Background & Numerical Proof!

Here’s my fit test results from around July 27, 2009

Prior to Day 01

1. Physical Condition

Pull-Ups 0.125 Reps

Vertical Leap 9 Inches

Push-Ups 21 Reps

Toe Touch 4.5 Inch

Wall Squat 295 Seconds

Bicep Curls 23 Reps with 12.5 lbs Weight

In & Outs 53 reps

2. Cardiac Condition

Resting Heart Rate 76 Bpm

Heart Rate Maximizer: (Do jumping jacks for 2 minutes at a quick & steady pace. During final 30 seconds go as fast as possible to maximize heart rate. Then measure heart rate over next 4 minutes.)

Immediately 160 Bpm

After 1 minute 124 Bpm

After 2 minutes 124 Bpm

After 3 minutes 108 Bpm

After 4 minutes 88 Bpm

And measurements from September 21, 2009

All in inches, taken on the right side of my body, at the widest point

Neck - 12.75

• 13 in July

Shoulder - 40.5

Chest - 35

Waist (2' above navel) - 28.5

Abdomen (narrowest point – at navel) - 28.5

• 31.5 in July

Hips - 37.25

• 40 in July

Thigh (90 degrees) – 22

• 23 in July

• Oh my thighs. I love you, but we could get rid of those inverse saddlebags, I’d be a happier woman. Instead of saddlebags on the outside of my thighs, I carry them on the inside. So weird!

Knee - 13.75

Calf - 13

Ankle - 8.5

Bicep (90 degrees) - 11.25

• 12 in July (I’ll assume this is mostly lost fat and not only lost muscle mass)

Forearm - 10

Wrist - 6.5

Waist-Hip Ratio - 0.7651

Just for reference, most of the visible flab that I can only laugh at in the mirror runs from about 2 inches above my navel to about 1/2 of the way down my thigh. Ah well. Let’s see what dedicating myself to P90X can do about that.

If you're still reading (why are you still reading?)

Basic info: I’m Lisa P, born in South Carolina on May 28, 1979 – yeah for turning 30! I’ve lived in Chicago since 2001.

I’m 5’8” tall, somewhat medium framed. Learning to like running. Or actually, I like listening to my iPod, so I run while doing it. I like lifting weights – more than cardio usually. So I’m a bit mystified by my new love of running and resistance to my resistance workouts. I tend to build muscle somewhat quickly and lose fat somewhat slowly. I want to do 35 pull-ups for my 35th birthday. I can almost do a quarter of one now. (Oh me.)

I love to cook and bake, so I brown bag the bulk of my meals. My eating philosophy tends to be: I eat a lot of meatless meals, but I like my steaks medium rare. Ideally, if when I eat junk food, it’s not just a burger from a chain restaurant because I’m busy. But if the mood strikes, I’ll eat a spectacular gut-buster burger from a locally-owned place when I’m really in a mood for one of their specific burgers.

I have a pretty wide ranging palate. Other than fried organ meats (bleh) and lima or butter beans (double bleh) there’s not much I won’t eat. I’m a big fan of most fruits and veggies.

I can make an awesome deep-fried Twinkie, or deep-fried Oreo (hey, I’m a Southerner) but I couldn’t get the batter to stick to the deep-fried Snickers bar. I’ll get it someday. Deep down, I kinda like something I read in a public health article “Eat anything you want, as long as you make it yourself.” Seems pretty reasonable to me for basic health.

So let’s do this! Whoo-hoo!

Been a long time, shouldn’ta left you…”

…without a dope beat to step to.” – Timbaland in the intro Aaliyah’s music video “Try Again.”

Anyway, I’m baaaack! I’ve (yet again) decided to reboot my P90X journey. Someday, somehow I’ll get through 90 days of P90X. I’ve rebooted at least 10 times never made it past day 35. This time in 3 months I got through 3 weeks worth of workouts. But every time I start, it means the previous sputter-out wasn’t a complete stop; it was just a pause.

So, today, Tuesday, September 22, 2009 is my new Day 1. I’ve got new pictures to prove it! They’ll go up as soon as I figure out the best way to do that. According to my nifty Excel spreadsheet (thank you Beachbody!) my planned completion date will be Monday, December 21, 2009. Just in time for the end of the year.

When I started 2009, I’d hoped to do 3 rounds of P90X. More true to my form, I’m praying I can get through one round by January 1, 2010. As long as I keep failing forward, I’m happy.

I’m keeping my old Fit Test results from the end of July, even though I’ve lost some upper body strength. Urgh. But I’ve got the pictures this time. Haven’t done those with a reboot in a while. I’ve also got new measurements. I’ll make a separate post with all that jazz.

Why am I doing this? To get fit. To paraphrase comic & commentator Elon James White “I hate running. What’s chasing me? Oh yeah, that family history of Type II Diabetes and Heart Disease.”

Why am I doing this online? To keep me honest. I want as many people watching this blog as possible. I know that it will pain me to my soul to publically admit to the masses that, “Yeah I had time and ability to do that workout, I just punked out.”

Plus, I’m hoping to (learn to swim!) then race in a short triathlon within the next two years. Since I honestly do have to learn to swim (not a big learned skill for Black girls from the South) I’m giving myself 2 years to hit that goal. At some point, I also want to take my half-marathon into a full 26.2 – yikes! Doing those without literally killing myself will take some discipline. And yeah, discipline comes from within, but I can look without for some encouragement.

Also, I’m unemployed at the moment and actively looking for work.

(Anyone need a financial analyst, also getting certified in project management?)

Working out helps me stay focused on the job search. Even if a day of applying and interviewing feels like a bust, at least I broke out a good sweat. Discipline in my workout program generally translates to more discipline in my life in general. More discipline is generally a good thing.

For now, I’ll focus on chronicling my workouts. Eventually I’ll add my food intake. (Oh gracious. That’ll be interesting.)

I'm a two-time half marathoner!

As of this morning I am a two-time half marathoner! Whoo-hoo!

13.1 miles in 2 hr, 18 min, 49 sec. I’m pretty damn proud of myself.

There was a light drizzle at the beginning that stopped for most of the middle, then became a heavy drizzle for the last 3 miles or so. But the weather was cool and I’m proud of my time. Much better than the last half marathon I did in 2007. That one took about 4 hours.

Now I’m off for some stretching, a shower, some Aleve, and the rest of my day!

Reboot!

It's more than a cartoon series!

(caution You Tube video)

A friend from high school emailed me over the weekend asking about P90X. She and her husband were looking for a new workout regime and asked if I could recommend it.

I sent a tl;dr email with more detail than she surely wanted, they took the plunge and ordered.

So they're new venture inspired me to reboot myself. I got about 2.5 weeks off my schedule, so it made sense. Plus, hopefully this (almost) trans-continental accountability will help all of us.

So, I'm doing the Fit Test, measurements, and photos tonight. Tuesday will be my new Day 1.

These pants are getting looser

Added to the recent 158 lb discovery - I'm also fitting into some old size 8 pants.

Kick ass! (Literally, I guess!)