First day of P90x

I did the fit test on the last day of the old year and did the first workout today. I took before pictures, but really, they're so dreadful that I don't plan to post them unless I manage to stick with it and accomplish a big change. I look pretty unhappy in them, and no wonder. I'm really not happy with my body much right now. But here are some of my stats:

Height: 5'7"
Weight: 159.1 lbs
Body fat percentage: 28.6%
BMI: 24.9 (that's just on the normal side of the border between normal and overweight)

We are struggling a bit about where, exactly, to do the exercising. The DVD player is in Rob's office, but Rob's a hoarder, and it's impossibly crowded with his junk. The best and most reliable computer for playing DVDs is mine, in my computer nook, but there's only room for a chair in front of the screen, and no room for exercise. There's are computers in Fiona's and Delia's rooms. Both rooms are, again, too crowded for exercise. Delia's a bit less so, but her laptop is very unreliable. She tried to set me up in there to do the first workout, but she couldn't get the laptop to work. There's a computer in the dining room, but there's something wrong with it and it tends to freeze. That leaves only Rob's laptop. I have to take it out of his office, set it up, and then move the dining room table and all the chairs out of the way. This is going to be a royal pain. There is also only ONE doorway in the entire house where the chin up bar we bought fits over the doorframe. That's the door between Rob's office and the dining room.

But I did the first workout this morning, core synergistics. Initial impression: I can't do some of the exercises, some because of my knee and some because I simply can't manage them physically. But I can do most of them, and I know how to adapt a few of them to protect the knee. Even though this was the core workout, there were a few weights required, but I went through the motions without weights this first time.

I find the attitude/style of the workout instructor/demonstrator has a big impact on how much I'll like a workout. Tony Horton is quite chatty, in a sort of friendly guy/we're all working hard here/you can do it/joking around sort of way. I do get the impression that P90x is a little cultish (that was certainly true of Tae Bo, too). One thing I do find quite irksome is that he doesn't mirror cue, i.e., when he says 'Go to the right' he means HIS right, and not my right.

So: first step on the journey. Don't know if I'll make it all the way, but I'm certainly going to try.

Death of Bob Anderson

cleolinda did a wonderful post noting the passing of legendary sword choreographer Bob Anderson, at the age of 89. He was one of seven people who played the part of Darth Vadar, he worked with Errol Flynn, and he worked on famous films and choreographed many, many legendary scenes, including Pirates of the Caribbean, The Princess Bride, and Lord of the Rings. At the post bookmarked above, cleolinda includes clips from several of the most famous.

He will be truly missed. I want to thank him for his part in making possible some of my favorite film scenes of all time.