I know that by next Thursday I'll be soooo ready to bring it! I just know that it is 100% possible to live your life the way you want and still get the results I've gotten. Its just that you have to change how you want to live your life. Now, THAT is change I can believe in!!! :)

Today is my official rest day, and I've been enjoying it. I'm still sticking to my diet, and that's what makes me feel so great! That, and the great numbers I pulled this morning. I'm really proud of myself. Hopefully Matt will work on my pictures and I can get them posted sometime today or tomorrow.

~Pam

Day 83-Kenpo X

Today was another butt kicking exercise. Last night we did Legs & Back, which was tough. But it has totally paid off. My legs are starting to look really good. Kenpo was fun, of course. It is still probably my favorite exercise out of all of them. Today I noticed something weird- my breasts have shrunk. In a totally good way. They no longer sag. I think that is awesome, and a totally unexpected result of this workout program.

I look at other people and think-gee, anyone could get into shape. I know the direction I was headed, and how much harder it would have been if I was further along that path. But I was able to change my life around, and now it is almost a game to see how much more I can lose/gain. Because while I'm losing body fat and weight, I'm actually gaining so much more. I'm gaining strength, endurance, confidence, and tone. I haven't looked this good, well, ever. I'm not exaggerating. I also haven't felt this good ever. And anyone can do it! There's no secret formula. Ok, well, there is. But it isn't secret. Exercise, eat right, get plenty of rest, and your body will take care of itself. One thing I've realized is that there is no right way to exercise. Just burn the calories, and your body will thank you. I'm glad we're doing the P90X though. Because I'm getting stronger in all the right places. This is the first year ever that I've been excited for swim suit season. Not that I've been shy in the past. I've put on a bikini every year for the past 5 or 6 years. But this year I'm excited to walk on the beach and show off my new body. I might even have to get a new suit. My old one was from my honeymoon, and I'm definitely smaller now than I was then. Even though stress had made me lose quite a bit right before....

Anyways, I should get some homework done. I'm teaching a couple lessons at school today. We'll see how that goes.

More later,
Pam

Day 82!!

Ok, so I haven't worked out yet today, but I thought I would give a quick update before I head off to school. Yesterday, day 81, was Yoga, and I did it myself at home while Matt did it at work. Day 80 was Back and Biceps, and I worked so hard on that exercise, knowing it would be the last one this round. My biceps are still sore today! Plyo on Friday was butt kicking! Holy cow! We were both sweating up a storm. It will be a completely different experience working out in the summer...

Speaking of summer, I'm already looking forward to Round 2. So far (since I measured myself for the Helm Health Challenge) I have lost almost 9 1/2 inches. (!!) It is hard to believe. But yesterday, when I put on a pair of jeans that used to fit me really well, I notices that the waist is way too big for me.

Oh, and the new sports bra I bought on Saturday is awesome! It works really well, is really supportive. Totally worth the money.

After school today I'm going to do the workout. I think it is legs and back. Oh, boy. I hope I'm ready for that. Give my arms a break, anyways, right?

Sorry the updates aren't coming too quickly. I kind of got off track, especially with going to London for a week. I'm just glad that I didn't gain any weight. I never thougth I would get down to 135 pounds again. Ever. I'm excited to see what round 2 will bring. Oh, and since we still have a week and a half of round 1, who knows what will happen.

I almost forgot. I'm running a 5K on Saturday. Eek! I am not sure how that will go. It has been a long time since I've run any distance. But I'll have a great time anyways.

Talk to you later. Gotta run.

Pam

Day 71 - Plyo

Plyometrics is the most evil idea of a work out any one has ever thought of. This work out is a true test of your ability to do cardio, but it is cardio on crack. I am so determined every time I start to finish it doing every last move, but goodness, it is so intense!!! I am still amazed that after each workout I feel way better then I did before the work out, it is amazing that all this working out is giving me so much more energy!

-Matt

P90X - Day 70 - Skinny boy taking on P90X

Ok so I am skinny, in fact incredibly skinny. I weighed in at some where just above 135 when I started and have a lot of trouble gaining weight. I am now hovering just about 10 pounds heavier, and don't have shred more body fat =) which BTW on my electronic scale is pegged at the low of 5% Now if you are rolling your eyes and wishing you had my problems stop reading this. I am just like every other person in the world, I want to be better then I am and for me that challenge is to put on weight, just like most people are trying to lose it I make up excuses why I can't gain and how I can't seem to put on any muscle or weight period but I can see now my fault.

My scale has a BMR calculator built in to it. It tells you what your "metabolic age" is and how many calories you need to maintain your weight. In case you did guess allready my metabolism is crazy high, for my entire life I have been a snacker, a person that constantly eats a lot of little things, never really eating a huge amount at any given time. Additionally I start every morning by eating a yogurt right away, which jump starts the metabolism (eating anything right away is good, but I love yogurt =) So my entire life I have been doing the "right" stuff to maintain a high metabolism.

So as a consequence my scale says I need 3700 calories to maintain my weight... While that isn't quite true, because I can eat much less then that and still function. I can also tell you that I can snack and eat anything I want and not gain a pound. Well my problem is that I never have eaten enough before to gain weight. And now that I am realizing that my scale is probably telling some what near the truth I am struggling to eat enough calories to put on some muscle.

Anyways, I guess I am trying to say that I realized just like most over weight people have delusions about how many calories they need to eat vs. how much they actually eat. If you are skinny and want to gain weight, you probably are just as delusional as the over weight people, just in the opposite way. It took me a long time to realize this about myself and try to over come it.

-Matt
PS: The progress is amazing, I feel like a new person and a strong person now, I love what this program has done for Pam and I, we are so much healthier, stronger, confident then we were just 70 days ago. Commit and you will make amazing gains!

Day 66- Matt

Wow, wow, wow. This has been an awesome experience P90X is working like nobodies business. If you stick to the plan, have a partner to keep you going, and push hard, I am pretty confident that you will feel better about yourself then you even have before.

-Matt

Day 62 - Kenpo X

Well Pam challenged me to do this workout and I am glad she did, I've been needing some help to keep my chin up work is beating me down pretty good, so it is so nice to have Pam push me and keep me doing what I know I should be even when it is hard.

P90X is hard, yesterdays leg and back is like our 8th time doing it and it still kicks my butt! But today's Kenpo X was almost invigorating, I pushed hard and feel good!!!!

Here's a picture, after I worked out so I am a little pumped, and with a nice overhead light to give nice shadows, but I am putting on some muscle =)



-Matt

Day 62- Kenpo alone

I was so sad to have to do Kenpo alone today. That's one of my favorite exercises to do with Matt. All the kicking and punching are really fun. I set the alarm this morning *gasp* I know. I ended up getting up at around 7:30, so I was done with the workout by 8:30. Can you believe it? It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I had a 4 page paper to get done, along with some other BS homework to do. Actually, that was part of it. The other part was that I wanted to prove to myself (and Matt) that I could actually do it myself. I think I've been proving that a lot lately. In fact, yesterday, Matt and I did Legs and Back, and didn't have time for Abs before he had to go to work. I picked a good time in the afternoon, after lunch, and did Denise Austin's Power Yoga/Pilates, which was an extra hour of abs. Then I did Ab Ripper X, which was insane after all that. So I got an extra hour of workout in this week. Are you proud of me? I am proud of myself, which in the end is probably all I can ask for.

Oh, and btw, I'm wearing pants right now that I bought for myself in between my Junior and Senior year of high school (I know, I know, why do I still have pants that old? Well, they're cute, and I actually didn't get a lot of use out of them. I grew out of them pretty quickly. Oh, and they were pretty expensive. I bought them in Alaska that summer). Anyways, they look great, I think. I'll have Matt give the final verdict when I get home this evening, if he's still awake. Tuesdays are not my favorite; getting home after 10:30pm sucks, especially if I haven't seen Matt since Monday morning. *sigh* Evening classes.

Ok, well, must get the rest of my BS homework done. Then head for class. I feel pretty great today, I feel like I look cute. My new haircut (just like my old one) is awesome!

TTYL!
Pam

PS. Matt better get some butt kicking Kenpo done this evening, or there will be punishment involved :)

Pam-We did so well in January, whatever happened to February?

So I was looking at how many posts we had for January, and I think we posted almost every day. Then February happened, and Phase 2. I think I was a little disillusioned when I didn't make as much progress during Phase 1 as I had hoped. So I didn't post on the blog for almost the entire Phas 2. Which is a shame, because maybe if I had been blogging, I would have forced myself to notice all the little changes that were going on in my body. The changes that I wasn't really noticing. Then, Day 60 came (ok, day 56) and we took measurements. It seems like overnight I went from a little pudgy to more and more trim. I can't believe how many inches I lost! And that Matt gained almost as many as I lost. That's amazing. And when I climbed on the scale this morning and my weight was 136.8 pounds, my heart almost stopped beating. I don't even remember the last time I weighed this little. But it isn't about weight. It is about my body's changes. The curves I didn't notice were there just last week. The fact that my waist is getting tiny. And that my legs and calves are shrinking. Matt felt some muscles on my back that haven't ever been there before. I never knew that your knees could get fat, and I didn't notice mine, until the fat started disappearing. I guess you never know what you have until you lose it, huh? :)
Anyways, my point is, I feel great. And I think I look great. And I have no idea how much further we can take this. We still have more than 4 weeks left in the program! Imagine how much better we are going to be after it is all said and done.

Oh, and btw, the spicy Chinese noodles we had for lunch were DELICIOUS! I was a little skeptical, until I read the recipe and realized peanut butter was involved. And it was so easy!

OK, I guess I should get back to my homework. I just wanted to blog, so that since it is the first day of March, I can try to get a lot more posts in this month than last. It helps that I'm liking my results. Hallelujah!

Pam

Matt - For the record

Our scale has this feature where it will tell you what you "metabolic age" is, it does some magic calculations and comes up with the equivalent age that your metabolism is running at. Well I have always loved that feature because my metabolism has always been read as that of a 12 year old (which is as low as the scale will go).

But Pam has always hated it, it has told her that she has the metabolism of a 29 - 30something year old. Today was an awesome day, the scale finally told her that she has a metabolic age of a 26 year old, which is way exciting because she is 27 =) I told her that she is looking like she is 26 and getting younger every day. She is just looking spectacular.

About P90X, it has been great, it continues to be great. Every morning I continue to think, I should be lazy and not work out, but I keep going. Its easy to keep going because the results are amazing, and the plan is so easy to follow!!! Anyways I gotta go convince Pam to east breakfast now =)

-Matt

Day 58

Wow, I can't believe how many gains I've made in the last 58 days. Yesterday was Back and Biceps, and I really impressed myself with all the pushups I was able to do. And the pullups. My ultimate goal would be to be able to do a pull up unassisted. I think that I'm on my way. I am definitely stronger than I have been in the past. And it just keeps getting more and more.

Have I mentioned how grateful I am that we started this program? It is probably the single most important thing that I could have done for myself this year. I shudder to think where I would be right now if we hadn't started it. Imagine this: I was on my way up into the 150s and who knows where it would have stopped, or IF it would have stopped. My teaching clothes that I bought in the fall for Practicum hours were starting to get smaller and smaller on me. As of right now, my clothes are HUGE! The shirts fit fine, but the pants...well, lets just say that I have quite a bit of room to breathe in them.

I know that I only have 5 more weeks of the program (round 1 anyways) and I am SO ready to bring it. I proved that yesterday, and boy am I sore today. I feel it in my, well, uh, my Back and Biceps :) Imagine that! I'm getting a little bit of studying done right now, some research, but I'm planning on getting a workout in early in the afternoon, or maybe right before lunch. Matt had duty yesterday, and I'm not sure when he's coming home, so I don't know if I should wait for him or not.

I'm so proud of Matt and the gains he has made. He's eating a whole lot more than me, but that is just fine with me. He needs it.

I'm a little scared of going on vacation for 10 days. What am I going to eat? How am I going to get my exercise in? Are my sister and my mom going to support me? Can I help them make a lifestyle change? Will they see how much better life can be if you add fitness and health into your long list of priorities?

Ok, well, speaking of homework, I need to get that studying done. I feel great, or have I mentioned that already?

~Pam

And the numbers are in-Day 56

Pam's Numbers
Day 1
Weight 146.6
BF % 33.3
Chest 36.5
Waist 34.75
Hips 41.5
R Thigh 24.75
L Thigh 24.75
R Bicep 13.0
L Bicep 12.75

Day 56
Weight 139.0-->-7.6 pounds
BF % 29.3-->-4
Chest 35.25-->-1.25 inches
Waist 33.25-->-1.5 inches
Hips 40.25 -->-1.25 inches
R Thigh 24.5-->-.25 inches
L Thigh 24.25 -->-.25 inches
R Bicep 12.75 -->-.25 inches
L Bicep 12.25 -->-.5 inches

Totals
Inches lost-->5.25 inches
Fat lost---> 8 pounds

And here are my 60 day pictures. Maybe I'll get Matt to do a side by side comparison, but I don't have access to the pictures right now. :)





Matt's Numbers
Day 1
Weight 137.2
BF % 5%
Chest 35
Waist 30
Hips 35.5
R Thigh 19.5
L Thigh 19
R Bicep 11.5
L Bicep 11.25

Day 60
Weight 143.2-->+6
BF % 5 % --> <->
Chest 36 ---->+1
Waist 31.25----->+1.25
Hips 36.25---->+.75
R Thigh 20.375 --->+.875
L Thigh 20---->+1
R Bicep 11.75--->+.25
L Bicep 12---->+.5
Totals
Inches Gained---->5.625 (or 5 5/8)

And here are Matt's 60 day pictures. I can really tell a difference!

Day 52 :)

Ok, I can't believe we've been doing this for 52 days. I have to admit that I had my doubts. But now I'm starting to see results. Right before we got the stomach flu, I started taking some fat burning pills. That, combined with the exercise has really made my results speed up. I'm actually starting to notice that my stomach is smaller, my legs are tighter, my arms are more toned. I feel better during most of the exercises. Today was Kenpo and it was butt kicking. I was punching and kicking like nothing else. And I think it is weird how as I get stronger, I work harder, so the exercises get harder, not easier. My weight has gone down quite a bit, almost 10 pounds,to 138.1 this morning, and my body fat is almost down to a more healthy 30%. I am anxious to see what my measurements are, but Matt won't let me measure early. I can stand in front of my "before" pictures and see a huge difference. My clothes fit differently. My pants that I bought that fit, then got tight, now fit and are almost loose on me (I'm not going to complain about that). And boy is Matt looking great. His bulging muscles are sooo.... well, anyways, you get the picture. I'm so proud of the work he's done. And for the first time since we've known each other, I weigh less than him!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Yes that deserves that many exclamation points.)

Ok, so I'm sorry I haven't blogged much this last month. In my defense, I've been sorta busy with school, and I was a little frustrated with my perceived lack of results. But not anymore :) Result city, here I come!
Speaking of heading out, I'm heading to England in just a couple weeks, and I'm looking forward to continuing my regiment there as well. It will be a challenge eating right, but I think I know what portions I can eat and I'm up for it. I'm going to work out every day while I'm there, and maybe get my sister interested :) We shall see. Maybe my mom will even do it with me. Hmmm...interesting proposition.
Alright, as you can probably tell, I'm a little tired. All I can say is, THANK YOU P90X! I am so happy with my body right now, and I haven't felt that way in a long time.

~Pam

ekkk long time no blog

Hey there, we have been pushing hard to recover from when we got sick last. And now we are on track for some awesome results. Pam has really started to show amazing results, it took a while and a lot of determination on her part but it certainly seems like the program is really kicking in for her. I am very happy with my results and I continue to look more defined and have larger muscles. Anyways I just wanted to make sure that we kept on writing on this! Almost time for some more measurements!

-Matt

Not sure the day-Plyo

Ok, so let me bring you up to speed. Yes, last week was rough. I felt a little overwhelmed because I felt like I was working my a** off and not seeing the results I thought I should. And then, just when I finally decided to suck it up and keep working at it, I got sick. With the stomach flu. That took me out for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday (which was a rest day anyways). But then Thursday I started back up with Chest, Triceps, and Biceps and today with Plyo. I only made it through half of Plyo before I almost passed out. Holy cow, my energy is gone. But I'm determined to stick with it and get my energy back so that I can see more results. Amazingly, I seem to see differences every day. I wore a shirt today that I haven't worn in a long time, and it fit me better than it ever has. That made me feel pretty great.

Ok, that's about it. I'm going to try to get back to blogging as well. :)

Pam

day ??? -

Well it was a busy week for us last week and Pam is getting a little frustrated because the scale is not showing the results she is hoping for. She is kinda put off because she has only lost a couple of pounds and a 2 percent body fat, but I think that it is spectacular and that she is looking very good.

The workouts in phase two are nice, it is a good switch up and I can feel the targeted muscle groups exactly like I am supposed to. I am very pleased with the results of this program, it is making me feel like a much stronger & healthy person.

Today we have yoga and I am waiting on Pam to finish her homework so I can get it done. I am thrilled to be still doing this program and am even headed towards gaining some weight which is my ultimate goal.

-Matt

Day 31- Back and Biceps

Ok, so I realize I haven't blogged in quite a while. Yesterday, Matt came home from duty and was exhausted, so I ended up doing Plyo X by myself and burning 541 calories! This morning we did Back and Biceps together, and I burned 404 calories (with Ab Ripper X). My arms are pretty much dead.

One good thing about this week-we started to eat carbs again. It is so nice to have a BAGEL for breakfast, or a wrap tortilla for lunch. I feel like I have more energy. I think that is why I burned so many calories in Plyo last night-I was able to do more exercises than I could before.

Ok, well, Matt and I are going to hit the shower. If we keep this up, I'll be losing weight and feeling great in no time.

Matt - Day 30

Progress, there are defiantly small changes in definition on Pam =)

Matt - Day 30 - Was it what we needed?

So we just finished our recovery week, and maybe it was what we needed, but I can't spoil Pam's news for today. I'll just say that there is going to be a lot more progress this month!

Unfortunatly I was unable to work out today due to recovering from Duty, I had to basicly spend about 40 hours up with 3 hours of half sleep on a couch. So in the interest of recovering and not hurting my self I am skipping Plyo today. Which I am very sad about.

Here are the 30 day pictures, not as much change as we would hope but that is just going to make us push harder!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Matt - Day 26 - Core Synergy and motivation

Ok, so first off let me lay down some quotes from other people to help Pam. She's a little worried because in her eyes there isn't very much progress at the 30 day point of P90X. I am excited to take her pictures though, I think that she will see some progress when we take the pictures. But to quote some other people on the world wide web:

from http://www.weightloss-hq.biz/exercise-reviews/top-20-p90x-questions-answered-here.html

16. I'm not seeing results after 30 days, what am I doing wrong?

Have some Patience - As I stated before, most people quit after the first month - I know this because I've seen it on our P90X forums. They get frustrated because they diet and workout very hard for 30 days after years of neglecting their body!?? Come on people! You must have some patience! I see the first 30 days as the "adjusting" period. Your body is in "shock" mode. Some people start to get good results after 30 days, some don't change at all...it really depends on the person. I started to see significant results 2 weeks after the second month. Once you past the 30 days mark, this is when you need to kick it up and really push yourself hard.

17. I'm gaining weight, what's wrong!

This may happen to you in the first 30 days. Like I posted earlier, the first 30 days your body is in shock mode. The second month is when you'll start to lose weight.

Second order of business is to say that I am very, very lucky to have an extremely low body fat percentage. It makes seeing the changes very easy for me. But I hate people that think it's some gift or super metabolism, let me share my secret... I am always hungry, but when I eat, I eat just enough to give me an hour or two reprieve from the hunger, and my meals tend to be small. The other thing is that I am a 6' 2" male, that means I am taller then average and require more calories. So please just don't roll your eyes and think that I can eat anything, because I bet that I only eat half of what a normal American eats at a meal. Instead I snack constantly with somewhat lower calorie snacks. But anyways here is a little preview pic I took =)



I had just finished a work out, and am flexing, but it's still crazy for me to see my abs having so much definition. No amount of crunches would ever do that to my abs... it was P90X that is teaching them how to be real abs =)

Today was the Core Synergistics which a cardio intense workout. I enjoy it a lot because it is fast paced and HARD! tomorrow is Yoga, not sure when I am going to get it done as it is a long one. Anyways, more later, Bring it!
-Matt

Pam Day 25- Stretch X

Today was my first day with Stretch X. I'm impressed. It is a nice workout. I should have been doing it before now :) Also, for the first day we get to eat CARBS! I had a muffin for breakfast, along with fruit and milk. Then for lunch, there was a tuna salad burrito. Ooooh, yummy! I had almost forgotten how good that kind of food tastes.

So, I'm not quite seeing the results that Matt is, yet. But I'm keeping an open mind. I feel better, that is for sure. And I think that I have probably lost inches. My goal for this week's Helm Health Challenge is to brush my teeth 2x and floss 1x daily. My "I think I can" goal is to work out every day, even on the rest day. I haven't done that yet, and it will be hard for me to work out on Wednesday morning, but "I Think I Can" :)

This Rest Week hasn't been very restful, so far. A lot of cardio. Core Synergistics is probably the most challenging workout so far. And it is up again tomorrow. I'll be doing it with Matt when he gets off work in the afternoon.

Ok, another goal of mine is to keep blogging every day. I hope I can keep it up!

Pam

Matt - Day 24 - KenpoW!

Ok today was Kenpo again, as Pam mentioned we are in our rest week right now, and it's not much rest =) It is really a cardio intense week and it is just as tough as the rest of the program. I am starting to see some intense results, I have a lot more definition and have gained a couple of pounds which is a huge challenge for me. But my abs are just getting crazy, I have never had definition like I am getting... anyways we are still working hard and going strong!

I am so excited because tomorrow we are starting phase 2 of the diet which is somewhat normal compare to phase 1 which was almost entirely protein... oh I am so craving some normal foods =)

-Matt

Oops, it has been a while-Day 23-Core synergistics

Holy cow!!! I know I haven't posted for a little bit, but man this workout today was tough. My core definitely could use the strength. I can't believe we are in the first rest week. THat means that we are almost done with month 1!!! I can't believe it. Yoga yesterday was challenging as well. The day before that was rest day, and I didn't workout. THe day before that was Kenpo, which was harder this time, but I was still able to do some of the moves better. Today was the first day that I ate anything that wasn't on the diet...we ate sushi. Not too terrible, but still. Our plan is to wake up at 5 am tomorrow and do the next workout. I'm not sure what it is...we'll just have to see.

Ok, well, off to bed. Need lots of rest.

Pam

PS. I am starting to feel stronger. Soon I'll be posting day 30 pictures and measurements. :)

Day 19-Legs and Back for Pam plus Abs

This morning we got up and did Legs and Back. Holy cow! I'm getting much better on my pullups, which is a relief. I feel like I'm getting closer to my goal. My arms are definitely more defined. My stomach doesn't seem to be making too much progress, but I think that will come eventually. There's a lot of fat there, so I have a lot of work to do. Abs today was brutal. I am getting stronger, but that almost makes me work even harder for it.

Day 18-Yoga. We didn't do yoga until about 7:30 pm last night. I guess the good thing about waiting until the end of the day to do yoga is that it is easy to fall asleep after, because you're so relaxed. I was able to do Plank position much better this time. I feel like I'm much stronger than last time I did it. I was able to reach through my leg and around my back for that twisting prayer pose thing. My flexibility is definitely increasing.

Matt - Good Morning Legs and Back x 2

Well on my duty day I did Legs and Back because I didn't need weights to do it at work, yesterday was Yoga which is super leg intensive, and today I am joining Pam for Legs and Back, phew is it going to be a rough week on my legs =) Other the that, doing well, the definition is really starting to show in me, which is easy for me because I have no fat covering anything, so as soon as my muscles change it shows. Pam is being a rock star, but I have to run, holding up the work out now! =)

-Matt

Pam Day 17-shoulders & arms, not legs &back

Ok, I don't know why I thought it was legs and back yesterday. It was my fault that Matt didn't bring his resistance bands to duty, so he wasn't able to do the video. I ended up doing it in the afternoon, which was really weird. I got 2 phone calls during the workout, both Matts. I ended up calling my brother back after the workout. I didn't get a chance for an afternoon snack :( because I was working out in the afternoon, then I made dinner. I ate a little earlier than I'm used to, so I am kind of starving right now.

ANyways, about the workout-it was good. Tough. I upped my weight on a bunch of exercises, so I really challenged myself. And the ABS, well, all I can say is that I can do several of the "Wide Leg Sit ups" and I even got my legs off the ground with the Oblique v-ups. My body feels pretty good today. Lets see how it goes. I think we have Yoga today. It is very challenging, even though it is Yoga, which people think is relaxing....

:) Pam

Pam Day 16-Plyometrics

Ok, here's a catchup---
Day 14- rest day. That was Wednesday, and I was able to get a bunch of laundry done, work on dishes, and sweep and mop the floor. Very productive day, and I'm glad it was a rest so I could recover.

Day 15- Shoulders and Arms plus Abs. Holy cow. I'm much stronger than last week, because I am not sick. So this workout worked me out. I felt very strong after this workout. The Abs was challenging as usual, but I was able to do some of the wide leg sit ups, and also the v-up, roll ups. :)

Day 16-Today. Plyometrics. This is by far the hardest workout. I didn't burn as many calories as I did last time I did it, but I still felt like I had an awesome workout. I could see Matt working hard; he took his shirt off, and let me tell you! His abs, pecs, and back muscles were very defined this morning. Sometimes I have my doubts about my own muscles doing the same under my skin, but I know something is going on under there. My weight is still about the same, but my clothes are a little looser, so I know that my body is changing. Probably gaining muscle at the same rate as losing fat, or something like that. I need to be better about blogging. Now I'm going to have 3 blogs to keep up with, this one, my main blog, and the Helm Family Health Challenge blog. I'm excited about doing challenges with my siblings, and I hope a lot of us do it. If nothing else, I think me and Kate will do it :) Isn't that how it always ends up?

Ok, I'll write more later. I think it is Legs and Back tomorrow. That one is always a good workout. And next week....well that is the Recovery week. I can't believe that we're almost done with the third week! I'm so proud of myself and Matt, too!

~Pam

Yesterday was Day 13!!! Kenpo X

So, we had to wake up yesterday at 3:30 in order to get our workout in. Holy cow! I think b/c I had done Kenpo once before, I was able to do the moves more than last time, and got a much better workout. However, I didn't burn as many calories as the last couple days, so I'm a little disappointed. I only hit 330 something calories. Also, since I had work from 8-12, then class from 420-950, I had a tough time getting all my food in for the day. I think I ended up with 1300 calories total for the day. I should have eaten a Special K bar for dinner, but I didn't think of that! So, I really didn't have dinner :( That wasn't so good. Then I got home late and had a hard time falling asleep (surprise, surprise). But I was able to talk to 4 sisters yesterday- Kate, Penny, Marie, Jill. It was a good day, with my first two classes starting. This is going to be challenging, especially when Matt has duty, but I think we can work it through.

Pam

PS. Today is Day 14 and I am taking a break. Sometimes I think day 14 is my favorite :) Just kidding. But it is good to let my body recover. I actually feel pretty good. I'm not exhausted, which is amazing. And I'm looking forward to getting laundry done and cleaning up a little bit around her this afternoon before I have to head to class tonight.

Day 12 Legs and Back

I can't believe we've done 12 days already. Today's workout was an almost 500 calorie, sweat drenching workout. I also did something exciting during ABS...I did 2 wide leg sit ups!!! I haven't been able to do any yet, so I have just been doing regular sit ups, but today I did 2 unassisted wide leg sit ups. Those puppies are hard!
Anyways, we've got to be up early again (we got up at 4am this morning. I think 3:30am tomorrow) so I have to be off to bed. I worked hard, and my legs are starting to shrink! My calves look oh, so sexy! ;)

~Pam

Day 11 Yoga

Today was tough because we had to get up early. And yoga is ridiculously challenging. My whole body gets a workout.
I'm tired. Trying to feel better. Tomorrow's another early day.
~Pam

Well to give you a bit more info Pam is recovering from being sick still, hence the crazy blog above =) I spent all day cooking food so that our lunches will be healthy and ready to go for next week. I used the George Foreman non - stop. Anyways gotta go to bed and start work again tomorrow =(

-Matt

Day 10 - Tools

Well, let me say Pam is making me proud, she is sticking to her meal plans and keeping up with this intense work out schedule and I am darn proud of her. The great thing about this whole experience is that Beachbody, the company that sells P90X gives you so many different tools. First off with the program you get a complete work out guide and DVDs, then you get the meal planner which tells you exactly what you need to eat, or if you don't want that, it just tells you what size portions to eat and lets you choose. Then they have the online WOWY.com which lets you start your work out online, keep track of them and even see who else is doing the workouts at the same time, you can even chat after your done. Finally are the free message boards they have that let you connect with everyone else doing P90X some people are repeating it for the 11th or 12th time!! You get to learn from all of them, and see all of their progress to motivate you.

From the message boards I learned about another neat tool that lets you track your daily calorie intake (and quite a bit more) rather easy. It is at FitDay.Com. You just enter what food you ate and it will give you cool graphs that keep track of caloric intake, vitamins, etc. A neat tool to visualize how much food you eat. For example Pam is on a 1800 calorie per day diet... If you think that number is high, ie that it is a lot of calories to be eating in a day, and you are overweight, then you need log every calorie you eat for a week... Most people that are over weight are eating more in the range of 2500-2800 calories a day and don't even realize it, so this really helps you learn where your calories come from and see how they all add up.

Anyways, today was a challenge shoulders and arms, it was nice to start learning what some of the move where and anticipating them. Pam rocked the house today, in the last two days shes burnt almost 1000 calories working out, amazing! Ok gotta go to bed, an early morning for the next 80 days at least =)

-Matt

Day 10!!! Pam-Shoulders and arms plus Abs

Holy cow, can I say that this morning was really hard to get up, after doing Plyo last night. We got up at 4:15 this morning, so we would be done with our workout before I had to leave for my Praxis II exam. (Wish me luck on that one. I don't want to have to do it again.) I didn't hurt myself on the tricep exercise right off the bat this time, and I was able to complete the whole workout. It was amazing. Add in the Abs, which little by little I'm able to do more of, and I burned 472 calories. Can you believe that? That's more than Plyo yesterday. Crazy. Anyways, I'm feeling it tonight. Matt says it is time for bed, since we're going to get up early again. And again, for the next several months. Its good for me. I feel good when I wake up early. I just have to remind myself of that.
Oh,Matt found this cool tool online. It is a calorie counter. I can keep track of all the calories I consume. I put in a weight loss goal, and it pretty much told me that I'm eating the right number of calories right now to meet that goal. I'm kinda excited. I'll have to keep it up, along with this blog/journal. I think I can do it, even though school starts on Monday. Yeah for School!

~Pam

PS. My shoulders are sore, but my biceps sure look great today!

Pam-Day 9 Plyo

I can't believe it has been almost a week and a half since we started this. Yes, this morning I did not "bring it" but I was having trouble breathing. I still did my workout, just later in the day after my school meeting. It was really tough to exercise in the afternoon, and I will remember that when I don't feel like getting out of bed in the morning. Unfortunately, I have a considerable amount of body fat, and cannot see the results that Matt is seeing. But I know my body is changing. Today, doing Plyometrics, I was able to tell a difference from the last time I did it. It wasn't that it was easier, I was just able to do more of the exercises, and for longer. I have to modify a lot of the exercises, but I'm improving each time. I need to remember that my head cold almost goes away while I'm exercising, and to just do it! Right now, I'm exhausted, and thinking about the workout in the morning. I have a test early tomorrow, so we need to work out early. Really early. So, tomorrow is the test run for weekdays from here on out, I guess. I'm looking forward to shoulders and arms tomorrow, plus Abs. :) Gotta love Abs!

Matt - Plyo Alone and P90X Recovery Drink

this morning Pam was lagging behind and didn't bring it, so I ended up doing the Plyo workout on my own =( But it was still a good work out. So much jumping and moving from side to side, and squating and jumping. Anyways it was a very intense work out as usual. I was able to keep up with the DVD for the most part had to pause for water twice as I downed like 32 oz of water and 12 oz of recovery drink.

Now the recovery drink that Pam and I got is not the official P90X drink, but the key is the 4 to 1 carbs to protein ratio. So we found this stuff called Accelerade which is a little cheaper then the official one and are using it. I kinda like it because to get the same amount of carbs and protein as the official drink we have to drink 24 oz instead of 12 oz. So we end up drinking half of our recovery drink during the work out and half after it plus a protein bar (I talked about those in an earlier post mmm Muscle Milk protein bars or Cliff Builders Bars... both yummy!)

Anyways I am lucky because I have very little body fat I already can see some results even after just a week. But I feel really good to, a lot more core strength. Anyways this is going well so far, now that my vacation is over we are about to throw work and duty in to the mix and we will see how well that goes!!! eekk a little scare about that.

-Matt

Pam-Day 8: Chest and Back

So, we're back to the back :) Today was tough getting up. I'm trying to get over a head cold, and my throat was really sore this morning. It was hard to swallow. But I decided to suck it up, get over it, and bring it! My body was definitely weak, but I brought all I could, and man was this workout tough. It felt good to do 2 assisted pull ups. (I did 6 or 7 last week.) I drank a glass of recovery drink during the workout, and I think that is what saved me. I wasn't sure I would make it through Abs, but I did. I'm here to tell the tale, as they say. The Abs workout is challenging, I still can't do the Oblique V-ups, or the spread leg sit ups, or the ones where you sit up, go halfway down, and bring your legs up. But today, instead of just doing crunches during those exercises, I decided to do unassisted sit ups instead. It seemed to work out pretty well for me :) Did I mention my back was sore this morning? Well, it was, and I was concerned a little since we were working on the back today. But after the workout, my back was more limber, and actually feels good.

I have to remind myself that fat comes off in sheets, not in targeted areas. I got on the scale today and my body fat % has gone up slightly. My weight isn't going up a lot, in fact it is holding pretty steady. So I'm not too concerned. I'll give it another week, then I'll really start looking at the numbers.

I burned 392 calories today. Not too shabby. I should really set the alarm on my heart rate monitor. I got a little high today.

Looking forward to Plyometrics tomorrow ;)

~Pam

Matt - mmm Protein Bars

I have tried various Protein Bars and shakes all of my life, I have always been very sensitive about how skinny I was. For a couple weeks I scooped two scoops of ice cream and a 1/4 cup of Hershey's and 2 scoops of weight gainer in to a shake and drank it. But no matter what I did I couldn't gain a pound. While most of you are rolling your eyes and saying that you wish you had the problem, I was just like any other teenager and I hated the fact that I was so skinny and every one thought I didn't eat at all. Nope that's not it, the fact is that I snack all the time, as soon as I feel hungry I eat a small snack, and when I sit down and eat a meal it's a small meal. My body is just used to constantly eating and digesting small amounts of food, and I eat only when I am hungry... thats my secret.

Anyways if you are looking to eat Protein, today is the day and age to do it. Even the generic protein shakes taste good, and if you want to get the best tasting shake of your life, drink Muscle Milk mixed with Milk... oh my gosh it is like drinking an milkshake.

P90X requires you intake a lot of protein to build muscle mass and obviously they want to sell you their products, can't argue with a company that wants to make more money. But if you are looking for alternatives to their protein bars you can try Clif Bars Builders, they are a tasty and have 20g of protein in them. The chocolate mint is particularly tasty. Another (but more expensive) option is the Muscle Milk bars. And of course there is the P90X bars that Beachbody sells.

Anyways, I just realized that I am, for the first time, not dreading eating all this protein supplements and so thankful we have come as far as we have in the modern times =) After all you can only eat so many egg whites.

-Matt

Pam and Matt Day 6

Pam: Kenpo X. Lots of sweat. Burned 395 calories. Was pretty sore after, and then I started to not feel well. My throat hurt, my head hurt, I was really tired. I had to lay down and take a nap. I had my first meltdown. I hope it is my last. Thanks to Matt who took care of me and saved the day.
We had Beef and Broccoli with Miso Soup for dinner. It was yummy.

Matt: Worried about Pam. Think P90X is getting to her. She can only type. A couple words at a time. Must make sure her pulse is okay. Love lots!

hehe ok now that I am done teasing her, Kenpo (Ken-poe) is a form of self defense I guess? maybe. anyways it involves a lot of punching and blocking and kicking, you end up feeling like Jackie Chan after the work out. I mean it's pretty cool to pretend to grab someone then knee them in the chest, and the kick the attacker behind you... Well at least that is what I was picturing during the workout =)

I liked the amount of coordination that it required and the fast quick moves, was hard to keep up with the video but we did our best. Pam really isn't feeling well today but she was a trooper with just shy of 400 calories burned. We are both incredibly sore, but our bodies are getting used to it, so for the most part we get around just fine.

Tomorrow marks our first week down, and that is awesome, getting excited to have some big results.

Love,
Pam and Matt

Pam-Day 5 {Another toughie}

Ok, so back and legs today, so why does that have to mean Abs, too? :) Just kidding. It was a great workout today. Really challenging, as all the workouts so far have been. There were a lot of pullups and my arms are feeling it. I'm challenging myself to do them without assistance, and I keep taking more and more weight off the chair as I go along. So today, I was only able to do 3-5, instead of my 7-8, but I worked my arms more today than last time. My goal is to be able to do 10 unassisted pull ups. I think I will be able to do it by the end of the 90. I can't believe 5 days have flown by. I think that we need to sit down and work up a schedule, that way I know exactly when I should go to bed every night and when to expect a workout. Unfortunately, Matt isn't sure of the duty section rotation yet...
So far, I haven't lost any weight. But I wasn't expecting to. I'm sticking to the diet, definitely not eating anything that isn't allowed. However, it is hard sometimes to eat all the food I'm supposed to. And I'm not a fan of Gazpacho, evidently. Hmmm...maybe we can add a _little_ bit of sugar to counteract the vinegar? We'll see.
Ok, another great day down, looking forward to Kenpo tomorrow. Oh, and the Abs today? Well, I was able to do all 25 of the Ins and Outs, the Crunchy Frogs are challenging, I can't do any of the Wide Leg Situps yet or the Oblique V-Up either. Those I have to work on. I WILL do it by the end. I guarantee it!

~Pam

Matt - Day 5 Legs & Back & Abs & A lot of sweat

Ok, so here is the deal, today was tough. The leg work out was great, you don't use very many weights for this work out as trying to lift your body weight with one leg is generally tough enough. But in between all these leg squats and lifts and raises they decide to be kind to you and have you do pull ups "to rest the legs" haha!!! I defiantly pushed pause a couple of times during the work out to take a couple extra breaths because I needed it. I was so happy to reach the end and start the cool down, and the video went black, I was thrilled to be done... but I forgot... AB Ripper X!!! oh no how did I forget I have to do abs today?

I put my all in to the legs work out so doing the abs was super tough. The top two abs, I will look up what the scientific name for them is one day, but for now they are the top two, and they hurt bad!!! phew I was dieing, tried my best to keep up but feel a little bit short of what i did two days ago. But the burn was there and I persevered as best I could.

Well still going strong on the diet and pushing my self. I am supplementing the diet Pam is on with a couple more protein shakes throughout the day, trying to put on muscle is tough in this program (or so I have been told) but I will prove that I can do it!!!

-Matt

Pam-Day Four:Yoga X

Ok, so Yoga came on a perfect day today. I really needed the lengthening and stretching that this challenging workout gave. I feel great today. Much better than the last 4 days. Energized and refreshed like never before. Enough to want to take a bike ride. Matt and I rode for about 5 and a half miles. When we hit 4 miles, Matt said, "wanna head home, or go for another mile?" To his surprise, and mine, I wanted to keep going. So we did. It felt nice to get out on our bikes again.

I've been talking to Penny, trying to convince her to do the Power 90 series. For about 50 bucks she could get it, and I think she could be really successful. I hope she does decide to do it. If she feels half as good as I do....However, I think she won't want to give up on the coffee, cigarettes, and alcohol. I wish she would see that giving up all that stuff will just 1. be cheaper, and 2. make her feel better. I feel so much better now that we're doing the diet. I feel like I'm eating a lot, but I think in the end that will only benefit me. I'm eating a lot fewer calories, just more food. I had a hard time eating the artichoke hearts today with lunch. But the soy sausage muffins this morning were particularly delicious. Tasted like real meat!

Anyways, feeling good about my decision. I'm glad we started this thing, and I'm glad we started it together.

~Pam

Pam-Day 3

Ok, toughest day so far. I was secretly glad when Matt let us sleep in just a little this morning, although I'm sure he won't let me get away with it again tomorrow. I could hardly move this morning. My abs were on fire, my legs were stiff, and my arms were sore from two days ago. We did "Arms and Shoulders" and I hurt my triceps on the first tricep exercise. There was a feeling like a knife shooting through both arms. Because of that, I took it a little easier for the rest of the exercises. Not that I didn't push myself; I just lowered the weight and upped the reps. Some of those moves were ridiculous, like the straight arm flys. Whew! Tough. And just when I thought it was over, there was a bonus round, and then Ab Ripper, once again. That is definitely the toughest 16 minutes of my life. I still can't do all the moves, or the reps, but for the second time doing it, I feel improvement. I was able to do more reps than last time for every exercise. I can't wait until the end of the program when I can keep up with the dvd.

Diet: Well, today was a little better. We had Chicken Scramble for breakfast, chicken salad for lunch, and halibut with pesto for dinner. The pesto is going to be a favorite, I think. We didn't feel like we had to clean our plates today, which made me feel a little better, I think. Yesterday, I felt like I needed to eat everything, and I think I had a hard time digesting all the food. Matt says that we're eating about 1800 calories a day. But we're eating about twice as much food as I'm used to.

I finished up a month of birth control today, so we'll see how I'm feeling next week. Tomorrow is Yoga X, and I'm looking forward to it, even though I know it will be challenging. I love Yoga, so we'll see how much I like this one.

More tomorrow.

~Pam

Matt - I say Day 3 was tough!!

Okay, Day 3 of P90X, I wake up this morning to arms and abs that are still sore from two days ago, and now legs that are sore from yesterday. Turning off the alarm clock was and adventure in pain =) But it's all good pain, knowing that I am pushing myself really hard.

Today was Shoulders and Arms, and boy is it amazing the moves that you do. Let me tell you, with all of my friends that work out and know all these crazy moves, I would have thought I would known most of the moves. But no, it seems like they packed every crazy move that no one has ever heard of, but should be doing, in to these videos. You will be doing brand new moves, and stretches that you have never seen, but are the best of your life. How come the people in the gym aren't doing these? they are way better then anything I did while I worked out on deployment?

Additionally we finished of today with another Ab Ripper X, which is 16 minutes of pain. Surprisingly though, I was already able to do more of the reps, although I was in much greater burning then last time. I have never, ever seen such a complete ab work out before. Doing it every other day, is going to be killer!!

So in summary, I am super sore, but loving it. Must keep it up!!! Bring it!

-Matt

Day Two-Plyometrics

Stats
Workout time: 1 hour, 3 minutes
Time in zone: 54 minutes
Calories burned: 520-something

Can I just say, "Dang." Holy cow. This was a challenge. I wasn't sure if I was going to finish it. It was a lot of jumping. First of all, getting out of bed this morning was hard. My whole body was sore. But I felt better once I did get out of bed, and after the workout I feel great. Tired, sore, but great. It is 8:30 and we haven't had our breakfast yet, but we will soon, I'm sure. I think it is a shake, today. I feel like I ate too much food yesterday. I have never had to force myself to eat all the food on my plate before. I actually think that is the most challenging of all- eating all the food they expect us to. It is crazy. Anyways, tomorrow is "Legs and Back". Now that every part of my body is hurting, we'll see how tomorrow goes. It is exciting knowing that each time I do a video, I will get better. I already feel like I have some definition in my arms. But that might just be muscle swellage (sp?). Well, I think we'll watch a movie and take it easy today.

~Pam

Matt - Crash Course in to P90X

Wow, we started today, and let me tell you we quit the rest of our life cold turkey. This program isn't just a work out program, there is an entire meal program associated with it as well. And we went all out for P90X, we are following their meal plan exactly. And boy is it a drastic change from our normal eating habits. We eat 5 times a day, 3 big meals and two snacks. And right now we are eating 50% protein 30% carbs and 20% fat. Umm let me tell you the way I normally live my life is 60%carbs 20%protein and 20%fat, so this is a crazy rough change! Where's my pasta!?!?

The workout this morning was intense, so many push ups and pull ups that I lost count, thank goodness for the little countdown at the bottom of the screen, that was the only thing that kept me going sometimes, oh and Pam yelling at me to keep going =)

Phew, this is going to be a crazy challenge.

-Matt

The Real Day One-Happy New Year to US

Ok, so this morning, Matt set the alarm for 6am. I was having a little trouble getting motivated to get up. We weighed in, and measured up. Here are our day 1 stats....

Body Fat: Pam-33.3% Matt-5%
Weight (naked): Pam-146.6 Matt-137.2
Chest (nipple): Pam-36 1/2 Matt-35
Waist (BButton): Pam-34 3/4 Matt-30
Hips (widest): Pam-41 1/2 Matt-35 1/2
Right Thigh: Pam-24 3/4 Matt-19 1/2
Left Thigh: Pam-24 3/4 Matt-19
Right Arm: Pam-13 Matt-11 1/2
Left Arm: Pam-12 3/4 Matt-11 1/4

Then, we got dressed and began our first workout. Today was Chest and Back, with Ab Ripper X after. Holy cow! Chest and Back is a lot of pull-ups and push-ups. It was very challenging. And ARX is crazy! That is 16 minutes of pure ab hell! I feel very good right now. We had a recovery shake right after, it tasted like orange cream shake. And then I took a bath. I feel good right now. Very invigorated and energized. And relaxed, all at the same time.

Here are our before pictures. This is the last time I will look like this. EVER!!























Now it is off to make breakfast and lunch. Will write more later about how I feel.

~Pam