Day Zero

Day 0

   Believe it or not it took some time to prepare for this thing.  I thought for sure I could just dial a number, take advantage of the free express shipping, put on some shorts and plug&play.  Not so.  There's a lot of information to digest.

The Nutrition Guide
   First thing I looked at was the "Nutrition Guide."  I spent about an hour going through this thoroughly.  I have to admit I originally thought I was just going to flip the pages and be done, but I soon found out I had a lot to learn about my body, and about the way I eat.

• Maintaining a healthy diet is going to be the most important thing you need to understand before starting p90x.  Commit to it now.

  The workout is intense, make no mistake, if your body is not properly fueled it will crash. (Like trying to fly an airplane that has just run out of fuel: first their will be a stall, then a decline, and finally an explosion.)  I have experienced what it's like to "under-eat," and it's scary when you body starts to shake and you start to shiver.

The Fitness Guide

   Next, I went to the "Fitness Guide."  Honestly, my first look at this thing scared the crap out of me.  I almost pushed the whole workout to the side and said forget about it.  I thought: I have a nasty gut, and I'm heavier than I've ever been.  Therefore my reaction was: there's no way I can do this.  But I began to pray for strength and soon I was motivated enough to look through it.  I diagnosed my problems instead of dismissing them.

• My Heart rate was high
• I failed 3 parts of the Fitness Test (Pull-ups, sit-ups, and push-ups)
• I had low self-esteem

   Despite these flaws I pressed on, committing to the work that was ahead of me.

Equipment

   Well you'll need it.  Just as I did.  I was on a pretty tight budget, so I couldn't get everything at once.  This left more room for discouragement, because I was itching to start the workout.  I had to purchase the following:

• Heart-rate Monitor: $95
• Work-out/Yoga Mat: $25
• One Medium Strength Work-out Band: $15
• One pair of Light Free Weights: $7
• Food Scale: $40
• Blender: $40
• Pull-up Bar: $30

   I didn't even get everything I needed.  So as I buy more things I will post a new equipment list.  The last thing I did was take my "day 0" pictures.  I am ashamed to post them, so we'll have to wait until I take the "day 91" photos to see 'em.

In total: my wife and I took three weeks to prepare for p90x.  We took our time, we thought things through, we planned ahead, we budgeted our money, we set-apart time on our schedules, we stocked our fridge with good food, and we prayed.

Time to "Bring it!"