Bring It: P90X Day 61

P90X is an extreme workout created by Tony Horton. Fitness is his game and he is going to take you on a ride to the best shape of your life. The key to this program is muscle confusion. By pushing yourself and switchig things up, your body never gets accustomed to the moves - this means no plateaus. This also means lots of smiles.

If you would like to start from the beginning of this series, please click here. If you want to read about my previous day with P90X, click here.

Feel free to leave your comments below. I look forward to sharing this personal journey with all of you. It has really helped me to come this far!

At one point I thought anybody willing to do P90X for the entire 90 days is completely crazy. Yet, I have grown used to the program and can no longer imagine my day without it. Today Legs and Back was on the agenda, and out of all the different workouts, this is the one that never seems to get any easier!

To make matters even better, I have been in super hard pushing mode all week. After all, this is my last month of the program (well, unless I decide to start again!), and I want to see some crazy results by the time I reach Day 90.

So today I pushed hard... so hard that it had me running to the bathroom to toss my cookies. I can honestly say the last time I worked out that hard was when I was in the military trying to pass my PT (physical training test).

So, just like most days when I am working out, it got me thinking... why does exercise sometimes cause you to get sick?

So naturally when I am wondering about stuff I head over to good ole trusted Google to do a search, but it seemed that whatever I was finding was all speculation. I wanted honest and factual answers, so I turned to Facebook. (Ok - so that could result in additional speculation but at least someone else did the work for me. I had alot of other stuff to get done for the day and didn't have time to be on the computer all morning!)

There are a few different reasons for exercise induced sickness, and with all the speculation about it, knowing if it is good or bad for you is I guess up to you to decide. Some people think it is good (think Jillian Michaels and how many people she made throw up on The Biggest Loser!), and others think it is pushing yourself to the extremes and not good for you.

However, there are some very logical reasons for it happening. It is a sign that you have pushed yourself too hard and this is your body's way of telling you to stop. It isn't saying that you can't move on once you have finished, but maybe you should slow down a little.

The most common cause is a change in your blood pH produced by the anaerobic metabolism of pyruvic acid. When working out harder than usual, your body can't get rid of the lactic acid fast enough. When the build up occurs, your bodies PH goes out of whack and you become toxic. You puke to try to clean your system

You might also get sick because of your breathing. In technical terms, holding your breath during exercise will put pressure on your esophagal sphincter causing you to throw up.

Exercise induced naseau may also be from either eating too much before a hard workout or drinking to much water. A full-stomach and a hardcore workout don't mix.

I have also heard it is because "what is in your stomach is coming out your mouth." (Thank you Stan Fletcher.) And that it is purely because "Exercise is so revolting!" (Thank you Austinstar!)

Unfortunately, while there is some technical reasons for this, most of the information found sounds rather speculated. I don't think there is hardcore evidence or research done on exercise induced naseau, which can happen during or even shortly after stopping. (If you know of any good research - please let me know - I would love to learn more about it!)

It can be frustrating and it can even make you feel nasty all day long. So, I guess it comes down to your personal opinion. Do you think it is just your bodies way of telling you to stop, or maybe it is just getting rid of toxins. Or, by pushing yourself to the puking point, are you actually doing more harm than good?

Click here to read about Day 62 and how you got to be tough to get your workout in through the holiday season!