First of all, here is some basic information about myself. I am a 18 and a senior in high school. I run Cross Country and Track, and am also a big Beachbody fan! I began using P90X in November 2008. I completed 3 full rounds of it and got great results. I added somhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gife lean quality muscle and strength, and improved all aspects of my functional fitness. I then soon purchased P90X+, Insanity, and the One on One workouts. I was mainly doing a bunch of hybrids along with my running routine, until I got P90X2 this past December! I officially started the program on January 2, 2012, and I also planed to run 6 days a week to prep for my track season.
My main goal was to add to my athletic performance and functional strength to help me with my running in track come later in the spring. I bought the Deluxe package which came with a stability ball, medicine balls, a foam roller. I also already had a pullup bar and a weight set from 3-55 pounds. The first phase of P90X2, called the foundation phase, is all about increasing your core strength, balance, and stability. These workouts were challenging, but they didn't give me too much trouble since I had already had some experience from using the One on One workouts. I also slightly modified the schedule to fit into a 5 day period instead of a 6, so that way I could still get in my long run in on Saturdays then use Sunday as my rest day. After 3 weeks, I moved on to phase 2, the strength phase.
The 2nd phase is the most similar to P90X. The focus here is more on building functional strength, but by still incorporating balance and instability by using stability and medicine balls. I especially enjoyed getting to workout out with my coach, Josh Spencer, in X2 Shoulders + Arms! I did this phase for a total of 4 weeks, but switched in the bonus workouts the last 2 weeks.
Now this is what I had been waiting for, phase 3, the performance phase. During the next 3 weeks, I got to use the new P.A.P (Post-Activation-Potentiation) workouts. These workouts are killer and are all about increasing your overall athleticism. I was super sore after the first week, but during weeks 2 and 3 I saw major improvements in my reps and speed. My core and legs also become a lot stronger, which helped with my running and having a strong finishing kick in my races.
I have to say that I enjoyed P90X2 more than P90X. I love the concept of improving your athletic ability and not just your strength. After I finished the program on March 11, I noticed I was leaner, but my weight stayed relatively the same. Also, my track season has been going great. I am currently running 5 days a week, have a track meet once a week, and I also throw in 1-2 P90X2 or One on One workouts a week. My best races so far this season include a 11:09 2 mile, 4:57 mile, and 2:13 800 meters. I also definitely plan to incorporate P90X2 into my next hybrid program after the end of my track season.
