P90X – Day 17 – Shoulders, Arms and Ab Ripper X

January 18, 2010 by Shane

Monday Morning Burn

This morning it occurred to me that I am 3 days into week 3! Immediately questions starting forming like, “Am I still supposed to be using the chair for help with pull ups?” “Should I be able to get through Ab Ripper X without pausing the video to finish certain routines?” “Will I see more results soon?” I am sure these are common questions that  people have during different phases of the P90X program. However, the questions and doubts are still there. I decided that I would take Tony’s advice and “Do my best and forget the rest.” That being said, I pumped out a good work out and noticed some good improvements on my stat sheets. It was a solid Monday morning workout and I followed it up with a round of Ab Ripper X.

Hitting the Pause Button

For some reason, I have never hit the pause button during the routines to finish a preset number of reps. For example, when Tony says we are doing 16, I would do as many as I could until the time ran out. I realized getting in these set number of reps is crucial to achieve results. Especially finishing the sets with good form. So, I have now added the note of hitting the pause button to finish sets when there is a predetermined number to do. This is really helpful for Ab Ripper X. The total 339 will help me achieve the look I am going for.

Time for an Upgrade

I have been talking about upgrading the amount of weight I work out with for a few weeks. Yesterday afternoon I stopped over to Play it Again Sports and tested out a few different weights. For exercises like lawnmowers I want something that I have to really struggle to get 6-8. I tried a 55 lb dumbbell and was able to do 8 reps on both sides. When I bumped up to the 60, my left side was a little tougher to get 6. I believe I am going to get the 55 and try a round of Chest and Back. If I am able to get through both rounds of lawnmowers with the 55 and good form, I will stick with them. Otherwise I will be taking advantage of the 14 day return policy . I am also planning on upgrading my regular routine weights to 25 from 20. I am getting good form reps in with the 20 lbs and I believe I am ready for the next level. I will be sure to post my results of the weight upgrade, if I can still type after it.