All Men and Women are not created equal

Contrary to popular belief, I believe all men and women are not created equal. In fact, the entire scientific field of genetics is living proof that everyone is created differently. Some people may argue that “all men created equal” refers to equality of choice and freedom in the United States, but even this isn’t true – take affirmative action, for example. Anyway, this post isn’t meant to be a political argument, but rather a work-in-progress as I discover the workout routine that suits my lifestyle.

Specifically, the workout series I will be doing is Power 90 eXtreme (or P90X). Throughout my whole life I’ve experimented with hitting the gym, getting a personal trainer, and trying various different at-home workout routines, and I have to admit that this series is the one that fits my lifestyle the best. Days are generally inconsistent for me, so I can’t hit the gym every day at 3:00pm, and even with a personal trainer I had rescheduling issues. This post marks the beginning of my commitment to P90X, and like all things I start, this commitment isn’t a blind leap of faith based on what others have said. In the month before this (and the month before my high school graduation), I tried virtually all of the workouts in the P90X routine on an inconsistent basis, mostly as an experiment. Now, however, graduation is over, high school is done, and I have a good three months before I head off to college – a perfect length of time to complete one 90-day round of the workout.

Where The Distance Meets The Horizon

Unlike most people who do P90X, I am training to run. Specifically, run long distance (hence the subtitle here). About three months ago, at the beginning of track season, I gave the P90X Ab Ripper X a few tries in one week. The results on the track next week weren’t phenomenal (as they shouldn’t be), but they were faster and easier (easier being the key word). Even back then, this was proof to me that P90X is something I should probably try, and this was just the Ab Ripper X, nothing else!

In the summer, most cross country teams are doing summer workouts in the blazing heat. Just thinking of those days brings me pain. However, I know a few runners on our team skipped those workouts and did their own personal training, and they actually turned out to be our fastest runners. While none of them did P90X, I figure the workout is intense enough to warrant a full off-season training regimen.

On Tony Horton’s (the creator of P90X) blog, there is a post about how to integrate P90X into your running routine. I’ve taken a look at that, but again, I prefer to modify the P90X classic schedule to fit my own daily schedule. So without further ado…

My Workout Routine

Remember that this is a work-in-progress post, and this routine is likely to change if I realize I can’t do some of the workouts due to time.

Block 1 (Weeks 1 through 3)

  • Day 1: Chest & Back
  • Day 2: Plyometrics
  • Day 3: Legs & Back, Ab Ripper X
  • Day 4: Yoga X
  • Day 5: Shoulders & Arms, Ab Ripper X
  • Day 6: Kenpo X
  • Day 7: Distance Run, X Stretch

My goal in the first three weeks is to develop other parts of my body that have been neglected by running without completely losing focus of other aspects such as flexibility and leg development. The distance runs on the last day are to help remind my body what I’m training for, as well as to maintain as much running base as I can.

Recovery Week (Week 4 )

  • Day 1: Core Synergistics
  • Day 2: Plyometrics
  • Day 3: Yoga X
  • Day 4: X Stretch
  • Day 5: Kenpo X
  • Day 6: Core Synergistics
  • Day 7: Yoga X

My recovery week consists mostly of core work and flexibility work. I’m not a generally flexible person and that is something I really want to improve on.

Block 2 (Weeks 5 through 7)

  • Day 1: Chest, Shoulders & Triceps
  • Day 2: Plyometrics
  • Day 3: Back & Biceps, Ab Ripper X
  • Day 4: Kenpo X
  • Day 5: Legs and Back, Ab Ripper X
  • Day 6: Yoga X
  • Day 7: Distance Run, X Stretch

Again, the focus here is to improve other parts of my body that aren’t get developed through running, while simultaneously increasing my flexibility and maintaining a running base.

Recovery Week (Week 8 )

  • Day 1: Yoga X
  • Day 2: Core Synergistics
  • Day 3: Kenpo X
  • Day 4: X Stretch
  • Day 5: Core Synergistics
  • Day 6: Yoga X
  • Day 7: Rest

This week is intended to feel like a real recovery week.

Block 3 (Weeks 9 through 11)

  • Day 1: Chest & Back
  • Day 2: Plyometrics
  • Day 3: Legs & Back, Ab Ripper X
  • Day 4: Yoga X
  • Day 5: Shoulders & Arms, Ab Ripper X
  • Day 6: Kenpo X
  • Day 7: Distance Run, X Stretch

This looks very much like the first week, but that’s the whole point of P90X – muscle confusion, so you don’t reach a peak.

Block 4 (Weeks 10 through 12)

  • Day 1: Chest, Shoulders & Triceps
  • Day 2: Plyometrics
  • Day 3: Back & Biceps, Ab Ripper X
  • Day 4: Yoga X
  • Day 5: Legs & Back, Ab Ripper X
  • Day 6: Kenpo X
  • Day 7: Distance Run, X Stretch

This last block looks like Block 2, but it’s supposed to. Muscle confusion, while maintaining my running base.

Final Thoughts

Overall, this workout schedule doesn’t incorporate much running, but I feel that getting a thorough workout of my entire body will be more important that trying to incorporate many runs. I will still have a few weeks left after the 90 days are over, so I ought to be able to go into full-time running by then. Let me know your thoughts, and if you do P90X, I would love to hear your advice.