To Insanity and Beyond

Today was my last day to try to get through a Pure Cardio workout without stopping. I failed.

I’ve gotten very close to completing Pure Cardio in the last few weeks but have always fallen short because of two exercises: Level 2 Drills and Push Up Jacks. Today was more of the same. Out of 15 minutes of straight cardio with no rest, I can handle all but two minutes of them. And those two minutes come at around the eight minute mark and the 15 minute mark.

I’m hoping that as I progress through the rest of Insanity that I can build up my strength and stamina enough to be able to complete this workout. I’m really not sure why I haven’t yet, but I’m more than a little disappointed in myself for not having gotten through it yet. And since this is my last time doing this workout I’m going to have to set my sights on something else to accomplish in the program.

As for Cardio Abs, I was really challenged by this workout this morning. Specifically the warm ups, because there is a lot of jumping to open the workout. And having just come out of Pure Cardio, the jumping is so much more painful and challenging than it would normally be. Still, I have continually improved in Cardio Abs and am getting very close to being able to keep up with all of the exercises. I’m still have a lot of work to do to be able to say that I can do it completely without resting, but I am way farther along now than I was just a couple of weeks ago.

I now have one more workout left in the entry section of Insanity and that workout is Plyometric Cardio Circuit. Next week is my recovery week then it is on to the Max workouts. Which I am kinda looking forward to since it’s been a while since I’ve done those and I would really like to accelerate my weight loss, which as of now has seemed to stall out completely. But I’ll post more on that later.

Why does Shaun T even call it recovery, anyway? I mean, you’d think recovery would describe a way for your muscles to actually, oh, I don’t know, recover. Not in Insanity.

Not that I’m complaining… loudly. I actually love that there is no jumping in Cardio Recovery. But I gotta tell you, the slowness and depth of the exercises is a killer. The slow squats, squat holds, squat pulses, slow lunges, lunge holds and lung pulses kill me. Every single time. And there seems to be no way around it for me.

All of the other exercises I can do, though some are a little challenging, with relative ease. The bent leg, plank butt lifts – I really don’t even know what Shaun T calls them – are pretty tough just because of the form you have to be in to do them. But I can still do them. And most of the other plank based exercises are not nearly as tough now as they were just a few weeks ago.

But those slow movements are my undoing. So I have yet another thing to try to improve upon on my body. I really want to be able to do the low and slow leg exercises without having to stop like I do now. I know it will take leg strength to do it.

But if there is one thing I’ve learned in Insanity, it is that I can do anything. It might hurt a little bit, and it might be uncomfortable, but it is always attainable. I just need to dig deeper.

Ski Abs and In N Out Abs, why do you hate me so?

I have pretty muched owned Plyometric Cardio Circuit for this entire round of Insanity. Pretty much because except for Ski Abs and In N Out Abs I have not really needed to take a rest during any part of this workout. But I have not seemed to be able to overcome the insanity of Ski Abs. This exercise is one that works out almost your entire body. It definitely targets your abs and obliques, but it doesn’t stop there.

It works your shoulders, your chest, your quads, your glutes and to a lesser extent, your back. I’m really not sure which of these areas I am weakest in, but since I know I am not strong in all of them I’m certain that a few of these areas are failing me when it comes time to get Ski Abs done. And since In N Out Abs are almost the same workout, save for the in and out motion of the “leg pull up” as opposed to the side to side AND in and out motion of the “leg pull up” in Ski Abs, it pretty much goes without saying that whatever challenges me about Ski Abs will likewise challenge me about In N Out Abs.

So today was like all the rest up to now: I breezed through the warm ups, nailed the first circuit and kicked butt on the first two exercises of the second circuit. But come time to hit the floor for Ski Abs, I die out. And I’m not seeing any sign of improvement in my stamina or ability to overcome the challenge of this exercise.

All of this is to day that I have one more day to try to finish this workout entirely without rest. And as much as I want it, being realistic with myself means I have to come to grips with the notion that I might not be able to hit that goal. We’ll see in a couple of days when I hit this one again. Until then, I will be trying to identify which parts of my body I need to target so I don’t get schooled in my floor abdominal work anymore.

As much as I have had it in my mind that I was going to complete all three main programs in the entry weeks of Insanity, I have to be honest and say I will be falling short of that goal. This morning was a rough morning for me. I’m not sure why, but I was struggling through Cardio Power and Resistance today and since it is the last time I will be doing it I will not have the chance to complete it straight through again.

My main point of struggle came in the second circuit. I am pretty sure that I am not going to be challenged by the warm ups in the early week programs anymore. That said, I was able to blow through them as I have been doing. And while I still work up quite the sweat, I am not gasping for air like before. I’m so accustomed to these warm ups, in fact, that I can carry on a conversation through them now.

I managed to get through the first circuit without stopping for rest, but I know for a fact it was harder today than the last time I did this program. The V Push Ups were particularly challenging this morning, though I can’t say why. And the Triceps Dips were also challenging again, though I was able to get more of them done this time than last time.

The second circuit though… that one had my number this morning. The Moving Push Ups were extremely hard this morning, and in the last interval I actually rested during them for a short second. And once again the floor sprints were insanely hard for me and I had to rest during them as well.

The challenge exercises was likewise a challenge – no pun intended. I’m not sure why but I was having a hard time taking control of my shoulders and arms today and it showed in the Hop Squat to Push Up combination. As you can imagine, stopping during the Moving Push Ups was an obvious sign that push ups were going to be hard to do. That carried over into the challenge exercise in the second circuit and I had to rest a couple of times.

So there I have it. I wanted so bad to be able to complete all three of the early exercises of Insanity. Sadly, I cannot say that I was able to do that. I am still going to push through as hard as I can for the remaining exercises, but I did fall short of my goal.

You know, sometimes I really hate Shaun T. Never more than on Pure Cardio days.

I’ve had it in my head that I was going to be completing a Pure Cardio program this time around in Insanity. I’ve been so close to doing it the last few times that I’m thinking for sure I’ll be able to to complete it. When I say complete, I mean handle all 15 exercises in the program without rest. So far the farthest I’ve gotten is about seven and a half minutes through – Level 2 Drills – before I absolutely have nothing left to give and I need to stop to catch my breath. Today was no exception.

I wish I knew what it was about Level 2 Drills that absolutely destroy me. Perhaps its the fact that I have ran myself into the ground for a solid seven minutes before I get to them. Or maybe it’s that the exercise before these, Power Jacks, are so leg intensive. Whatever the reason, I’m usually no good for more than about 30 seconds of Level 2 Drills.

The nice thing is I bounce back very quickly, get back on pace and handle my business until the last exercise – Push Up Jacks. Such was the case today. Push Up Jacks are another one of my nemesis exercises in Pure Cardio and once again they killed me today.

Honestly I don’t feel like I made any progress today over the last time I did this program. Well, not in Pure Cardio anyway. In Cardio Abs I do.

The warm ups for Cardio Abs are a little hard to handle after all the jumping done in Pure Cardio. That’s because about half of the Cardio Abs warm up is some form of jumping exercise. As much as I love pushing myself, the warm ups for Cardio Abs kill me. Badly.

The ab workouts themselves aren’t so bad. I can do many of them for the 30 second workout period that they are done in. The area I need the most improvement is in my hip flexors. I know this because in some cases when I am in the C-sit I can’t help but start shaking and the only thing that stops that is to ease my hip flexors.

It’s all good though. My abs are getting a great workout, I’m keeping the great sweat going from Pure Cardio and still working out my heart so I have no complaints. At the end of it all, Pure Cardio and Cardio Abs days are hard. Harder than anything you do in Insanity to this point. But they are also very refreshing and energizing.

I still want to hit my goal of being able to complete a Pure Cardio program without resting. I have one more chance left in a couple of days when I do it all over again for the last time. We’ll see how it goes. I’m pretty determined, but Level 2 Drills and Push Up Jacks seem to want to test my determination. Perhaps next time I will hand them their first defeat.

If you’re anything like me you’e either at that point where you want to work out every single day or you will be there shortly. No matte how good you feel about yourself and your progress, please don’t overdo it. There is a reason that rest is a scheduled day on Insanity. It’s because your body needs it.

You spend six days a week pounding yourself into oblivion, getting in the best shape of your life and trying not to reach into the TV and strangle Shaun T. You should spend your one day off not doing those things.

So rest today. Your body needs. Your mind needs it. Besides, tomorrow will be here before you know it and you’ll be back to getting an up close and personal look at your floor before you know it.

I think I might be hitting a wall with Insanity as it relates to weight loss. I only say this because I am kicking butt pretty good but am not seeing the dramatic weight loss results like I did the first time I did the program.

I am working harder, pushing more, doing more and digging deeper than I have ever done before. Yet the pounds seem to be sticking to me. I wish I knew why this was happening because honestly, this is really frustrating.

Still, a loss is a loss so I’m celebrating it. And hoping for more next week.

What a strange day it was today, working out. I actually felt energized before my workout today, which was nice because I knew it would be hard to work out today. It was hot, I had already done a little bit of yard work and I was still a little full from lunch that I ate just a couple hours earlier. But once I got going it was a fun and exhilarating experience.

The warm ups were once again a breeze. Likewise, the first circuit was pretty easy today. Easier than most times that I have done it. But the second circuit was a different story.

I struggled today more than I have the last few times I’ve done this program. I’m really not sure why I got worked over the way I did but the second circuit was really rough on me. I normally I die out on Ski Abs but today I started fading during Level 1 Drills. So the last three routines of each round of the second circuit destroyed me.

One nice thing about me now though is that I am recovering a lot quicker. My heart rate was back to normal very fast and by the time the program was over I was ready for more. So I did more.

I have started doing a push up circuit of my own at the end of some of my workouts. I do two sets of eight reps of three different types of push ups: Diamond Push Ups, Regular Push Ups and Wide Arm Push Ups. I do them like any normal Insanity circuit, pushing through the first three reps then taking a short rest then running them back again. This breaks down to 48 push ups at the end of my normal Insanity program. I’m hoping to ramp this up over time so I can, at some point, push out 200 push ups after a workout. We’ll see how that goes.

Until Monday, keep pushing and keep digging deep. Victory and success is yours for the taking. Go take it, and take it by force.

Oh. My. Goodness. Today was so challenging.

This morning I completed a string of Insanity workouts in a way that I will probably not do again. Because I couldn’t workout Wednesday night I decided to wake up Thursday morning and do Wednesday’s workout on Thursday morning as a make up. That was Pure Cardio and Cardio Abs. Then I did Cardio Recovery last night to stay on schedule. Then, to get back on my morning schedule, I decided to wake up and do Cardio Power & Resistance this morning. That is a total of four Insanity programs in 24 hours. And I am pooped.

Even though I feel very tired I am still very much refreshed and feeling very strong. I think it takes a lot to be able to workout like I have over the last 24 hours. It isn’t easy to do a single Insanity program, let alone four inside of 24 hours. But it can be done. It might hurt a little… no, it WILL hurt a lot, but it can be done if you push through and dig deep.

I had to dig really deep today. I was totally feeling the effects of the last 24 hours as I did my workout today. I didn’t have nearly the strength or stamina that I have had the last few times I’ve done Cardio Power & Resistance. But I was still able to do an enormous amount of the exercises today. And while I wasn’t able to complete all of them, I worked out hard and was able to do very well on theme still.

Like I said, I will probably not ever try to workout like this again. But at least I know for a fact that it can be done. And I know that I have completely destroyed another boundary that I had thought I had. If there is one thing that Insanity will teach you it’s that whatever limits you think you have, you don’t. There is nothing you can’t do if you just decide to do it. And that is all I did today.

Most the time I love recovery. But in Insanity, recovery is simply a way of saying “you’re going to still workout, only slower and more painfully”.

The one thing I love about Cardio Recovery is that there is no jumping in it. It is totally no-impact so that helps a guy like me, who is pretty large, really allow his lower extremities to rest. Of course that is totally compensated for with the insane slowness of the deep and large muscle exercises we do in this program.

Slow squats, slow lunges, pulses… all of these are murder on your muscles. But they are murder in a good way. I’m amazed at how much stronger my legs have become since I started Insanity. And I am amazed at how much stronger I am mentally, knowing that certain exercises are going to hurt like hell but still being able to prepare myself mentally to accept that and still push through.

Today I was challenged physically AND mentally. And I had to step up big time, both physically and mentally, in order to complete today’s recovery workout. This is mainly because I did Pure Cardio & Cardio Abs this morning because of a schedule issue last night. So I was actually doing two different Insanity programs on the same day with recovery being the second. That made Cardio Recovery extremely challenging today.

At the of it I was tired, sore and felt fatigued. I actually haven’t felt fatigued like this since my first week of my first round Insanity. Which was kinda nice because I was able to capture that feeling again and really dig deep, pushing myself through the end of the workout to complete it. And when it was all done I felt good, if a little tired, and very, very accomplished.