Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

Ive created a online journal on bodybuilding.com to hold myself accountable and keep me motivated. Ive decided to share it on this forum as well since im a vegan and i dont exactly subscribe to the common bodybuilding ideals so maybe ill recieve better information other than "you need to bulk" or "you need more protein" ect...

Goal: To achieve a ripped physique (roughly 10% bf i think if i had to put a number on it), im not really interested in building too much mass at this point... as being lean and ripped will benefit me as i compete in martial arts. Im all about performance and health, trying to maximize my performance while keeping my health.

A little background information on me:

I started out around 225 at my heaviest back in april of 2009 (age:17) with a height probably around 5'8-5'9. I had reached my absolute breaking point and i realized how i was throwing my life down the drain. I made the change in my diet eating a "healthy" version of an omnivore diet (complex carbs, lean meats, veggies, and fruit) with no junk food whatsoever. Note: exercise at this point in my journey was not regular but diet (did not cut calories either) was followed. Around a year later i had lost close to 30lbs weighed around 190-195lbs, and i started to become more consistent with my exercise routine (2-3 times per week). Did alot of research on health and wellness over this period of time because i was breezing with the weight loss and realized how important diet was to my success (since i barely exercised). Stumbled upon veganism and read Skinny Bastard + China Study, and overnight I had made the switch (June 2010). 3 months on the vegan diet and i went from 190ish to 165ish easily (my fitness skyrocketed btw). (August 2011) a little over a year as a vegan, i weighed 155lbs(still pudgy lol) and reached an all time high with my fitness level (boxing and training in martial arts daily). Jump to (September 2011) just coming off a martial arts tournament in which i had dehydrated myself 10lbs to make weigh and felt abosulutly terrible in because of the cut, i was out muscled by a smaller opponent and lost a decision...(i took the loss very hard because of my competetive nature, and was bumbed because i could hold my own strength wise with guys weighing 200+lbs in practice). Post fight i talked with my coaches, teamates and family and was encouraged/pressured to start eating meat again to build strength (i refused chicken and beef simply because i do not agree with the factory farming + hormones, ect that goes into the meat) and i began eating fish a few times a week. I started doing construction a week later and figured i could consume more food and (build muscle) i ballooned up to 183lbs (october 2011) and had lost all motivation to workout. Fell into a bit of depression not having the time to do what i love (martial arts), watching my fitness and hard work slip away from me + getting fatter. I ended up quitting my job (november 2011) started training again while following the same diet plan (fish but no dairy) and lost some pounds (floating at around 175lbs until the new year. Enter 2012 i said wtf am i doing eating this crap... i feel so much better on a vegan diet so all through january i went back to my old ways eating healthy vegan food as much as i desired. February 1st i decided to cut my calories and reach new heights as far a bodyfat % goes and regain what i once had and beyond .

A serious ramble and i must note that i am completly ashamed of myself for eating fish for those couple of months... with that being said in a way im happy i did because ive reinforced how ridiculously powerful veganism truly is... while eating the fish my energy dropped and i was feeling really crappy.

anyway ive been cutting my bodyfat since february 1st and decided to start documenting with pictures and a journal for motivation and accoutablitily about a week ago (Feb 12 2012- Week 2)

my stats:

age: 20
height: 5'10.5
weight: 163 now... was (170 Feb 1st 2012)

lastly im going to post my progress and program in the next few posts (i hope this is not a problem since i just want to keep it oragnized and im not trying to spam in any way)

Heres my Diet and Exercise Plan: (open to suggestions, but this has been working great so far)

DIET-

Breakfast:
8 oz Beans (black, kidney, garbonzo, medley ect...)
1/3 Cup Oats, 1 tbsp ground flaxseed, 1 tbsp raw honey

MEAL TOTALS: Calories: 395, Carbs: 55g, Protein: 18.7g, Fat: 4.6g


Lunch:
8 oz Beans (black, kidney, garbonzo, medley ect...)
2 Cups Steamed Broccoli
1 Medium Sweet potato

MEAL TOTALS: Calories: 433, Carbs: 60.8g, Protein: 25.9g, Fat: 3.1g


Dinner:
8 oz Beans (black, kidney, garbonzo, medley ect...)
2 Cups Steamed Broccoli
1 Medium Sweet potato

MEAL TOTALS: Calories: 433, Carbs: 60.8g, Protein: 25.9g, Fat: 3.1g


Snacks (250 calories worth):
Salad: 170 Calories
1 Piece Fruit: 100 Calories
2 Cups Steamed Broccoli: 80 Calories
Kale Smoothy: 250 Calories
Almonds (10): 70 Calories


DAY TOTALS (Minus Snacks): Calories 1261, Carbs: 176.6g, Protein: 70.5g, Fat: 10.8g

Calories Totals (With Snacks): 1511

Supplements: Multi-Vitamin, Vitamin B12, Vitamin D3

NOTES/ TIPS:
- 3 L water minimum per day
- Coffee and Decaf Coffee (black), Tea (black) = appetite suppressants
- Chewing Gum (sugarfree) in between meals
- Brush teeth after meals makes food unappealing
- Wednesdays are Refeed/ Carb Load days, normal diet + as much fruit and vegetables as i feel like
- No carbs after 6pm
- Snacks allow for variety (changes macros im aware but stays within calorie limit) note: may need to adjust later on if progress stalls.

__________________________________________________ _________________________________________________

EXERCISE PROGRAM:

3x per week Resistance training
3x per week Cardio training


Monday: Chest + Back (optional cardio)

Tuesday: Cardio (bike, running, sports) + Boxing training (rounds on bag until fatigued)

Wednesday: Legs + Core, (optional cardio)

Thursday: Cardio (bike, running, sports) + Boxing training (rounds on bag until fatigued)

Friday: Shoulders + Arms (optional cardio)

Saturday: Cardio (bike, running, sports) + Boxing training (rounds on bag until fatigued)

Sunday: Rest Day


NOTES:
- Cardio can be HIIT or Low intensity (depending on how i feel) 20-30 mins
- Resistance is heavy weights, 5 sets until fatigued

Week 2 Into Cut (starting point was 170lbs, i didnt take pictures or take measurements)
Date Recorded: Feb. 12th 2012
Age: 20

Stats-
Height: 5'10.5"
Weight: 165.3 lbs

Skinfolds- (im going to try to be as consisent/accurate as possible)
Chest: 6mm
Abdomen: 18mm
Tricep: 7mm
Thigh: 15mm

Measurements-
Chest: 38"
Abdomen: 33.5"
Waist: 34"
Leg (flexed): 20.5"
Arm (flexed): 13.5"

note: sundays will be my progress updates

Pictures Attached

Date recorded: February 19th 2012 (week 3)

Weight: 163.0 lbs

Skinfolds-
Chest: 6mm
Abdomen: 16mm
Tricep: 7mm
Thigh: 15mm

Measurements-
Chest: 37 3/4"
Abdomen: 33"
Waist: 34"
Leg (flexed): 21"
Arm (flexed): 13.5"

again sorry for so many posts in such short time just want to keep it oragnized and i will post updates on sundays and maybe other tid bits through the week

Pictures attached

Thanks for sharing. I think its really cool that you are kind of linking the two sites in this way. Also I think its hilarious that you cover your face with a black box. Reminds me of that tv show delocated. Have you seen it? Its pretty crass, but I find it super funny.

-Dylan

hey thanks for the responce Dylan, sorry it took me this long to respond.... havent seen delocated but the black box thing is pretty funny though haha

this weeks updates

Date recorded: February 26th 2012 (week 4)

Weight: 163.1 lbs

Skinfolds-
Chest: 6mm
Abdomen: 16mm
Tricep: 7mm
Thigh: 15mm

Measurements-
Chest: 37.5"
Abdomen: 33"
Waist: 33.5"
Leg (flexed): 21"
Arm (flexed): 13 1/4"

Thoughts: week went good followed everything to the tee.... basically everything stayed the same as last week, just gotta stay patient and see what happens im hoping that possibly a woosh is in store for me sometime in the near future....... my reefed day on Wednesday was kind of bad, so this week i think im going to tone it down a bit.... still eat slightly above maintenance but not as much as i did. ( i took pictures of everything i ate on my last reefed i might post them who knows)

Update - date recorded March 4th 2012 (week 5)

Weight: 161.5 lbs

Skinfolds-
Chest: 5mm
Abdomen: 15mm
Tricep: 7mm
Thigh: 14mm

Measurements-
Chest: 37"
Abdomen:33"
Waist: 33 1/4"
Leg (flexed): 20.5"
Arm (flexed): 13.5"

Thoughts: Once again everything has been pinpoint accurate as far as eating and training goes, on my cheat/refeed this week i went overboard eating junk and i payed the price in the form of sickness. I felt physically sick 10 minutes after eating and the next day i literally had a hangover :S i couldnt believe it. Even though i ate all that junk on refeed day it still didnt damage my results this week whatsoever. After last weeks plateau with the weight this week it balanced everything out. The pictures are anything but flattering, when i look in mirror and in different light settings there is often much more defintion none the less i will continue using my current setting for pictures. My fat has definatly gone "squishy" with little hard deposits or marbles all under the skin which is nice to know because that tells me im on track and i should be seeing even better results in future. This cut has been extremely easy, i plan to continue down the path and get ripped up by summer time... ill cut for as long as i need to but im thinking that but the end of april/ beggining of may should be enough time (12 weeks total)

pictures attached:

I hadn't heard the term reefed day so I googled. Interesting hearing the pro's and cons. If you are interested http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index ... 319AAXkjPI

ya thanks for posting that, i did a fair bit of research prior to starting and decided that it would be best to keep my metabolism high and also allow me the mental break using a refeed day ive also noticed my most visible changes occur a day or two after my refeed days.

So I'm curious how is the reefed thing going for you so far? I love when I can hear first hand when others are the guinea pigs. Haha because too often I am my own guinea pig. I want details mr black box, I'm interested in giving it a try but I want to hear if you have experienced any pros or cons.
Let me know, thanks,

-Dylan