8.29.08.. The Body RX Finished...

Hello All,

Sorry I did not update the Blog/YouTube yesterday with my pics. That is definitely the goal for today after work (after I run some errands for my grandma). I ended up going out to eat with my friends and did not get into bed until 12ish. Believe me I am exhausted as I type this because I had to wake up at 4:30am to get ready for work!!!

Anyway the reason I am typing this is because I have time at work today to do it and because I wanted to give you my afterthoughts on THE BODY RX. On June 30th 2008, I decided to start the program and see what I could accomplish. I am now 2 months into the program and my body has definitely changed. 2 months ago, I felt disgusting in my own skin and knew that I needed to change. I am relatively content with how I feel now and KNOW that there is a clear difference in my body composition. To make a long story short, doing this program was a great pre-cursor to P90X. The actual Body RX program is 6 months long, but when I saw the stories on YouTube about the body transformations P90X was responsible for, I told myself I had to try this. I was originally going to wait until January to start P90X (after the Body RX was completed) and then continue on to P90X, but I was too eager and wanted to achieve the ultimate physique. I think I made a good decision! I will let you know when I get to day 90.

So, last night I took my pics (which will be posted later tonight) and I was blown away. I am actually in pretty good shape now, but not in “the best shape of my life”. Thanks to the Body RX, I am down to 10.1% body fat (w/ margin or error of 1-2%) Which I am happy with!!! But of course I would love to see what P90X will bring (IF I BRING IT … OF COURSE) After taking the pics, I realized that my only problem areas are my legs and my belly. They are not big, but they need to be tightened! AND THEY WILL BE! My back, arms, and chest were a lot better than I thought they were! Taking pictures really does let you see your body for what it really is. I am pretty excited about the results the photos will show later on during the program. So stay tuned, the before pics should be up sometime tonight!

Be Well & Stay Fit!!

**JK**

8.28.08.. Picture Day!

Hello All,

So I am a little bumped that I will not be able to take the trip to Miami this weekend, due to a family emergency I need to stick around town =-( . I mean I think that it is a blessing in disguise because I need to do some grocery shopping and cook for the week to come (not to mention mentally prepare). I found some really easy SOUTH BEACH recipes online that I am dying to try. Especially the crock-pot recipes because you literally throw in all the ingredients and you have meals for days in a couple of hours! I love making multiple meals on Sunday so I can eat the reheats all week. If I do not prepare during the weekend for my food for the week, it is almost impossible to eat right. Lately I have been working the 6am-2pm so I have had to wake up at 4:30am (WHICH IS NEVER FUN!!!) Waking up this early gives me plenty of time for my workouts after work. So, depending on my work schedule, my workout routine can constantly change. But if I can do it with my workout schedule now, it will So I am a little bumped that I will not be able to take the trip to Miami this weekend, due to a family emergency I need to stick around town. I mean I think that it is a blessing in disguise because I need to do some grocery shopping and cook for the week to come (not to mention mentally prepare). I found some really easy SOUTH BEACH recipes online that I am dying to try. Especially the crock-pot recipes because you literally throw in all the ingredients and you have meals for days in a couple of hours! I love making multiple meals on Sunday so I can eat the reheats all week. If I do not prepare during the weekend for my food for the week, it is almost impossible to eat right. Lately I have been working the 6am-2pm so I have had to wake up at 4:30am (WHICH IS NEVER FUN!!!) Waking up this early gives me plenty of time for my workouts after work. So, depending on my work schedule, my workout routine can constantly change. But if I can do it with my workout schedule now, it will HAVE to work for P90X.

So today is the day that I am going to take my before pics. I am going to meet up with the gang around 7pm tonight to have our photo shoot and measurement session. This means I am going to have another video later on tonight, as well as, another blog entry to show the pics! Make sure you guys stay tuned because is almost “GO” day.

Stay tuned for more to come today or tomorrow.

Be Well & Stay Fit

**JK**

8.24.08... Getting CLOSER!

Hello Everyone,

Every time I am going to begin a new experiment/journey/fitness routine there is always a little bit of anxiety that kicks in prior to GO DAY! I have to say that awful feeling is starting to creep up. I have been working a lot lately and have not been able to finish the last little projects that I need to be P90X READY!

Some of the things I need to do are:

1.) Purchase my hear rate monitor
2.) Purchase another dvd player
3.) START setting up the gym in the basement
4.) Figure out what I am going to do DIET wise
5.) Purchase some more supplements from Vitacost.com
6.) A yoga Block

I am a total planner and that is why I feel like I am down to the wire. I am going to Fort Lauderdale for the long weekend and need to get all this crap done before I will really be able to relax and enjoy my vacation.

Don’t get me wrong, most of these things I am going to try and work on tomorrow and make my purchases this Tuesday, when pay day rolls around. I have already been eyeing a few of these purchases and that makes some of the stress dissipate. The diet is something that I really want to focus on because WE ALL KNOW THAT NUTRITION IS 80% OF THE BATTLE. If you are not eating right, then your results will definitely be less satisfactory. I have been checking out the SOUTH BEACH DIET and think that it will allow me the type of eating I have become used to following THE BODY RX. They both tend to focus on low glycemic/high fiber food choices and they are fine by me. I am a little scared of the first phase though because it is kind of ATKINS like (being based solely on Protein). At this point I really do not have a problem with my protein intake, but I find the high fiber foods are what keep me regular (sorry to be graphic) and give me the energy I need to get through my workouts. I think that I may try and find some sort of fiber supplement to keep my intake high even though Phase 1 of the Diet is mostly protein. Well we will see. I definitely have a few more days to do some research on the matter prior to beginning.

As far as supplementation is involved, I am just about ready. Just need to buy a few more things and I think that I will be ready to go! It has been a while since I have had a SERIOUS supplement regimen, so I think that will be fun. A little costly to say the least but fun nonetheless. I will be doing everything from Thermogenic Fat Burners to Creatine and am hoping for some AMAZING GAINS during P90X. I will definitely keep you posted on the effects of all the supplements.

This Thursday is going to be a busy day for me because I am going to be running around to get things ready for the trip, as well as, meet up with the gang and take our Day 0 photos. I am going to take mine and post my Day 0 photos online the same day even though I am not really beginning until I get back from Florida. Once that happens I am going full steam ahead. I will prob. Make a video as well and put that up on Youtube. It is going to be a really busy THURSDAY!!! Stay tuned everyone!

Be Well & Stay Fit!

**JK**

8.20.08... SUPPLEMENTATION

Hello All,

I am the type of person who does a lot of thinking before implementing any sort of change. Sometimes this is to a fault, because I tend to over analyze at times and that can get in the way of actually making a decision. When I decided to take the P90X journey there were a lot of reviews read before I actually decided to go ahead and purchase the program. I read nothing but good things about the program so I decided to purchase it early so I could so other research prior to starting. To enhance the effects of the program I decided to use a few supplements that I have read great things about.

Supplementation is a very important part of an exercise regimen and needs to be utilized to have any significant gains. Even if the only think that you supplement is protein.. SOMETHING needs to be taken. After a couple weeks researching here is what I have decided I am going to use for supplements:

Creatine: I have decided to check out NSI Ethyl Ester Creatine. My reason for deciding to use this supplement was because after reading some reviews they mentioned it would not cause bloating. I never understood why I should take creatine when I am already “stocky muscular” (if that makes sense). The product says that it will increase muscle strength which would lead to muscle gains (which = more calories burned at rest=lose of body fat). I am going to use this the first 60 of the program.

Protein: This is an essential supplement to increase lean muscle mass. If you are not using protein your results may not be to your liking. Protein supplementation offers your body essential amino acids your body needs to full you muscle during any exercise regimen.

Recovery Drink: I am choosing to use Endurox R4 for my recovery drink. I have read a lot of amazing reviews about this supplement so I am going to give it a try. This recovery drink boasts very quick recovery and that you will be more than prepared for your following workout (assuming it is the following day) If I am not satisfied with it then I am going to give the P90x Recovery drink a try.

HMB: This is a product that is to assist with decreasing muscle breakdown, increasing protein synthesis, and muscle strength gains as well. Since is it good to cycle creatine for 2 months at a time, I decided to give this a try during the last phase of P90x (days 61-90). I am not sure if it will just help me maintain an increase in strength (like the creatine is supposed to do) of have some other effects like help increase my muscle mass due to the lack of breakdown of muscle tissue. I guess I will not know until I try.

MX-LS7- This is the Maximum Lean System 7 program that is supposed to increase your metabolism through thermogenisis. I have used this before and it gave me amazing energy while working out. I am not quite sure of the metabolic factor, but I am sure when I took it the first time my eating habits did not help. I have been eating pretty healthy on The Body RX and decided maybe I will give it another try this time.

Sorry for the long post guys! I just wanted to shed some light on the supplements I intend on using to increase the effectiveness of my P90X journey which will blast off soon.

Be Well & Stay Fit

**JK**

8.19.08 ... Weight Gain!

So After my deception entry I have been a little obsessed with my weight. I know that I am adding weight in muscle, but I usually would decide that I need to drop weight before I would resemble a slim muscular physique. The last time I weighed myself, I was 196.1 lbs and I knew that it was muscle gain. I usually do not weigh myself because I know that once I step on that scale, the one thing on my mind day and night is the number that pops up on the digital display. When I weighed myself the last time I was feeling slim and my muscles were starting to really show so I thought that their was a significant weight loss. Clearly I gained more weight because I increased my muscle mass by 6 lbs (the last time I weighed myself was three weeks into The Body RX and I was down to 190lbs from my original weight of 196.7lbs)…

Well Yesterday I was having one of those feelings again and knew that I was losing more weight (or what was really happening… losing body fat) My Muscles are becoming more firm, my stomach flatter, my jeans are still fitting nicely, and my arms/shoulders are really filling out. I have NO complaints about the way I am looking now, but I just felt like I am really slimming down, so I decided to step on the scale again to check my weight. I stepped on the scale and the digital display read.. 199.8 lbs. In the last couple of weeks I have gained another 3 lbs of muscle. Usually I would freak out and revert back to some way of shedding weight, but this time I am going with the flow. According to The Body RX, the more muscle you have the more calories you burn at rest. So in theory, this muscle gain will be in direct correlation with my slimming down. I will cross my fingers and go with the flow. I am sure that once I start P90X on Sept. 2… the rest will fall into place.

Be Well and Stay Fit,

**JK**

8.15.08

I know that it has been a few days since my last entry, but here I am! I am sure that I will have a lot more to say once I start doing P90X and feel the burn (which I am definitely eager to experience).

Right now I am in the middle of the Body RX and have begun the second phase called sculpting. Now the difference here is that you drop the weight by about 20% and increase the sets and reps. I can honestly say that after doing a couple of these workouts to date, I am definitely feeling the muscle pain. I guess in a sense this is muscle confusion (but not Tony Horton style). What works about this phase is that the muscles have gotten used to lifting the heavy weight and now you are building endurance by decreasing your weights and pushing more reps out. It felt good to drop the weight but my muscles fatigued in a way that I have not felt since I began working out years ago! Today my arms and back are really feeling the previous day’s workout like NO OTHER. But it is a pain that I secretly enjoy. It lets me know that I am doing something right.

This weekend I am hopefully going to work on another video for my youtube account (which I hope you all check out). I am also going to start working on the basement and create my gym area. I have a friend coming in town next week and want to get the gym together down there as soon as possible. Before I know it the next 2 weeks will fly by and it will be time to start my P90X workouts! I am actually really excited to begin! A few of my friends have already gone ahead and ordered their Power90 videos so we will be starting the 90 day challenge on time!

**JK**

90 Day Workout Challenge (8.07.08)

So yesterday I wrote an email to the 4 other people who are embarking on the 90 day workout challenge with me. Although they are doing Power 90 instead of P90X, I made a couple of changes to suit them. I think that they are going to do rather well. They all seem pumped and ready to tackle this head on. The letter I wrote them went a little something like this:

Dear Challengers!

Here is the deal. M and N have already committed to the 90 day challenge. I have not confirmed that from K or C so you two have to get back to me to let me know.

The 90 day challenge is going to be for all of us to complete a workout program and get in shape (at home) during the fall/winter months. We will bring in 2009 with a real bang. Not only will we look better but we will feel better both inside and out! We all have goals that we want to reach:

JK wants... to be in the best shape of his life
M wants… to be in the best shape of her life and to tighten and tone
N wants... to feel better about herself (I WANT THIS FOR YOU TOO NAT!!!)
K wants... to lose more weight than his previous goal weight (also to tighten and tone)
C wants... to lose his little belly (or to be more muscular ... not really sure..LOL)

All of this can be achieved if you PROMISE YOURSELF, as well as this support group, that 90 days is not a lot of time to make major changes. When you order the program it will come with an eating plan that you should try to stick closely to. When I say closely I mean follow a few guidelines:

1. You do not have to eat every meal that the plan offers you. Find ones that you like and eat them as much as you like. I make all my meals on my day off and just ration out portions to last me a week. Make sure you prepare them ahead of time and you will have no problem following the eating plan.
2. Do not miss a meal. You should be consuming 6 meals a day (eating every 2-3 hours). Consider looking at it this way. Breakfast, mid-morning snack, Lunch, mid-afternoon snack, dinner, snack (2-3 hours prior to bed unless it is a small protein shake)
3. Drink lots of water. Juices and sodas need to be OUT OF THE PICTURE for this period. If you MUST have soda make sure it is diet and try to limit your consumption of them.
4. You can have alcohol on occasion, but make sure it is light beer (only a couple) or alcohol with soda water. No mixers! If you can stay away from alcohol all together your results will be even better. Your body has the tendency to burn alcohol before fat. So if you drink alcohol you are automatically slowing your metabolism.
5. PROTEIN supplements are a must. Protein shakes and bars should be met so you are consuming your body weight in grams. For instance, I weigh 190lbs so I should consume 190 grams of protein a day. It is not hard to do with the right supplementation.
6. Creatine should be taken for those who want to put on lean muscle mass, ask me more if you want this result.
** any other questions about supplements feel free to ask**

If you have any questions pertaining to the guidelines ask and I will let you know. The reason I am emailing all of you now is to give everyone access to each others emails. After a tough workout or when you are noticing great results, you can just reply all and let us know what’s going on.

Here are the dates:
August 28, 2008 M, N, and I we will be taking our Day 0 photos & measurements.
Sept. 1 or Sept. 2 The program begins (depending on if you have something planned on Labor day or not).
On Every 15th day you are to repeat the pictures and measurements. (From the beginning of the program, not from when the original pics are taken.)

Photos should be taken in the following positions:
Front (hands on hips)
Front (flexing your biceps)
Side view (don't hold stomach in)
Back (flexing your biceps)
**Men should take pics without a shirt and shorts on and women should take them in a bathing suit**

The list of sites to measure are:
body fat% (if you can get it measured)
weight day 0
chest
waist
hips
right and left thigh
right and left arm (while flexed)
I am assigning the Power 90 workout plan for you guys! I think it is a great beginning for you and will give you all the results you want.

Good Luck to us all! If any of you want to include anyone else in the challenge forward this email to them and let me know who they are so I can include them in the next email update. Once all info is taken like pics and all forward them to me as I am going to keep a record of everyones results on my computer! And make a movie about us (for our eyes ONLY). GOD I LOVE THIS NEW HOBBY OF MINE!

Best of Luck,

JK

If any of you guys want to do the challenge with us, leave a comment and let me know! Keep me updated on your results!

8.04.08

Hello All,

So it looks like I may have made the mental decision to go ahead and become a coach for Beachbody. I mean, I have not started the program as of yet, but with all this internal enthusiasm I have got to do something productive. I love how working out makes me feel and to share that feeling with others I have helped would honestly be really amazing! SO why not!?

A little about my past. Back in high school I used to be quite the chubby kid. When I graduated from high school I was bulky and resembled a small football player. On the outside I was a really outgoing guy and had a lot of friends, but I secretly was depressed and did not understand why I was so chunky. Up until the time I hit puberty I was REALLY SKINNY. When I hit 13 and the body started to change so did my metabolism. I swear everything that I ate was stored as fat. IT WAS AWFUL. But I did not know what to do.

During college the weight gain did not stop! Instead of gaining the freshman 15, I gained 30LBS! I moved back home in the summer of 1999 and my father said to me... "J, you are looking fatter than me and I am a lot older than me!" I DIED! I know that what my father said to me was not the most motivating thing one should say, but it was something that I definitely NEEDED to hear. So literally the next day I joined a local gym and that started my journey to weight loss.

That entire summer I worked out with a trainer 4-5 days a week. I HATED this man, but he knew what he was talking about and I was committed. I worked out the whole summer and despite my awful diet, I still managed to lose 20lbs. I think the reason that I lost most of this weight was because I had never worked out before and my body was shocked into reality. By the way, when I say that my diet was awful... I would literally finish a workout and head straight to burger king because I was SO HUNGRY!

After that summer I plateaued and did not lose any weight for a few months. I got a little discouraged and thought to myself, something has got to be up! SO like most people I decided for my new years resolution, I would give up certain foods in the hopes that I would lose some additional weight. I gave up fried foods, fruit juice, ice cream, and soda. I still ate most other foods but since these were my vices, I cut them out and lost about another 10-12 lbs. I was totally excited and over the last 9 years my life has been one diet roller coaster after the next.

I am sure you are curious why my life became a diet roller coaster when I had achieved great results??

ANSWER: I have had an athletic build since about 2001 but it never felt like enough. In one of my earlier post I mentioned that I have a healthy obsession with my weight and that was not always the case. In the beginning it was VERY unhealthy because although I was losing weight and looking rather muscular I was NEVER satisfied. I called this phase "ATTACK OF THE FAT BRAIN". When I could not see the result in front of my face (ex. a mirror) I would think that I was heavy. I did not understand why the minute I walked away from the mirror I was disgusted with my body! Well after a lot of soul searching I realized that I had been chunky and unhappy for so long that I had become accustomed with saying negative things about myself. So I stopped the negativity (over time of course) and when I would begin to think negatively I would think about all the years I have been working out and the fitness goals I have reached.

I am sure some of you can relate with this and it is truly hard to love yourself. Don't let others push their negativity on you because they are unhappy with themselves and do not want to see anyone else happy. What we need to do is actually help them reach similar goals and maybe they too could learn to love themselves. Although this post was long, I kind of wanted to explain my reason for wanting to become a coach. I am actually going to embark on P90X with a friend, and I am encouraging a couple of my other friends to try some other beachbody products until they can work their way to p90X. They seem really enthusiastic and it is going to be fun to do it as a group! So this is my post for tonight!

Be well and Stay Fit!

**JK**

8.03.08

Hello All,

Where to begin. I have definitely had an interesting weekend to say the least because I had a visitor from out of town and he wanted to go out every nite while visiting Boston! Not much to do here for clubs, so he wanted to make sure that he experienced what the city had to offer.

I did manage to fit the gym in while he was here, but my eating habits definitely were not the best to be honest. There wasn't any thing that was really bad like fast food or anything, however lots of foods that register high on the glycemic index. I try to eat low glycemic foods to regulate my insulin levels and help my body burn the stored fat. I may have slipped for a few days, but now I am back. Today I have been eating like normal and hit the gym hard to make up for the last few days.

I have a couple of friends who are going to do similar workout plans the same time I start P90X and track their progress. I am thinking that I may even become a coach for Beachbody if I like what I see occurring to my body. I am already a fitness nut and would love to have a hobby helping others achieve similar goals. There is one coach who I think I am going to pursue to find out some more information. I am really liking the direction this whole part of my life is taking! I truly and happy. Achieving my fitness and financial goals will just be the cherry on top that I have long awaited.

Be Well and Stay fit!
Until next time....

**JK**

8.01.08

Hello All,

So I have great news to report. I have been on The Body RX plan for 5 weeks now and I am really starting to notice the fruits of my labor. As I mentioned before the first phase of the program is called the strength phase. I DEFINITELY notice the strength I am gaining. I only have one more week of this phase before starting the sculpting phase! Last night when I was at the gym I noticed that the weight was actually getting easier. So I decided that on the last set of each exercise I was going to attempt to increase the weight. I was able to lift it with minimal effort. I WAS SHOCKED!!!!

Also recently I have added pull ups to my workout routine so I am prepared for P90X whenever I start the program. Depending on the body part I am working out, I will either do pull ups with my palms facing me w/close grip (to work biceps) -OR- palms facing away from me w/wide grip (to work back and shoulders). I am happy to report that I can do 3 sets of 10 with the wide grips and 3 sets of 12 with the close grip! So I am definitely making some HUGE improvements.

As for my appearance. Week 5 has given me the gift of noticing that my stomach is flatter. I have not stepped on the scale yet, so I am not sure about my weightloss, but I can definitely see the difference. Not only can I see the difference, I can also feel it. I am not sure if you will know what I am talking about, but before this program my muscles felt kind of soft and "airy" but now feel a lot more firm. I am not sure if it is the fact that I am eating a lot more protein, working out according to the Body RX, or a combination of both. I am not sure what the reason is, I am just glad that it is all working.

So that is my update for now. I am still waiting for my P90X to get here so I can check out the nutrition plan and see how it differs from The Body RX. I hope it is similar, because eating this way seems to be really easy for me.

Until next time...

**JK**