Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

I don't know how you people in hot cities and countries do it.

When the summer comes around my body throws a wobbler. I can't sleep properly and, the worse thing for an amateur body builder, I loose my appetite totally. Wake up, don't want to eat, don't feel hungry any time during the day and if I eat anything like I would usually I feel bloated and ill.

Does anyone else get this?

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"Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard." - Tim Notke
"Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." - Sir Winston Churchill

I always want to eat no matter what. i never understood this.

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I'm a bit different, any other time I'm fine. When it gets hotter I don't feel hunger any more and get a bit queezy if I do eat.

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"Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard." - Tim Notke
"Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." - Sir Winston Churchill

Yeah, I generally don't eat as much in the summer and especially less meals prepared hot.

Although, I have noticed since I quit eating meat it isn't near as bad.

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Sometimes I have to make myself eat during really hot summer (like lately with our 100F+ temps). I make sure I keep down plenty of water and fruit juice is awesome for this time as well.

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High carb, low fat, whole foods. Any questions?

I agree, heat kills my appetite. Unless we're talkin' frozen fruit smoothies, those go down pretty well as long as they don't have too high a sugar content. The worst combo for me is heat + heavy activity. I used to climb an entire mountain on a few granola bars back in the day because my appetite just wouldn't return until I had relaxed again. Drinking ice water helps cool your gut down but for those like me, who go by how hot my face feels, there's nothing to do but count down the days until the first frost. That and workout at dawn.

Baby Herc

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Hey, I just thought of something: have you ever experimented with avurveyda to cool down your body? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayurveda It's an ancient Hindu way of health that parallels many modern findings as well as a great deal of ancient Chinese medicine. The part of it you may enjoy in particular is the three doshas, or to simplify, body types. Each type has a tolerance level for heat and cold, both in ambient surroundings and food. Spices play a large role.

When I looked into it a little deeper, I discovered that, yes, I did actually crave "cooler" foods in the summer and "warmer" foods in the winter. Even the spices I chose reflected this. That's where the phrase "warming/heating spices" comes from, if you've ever heard of it. It's why I don't care much for cinnamon; it's a warming spice. I crave hot chilis, which seem like a "hot" spice but they actually cool the body by opening pores, vasodilation, and an anti-inflammatory effect. That's why you sweat when you eat them. Here's a brief list: http://www.myhealthybalance.com/2010/03 ... and-herbs/

If you're not sure which dosha you are (most people are a blend but have a leaning towards one in particular), here's a couple quick tests to compare:
http://ayurvedadosha.org/doshas/ayurveda-dosha-test
http://doshaquiz.chopra.com/ (This one has an additional short test at the top in the orange button that recommends steps to take to balance out.)
http://tridosha.com/self-test

I am a Pitta-Vata with a giant emphasis on Pitta. I talk/think fast, get bored and burnt out easily, have a volcano of energy from dawn to dusk when I am healthy, am a mesomorph, need to keep moving, and hate hot temperatures with a passion. Where's my smoothie?

Baby Herc

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Oh great, I'm one of everything

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"Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard." - Tim Notke
"Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." - Sir Winston Churchill

Equally? That's pretty cool: tridosha. Then it's just a simple matter of experimenting with cooling foods and spices and leaving out the heating ones and seeing what happens. It's something to try, anyway.

Baby Herc

PS: The most cooling beverage I know is chilled peppermint tea. You can actually feel your organs--especially the stomach--relaxing right after you drink it.

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That is the most effective way I have found for having to cool down fast (like after having done work outside) or after/during an intense work out. And I'm a water ADDICT so it just kills several birds with one stone anyway!

EDIT: Sorry for the "kill birds" thing it's all I could think of right now.

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High carb, low fat, whole foods. Any questions?