Team Beachbody ¡preestreno!Español Guest

My transformation started with my workout partner, Ryan. We were standing in line to get our breakfast burritos at work and he started talking about an infomercial that he had seen on TV for a workout program called P90X. He said it looked extreme and was meant for people that were already in relatively good health. He thought that I should check it out since I was already “relatively” fit. Unfortunately, Ryan found out the next day that he was loosing his workout partner for at least the next 3 months because I had bought the program.

Of course I did quite a bit of research to see what others thought about the program before I purchased it. I liked the fact that if nothing else I would definitely get a good workout and relatively little equipment was needed to complete the program. But, that night I also decided that if I were really going to do this, then I was going to do it “all the way.”

P90X arrived a few days later, but I put off starting the program because I wanted to have everything planned out. So for the next 2 weeks, I setup my workout area with a pull-up bar, set of Power-Blocks, push up bars, rug, yoga mat, yoga block, television, and a DVD player. I also spent that time planning out meals for the next 3 months according to the nutrition guide. Since I’m pretty busy with work during the week, I planned my meals such that I could do all of my shopping and preparation for the entire week on Sunday. Using the Fat Shredder phase of the P90X Nutrition Plan as a guide, I created a meal plan consisting of 40/40/20 (carbs/protein/fat). But, most of my carbs were now coming from fruits and vegetables rather than grains. To make my dinners easy to make I ended up buying tons of frozen vegetables that I could steam in the microwave, and I would prep 6 oz. portions of chicken breast that I could freeze for the week. I created a spreadsheet to track my caloric intake which included Protein Bars as midday snacks and Beachbody’s After Workout Recovery Drink. I followed this diet religiously for 90 days, and it still pervades my life even after I’ve finished P90X.

On DAY 0 I had a friend help me complete my fitness test before embarking on P90X. I was a little disappointed and surprised at some of the measurements that we wrote down, and I absolutely hated the pictures that we took. Apparently in my mind I looked much better without clothes on than I actually did.

On DAY 1 of P90X I woke up and drank my preplanned protein shake, made my lunch, gathered up my bag of healthy snacks, and headed off to work. I hadn’t brought my lunch to work for years. That afternoon I drank my first V8, ever. On top of being a vegetable drink, I had bought the low sodium version and remember thinking “I hope this stuff doesn’t make me puke.” I finished the can while a few of my coworkers looked on hoping for a more dramatic reaction, but it wasn’t that bad. Of course I would still prefer a milkshake, but I probably drank over 3 cases of V8 while completing P90X.

I made it through work and rushed home to change into my workout gear. I logged into Team Beachbody’s website and started my workout in WOWY then pressed play on Disc 1 – Chest & Back. The workout totally kicked my butt. I was amazed that anyone could do so many pullups.

The next day at work, I informed Ryan that indeed P90X was no joke, but I wasn’t giving up. I took Team Beachbody’s motto “Decide. Commit. Succeed.” truly to heart, and it became my mantra.

The first phase of P90X was the hardest part of the program for me because I wasn’t really seeing any immediate changes. I started to question everything. Surely after a month something should be happening? I soon found my answer when I put off a Yoga X day to run a 5K at work. I finished with a personal best time since high school (7:11 min/mile) and was in shock because I hadn’t been running at all. P90X had made me a better runner without running!!

Shortly after that I began to notice distinct changes in my muscles. I suddenly had shoulders, my bicep veins started to protrude when I worked out (I had never seen these veins before), and my chest was filling out.

Day 90 finally arrived, and I scheduled a fitness evaluation at work to get my body fat measurement. I already knew that I had lost 10 pounds, but I didn’t really know what my new body composition was. We completed the evaluation and the trainer seemed impressed because she had performed the same evaluation on me less than a year earlier. I had to laugh when she commented on my “runner’s legs” because of my 5K experience. We she told me that she estimated my body fat to be 8.5%, I was astounded. I had no idea that I had gotten that lean. I had essentially gained over 10 lbs of muscle and lost over 20 lbs of fat. At that moment P90X had more than paid for itself because I could have never have achieved such results so quickly on my own.

The congratulations that I’ve received from friends is a great feeling but the greatest reward for myself is knowing that I’ve completely changed my body and lifestyle for the better and I would go as far as to say forever. Now that I’ve come this far I want to keep going and see how much better I can become. P90X has broken every physical and mental barrier that I have ever placed on myself. And, it’s made me realize that the only thing that has ever stopped me from achieving my goals in the past has been simply myself. Thank you Team Beachbody.