Insanity Day 3 – Cardio Power and Resistance – this one killed me. My shoulders were pounding, my triceps were burning, and my heart rate was through the roof. I was a little disappointed with myself in this one, but I can’t wait to try it again.

Insanity Day 1 was pretty insane. Insanity Day 2 was really insane. I can’t even imagine what the MAX workouts are going to be like. But man, I had an absolute blast doing this workout. As Tony would say “How could you be in that much pain, and be having that much fun?”

If you want to give this workout a shot, make sure you are already relatively physically fit. If you are unsure about any workout program, ask your doctor before you start. Also, invest in a heart rate monitor. You should really have one for this workout.

What is Insanity like? Day 1 may not be the best barometer, but you’ll see what comes with Insanity and what the fit test is like. But suffice to say, it’s definitely different from P90X style, minus the plyometrics.

I’m nervous and excited to see what the next 59 days will bring. If the short fit test was this hard, I can’t imagine what a longer one will be like. The time literally flew by, though. I’m hoping the 30-45 minutes will seem like nothing once your in the midst of enjoying the sweat and hard work.

More semi-daily updates to come.

If you have any questions, visit the Ask A Coach page.

Wanna join the challenge? Order here.

Instead of 90 days, this one is 60, but it looks far more intense in different ways. It looks much less muscle building, but more just straight up cardio / plyo / get your heartrate through the stinking roof while gaining a little muscle. It looks like it’s designed, not to get you big, but to get you ripped and the most athletic you can be.

That’s where I’m at right now. I have gone through P90X once and am in the process of going through it again. I gained some size with it and lost nearly 40 pounds, but I’m still not ripped yet. This is to absolutely no fault of P90X, it’s just that when I started, I was really out of shape.

I’m hoping that I have a foundation to build off of, and I’m hoping that Insanity can take me to the next level. I’m not in this to get huge, not to be ripped for the sake of being ripped, but to be in the best shape of my life and be the most healthy I’ve ever been.

I’ll be writing some reviews of the program as I go through it. Be sure to check back soon and if you’re crazy, join in on the fun with me, Mike Stickel, and whoever else wants to go insane.

Do you have questions regarding P90X, Beachbody, becoming a coach yourself, or just fitness in general? Ask me a question and your question may be answered on my weekly video. If you need a question answered right away, please let me know and I will get in contact with you as soon as possible.

Two weeks into my third and final phase, I decided to sit down and read over my nutrition guide. I recalculated the calories I was supposed to have for the day and realized that I should have been in the Second Level on the nutrition guide, which basically equates to eating a THOUSAND less calories a day.

I lost 12 pounds my first week doing P90X and by the end of my first phase, I was down about 14 pounds total. With this weight loss, I should have bumped down in how much I was eating. If I had followed the program and actually read the manual, so to speak, I may have had better results.

There are two ways I can handle this setback. I can get frustrated, mad because 90 days have almost gone by, and I haven’t gotten the results that others have had even though I did my best. Or I can look at it as an opportunity to get stronger with the extra weight, use it as another excuse to do another 90 days, and trust that I’ll get the results I want.

I am going to go with the latter option, but the important lesson I learned is that – if you trust the program and you follow what it says, it will work the best for you. So this next go round, I’m going to use the Beachbody shopping list. I’m going to buy the groceries it tells me to buy and eat exactly what it tells me to eat. Then I expect results.

Don’t get me wrong, I have had great results and am completely happy with the way my 90 days is going and mentally I’m in a far better place as far as exercising in general. But, I can’t wait to see what I can accomplish now that I have trust in the system and am going to follow it exactly the way it was meant to be followed.

Everybody pushing play, keep on keeping on and bring it everyday.

Check in after next week, when I will have my final 90 day results.

I actually really enjoy doing doubles, but I didn’t up my calories much. The Nutrition Guide doesn’t really go into what you should do calorie wise if you are doing doubles. I’m just worried I’m overdoing it and burning lean muscle rather than fat.

I’m excited for the last phase and am going to try my best to bring it as hard as possible.

My results for the first 60 days are:

• Weight: 225 pounds (down 15 pounds, 1 pound from last phase)
• Right Arm: 15 1/2″ (up from 15 1/8 – 3/8″ gain – same as last phase)
• Left Arm: 15 1/2″ (up from 15 1/4 – 1/4″ gain – same as last phase)
• Chest: 44 3/4″ (down from 45 1/2″ – 3/4″ loss – down 1/4″ from last phase)
• Waist: 38 3/4″ (down from 40″ waist – 1/4″ loss – down 1/4″ from last phase)

My first two times through, sometimes I would miss a workout (mostly Ab Ripper X and Legs and Back) and would take it easy some days. So far, I have only “missed” two workouts, but only because I wasn’t around a pull up bar. However, I didn’t just sit around and do nothing, I still managed to get a regular non-P90X workout in. I have brought it as hard as I could as much as I could. I am bringing it harder than ever and pushing myself more every week, especially at Ab Ripper X. I’m doing more reps and accomplishing more than I thought were possible.

I have felt so good the last two weeks that I started doing “doubles.” I never planned on doing doubles, so why did I start? Well, I was feeling so good after my workouts, that I felt like doing more. I just felt like I had to do more or else I really wasn’t giving it my all. Now, I love doing doubles. I love waking up earlier, getting a workout in first thing, because by the time the afternoon rolls around, I feel like I am ready for another one. If I only do one, it’s almost like I get discouraged. So “doubles” keeps me motivated. I’m not sure how it will translate into progress yet, but if it makes me healthier and in a better mood, then that is all that matters. Also, for me it’s not all about results that I can see, but just general well-being and energy.

At basketball, I feel like I can run around more, although I do crash sometimes, probably because I’m not eating enough. I try my best to stick with the nutrition plan, but like I said, it’s hard to eat as much and as often as they would like you to, especially if you are on the run or are having a hectic day.

Overall, though, I’m actually glad to be only halfway done. If I were three-quarters of the way done, I think I would be almost sad. Being halfway done gives me more time to accomplish my goals, most of which I feel are pretty close in my grasp, other’s not so much, but I have no worries, I will reach them. It’s weird, but I actually love working out again. It’s something that is becoming an activity to look forward to rather than dread.

I want to thank Stickel for staying on my case, Colin for starting the diet and doing great on it, Salena, Eliza, Nathaniel C. Reilly, and anyone else that calls me a wuss and says I won’t finish because that just motivated me more, and also everyone who checks up on my progress and encourages me.

Bring on the next 45+ days.

My results for the first 30 days are:

• Weight: 226 pounds (down 14 pounds)
• Right Arm: 15 1/2″ (up from 15 1/8 – 3/8″ gain)
• Left Arm: 15 1/2″ (up from 15 1/4 – 1/4″ gain)
• Chest: 45″ (down from 45 1/2″ – 1/2″ loss)
• Waist: 40″ (no change)

To be honest, I’m a little disappointed that there was no change in my waist, but my belt definitely is down a few loops, so I’m not quite sure what happened. Perhaps I measured a little off the first time around, but overall, I’m very pleased with the results.

Because I’m so happy with the results, I’ve decided to start doing Doubles this next phase, which is adding in a bunch of cardio every other day on top of your regular routine. I’m also going to try to follow the nutrition plan to the tee. There will be times here or there that I will be forced to eat something different, which is completely fine and balanced, but when I have the choice, I’m going to make the one that is set out in the meal plan.

Again, the biggest challenge for me is the nutrition plan, and not because its too restrictive. Its because they want you to eat so much. I have a tough time eating as much as they tell you to under the portion control approach, but I am trying my best to follow it verbatim and am curious to see how the results will change this next round.

As has been noted before, I’ve stopped twice past the point where I am now (at week 6 both times). But, this go round just feels different. It really does. I’ve never felt this motivated, this excited to keep on going. I don’t know if it’s the episodes of Biggest Loser and their sappy music or what, but I just have a strong feeling that I’m going to finish this. Scratch that, this is for you Stickel – I’m going to finish what I started and do my best and….. forget the rest.

To everybody on the diet, keep up the good work and bring it.

Before getting into my specific goals, I might as well post my starting weight and additional information (measurements coming soon):

My Starting Info.

• Starting Weight: 240 pounds
• Body Fat % 23-24% (This number may be high, but I am using a cheap pair of calipers. My plan is to use this number to see how much I’ve lost using the same calipers and same formula, then when I get down 10 percentage points or so, I’ll get tested for reals.)

Measurements – Taken 2 weeks in

• Left Arm: 15 1/4″
• Right Arm: 15 1/8″
• Chest: 45 1/2″
• Waist: 40″

My Goals: (Stickel asked for three, I might do some extra)

• Get down to 10% body fat
• Be able to touch my toes. (right now I can barely get past my knees)
• Be able to do 15 unassisted pull ups.
• Be able to do all 339 gut busting moves on Ab Ripper X.
• Be able to run 5 miles by the end of the summer

You may notice there are no goal as regards to weight. In all honesty, I really don’t care about my weight. Weight is just a number to me. If I weigh 250 pounds and am 10% body fat than so be it.

Staying Motivated

I have enlisted Mike to be my personal motivator for my entire 90 days, even though he may not have agreed to that. I am going to bug him everyday, annoy him to no end, and complain and whine the whole time. But truly, he is an inspiration to me, as is James Mathias, as is Colin Devroe, as is everyone else doing this diet.

Please stay on me, everyone. Ask me how I’m doing. Rag on me if I’m in danger of quitting. I need to get through this to prove I can.

When I’m working out, when I’m eating right, and when I’m staying focused, I’m a much more satisfied, happy person. In the midst of a workout and when you are feeling beaten down, exhausted, and run down, wanting to quit sometimes wins out. But, I intend to make it through this time, I truly do. I know this is all talk because I have stopped two times already in the past. But hopefully, this time the talk will stick, the motivation will remain, and the results will show.

X city, son.

What are your goals? Are you trying to lose a specific number, just get healthier, or accomplish something else? What type of training regimen are you using to accomplish those goals?