Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

(I copied this from my journal since I probably should have just posted it here in the first place.)

Hi! I'm Amber and I'm currently living in Denver, Colorado. I went vegan in September of 2010. It started as a week-long detox after a vacation, and turned into a permanent lifestyle once I looked at the ethical reasons for veganism. It was the best thing I've done for myself so far!

I'm currently 5'6" and 131 lbs. Ever heard the term "skinnyfat"? Yeah, that's me. I've been running off and on for a few years and it has helped me shed some pounds. Running is great, but it's not really helping me build muscle, which I desperately need. My goals are to gain core, arm and leg strength, and to firm up those areas as well. As for recent training... I turned 30 on December 30th and ran 13.25 miles! That's the longest I've ever run. Unfortunately I didn't train very well up to that point and was reeeeally sore up until yesterday, so I've been slacking on my training.

My eating habits are the best they've ever been, but I could still use some guidance on what to eat before and after I work out. I almost always have a giant bowl of oatmeal and fruit for breakfast, fruit or veggies as snacks, and a tempeh or tofu scramble loaded with veggies for lunch. I usually end up overeating at dinner and I'm trying to figure out why that happens. I'm a former baker with a huge sugar/fat addiction. Right now I have it under control and don't touch sweets. I had cake on my birthday and felt like complete crap. It was a nice reminder to avoid stuff like that. I plan on keeping a food journal here as well.

That's enough about me! I'm really looking forward to making some new friends, and I'm especially excited to work with Claudia Lailhacar and get whipped into shape!

_________________
Twitter: @monkandmao | Facebook | My Blog

Welcome Amber!

Great to have you here! Colorado is a beautiful place! My brother lives outside of Denver and I was just there visiting for Thanksgiving. One of my best friends in the world lives in Fort Collins and I make the trip out to CO yearly.

All the best with your goals! I hope you enjoy the forum. It has been a friendly vegan community for many years. Happy to have you!

Welcome aboard.

-Robert

_________________

Check out my Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness Book on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Vegan-Bodybuildin ... 497&sr=1-1

I lived in Denver for 12 years and used to run along the Big Dry Creek Trail and the Mary Carter Greenway Trail by the Platte River in Englewood. I miss all the ducks and geese on the river and the beautiful patterns of ice out there this time of year. Where do you run?

Baby Herc

_________________
Power [][][][][][][][][][]
Speed [][]
Stamina [][][][][][]
Smarts [][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][][]
http://allthoughtsworkoutdoors.wordpress.com/

Thanks, Robert!

Colorado is a beautiful place. I'm happy to hear you make it out here pretty frequently!

I'm really looking forward to making some new friends here, and learning how to better myself. I'm happy to be here!

_________________
Twitter: @monkandmao | Facebook | My Blog

Hi, Baby Herc! Nice to meet you!

I'm glad you got to experience Denver, especially running here. Isn't it beautiful? I usually run around my neighborhood (NW Denver) and Rocky Mountain Lake. A giant group of geese landed on the icy lake as I was running a few days ago. It was so cool!

_________________
Twitter: @monkandmao | Facebook | My Blog

Hi, Amber. I saw your subject and had to read your intro.

I'm not a nutritionist or dietitian so please bear that in mind with my advice. I'd recommend that you use a site or app to track your food. You'd think that we'd all be able to eat intuitively but as our bodies evolved to need certain things, they evolved in an environment that often faced shortages of fat, calories, and sugar. We're programmed to eat those things when we can. Now we live in an environment where calories, fat, and sugar are abundant. So we need food & nutrition trackers.

Most trackers are not intended for bodybuilding (but I'm not sure if you want to pursue bodybuilding). There are some apps out there for bodybuilders.

Overeating at dinner could have many causes from eating too few calories during the day, to emotional reasons, to too low protein intake, to culture. I tend to eat most of my calories at breakfast, lunch, and snacks. For dinner I typically have a simple bowl of soup because I've already taken in most of my protein and calories for the day. If I feel especially hungry, I'll add some baked tofu or eat a bean soup. That said, it's been in the last several months that I switched to a small dinner.

Your muscle soreness from running should decrease as you run more frequently, if it is normal delayed onset muscle soreness. If it is pain in your tendons, ligaments, or joints, please talk to a doctor.

Thanks for the comment! I use the LoseIt app to track my foods. It has shown me that I really need to add more protein. Hopefully that will help with my overeating problem, too.

My muscle soreness is definitely just DOMS. I've got a mild case of it today after taking my first yoga class yesterday. It hurts so good. :)

Thanks for the follow on twitter. I look forward to chatting!

_________________
Twitter: @monkandmao | Facebook | My Blog