WEEK OF 02/22/2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2- WEEK 4

MONDAY - FEBRUARY 22, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Triple Trouble Challenge (with T&T)

I like this workout. My numbers were 30 pushups and 6 pullups. I did 35 and 7 on the fourth set. No problems. My grip had been slipping off the pullup bar recently, so tried doing them without my gloves and my grip seemed to improve a lot. It could have just been the day where I was feeling a bit stronger, but I'll try it without the gloves again next time.

Start Time: 7:15 pm; Workout Time: 58 minutes; Calories Burned: 322; Avg Heart Rate: 102.


TUESDAY - FEBRUARY 23, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Blood and Breath

I'm not a fan. It reminds me a bit of Agility X from P90X3 because there are a few moves where Tony is calling out spots to jump to. My agility isn't good, nor is my quickness, so those moves are frustrating. Tony is also doing a lot of talking with very little response from the cast members, so there is really no excitement to push you on. I read on the Power Nation Facebook pages that I don't seem to be alone in that assessment. Maybe it'll be better if it's re-done for the final production. Overall, my effort just wasn't there.

Start Time: 8:00 pm; Workout Time: 68 minutes; Calories Burned: 524; mAvg Heart Rate: 108.


WEDNESDAY - FEBRUARY 24, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Push

This one isn't too bad. It's Chest, Shoulders, and Triceps with light weights. I only went above 15's on one move. That was the Chest Presses on the Stability Ball. I'd used 40's the first few times I did this routine, but the last time I did it a few weeks ago, I couldn't life the 40's, so I'd grabbed 15's. Today I used 30's with no problem, so maybe last time was lust a bad day. A few of the pushup moves give me problems here. I have problems moving my feet back and forth on the Military Rockers, and for some reason the Chaturanga One-Legged Pushups, which appear to be easy, just kills me every time. I did increase my reps on a few of the moves, so that was good.

Start Time: 8:15 pm; Workout Time: 54 minutes; Calories Burned: 444; Avg Heart Rate: 111.


THURSDAY - FEBRUARY 25, 2021 - OIWER NATION BETA 2 - Kickin' and Puchin' (with T&T)

I really like this workout. I dread the sprawls, but there aren't too may of them, and they're done by the nid point of the workout. I went at it pretty good today. Where I was coordinated, my punches, kicks, and blocks were pretty crisp. I don't usually go full blast on cardio workouts anymore because I don't like the moves, so this one is a breath of fresh air.

Start Time: 8:15 pm; Workout Time: 70 minutes; Calories Burned: 641; Avg Heart Rate: 119.


FRIDAY - FEBRUARY 26, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Who's Got Your Back?

I struggled with the pullups, as my hands were slipping off the bar again. I took the gloves off for a set, but it didn't matter. My grip was just weak.All reps and weight was the same as last time, except on the Arc Rows, where I increased the weight from 15's to 20's. I also went faster than they did, and finished up six moves ahead of them. That seems to work for me, to get it done. However, going slower might make me do more.

Start Time: 8:25 pm; Workout Time: 52 minutes; Calories Burned: 451; Avg Heart Rate: 114.


SATURDAY - FEBRUARY 27, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Power and Strength Yoga

I wasn't dreading doing this today, but just wanted to get through it. I still don't get that euphoric feeling you are supposed to get while doing yoga. It's still work to me. I was getting a bit frustrated with the pacing. He does a lot of explaining things, which is OK, but after you know what you're doing, it gets repetitive. I lost my balance on several moves and just got up and walked around for a few seconds to get be bearings again. This wasn't a horrible workout today, but not a great one either, My attitude could have been a bit better. I could have stayed in the moment more, instead of constantly looking to see how much time I had left.

Start Time: 7:15 pm; Workout Time: 67 minutes; Calories Burned: 513; Avg Heart Rate: 108.


SUNDAY - FEBRUARY 28, 2021 - Rest


SUNDAY WEIGH IN

Weight: 157.4 (+1.0 lb)
Body Fat: 12.5% (-0.1%)


THOUGHTS FOR THE WEEK

I held my own in the workouts. I'm still not eating great, but I'm finding myself not craving anything greasy, which is good. Next week promises to be more stretchy than strength, so I'm looking forward to that.

WEEK OF 02/15/2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2- WEEK 3

MONDAY - FEBRUARY 15, 2021 - POWER NATION NETA 2 - Chest and Back Round Robin

Pushup Rotation: Power Stands (30 reps); Medicine Balls: (25); Bosu Ball (25). Pullup Rotation: Unassisted (6); Pullup Assists (12); Band Pulldowns (15). I did Ok, but my arms were feeling like jello halfway through. I also don't go very low on Military Pushups, as I can't get my elbows to go back and scrape my sides.

Start Time: 7:40 pm: Workout Time: 65 minutes; Calories Burned: 541; Avg Heart Rate: 112.


TUESDAY - FEBRUARY 16, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Drop, Pulse, and Hold

I can see where this can be an effective workout, but it's simply too long and tedious. I don't go too deep in my drops because of my knees, so that takes some of the effectiveness away. I also lose my balance on the lunge moves, so it does get a little frustrating.

Start Time: 8:15 pm; Workout Time: 66 minutes; Calories Burned: 577; Avg Heart Rate: 114.


WEDNESDAY - FEBRUARY 17, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Arms and Abs

I wasn't feeling too well because of something I ate for lunch. I'd seen a Facebook video earlier in the day from one of the Power Nation Family members saying instead of increasing his weights with bad form, he decreased them and concentrated on his form. That was my plan going in, but I was pretty comfortable with what I'd done the last time, so I went with that. I ended up getting through it OK.

Start Time: 8:25 pm; Workout Time: 49 minutes; Calories Burned: 450; Avg Heart Rate: 117.


THURSDAY - FEBRUARY 18, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Flash Card Cardio

It's tough for me to bounce around on my feet anymore, so I get frustrated and put very little effort into this one. I even sat through the warmup and the cooldown. I didn't get much of a workout.

Start Time: 7:30 pm; Workout Time: 54 minutes; Calories Burned: 369; Avg Heart Rate: 103.


FRIDAY - FEBRUARY 19, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Shoulders and Arms Recharge

I don't know the reasoning behind the scheduling, but we just did arms two days ago. Regardless, I pretty much did what I did last time. There were a few times I did less reps than last time because I felt I was swinging the weights. I'm finding my left hand is giving out before my right hand, so that's one reason I stopped earlier. Overall I like the workout, but I'm getting tired. 

Start Time: 7:45 pm; Workout Time: 53 minutes; Calories Burned: 480; Avg Heart Rate: 117.


SATURDAY - FEBRUARY 20, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Plyo 30/15

This was another day where I wondered how I was possibly going to get through this workout. MY body was feeling sluggish and my legs were feeling heavy. I put it off as long as I could, then just got into it. I normally just go through the motions on this one, but I decided early on I'd put some effort into it. It wasn't always pretty, but it was my best at this routine so far.

Start Time: 7:45 pm; Workout Time: 58 minutes; Calories Burned: 440; Avg Heart Rate: 108.


SUNDAY - FEBRUARY 21, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Crunch Town

I did Ok as usual.

Start Time: 8:40 pm; Workout Time: 24 minutes; Calories Burned: 129; Avg Heart Rate: 94.


SUNDAY WEIGH IN

Weight: 156.4 (-0.8 lbs)
Body Fat: 12.6% (-0.4%)


THOUGHTS FOR THE WEEK

I liked the drop in the body fat. I am noticing I have no desire to eat any greasy foods. I just have to find some alternatives to replace them, especially while I'm at work. I know they're out there, I need to take a little time to look. My body is tired. A lot of people in the Power Nation group seem to be experiencing the same thing. The problem is I'm too stubborn to take days off or look for easier workouts. I've just never done that.

WEEK OF 02/08/2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2- WEEK 2

MONDAY - FEBRUARY 8, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Primal Flow

For some reason, I was halfway looking forward to this one today. I took it one move at a time and I did better at it than usual. There's still a lot of work to be done because I'm not too flexible, but it was a start.

Start Time: 8:00 pm; Workout Time: 46 minutes; Calories Burned: 391; Avg Heart Rate: 113.


TUESDAY - FEBRUARY 9, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Pure Stretch

I normally like stretch routines. When I saw it was 56 minutes I was a bit bummed, as I was hoping it would be a lot shorter, but he got to the point, and it went fast. The last 15 minutes or so were really relaxing. I liked it.

Start Time: 7:40 pm; Workout Time: 56 minutes; Calories Burned: 330; Avg Heart Rate: 97.


WEDNESDAY - FEBRUARY 10, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Plyo Halfsies

When I first saw the name of this routine I thought it was going to be easy, then I saw people saying it wasn't. I was a bit concerned I wasn't going to able to do too much of it because of the problems I've been having with my feet and ankles, but I got through it in much better shape than I thought I would have. The "Halfsies" part was that we were only doing half the amount of reps we normally would have. It got me winded a bit, but not too bad. My depth wasn't great, but it never has been, but my feet and ankles held out, which is big for me.

Start Time: 7:45 pm; Workout Time: 56 minutes; Calories Burned: 499; Avg Heart Rate: 115.


THURSDAY - FEBRUARY 11, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Push 

I was in for a bit of a shock tonight. I hadn't done this once since November and really didn't remember too much about it. On the first moves, Shoulder Tap Pushups, my shoulders started burning. I couldn't figure out why, because I hadn't done any shoulder exercises in a while. I'm still not sure why, unless it was Primal Flow on Monday. I was feeling pretty weak on a lot of the moves. On the Presses on the Stability Ball, I saw I'd used 40's the last time, and felt that sounded about right, so I pulled them out again, only to find I could barely get them up to my chest, let alone pressing them. Instead of being a hero, I decided it might be best to live another day, so I picked up the 15's that were laying next to me and did the move with them. I didn't even have the energy to get off the ball to grab some 25's or 30's. It was just one of those days where you're not at your best. You just do what you can and move on. If I remember right this routine was tough for me when I first did it, so I'll just work at it.

Start Time: 8L10 pm; Workout Time: 54 minutes; Calories Burned: 462; Avg Heart Rate: 113.


FRIDAY - FEBRUARY 12, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Blood and Breath

Not my favorite routine. I didn't go all out. I can't move that fast on a lot of his call out moves, so those were frustrating. Next.

Start Time: 8:20 pm; Workout Time: 68 minutes; Calories Burned: 584; Avg Heart Rate: 113.


SATURDAY - FEBRUARY 13, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Who's Got Your Back

I wasn't looking forward to this one. Not because it's exceedingly hard, or because I don't like the moves, but because my body just feels weak. Not so much sore, but just weak, almost like I'm overtraining. However, I don't miss workouts, so I forced myself to start, knowing I'd get through it. I didn't push myself to do extra reps, or pull more weight. I basically did what I'd done before. Six pullups on each set, 40's on the heavy back moves, and 15's on the shoulder moves. I went a little faster than they did to eliminate some down time, and finished about four moves ahead of them. Not my best effort, but I got it done, and didn't really dog it.

Start Time: 6:35 pm; Workout Time: 52 minutes; Calories Burned: 467; Avg Heart Rate: 116.


SUNDAY - FEBRUARY 14, 2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2 - Core Warrior

This isn't too bad, except for two plank moves that go on forever. I did OK. It's hard for me to stay on my toes for the Plank Twists, so I just do what I can.

Start Time: 8:35 pm; Workout Time: 21 minutes; Calories Burned: 166; Avg Heart Rate: 109. 


SUNDAY WEIGH IN

Weight: 157.2 (-1,4 lbs)
Body Fat: 13.0% (+0.1%(


THOUGHTS FOR THE WEEK

I saw an article about the effects of eating too much sugar, and I'm really guilty. Most of the things that are really bothering me were listed there. I'm going to make a conscious effort to cut way back on it. I also saw a video by Tony Horton that says to listen to your body and adjust when necessary. My body is really tired. As I mentioned earlier, I might be overtraining, as I don't miss workouts. I'm going to try and fight through that. I'm guessing the sugar consumption isn't helping.

WEEK OF 02/01/2021 - POWER NATION BETA 2- WEEK 1

MONDAY - FEBRUARY 1, 2020 - POWER NATION - Flash Card Cardio

This is the start of "Beta 2", the second round of testing. Because of Covid, they couldn't record an entire new set of workouts, so they're using most of the Beta 1 and Interim workouts, but in a different order. During Month 1 it appears there will be very few repeats. For today's workout I tried on a new style of Xero Shoes. They fit a bit better (looser) and I used some socks. They were really comfortable and I was able to do a lot more than usual. It was a good experience. There are still a few moves I'm not coordinated with (quick jumping ones like jumping jacks), and I didn't always touch the floor on a lot of them, but it was better than before.

Start Time: 6:55 pm; Workout Time: 55 minutes; Calories Burned: 459; Avg Heart Rate: 113.


TUESDAY - FEBRUARY 2, 2020 - POWER NATION - Shoulders and Arms Recharge

This is one of my favorite routines, but it feels like we're doing it a lot. Today, I thought about lowering my weight on certain moves because the last few times I did this routine some of them got ugly when I tried to increase the weight. Instead I tried using heavier weight with knowingly less reps on some moves. I tried using 40's on the first set of Bicep Curls, but only got 4 reps in, and they were ugly. I went to 35's on the second set of Military Presses and got 8 reps in. I tried 35's on the second set of Hammer Curls, only got 6 reps in, but then immediately did 12 reps with 25's. My left hand grip seems to be lacking at times, even on the Arch Rows, where the weight in my left hand was turning sideways. Something to keep playing with.

Start Time: 7:25 pm; Workout Time: 53 minutes; Calories Burned: 575; Avg Heart Rate: 127.


WEDNESDAY - FEBRUARY 3, 2020 - POWER NATION - Plyo 30/15

I probably did better on this today than the other three times, which isn't saying a whole lot. I didn't kill myself with effort, but I didn't totally dog it either. I wore my workout shoes again, which helped a bit, but I'm still limited an my balance, coordination, speed, and explosiveness. I'm trying to get it back. Maybe it's mental, maybe it's physical as my body ages. Who knows? But I'll keep trying.

Start Time: 8:05 pm; Workout Time: 58 minutes; Calories Burned: 426; Avg Heart Rate: 107.


THURSDAY - FEBRUARY 4, 2021 - POWER NATION - Triple Trouble Challenge (with T+T)

This is the Beta 2 version with Tony and Chris Titus. Same moves and sequence as the Beta 1 version. Beta 1 had a little bit more time between moves because they were alternating and doing more reps. This one started out a bit fast paced, so I thought I might be in trouble, but I eventually got in a groove. My numbers were 30 pushups and 6 pullups, which I did all of. Near the end my hands were sliding off the pullup bar, so I came down a few times, but I finished them up. I like the workout.

Start Time: 7:50 pm; Workout Time: 58 minutes; Calories Burned: 410; Avg Heart Rate: 105.


FRIDAY - FEBRUARY 5, 2021 - POWER NATION - Punchin' and Kickin' (with T+T)

This was a total re-do of the Beta 1 with Alice, and there are two versions of the new one. The longer one has a lot of chatter, but they make a shorter version by removing much of that chatter. I did the shorter one today, but even that one is over an hour. I usually like the martial arts workouts Tony does, buy I can't stand sprawls. Luckily, in this one, only three of the twenty moves had sprawls. The rest of the moves were fine and fun. It just takes a while to get the coordination down, which I will. I started out by wearing some workout shoes, but the ones I picked out were lighter but tighter and weren't comfortable, so I took them off mid workout. That seemed to work better.

Start Time: 8:15 pm; Workout Time: 70 minutes; Calories Burned: 632; Avg Heart Rate: 116.


SATURDAY - FEBRUARY 6, 2021 - POWER NATION - Don't Skip Yoga

I got through it. There were a few frustrations as they appeared to be going too slow at times. My patience has been very thin lately. It's something I need to work on. 

Start Time: 7:30 pm; Workout Time: 73 minutes; Calories Burned: 541; Avg Heart Rate: 106.


SUNDAY - FEBRUARY 7, 2021 - POWER NATION - Crunch Town

I got through all the moves with no problems. I think I caught one that I had been doing wrong. I'll have to look closer next time.

Start Time: 6:40 pm; Workout Time: 24 minutes; Calories Burned: 150; Avg Heart Rate: 99.


I also did THREE PART MEDITATION - It went OK. I was a bit uncomfortable in Lotus Poistion at first. I wasn't totally relaxed, but I think it's something I could get into. It was only ten minutes.


SUNDAY WEIGH IN

Weight: 158.6 (+3.8 lbs)
Body Fat: 14.9% (_0.5)

Bought some cookies a few days ago and ate the whole container. I'll bounce back.


THOUGHTS FOR THE WEEK

I liked most of the workouts. In the Facebook group a lot of people were saying they were sore by Friday. I wasn't sure why, as these were mostly all workouts we'd seen before, but I ended up feeling it a bit also.