Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

All I did today was BodyPump. Went lower on squats 35lbs, I used 40 yesterday,chest 25lbs, back 25 lbs, shoulder presses I went heavier 20lbs, because I didn't have enough plates handy, but I couldn't do every rep, and I'm sure my form sucked.
Anyway tomorrow I am supposedly doing something a bit different with the running trainer. I will be running half a mile to a nearby track, then I will be timed for a mile, then run beck to the Y and finish the mileage by running around the block a few times. This way I will finally know what my time is for running a mile. I am wondering if I should skip the Muscle Toning class that I usually do, because if I take it, I will be slower when I run due to squats, lunges, and other fun leg exercises. My head is finally clearing up though, and I don't want to skip anything now that I'm feeling more myself.

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8:30AM Breakfast: banana
10:30AM Breakfast:small bowl of oatmeal
12:30 pm:lunch: 1/2 wrap with vegan chili, spring greens, tomato, vegan cheese, and some other organic stuff, hummus, a few chips/stawberry fields iced tea(ate lunch at a veg/organic place)
8:30pm dinner: vegan burger brown rice, raw baby carrots/ iced green tea
10:30pm snack mango passionfruit herbal tea

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The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

Today I felt great at the gym. I walked about a half mile from work. Then I took a Muscle Toning class, it was strictly lifting weights, I didn't overdo it because I wanted to do well on my run. I did do lunges and squats though so my legs were quite awake by the run. I ran 3.5 miles, and was told I'm getting faster. I didn't go to the track because of timing. After my run, which took about 30-35 minutes I got the bus home. Then I walked about another half mile from the bus stop to the apartment. So in all today I put in about 4.5 miles.

Breakfast: oatmeal/ coffee
lunch: 1/2 wrap, carrots, iced tea
snack: nectarine
snack:banana
dinner: brown rice, vegan chicken pattie, black beans
snack: herbal tea

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The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

Wednesday:Body Pump class (55 minutes)
Thursday:run 3.5miles
Friday: rest day

Tomorrow was supposed to be the new release for Body Pump, but some of the trainers aren't feeling well so it's been postponed for 2 weeks. It seems to me that right now a lot of people aren't feeling that great. I'm just glad I'm over whatever it was, and I'm definitely glad to be back at the gym and at 100%.

Breakfast: oatmeal/ 2 cups of coffee
snack: peach
lunch: peanut butter sandwich (I haven't had pb&J for years, it was ok)
dinner: 2 burritos
snack: canteloupe

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The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

Saturday: Cardio Strength class; it was a good hard workout, used extra risers underneath so I could get more of a leg workout when I stepped up doing lunges and other leg stuff like stepping up, raisng a knee, and doing bicep curls at the same time. When you do more than one thing at a time, especially with an extra high step you've got to make sure you don't fall off. Used 7 and 10 pound weights, mostly used 10s, except for shoulders. Also got a lot of cardio in, and abs too. For some reason I'm always famished after this class.

Sunday: Today I ran for 3.5 miles. I got there and the trainer that's been out sick is back, but didn't teach Step. I took Body Pump after I ran though, and he was the instructor for that class, so it was good to have him back. This person is great at motivating you to do your best, and to push yourself, so that's pretty much why I love his classes. I also feel that I am finally progressing with the overhead shoulder press, and that my form is getting better, and that I'm actually getting stronger shoulders. I was wondering if this day would ever come, glad that it has.

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The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

Today I'll be taking a Body Pump class, and I've finally talked my Mom into getting back to the gym. She's finally ready to start an exercise program, I just hope she'll stick with it this time. I also weighed myself today, and I'm down to 137.5 lbs. So in about a month I've dropped 3 pounds. I have no idea what would be an appropriate weight for me, since I do lift weights, and therefore put on added muscle. I'm not too worried about it though because I like my routine, don't worry too much about what I eat, and seem to have enough energy for my workouts. I of course give credit to the running for my weight loss, so I have to keep that up. I'm learning to love it, so I wouldn't give it up anyway!

Ok, did the class, and my Mom managed to get through it too, and said she liked it, so that's a plus. Not much else to tell about my workout, just that this Saturday they'll launch the new release for sure, so it'll finally change the routine a bit.

Breakfast: went to Dandelion Tea (the organic/vegetarian place) ate a vegan blt on vegan sourdough bread and had too many cups of organic coffee lol
Lunch:peanut butter sandwich (was in a hurry)& I was bad and had some corn chips, but was glad they they didn't taste very good
Snack: 1/2 Clif bar
Dinner: 2 burritos/ brown rice
snack: herbal tea

_________________
The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

Muscle Toning: used barbell (it seems I can't get away from this piece of equipment, but I don't mind) and leg band. I really enjoyed the workout, but it's more of the same stuff that I always post so I won't log what I did. After, I ran in the rain for 3.5 miles. It got a bit windy, I thought I was going faster, but ended up finishing slower than usual.
Breakfast: cereal w/ unsweet silk soy milk & coffee
Snack: banana
Lunch: sandwich w/deli slices and vegan cheese
Snack:nectarine
Dinner: nature burgers/ black beans/ice tea

_________________
The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

Wednesday: Body Pump, it was the new release. Haven't had the launch yet, but think that'll be Saturday. The squat, and lunge track were harder than the last release. Some of the other stuff seemed like it might be easier, but I'm not used to it yet. By the time we get done an area like biceps, I've done probably somewhere around 50-60 reps for that bodypart. The tricep track was a bit strange, started with dips, then overhead tricep extentions, then finished lying down doing pullovers, tricep press, and more extentions.

Thursday: Had my timed run tonight. Only did 2 and 3/4 miles. Started by running to track, 1/2 mile, then ran around once 1/4mile to get the feel of it, then had timed run for 1 mile. Then I ran back to the Y. My time wasn't that great, but I was told each lap was consistent, it's not like 1 time was 2:30. and the next 4:00. Anyway my time for one mile was 10:24, that's about a minute faster than when I ran the 5k in late December. Tomorrows supposed to be my day off, but I feel like I didn't do enough today, so I may go tomorrow do a bit of cardio, and then take a Body Pump class. I just hope my triceps are less sore, since they got pretty beat up with the new set. There won't be a launch for the new release on Saturday, they'll just be adding it to the regular schedule, which makes sense. That's about it, oh and someone actually wished me a Happy Valentines Day, this is a first, of course it was one of the trainers at the gym, but it was nice anyway.

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The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

My computer keeps freezing up, as soon as I finish posting an update, so I'll try a third time.
Friday I took off because I don't want to burn out by working out too much.

Saturday: Cardio Strength was quite a challenge, I loved every second. I used a barbell, mostly at 20 pounds. It was enough because inbetween supersets we did cardio, so I sweated a lot!

I also ate out twice at Ethos Vegan Kitchen, it just opened late December, and is Orlando's first vegan only reataurant. I tried their meatball sub, and philly cheesesteak, and had a side of their penne pasta. They also have wonderful desserts, and organic coffee. A weird thing happened to me though on Friday evening. I started to have a real bad stomach cramp, and was feeling a bit queasy. I have no idea why, and it just wouldn't go away. I wonder if it may be because I was bad and had a Diet soda. Although this has never happened before, I think my Mom was starting to get concerned. She's a massage therapist, and a while back she showed me how to get rid of a stomach ache. So later that night I very gently massaged my stomach in a clockwise motion, and that helped a lot. The pain quickly went away, although my stomach was still a bit sore the next morning.
Today I went to BodyPump, and after I ran for 3.5 miles. It was hotter than it's been for a while. I think it was around 80 degrees, and the sun was out too. At least I was smart enough to wear shorts. At first I thought I went a lot slower than usual, but then I finally realized I hadn't started running as soon as I thought. My time was about the same as it usually is, so that's good to know that the heat doesn't have too much of an effect. Especially since Florida gets pretty darn hot in the Summer! I was actually thinking of skipping the run, but then I saw the running instructor, and that was all I needed to get myself in gear. Soon I'll add another half mile to my runs too!

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The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

Today I tried something a bit different. I''ve done spinning classes before, but never thought it was for me. Anyway I did a spinning class today, and I had the same problem as I always do. The class is only 45 minutes, then you have 15 minutes of stretching and abs. I wasn't really warmed up, or feeling it until 20 minutes in, and even then I didn't feel like I was working that hard. After the class I said as much to the trainer, adding that I liked running more. Turns out he's the same way, I guess cycling isn't for everyone. It was ok, and my quads were tired, and I know I'll feel it in my glutes tomorrow, but I think I'll stick to running for now. I like to feel that I absolutely can't do anymore after a workout, and for me that's exactly what running does. Then after the spin, I did abs, I will admit my legs didn't want to move at all, and then stretched. I waited another half hour, and took my usual Body Pump class. I wonder how the spinning class will affect my run tomorrow? If I run funny I guess I'll have the answer!

_________________
The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

Was supposed to be Muscle Toning today, but when I got there the instructor asked if I was ready for Body Pump. So I've done BP 3 days in a row, and I'm quite beat. After the class I ran 3.5 miles, felt ok even though I did spinning yesterday. But my quads were quite sore, not just regular muscle soreness either. When I was at work I bent my leg doing something, and had a pain in part of my quad. But when I stand, walk, or run I don't feel anything so I'm guessing I just need to stretch a bit more.
I don't think I want to do a fourth BP class tomorrow, but I dont want to skip either. So I'm thinking I'll just take the class before, which is cardio based. I would do some free weight stuff, but with three days of barbell training I think I'll give that a rest. The class is called Cardio Jump, and it's exactly the way it sounds, with lots of jumping, plyometrics, and cardio. I guess it's time I face the jump rope again too.

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The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

Walked from work to gym, then 15 minutes later started cardiojump class. At least I wasn't the only new person. It was intense! Lets just say before I attempted the class I thought I was in relatively good shape. Now I'm not so sure lol! Started with a quick stretch, and then warmed up jumping, some used a jump rope some, including me did not. Then we went to our first jumping stations. between our different stations we would all do something together like lunges, and squats across the room, or more jumprope intervals. My first station was using one of those balance balls that you jump onto, but we were just alternating lunges with them. My second station was doing side jumps between some cones.My third station was jumping over hurdles, and the last I got through was jumping sideways across a rope that was tied to cones. We also used some leg bands and did various stuff across the room while wearing them, and then finished off with some pushups. My legs were shaking by the end of the class too. I talked to a few people, including some trainers, after the class and everyone said the same thing that it's a very difficult class, but that it's good for a change. I'm glad that I took the day off from any weight training, I just thought I was taking a break, not doing something more difficult.

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The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

Sounds like fun!

Yeah, cardio classes remind us of what kind of aerobic shape we're in. I might get into some sort of cardio hip hop class for fun!

Anyway, keep it up!

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

Having technical difficulties with my old old computer. So I will try to keep these posts brief. I'm sure any people that read them will be most pleased. If I do disappear for a while it'll be because my computer has bitten the dust.
Thursday I walked to the gym, and then ran outside. After 2 miles I had to stop, but then finished another mile on the outdoor track. 5 minutes after I went inside it began to rain quite a bit. Not much else to tell, since this, Friday, was my regular day off. I did some different workouts than I'm used to this week, but I prefer my regular routine. At least I know I'm capable of doing different things now, and without becoming too sore.

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The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.

Ok, finally back to the regular routine, I'm so glad. Today was Cardio Strength. I felt pretty strong in the arms, but the different activities I did this week left my legs feeling tired and heavy during the class. I just wasn't as fast as I usually am with some of the cardio intervals. Anyway I hope my legs will be well rested by tomorrow, because I have a Step class, and that is all legs. I've got to go now because I'm going to Etho's, I can't help it, the food is so good, and I hate to cook!

_________________
The devotion of thought to an honest achievement makes the achievement possible.