My Vegan Fitness/Bodybuilding Journey

[TheFitnessGirla]

Ok, so this is my firs day journaling this part of my vegan fitness/bodybuilding journey. Its been a year (a bit more) that it started. Last year, this date I just wanted to finish losing the last couple of pounds and reach my ideal size (I've never been a big fan of the scale, rather rely on how clothes fit). Anyway, my goals started to change and as I've traveled farther in this road and learned more about the sport (bodybuilding) the desire to grow more muscle has increased. I'm regarded as a freak as it is in this town (imagine not eating animals by choice, not because I'm sick or anything ), imagine now! Some people boldly come up to me and ask me why do I come to the gym (you're too thin already) why would you like to be more muscular, why do you wanna look like a man???? (Small town people, tsk tsk!) Anyway, it was easier to lose the pounds (82 in total) than to gain the muscle. I've managed to increase my strength significantly, and there is some muscle and definition here and there, but I hardly look like an IFBB pro, or am anywhere near to benchpressing my own weight. To state the truth I look thin... Some days I feel like Popeye's Olive Oil (was that the name of his girlfriend?).... I'm still getting the hang of vegan nutrition for performance and results....

On another note, I've been following Jamie Eason's Live Fit 12 week program, I'm on week 6 now. I'm kind of following the nutrition guidelines that aren't vegan friendly, and making substitutions here and there. But there's a problem here: I've started to lose weigh and I don't want that to happen. And the minute I eliminate cardio and increase food intake (in the form of starchy carbs I admit) I start to grow a pouch. I still look thin, but with a flabby pouch!!! :'-(

So that's basically the situation here: once an obese omnivore, now a scrawny vegan... well at least I have biceps that can be seen when I flex, LOL. But I want my arms bigger. And my legs. And the cuts. I want it all.

Enough of my worries already, let's get into the juicy stuff here: today's workout and diet.

Went to the gym at 6:00am, with two young kids there isn't any other time. This was my workout today:

Back and Cardio

Pullups 3/10 (negatives and assisted)

Superset: 3/8
Bent over bb row (EZ bar 20lbs weight discs)
Seated cable rows (60 lbs)

Normal sets:
Wide grip lat pulldowns 3/10 (50lbs)
One Arm DB row 3/8 (30lbs)
Hammer Strength lat pulldown 3/10 (40lbs)
Hyperextension 3/8 (25lbs weight disc)

Elliptical: 30 minute moderate cardio

When I was done, drank soy protein shake mixed with favored water.

Meal 1: 3/4 cup oatmeal, 2 tablespoons of milled flaxseeds, soy milk

Meal 2: 1 banana, 1 tablespoon of peanut butter

Meal 3: TVP styrfry (with broccoli, tomatoes, carrots and stringbeans) seasoned with fresh onions, garlic, basil, soysauce and a teaspoon of olive oil (poured after cooked)
sweet potato(about the size of my fist) boiled with skin

Meal 4: Another soy protein shake

Meal 5: whole wheat roll w/peanut butter, a cup of fresh avocado

Meal 6: 1 cup of TVP styrfry with avocado and tomato salad.

Well that was it... I hope I'm not trashing in the kitchen what I'm doing in the gym!

[TheFitnessGirla]

Still nailing down this nutriition thing... is like the day isn't long enough to fit 6 meals in it. And if I increase the portions, I'm not hungry when. Its time to eat again. A while ago I set alarms on my phone to remind me the times on which I have to eat. I need to eat plenty, otherwise I lose weight, period. Today I fell a meal short. When I weighted myyself this morning, I. Was 118, which means my weigh hasn't increased. In my ideal world weight should be increasing, and I should be looking more muscular and cut. I still look, well... slim. Ironic how my worries have changed: when trying to lose the weight, I wasn't losing fast enough or the weight was increasing (due to my poor eatinng habits). Now is like I'm always falling short on food. Guess I have to start eating earlier (before workout)... Is just that I workout so early! Well, sacrifices need to be made, even if it means eating my first meal before my workout, eventhough I prefer working out on an empty stomach.

On another note, today I trained Chest aand Abs, followed by moderate cardio. Aaaah this moderate cardio thing on this rainy season. Nothing more boring than the elliptical machine or stationary bike. Besides my bad knee won't let me run anymore... Speed walking sounds like a great substitute, but in reality it aint that appealing... Ah well!

Here's what I did today in detail:

Wide grip BB bench press 5/8 (1 warm up, 3 regular, 1 negative):
Warm up- 45 lbs (1/10)
Regular- 65 lbs (3/8)
Negative- 75 lbs (1/15)
*I increased the reps in some cases in kind of a spur of the moment thing. I felt strong! Next time will increase the weight instead!

Wide Push ups- regular version(3/15)

Narrow Push ups-on the knee version (3/8)


Cable Crossover (3/10)- 20lbs

Incline bench press (3/10) -25 lbs. DB
*last set with 30lbs DB

Side to side pushups- regular version(3/10)

Superset: toe touchers/crunches 3/20

Knee/hip raise on parallel bars 3/10
Cable Crunch 3/10

Elliptical Trainer/Stationary bike (15 mins moderate intensity each)

It's worth mentioning that I still get that little "butterfly in stomach) sensation before I perform pushups, 'cause I still kind of expect that I won't be able to do it. It took me so LONG to be able to perform even one that I'm still surprised I can nail 3 sets of 15.

Still working on those narrow ones, still have to do them on the knees, well my strength is increasing everyday, so in time I'll be able to nail those too!

[TheFitnessGirla]

Soooo, this is my third entry of my fitness journal, but actually this is the 6th week of a program I've been doing. I'm really happy with the workouts, I feel my body positively responding and adapting., my strength increasing. I decided to continue with the workouts and take advantage of the meal plans offered here to help me plan my nutrition.

Today was leg day, my least favorite body part to train. Not only legs are my weakest part, but also the flabbier and on top of it all, my arthritic knees won't make my training any easier. I've found that being careful with the form, especially when squatting has helped me not only too get stronger, but this time knee pain has been practically none existing. And that's good! So here's what I did today:

Leg extensions: 2/30 light (warm up) 20 lbs

Wide stance BB squat 2/15- 65 lbs
2/failure heavier-75lbs

Leg press 4/8 (shoulder width stance)
(3 without weights, last one with 25lb disc)

Walking DB lunge 3/20 (baby steps) 15 lbs DB

DB step ups 3/10 (15 lbs DB)

Plie DB squat 3/15 (40 lbs DB)

Seated calf raises 3/20 last to failure (90 lbs)

Donkey calf raises 3/20 last to failure (with a 140 lbs woman on my back)

No cardio today!

As for nutrition this is what I had today:

Meal #1: bowl of oats with soy milk and a banana

Meal #2: post workout shake and a banana

Meal#3: Scrambled tofu with tomatoes, whole grain bun with peanut butter

Meal #4: vegan chili, pasta salad (whole grain pasta, grated carrots, onions, basil, a bit of olive oil and sea salt)

Meal#5: Protein shake and a guava

Meal#6: steamed broccoli with ginger sauce, vegan chili and a small piece of seitan in a whole grain bun.

I feel very tired today, leg days are very demanding! So good night everyone!

[TheFitnessGirla]

Last night I fell like a LOG on my bed, so I couldn't update my fitness journey log. Yesterday was arms, abs and cardio day and I really kicked proverbial rear end! LOL. This is the workout I performed:

BB curl 3/10 (EZ bar, 10 lbs weights)

Superset: 3/10
Overhead cable curl (20 lbs)
Cable hammer curl (rope) (30 lbs)

Alternate Hammer curl 3/10 (15 lbs DB)
Weighted Bench dips 3/10 (25 lbs disc)
Skullcrushers 3/10 (EZ bar, 5lbs)
Seated tricep press 3/10 (20lbs DB)
Tricep pushdown (rope) 3/10 (40 lbs) V bar (50lbs)

Airbike 3/25
Jack knife situp 3/10
Roman chair leg rise 3/10

30 min cardio on the elliptical (HIIT)

Cardio was supposed to be moderate, but I was motivated!

Today was shoulder and cardio day. Since my gym will close until Monday for the holidays, I performed shoulders and legs, no cardio, I can do that tomorrow. Here's what I did:

Shoulders:
Military Press 4 sets: 1 warm up 3/10-45 lbs bar/empty(1 warm up set) 5lbs discs (2 sets of 10 reps) 10lbs discs (1 set of 10 reps)

Superset-3/10
Upright DB rows (20 lbs)
Standing DB military press (15 lbs)

Incline bench front DB raises (light) 3/10 (8lbs)
Rear delt cable flyes 3/10 (10 lbs)
Lateral raise 3/10 (10 lbs)
Rear delt raise 3/10 (8 lbs)

Legs:
Supersets
(3/10)
Lying leg curls (40 lbs)
Leg extensions (40 lbs)

(3/20)
BB lunge (45 lbs bar)
Abductor machine (60 lbs)

(3/15)
Lying leg curls (40 lbs)
Abductor Machine (60 lbs)

Regular Sets:
Stiff legged dead lift 3/10 (EZ bar, 15 lbs)
Single leg BB squat 3/10 (45 lbs)

Seated calf raise 3/20 (90 lbs)
Standing Calf raises 3/20 (30 lbs DB)

Today was intense, so I'll eat accordingly, LOL, but as clean as I've been eating so far.

About my meals, I've been eating ever 2.5 hours, since I cooked in advance, I have several options: vegan chili, seitan, vegan burguer patties (home made) and what I call my "protein muffins" which are basically vegan burguers (TVP, seitan, beans, oats) baked in the shape of muffins. Lots of veggies and fruits: starfruit and guavas(organic from my own backyard), bananas and pineapples. And of course my power smoothies, made with either coconut or soy milk, flax seeds, protein powder and the fruit that fancies me at the moment. Ok, now I'm hungry, off to load on some quality fuel!

[TheFitnessGirla]

Well, yesterday I "didn't workout" because I had a hectic day ahead and my gym was closed. Since it was supposed to be my rest day, I did not schedule a regular workout, but ended up feeling totally guilty, so before I showered I decided to warm up a bit (last set of all exercises to failure)

Regular push ups 5/12

Renegade Rows ( 10 lbs DB) 5/12

Burpees (10 lbs DB) 5/15

One leg standing calf raise (20 lbs DB) 5/20

Bodyweight Squats 5/30

After a very hectic day, I behaved pretty well at the Christmas Dinner table. My hard acquired healthy habits seem to be here to stay, yey!!!!!!!!

Anyway, today was supposed to be a rest day. Instead I woke up early to a crisp morning, so I went for a long walk to clear my head. When I came back, did power yogaa for an hour, then shower, then a hearty breakfast of left overs, LOL! All vegan and healthy of course! I'm getting prepared for a routine change tomorrow, last four weeks of this program I'm doing (Jamie. Eason's Live Fit) I have seen changes in my body, in strength and definition. After I'm done with this, I'm moving on to the next level of fitness: contest prep. Wish me luck!!!!!!!!

[TheFitnessGirla]

Today marks the beginning of the 7th week of LiveFit program. I made a mistake when calculating the weeks left, I'm 6 weeks away from finishing it. So far so good! I'm loving the workouts and seeing increase in strength. I still need more definition and volume, but dedication, patience and consistency will get me there.

Today was Arms, Abs and Cardio. This is what I did:

Narrow pushups 4/15
Seated tricep press 4/8-25 lbs. DB

Supersets
Cable one arm tricep extension 3/8-20 lbs
One arm reverse grip tricep pushdown 3/8-20 lbs

Skullcrusher 3/8.-EZ bar loaded with 5lbs discs on each side
Close grip bb bench press 3/8-EZ bar loaded with 15 lbs on each side

Regular sets
Incline alternate bicep curl 4/8 (15 lbs DB)
BB curl 21's (2 sets) with EZ bar, loaded with 10 lbs discs on each side
Stability ball crunch 3/25
Jacknife sit ups with ball 3/15 (holding ball overhead) 3/15
Stability ball reverse crunches (ball between feet) 3/15

Cardio consisted in 30 minutes of power walking outdoors, the afternoon was gorgeous!

Meals were ok today, I wasn't really hungry, was kinda blue today, so I lost. My appetite. Still, I ate as much as I could:

Meal. #1: power shake (coconut milk, star fruit, 1/2 banana, sunflower seeds, homemade rice milk, vanilla extract, cinnamon, protein powder) whole grain roll with almond butter

Meal #2: Salad (cabbage finely chopped, avocado, tomatoes and cilantro) brown rice, red beans

Meal #3 protein shake, raw peanuts

Meal #4: sweet potato, red beans, salad (tomatoes, corn, onions and red bell pepper)

Meal #5 power shake (protein powder, starfruit/cinnamon infusion, coconut milk, milled flax seeds)

Well, didn't do it that bad after all!!! I'm most proud of the way I nailed my narrow pushups and BB 21's!

[TheFitnessGirla]

Today I planned going at it early. It was LEG day, which I loathe, I confess. Training legs with arthritic knees isn't a piece of cake. The perk is that since I can get injured pretty easy, I have to be extra careful with form, so my form has improved in all lower body exercises, especially squats

So this is what my workout looked like:

Narrow stance squats (2/15 light-2/failure heavier)- 45lbs bar/2 sets/15 10 lbs discs-2 sets/to failure 20 lbs on each side.
Narrow stance leg press 4/8 -25 lbs on top
Barbell step ups 4/8 (used 25 and 30 lbs DB instead)
Walking BB lunges (step-down-up-down) 3/20 -10 lbs DB
Single leg bb squat (foot on bench) 4/10 10 lbs DB
Seated calf raises 3/20-last to failure 70 lbs
Standing calf raises 3/20-last to failure 15 lbs DB
Leg extensions 3/10-last to failure 30lbs


My knees and ankles have been in bad shape this week so I tried to go easy on them. I reduced the weight in some of the exercises.

Nutrition wise, I started my day with sunflower seeds and a banana, pre-workout. Post-workout protein shake, nuts and a banana. Had some whole wheat bread for BF, and coffee (yep, I know, it wasn't the smartest choice)

For the rest of the day I'll have lots of fresh veggies and batatas (related to sweet potatoes, but not orange, more like a pale yellow), beans and some cooked corn meal (the coarse kind). Of course, some fresh fruit (I was thinking pineapple), seeds and avocados. Power smoothie coming in the afternoon!

[TheFitnessGirla]

Today I feel super tired for some reason. Maybe I need more food! Or maybe I'm not getting enough rest. Maybe I should. Just lie down the whole day, eat and sleep to give my body the chance to recover. Tomorrow I'm most definitely I'm stretching for a LONG time before I even start my workout.

So today was Chest/abs/cardio day. This is what the Fitness Girla did today:

BB bench press medium grip 1/8 (45 lbs)
Reverse tricep bench press 4/8 (45 lbs)

Supersets
DB flyes 4/8 (20 lbs DB)
DB bench press 4/8 (20 lbs DB)

Incline. DB press 4/8 (20 lbs DB)
Bench dips 4/8 (25 lbs disc)

Regular sets
Press Machine 4/8 (40 lbs)
Weighted crunches on med ball 3/25 (10 lbs disc)
Hanging or Roman chair leg raise 3/15
Reverse Crunch 3/15

Stationary bike -30 mins med intensity

I had no spotter, so I didn't do any weight increase today

Today I'm eating more, I feel super weak, so this body needs nourishment from quality foods!

[TheFitnessGirla]

Today was shoulder and cardio day. Still, I didn't do cardio because my knees are still hurting! My shoulder workout went as follows:

Arnold DB Press 4/8(15lbs)
Seated bent over delt raise 4/8 last to failure (10lbs)
Standing Palm In, one-arm DB Press 4/8 (20lbs)

Superset
Front DB raise 4/8 (10lbs)
Standing DB upright row 4/8 (20lbs)

Side lateral raise 4/8 (10 lbs)
Reverse Flyes (face down on inclined bench) (10 lbs)

My food intake was not good today I didn't overeat or ate "forbidden food", I just ate very little! It was hectic today, life happened and I wasn't prepared! Correcting that tomorrow!

[TheFitnessGirla]

My knees are still in pretty bad form. Should've kept the weight light, now I'm paying the price. Today was back, delt and cardio day. Didn't do cardio, for obvious reasons. When it hurts like this I can't walk, bike or pretty much anything that involves leg use.

So this is what I did today:

Lying T-bar row 4/8 (2 dics, 10 lbs each)
Wide grip lat pulldown 4/8 (last a drop set) (50 lbs)
Seated cable rows 4/8 (last a drop set) (60 lbs)
Straight Arm Pull. Down 4/8
Reverse flyes 4/8 (10 lbs)
Seated bentover rear delt raise 4/8 (10lbs DB)

My knees are in pretty bad shape, I'm very worried!

[TheFitnessGirla]

So this is my first entry of the year. Kind of funny that just when I decide to take up a challenge, a trip presents itself. Anyway, I'm not afraid of messing my nutrition, I'm afraid of not being able to workout hard enough and lose my progress. Well, yesterday I worked out a bit, to at least avoid getting rusty. Worked shoulders and biceps, and a little triceps, kind of a spur of the moment workout. This is what I did:

Standing shoulder press (DB) 4/12 15 lbs
Front/side raises 4/15 (5 lbs)
Bent over delt raises 4/to failure (5lbs)
Hammer curls 4/15 (15lbs)
Concentration curls 4/12 (15lbs)
Dips 4/15

Food is being a problem, I have so many places to go and people to see... that I don't have time to eat, so I'm eating very little, and after becoming vegan and losing all the pounds, keeping the weight up has been challenging. Ah well, at least I continue to eat clean!

Later today I will post today's workout.

[Nicholas_Weir]

Hey, nice consistency! Your routines look solid and your meals sound really good.

[TheFitnessGirla]

Hey, nice consistency! Your routines look solid and your meals sound really good.

Thanks for the positive feedback!

[TheFitnessGirla]

Today I did another short workout, focused on back and abs. I used the 15 lbs dumbbells as they're the only ones available.

Stretches
Burpees 4/12
Renegade Rows 4/8
DB rows 4 sets (2/15-2/failure)
Leg raises 3/25
Floor Crunches 3/25
Oblique crunches 3/25

Food went better today:
Meal #1: Cherries, strawberries, a banana. A cup of almond milk
Meal #2: Oatmeal with soy milk and peanuts
Meal #3: Tofu stirfry (tofu marinated in tamari with sesame oil, then cooked in pan, then added onions, bell peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes), whole grain bread

Meal #4: rice, beans, salad

Meal #5: peanut butter and pickles sandwich on whole grain

[TheFitnessGirla]

yesterday was my rest day, but I workoed out anyway! I was advised by my coach to do do a whole body routine every other day since I'm on vacation, so I decided to start yesterday with that type of routine. I'm still dying to hit the gym here, but I don't have anyone to baby sit for me.

The workout I posted yesterday belonged to the day before, because I didn't have internet signal, so I couldn't upload it. So here's yesterday's workout:

Wide pushups 4/15

Superset:
DB bench press - 3/15
Flyes - 3/15

Narrow pushups 4/10
Tricep DB rows 4/10
Bench dips 4/15 (last to failure)

Arnold Press 4/10
Shoulder Press 4/10
Bent over delt raise 3/failure

Bodyweight squats 4/20
Bodyweight lunges 4/20

Renegade rows 4/10
DB rows 4/15 (last to failure)

Alternate DB curls 4/12
Concentration Curls 4/12
Hammer Curls 4/12

Planks (30 second hold, then lift a leg and hold the plank for 30 more seconds) 3 times
Floor crunches 4/25
Floor bent knee leg raises 4/25

Food I did pretty good today

Meal #1: bowl of berries, cherries and a banana

Meal#2: peanut butter/pickles sandwich on whole grain, cup of almond milk

Meal#3: rice, beans, tomato/basil salad

.Meal #4: nuts and berries/cherries bowl

Meal #5: vegan capressa (tomatoes, basil, cilantro, onions, garlic, olive oil, firm tofu cut in little squares), veggie stirfry, flatbread

I still feel I'm not eating enough, but I'm not doing cardio, so I guess this is good.