Beach Body: Zero to abs?

Do “real men” go to the gym?

I’ve been working out at home this week as it is recovery week and the workout (Core Cardio and Balance) has almost no jumps and goes at a slower pace than the main workouts. Having said that, the two sets of jumps it did have had me wondering what the people living below me are thinking!

I promised a Day 20 pictorial of my progress and… I am going to break that promise. I’m keeping all the good stuff for the end.

I am very impressed with the transformation though. I won’t say I have a six-pack just yet because I don’t but oh my God…
My abs are rock solid – I thought I had strong abs before but, I can tell you: I was definitely misinformed. And not just when I’m working out or I tighten them, but MOST of the time!
I probably have to buy new pairs of trousers or at least buy new belts because my abs are so pulled in that my trousers are dropping…
The shape of my lower abs is just about starting to show next to the hip bone. That was probably my biggest surprise because I thought that was impossible for my body type, given that even guys with big bellies can have that showing. I’m starting to think it’s a muscle composition issue rather than body type issue.

The veins crossing my calves are showing at certain times for the very first time in my whole life. Also, the less-obvious veins in my arms are also showing and not just when I’m working out. Mmmm… like it!
My fitness has definitely gone from Zero-to-Fit. I never knew I could exert myself so much EVERY day and feel good about it. It’s taken me to a whole new level of realizations about my body.
So, this concludes 5 week of the workout. I’m going to take measurements tomorrow again though I’m not too keen – it seems they are fairly stable and the only thing going up and down is my weight and body fat, which I monitor several times a week anyway.

What’s to come up?

Another month of real insanity.
I have to up my calorie count for Phase 2 so I have to workout the specifics tomorrow.

I haven’t dared to watch any of the Phase 2 DVDs because I don’t want to have time to think about what’s coming up. I will watch it tomorrow just to check I know all the exercises, commit myself and go do it on Monday. In fact, Monday is going to be more of a challenge because it’s Fit Test + Workout.

That’s an hour and a half of hardcore self-pounding.

Can’t wait…?