rebeccab

I may be pretty low on calories some days, but I don't think I have any 700 calorie days! That must have been before I entered food for the evening. For those worried about the xgym workout - I just started a new set of exercises: super slow pushups (so difficult!!) lunges, arm raises with free weights, and cable pull-downs, plus the same ab workouts as before. I guess I get to do this for another 7 weeks, and then I'm on to some whole new form of torture. I'm signed up for 6 months. After that, I"ll probably go back to a traditional gym to work out on my own. We'll see how it goes.

This is also not very good, if you want to lose weight faster. I know that you are aware of that, but if want faster results, it's better if you concentrate your calories intake during the day, and slow down as the bedtime approaches. Everything is a matter of habbit. If you are using protein powders, you may consider taking one dose with very little olive oil 1-2 hours before bed (it should slow down the protein absorbtion and your body will be supplied for longer, during your sleep About your workouts - probably I'm not right. I don't know the whole routine and the way you split the muscle groups ( you may share if you like/have the time). You also said , so be careful not to burn out I just posted a video. Don't laugh!!! http://www.paunchiest.com/

They tape some kind of electrodes on to your feet and this machine uses electrical pulses or some such thing to spit out a little print out that shows your water content, fat, and muscle mass. It's probably an approximation. You're right about the protein powder. I just double checked my scooper and it's more like 4 tablespoons that I'm using. I use this pea protein: http://www.trueprotein.com/Product_Details.aspx?cid=22&pid=6816

Thanks for all your responses. It's really helpful to get other perspectives. My personal goal is to loose body fat. I wouldn't mind toning up and gaining muscle as a bonus, but really, I just want to slim down overall. Deiman: I've not done very much in they way of weight training before. But I don't think I'm at much risk of injury at xgym because they are very strict about proper form, the weights are relatively low, and I never feel joint stress. The exercises very much isolate the target muscle groups. But still it is very stressful mentally, and a very hard workout in general. As for the soy comment, I have actually read the study that everyone cites talking about the phytoestrogens, isoflavones and cancer and it was only conducted on mice, not humans, using mega doses of soy protein isolate. Which is no where near equivalent to what an average human might consume. Mice physiology is not the same as human physiology anyway. Also there is some evidence that it may have been funded by the dairy industry - which makes the findings highly suspect right there. But whatever, I'm switching to unsweetened hemp milk. why not? Fermented soy products like tofu and tempeh don't contain the scary isoflavones, by the way. So, I'm going to keep up the xgym workout, eat more food, and cut out soy milk (not because I believe the crap, but because hemp milk is good too!)

Okay, so today I talked to the owner of the gym who said that my body is just adjusting, and also I did miss 2 of the 7 weeks while I was out of town, and that could account for muscle lost right there. He said that I should shoot for 1500-1600 calories, and he advised me to cut down on soy products. - He said that soy is messing with my hormones and causing things to be out of whack.

I'm 5'8" and about 145 lbs currently. The training at Xgym is unlike anything else I've experienced. We do very slow repetitions: 7 seconds out, 7 seconds back. There is no rest in between reps. The weight is never released. About the point where I feel like my muscles are completely giving out - that's half way. At that point they make me hold the weights, do short pulses or just half of the movement. Basically it's hard ass weight training to full muscle fatigue. It hurts like a mofo. screaming is not unusual. I do leg presses, leg curls, compound row, chest presses, and some kind of ab workout with no rest to speak of for 20 minutes twice a week.

The food log link works for me without being logged in. Anyway, I've been eating around 1200-1300 calories per day. Some times less. Also, I have a bad habit of skipping breakfast (and lunch sometimes) and eating all my calories at the end of the day. I have lost some fat too. I'm about 4 lbs lighter overall from where I started.

Hi! I'm a noob here and when it comes to strength training. I've been working out at xgym. 20 minutes of high intensity training twice a week, with tabata protocol cardio 2-3 times a week. Today I had my 7 week body composition test done, and they told me that I actually lost some muscle mass. And they blamed it on my being vegan. I've been drinking pea protein isolate shakes every day and eating lots of protein rich foods. You can see my food log here: http://xgym.mymealcoach.com/user-view.php?userid=15290&verify=e4087e74e46a (there are no entries from March 6-16 because I was out of town, but you can see the other days and get an idea of what I'm eating) My trainer said that vegetable protein just isn't the same as animal protein, and that's why I lost muscle. This doesn't make sense to me and is pretty frustrating. Any advice?

Hi, I'm Rebecca. I've been vegan for several years. I'm totally out of shape. I started doing 30-40 minutes of cardio at least 5 times a week in November. This month I started lifting weights and cutting back the cardio. I've been keeping detailed records of my workouts, measurements, and weekly progress photos. I also use fitday.com to keep track of my food intake. I eat a hearty, whole food rich, vegan diet that has about a 1:2:3 protein, fat, carb calorie ratio. So far I have seen absolutely no change in my shape whatsoever. My current stats are: Height: 5'7" Weight: 143 lbs Abdomen (belly): 32.5" Butt: 39" Bicep: 10.5" Thigh: 21.75" Est. Body Fat (from iliac skinfold 18mm): 27.6% My goal is to loose a few points of bodyfat and see some muscle definition by June. I feel like I'm doing all the right things. Hopefully switching to more of a strength training regiment will help. It's nice to meet all of you. I'm really glad this site exists!!!