P90x! I'm now on Day 12 of the P90x classic-program. It is definitely intense, but what I've learned may be the most captain-obvious of lessons: Just do what you can! Or as Tony Horton says, "do your best and forget the rest"! When I started working out, pre-surgery, I had the P90x dvd's, but I was so out of shape, I couldn't even complete the warm-up on the cardio disc. But, I just kept doing as much as I could on that one cardio disc, and now I can get through the whole thing and then some. I'm really kicking ass, doing the full-program, but I know it's still early. I still can't do everything on every disc but I make modifications, not excuses. How's that for a motivational slogan this fine morning!
This intense exercise regiment has me feeling nostalgic of days past and optimistic about my future. I really want to compete (and finish) a triathlon one day, maybe even the Ironman could be attainable with enough work and preparation, but I'll take it one step at a time. One good thing is that the odds of me being harpooned during an open-water swim are much less now! Ah, the silver-lining of weight-loss. Maybe it's my perseverance masked as stubbornness, but even when I was much heavier, I could do far more cardio than folks of comparable size. I never liked running, but when I lived in Hawaii in 2003-2004, I joined the Army ROTC program while I was a student at University of Hawaii Manoa. Because of my weight, I wasn't allowed to contract with the Army, but I was able to participate in the program. Back then, I weighed in at a solid 320lbs. That said, I was still expected to run a lot. We ran three days a week, early in the Hawaiian mornings. At the peak of my physical conditioning, I actually entered a 8.15 mile race "The Great Aloha Run." The funny part, is that I was the very last person to start the race out of nearly 10,000 people. I had missed the last bus that took runners from the finish-line to the start-line. So after realizing I missed the shuttle, I was super discouraged. In fact, I almost just drove my truck back to my Waikiki condo for a day of eating and relaxation. However, there was something in me that really wanted to complete the race. So, I drove as close to the start-line as I could get (about a half-mile away), parked in a mall-parking garage, and started running. By the time I got to the starting line, the Honolulu Police Department was starting to take down the road-block signs and open up the roads. Again, I was discouraged, but wanted to keep going. So, I kept running. After about a mile, I started passing the stragglers, the short-legged kiddies and their parents, the elderly, the big Samoan families walking together, the longer I ran the more people I passed, but my legs hurt something fierce the entire time. Eventually I got into the middle of the pack of people who were walking and jogging, the pain in my legs turned to numbness and I realized I was half-way done! Ultimately, I kept going and managed to jog the entire distance of the race without walking a single step. The feeling of crossing the finish-line and running into Aloha Stadium with thousands of people cheering gave me such a sense of accomplishment and pride. I can only imagine what it would be like to train for and complete an Ironman. We'll add Ironman to the bucketlist, so you can't say I don't dream big dreams. For now, I'm going to keep doing my P90x. At the end of 90 days, we'll see what I can handle.
