This weekend I have just completed the P90X fitness program. During the last 13 weeks I did about 120 hours of workout including about 2,700 pull-ups and 2,500 push-ups. Beyond the gain of muscles and weight, I learned a lot and here is what I retained:

1. The weight you lift is NOT the most important - Performing the move in a proper form is critical to obtain results, I didn't let my ego get in the way and choose lighter weight to focus on nice and control moves.
2. Recovery is key to allow muscles to grow - Even if I felt guilty during the recovery weeks, my performance always increased when I started again with intense workouts. 
3. Good food really helps to sustain workouts - The adequate food contributes to stamina, strength and balance. On the other hand junk food can kill all the efforts and the will. P90X definitively changed my food habits: I eat to have enough energy and to quickly recover.
4. Whole wheat pasta are actually tasty - That's good luck, it's inexpensive and simple to prepare, I eat it a lot!
5. Not ALL protein powder are bad - I eat a lot of banana milk-shake (vegetal milk) mixed with Jay Robb whey proteins. They seem to be natural and are recommended by dieteticiens.  
6. Before P90X I was using only a fraction of my capacity - I did running and workouts for many years but I realize now that I wasn't pushing me to the edge and I was focusing just on some specific spots. 
7. The more energy I spend, the more I have - I needed less sleeping hours to feel fully loaded (6 or 7 hours instead of 8), the two extra hours were the opportunity to catch up time spend to do exercise.  
8. Fitness is really addictive - The more I exercise, the more I enjoy it, that's why it's so hard to respect a resting day during the week. 

   

Click here to download:

celebrating-end-of-p90x-with-japanese-food-oCDabkgfbalhGuijcfFt.zip (1637 KB)

Snaps from Tanto Japanese restaurant on El Camino Real in Sunnyvale. 

• Gyu ishiyaki - hot stone plate beef
• Tofu satsuma age - deep fried tofu cakes

• Kani gratin - Crab gratin ***
• Gyoza - pork & vegetables potstickers
• Hotate butter uni nose - scallop & sea urchin ***

So yummy ! 

I started the P90X fitness program 45 days ago. At half way I can say that it's really worth the sweat of the 10 hours weekly training. Intensive workouts combined with the right food that fuels me up definitively changed within a few months, both my mind and body. Anyway if you want to improve your health and the quality of your life, you should think about such a fitness program, you will think more clearly, feel better under stress and your coordination will improve, let's do it :-)