Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

See you soon buddy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Train hard and eat plenty! I can't wait to train together and get swol! We've both been so busy and both been out of town a bit but I look forward to hammering it and getting ready to put our best foot forward to join Jimi and make history baby!

Let's do this!!!!!!!!

Have a great one buddy and catch you soon.

JohnV, thanks so much. I am 100% and hitting it hard. 1/4 barbell squats x5 rep x 10th workset @ 515lbs two days ago. Bis/tris/forearms this morning. Deadlifts and Goodmornings (20 sets tonight!)

I really appreciate your kind words of encouragement in a period of tough times for me. Thankfully, the road is no clear and nothing is in the way!

Josh, I created a new blog as per requested by RC, you can find it here. So in other words, I will not be posting here until the competition is over as to not confuse anyone, all updates on my progress will be on the new blog.

My New Training Blog

I miss my blog! I was re editing this blog title to reflect it's general posts not what's going on now and was reading the very first post I wrote shortly after joining VBBF.

first blog post on 02/04/08.... I've come so far. Thank you everyone here for CHANGING MY LIFE FOREVERRRRRRRR I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR REAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I feel like posting poundages on the daily and jotting down each individual exercise can be taxing, repetitive and difficult to look through. I will post a short summary once a week of results and noteworthy accomplishments and perhaps sometimes in between weeks if something really exciting happens for me and I wish to share.

Quick Background Info: Have not been in the gym for 1 1/2 years and completely inactive for 8 months. Excessive weight gain from september - december from overeating. In the past have accomplished many feats in the field of being an advanced athlete (won a bb comp, ran 1/2 marathons, cycled 150+ miles at a time, played collegiate tennis, powerlifted for a brief spell successfully, used to be a personal trainer) so I expect muscle memory to be in my favor for producing fantastic and quick results.

January 1st 08, 1st day back. First two weeks will be spent getting acclimated to basic exercises and upping cardiovascular fitness level as much as possible to enhance the resistance training and overall health level.

The Workout: I will perform the same exercises and repeat this cycle 5 times before switching it up. No supersets, drop sets, negatives, working on weaknesses. Just trying to build a solid foundation for future work on growth, strength.

4 sets and twelve repetitions per exercise
There will be no rest in between days or at the end of a cycle unless my body asks for it or something gets in the way.

Day 1: Chest / Calves / Core
Day 2: Upper Back / Forearms
Day 3: Lower Back / Traps / Obliques
Day 4: Shoulders / Calves
Day 5: Arms
Day 6: Legs / Traps / Core

Cardio: Indoor / Outdoor / Machines what have you

The Diet: 100% raw but Less nuts / seeds / gourmet and more juices, fresh produce, seaweeds, algaes, grasses and superfoods. Dieting down and very reduced caloric intake to melt away unnecessary bf but subject to change as by body will gradually wish for more fuel, I suspect.

Starting stats: 198 lbs, 12% bf, very weak and out of shape, basically feel
like a noob. how did this happen!!!
Goal Stats: 170-180lbs and sub 8% bf within 3 month time frame but
weight is only a number so it will all depend and time will tell.

Before pictures taken on January 10th. After pictures will be taken on February 10th and placed in the proper forum shortly and will be taken every two months thereafter and posted.

A thank you in advance for any support and motivation thrown my way. Suggestions and criticism is always welcome!

Nice to see it back! YB!

HATE IT WHEN THAT HAPPENS. Spent 15min typing it got deleted from a bad keystroke. ARRRGH!!!!!

short and simple

30 miles cycliong outdoors in the rain makes Giacomo a happy boy

cannot type again, next post will be better!!!!

Nearly 10,000 views on this specific blog....nice!

I hate when that happens too, happens to me sometimes.

See you later perhaps? My house at 7:30PM sharp tonight....if you're interested in playing.

RC

Sorry your page got deleted. I was looking forward to reading more of your journal
I had this happen to me before, and what I freaking pain it is to make another attempt at it.

You could always try to press the undo button right after you lost it.

Or you could do what Robert always does, highlight and save every para.

I think I have finally had it with taking a 'break' from lifting and I just can't bear not being in the gym everyday anymore. I just kept putting off going back in since the comp on april 25th to do other stuff that had taken a backseat.

Since the competition I have had 4 sessions, two cycling outdoors, 30 and 16 miles respectively and then two lifting sessions; one justr chest and then yesterday I did a full body workout just to get my whole bosy used to and back into it.

On Sunday, me and Dani rode out to Sauvie Island and made it all the way out to the beachfront, which is actually a river with sand bordering it. But only 4 miles out on the way their on our 16 mile expedition, I got a tire puncture and a flat. I tok out my patch kit and a patch but the tube of glue was empty. Someone stopped and helped us and told us to put a dollar bill inbetween the tubing and tire top avoid getting another flat. We were on our way. After relaxing on the waterfront, my tube went flat where the tire puncture was again and this time we were sol. But after awhile another cyclist came to the rescue and we patched it but then it blew again only 5 min later. I couldn't go on anymore, the tire was obviously unrideable. Off we went, 2 vegans with 'go vegan' and 'vegan bodybuilding' messages on our apparel in the back of a fisherman's truck with all their caught fish ad fancy rods. Ironic much? Dani made a camera snapshot gesture and said how it's one of those 'if i could take a snapshot of my life' moments. lol

Yesterday evening was weights. Gym 1/4 mile up the street. Convenient, simple, good amt of equip. to work with. I did my strongest parts at the bottom and weaker in the beginning so I had enough exertion to do everything. Here's how it went, in this order:

Incline Bench Press 155x10, 165x10
Pullups/Lat Pulldowns Superset x8 / 120x7 ; x7 / 120x8
Standing Dumbell Bicep Curls 35x10, 30x10
Deadlifts 225x10, 225x10
Dumbell Shrugs 75x10, 75x10
Shoulders 60x10, 60x10
Dips x10, x10
Legs/Forearm Db Curls/Decline Situps SuperSet 225x10, 40x10, x10 <-- did this for 2 sets

I look forward to updating semi-frequently for a couple of weeks and thenb going back to the traditional once a week update like I usually do once a program is solidified to track note weekly progress

Nice to see you back

Glad to see you back at it!

I was at Whole Foods and a woman who knows me said, "Hey, did you know there is a raw vegan bodybuilder here in Portland?" I said, "Yeah, he's my training partner and in my documentary."

Word is spreading of the Lean and Green man.

Yeah.....Buddy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tXaZmY52gHM
back in green
he's in the scene

That is the song I posed to in my last competition

Thanks for the motivating words and youtube flick MaryStella and Vivalasvegans! And RC man, that is sweet!!!!!!!!!

I could use the motivation. I am feeling so crummy about myself for not holding my own financially, only getting like 15 hours a week sometimes less that it makes me feel like I have no right to be training b/c I should be at home or on the go trying to find work. I have been feeling really down on myself lately, eating poorly, not training, not being able to find work on top of everything I abandoned for the comp hitting my doubly hard now in the aftermath of it all. I keep wanting to get back at it consistently but ended up failing yet another week.

I went to the gym two days in a row (sunday and monday last week) which was a record since the comp in training sessions back to back and then didn't go again. dani nudged me a couple of times but i threw things out to her like I was: too stressed, too much on my mind, too busy with other things, feeling down on myself, not worthy to go until I get something going jobwise, etc, etc.... I'll try again at it this week and see what happens. Monday (tomorrow) for sure and i'll take it from there.

So to recap this past week (05/26 - 05/31):

sunday (gym):
monday (gym):
thursday: 14 miles round trip (16mph avg on the cateye) cycling from my house to Roberts and back
today: 4 miles hiking

I officially have ZERO luck this past 6 mos with bicycles. I used to go FOREVER without getting a flat. Now I cannot go anywhere without getting several flats. I took my touring bicycle and it got a flat, repaired it and 5 secs later got another flat. Really????

The hiking trip was awesome. We went only 50 miles from our house on the 'Eagle Creek Trail' in the Columbia Valley Gorge and it was SOOOOOOOOO great. Got to the top (short trail) and then descended. It was the perfect sunday.

Hey buddy...

Sorry to hear about the bad luck with the bike. I hope you're able to find some steady work and get back to steady training soon as well, but I know you gotta do what you gotta do as far as job search stuff.

I know a lot of people support www.veganproteins.com and I hope more and more will support it too, so that aspect will be contributing to work and income, etc. I look forward to watching it really take off and I know it has been going pretty well so far, which is awesome!

Back in town now....let me know how this week goes, if you need anything, etc.

Glad Sunday was an awesome one!

All the best man!