Tony (Horton) Hears a Who

by Karla Carrington (Subscribe to Karla Carrington's posts)
Jul 22nd 2009 11:00AM

Categories: The Good, The Fat and The Hungry, Fitness, Motivation

Photo: Getty Images I AOL

What my sexy neighbor Andre' says to do, Karla does. We've worked out together, and he is intense. He pushes me hard, but I don't mind. He refuses to let me give up, so I don't. The time between our sessions may be days or weeks, but I always walk away feeling proud and accomplished.

One day Andre' mentioned Tony Horton's P90X DVD fitness series. He said he'd been using it and then pulled up his shirt to show off his results. I visually saw the difference between cut and ripped. After wiping the drool from my lip, I said, "wow!" He gave me his version of Tony Horton's muscle confusion concept and how the program had worked for him. I listened intently and decided to find out more.

The following day, I was fortunate enough to catch the infomercial. I saw Tony Horton talking about P90X, and I immediately thought, "That's my baby daddy right there." Oh, but that's probably not the thought you guys care about. My second and more weighty thought was, "Dang, could I do this? Could I have six pack abs? Could I take my fitness level to the extreme?" Listening to the conviction in Tony's voice about the program made a hint of belief creep in.

See the photo to the right? That's me! Well, I mean, that's my head. I have no idea whose abs those are, but thanks to PhotoShop and my girl Waj, I could be looking at the future me. According to Tony Horton, also known as the "10-minute trainer," I can have those abs, and he's much too hot to ever lie.

I decided to give P90X a shot. I popped in the first DVD -- Bring it! Tony had me amped enough to preview DVD #2 -- chest and back. OK, so now I'm seeing what extreme means, and I wish I had Tony Horton's number so I could call and ask him who the hell can do this? I certainly couldn't. The workout was extreme and packed with moves I felt were too advanced for me. I packed P90X away and revoked Tony's baby daddyship privileges.

The next day, I took a package to the mail room and what are the guys talking about -- P90X! They give me their thoughts, according to what they'd seen and heard, so I decided to talk about it with my trainer, Jake. He reviewed the material, gave me his thoughts and we were off to the fit test. We went to a beautiful park filled with exercise equipment for the serious minded -- let the fit test begin. Although it was tough and I struggled in some parts, I did fine, until I got to the pull-ups. Jake did his pull-ups with ease to show me how. I was up next. I stood looking up at the bar. It looked harmless enough. I proceeded to reach up (so far so good), I grabbed the bar just fine, and as soon as I go to pull up -- something farted! I don't know if it was Jake who was trying to help lift me or if it was me from exertion. For all I know, it might have even been the bar itself, I'm still not sure. Either way, I don't know who did it, but there it was. The fit test was over, the air was foggy -- and I was mad at Tony all over again.

After recovering from the comic relief, we discussed P90X seriously and at length. Jake talked about any current limitations he thought I may have, but he felt like I should give it a try. Thanks to Tony Horton's well thought-out plan, the variations using the bands will help overcome my limitations. However, I will do pull ups!

My first thought about P90X was that you'd have to be in optimal shape to attempt it, but the more I watched it, the more that changed. I began to see that Tony encouraged me to move at my own pace and comfort level. I didn't have to match his reps, I could work the program within the confines of where I am today. Building a body that's ripped and toned is similar to that of a mountain. It won't be done in a day, and it will take hard work. I'm glad I was smart enough to revisit it and take a second look.

As for the DVD itself, I found Tony to be both warm and engaging. I also appreciate that the folks working out with him are real people and not Barbie dolls. They share a camaraderie that is genuine. Plain and simple, as hard as the program appears to be, I am motivated to at least try. I have teamed up with a partner and August 1 marks the date that I BRING IT! Stay tuned.

Comments (11)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Chris 7-22-2009 @ 11:40AM

Stick with it, I have been doing P90X for over 4 months now and I have experience more benefits than I ever thought possible. I have never been overweight per say but rather pudgy looking at 178 pounds and now I weigh 154 pounds and have very little fat on my body. I have gone from a 34 waist to a 31 in 4 months. I like the added bonus that my kids see Daddy looking fit and having more energy to keep up with them. I hope this is a lifestyle I can pass on to them as they make health choices for themselves.

kris 7-22-2009 @ 4:19PM

I'm so excited for your, that's such a challenging program, but you are definitely CAPABLE. Definitely keep us posted on your progress and how everything goes. :)

Kaye 7-22-2009 @ 3:36PM

I agree--stick with it! I have been using P90X for years (literally) now. I generally only do the weight, yoga, and core DVDs now (Plyometrics is not my idea of fun), but in the height of my P90X addiction I whittled myself down to 130 pounds at15% body fat (I'm a 5'9" female). Although I must admit my abs never did look like your dream abs!

I'm not quite at that level anymore, (more like 140 pounds and 19% body fat--still not bad!) but even after about 3 years, I'm not bored with the routines nor the results. I can do most of them from memory, but I still keep Tony playing the background for his goofy encouragement! Keep at it, and you'll be reciting his workouts word for word!

Julie 7-22-2009 @ 5:29PM

Karla - P90X is a challenging program. If you passed the fit test, you're ready. What you will hear repeated throughout the program is "do your best and forget the rest." It's important to know your body's limitation but then, be motivated enough to push yourself where you can. I found the Messge Forums and other peoples' experiences with P90X helped me stay on track each day. I would've given up after the first yoga attempt if it wasn't for the friends I met online. I wrote a lot about my P90X experiences (and continue to write about my fitness journey) at http://www.justgetmefit.com. Please stop by my site and let me know if you have any questions I can help you with as you go along. Julie

Ludie 7-22-2009 @ 5:59PM

Don't give up - my husband and I started with P90 in January 2009 and then 90 days later we graduated to P90X. My husband has lost 50 pounds since then and I lost 7 pounds, but that's all I needed to lose. I have lost several inches and am very toned now. This program works. Don't doubt it, just do it and you will see the results your self I love that in one of the videos Tony says "no one said this was going to be easy". He's right, it's not easy, but it does work. We completed the 90 days and we're getting ready to start a new series of 90 days on Monday. We can't wait. Always remember there is a huge team out there to support and encourage you every step of the way. Every one is very helpful and glad to help. Make sure you log into WOWY.com every work out. I'll be your buddy. 1Ludie4fitness. I believe in you...I know you can do it.

Nina 7-22-2009 @ 5:48PM

"revoked Tony's baby daddyship privileges" HA! Looking forward to following you along, we all will.
Nina@beachbodycoach.com

Warren 7-22-2009 @ 6:06PM

How do you go about getting a BB coach? I've done P90X for 26 days straight and I need a bit motivation. Thanks everyone!

JLYNNFL01 7-29-2009 @ 12:18PM

If you ordered your Power90 program from Beachbody online or the infomercial you were assigned a coach. If you still don't think you have one, jump on the beachbody messageboards and find a coach that you jive with that you find their posts to be motiviational. Then contact them and they can tell you how to have them assigned to you as a coach.

Karla Carrington 7-22-2009 @ 6:28PM

Can you feel the love in this room? Thank you guys for ALL the encouragement. I feel even better about my decision to give P90X a proper try. Funny to even talk about extreme fitness when 4 years ago the common words were morbid obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. I'm REALLY excited about the program and as always, I promise to tell the good, the bad and the ugly! Blessings!---Karla

Liz Kerr 7-23-2009 @ 1:49AM

I'm so excited to hear that you are starting P90X! My husband is my personal trainer trying to whip me into shape and he believes I can do this (at 5'9" and 205). I'm starting next Monday and am excited to hear ALL of your thoughts about the program, as well as reading others on here. I'm scared of the 'extreme' aspect but I know that being healthy is the ultimate goal! And I can't do pull ups either :)