Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

Thanks for all the positive feedback, everyone! It's great to find like minded vegans and vegetarians. I'm looking forward to keeping up with you all in your journals and walking away with some new exercises and training techniques.

Right now I'm preparing for a meet in February to compete in the AAPF. Provided my weight loss continues at a reasonably slow rate, I'm hoping to get down to 250 without losing too much strength and try to cut to make it to the 242 weight class. I'll be competing in a geared competition at that time with a Metal Pro Squater, Metal Ace bench shirt, and will be pulling in some loose (tight gear seems to put me in a bad position) Metal briefs and a singlet. An Elite total for this weight class is 1790, so that's my goal.

My mind was sort of frazzled before the gym today and I wasn't really focused so a lot of this was more trying than normal. I managed to get through to my goal weight for the day, but to say it was difficult is an understatement.

Squat night: low box + black foam pad (roughly 1/2" above parallel)
Mastadon bar x 12
160 x 10
240 x 5
Added belt
330 x 3
Added suit (straps down) and Metallica
420 x 2
510 x 2
560 x 2

Front squats 185 x 5 x 5
Cybex Ab Machine 120 x 12 x 5
Reverse Hypers 180 x 6 x 4

Back to studying for Tropical Ecology and Conservation. Sweet Friday night, right?

Shit, some big weights being hoisted dude.

Get some videos up !!

_________________
1st Place Raw Champs 2011, 2012 (3 raw records)
Training for my first 100 mile running race

WEB: http://jimsty.wix.com/strength-vs-size
FB: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mini-Forklift/161273440616736?ref=hl
VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/user/kiwilifter?feature=mhee

Saturday evening benching:

Bar x 15
135 x 10
185 x 5
225 x 3
275 x 2
Add shirt + Know The Score
385 for a half-rep
3 Board
425 x 1
465 x 1
495 x 1
Pardon the belly. I promise I wasn't trying to be lewd.
[youtube]http://youtu.be/U8VAfSI3y48[/youtube]

525 x 1
This came up pretty easily so I decided I would try for a PR today. I was a little bit too confident and had what my training partners call a "soft lockout." Basically, they said that the chances of it being two white lights were pretty good, but I don't want to get in the habit of making it "look" like I did something rather than actually doing it and making it look easy.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZ3M_bJegoU&feature=plcp[/youtube]

No drop set today. No real reason other than being lazy and my forearms hurting really badly.

Overhead barbell press 125 x 6 x 4
Wide cable rows 150 x 8 x 4
DB front raises 30 x 8 x 4
DB rows 110 x 8 x 4
Internal/External forearm rotations with sledgehammer x 15 x 2
More mobility grip work

After I was releasing my grip on the barbell after benching, my forearms were in a huge amount of pain. It's been going on for a week now, so while at work I bought a brace that's used for tennis elbow. I was talking to my training partner Jo about it and he says that it's probably because of an irregular emphasis on a set of muscle groups without training the rest. He said that because so much of what we do focuses squeezing the bar as hard as we can, we neglect the muscles that allow our hands to open and it creates an imbalance. The man's got a 650 lb. bench record, so I think I'll heed his advice and see what happens.

Back to studying. Hope everyone has a good weekend!

Sorry about the videos not working. Those are the links if you're interested.

Cheers bud, will check out the videos.

Subscribed to your channel as well btw.

_________________
1st Place Raw Champs 2011, 2012 (3 raw records)
Training for my first 100 mile running race

WEB: http://jimsty.wix.com/strength-vs-size
FB: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mini-Forklift/161273440616736?ref=hl
VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/user/kiwilifter?feature=mhee

Strong benching !!

_________________
1st Place Raw Champs 2011, 2012 (3 raw records)
Training for my first 100 mile running race

WEB: http://jimsty.wix.com/strength-vs-size
FB: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mini-Forklift/161273440616736?ref=hl
VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/user/kiwilifter?feature=mhee

Back to pulling sumo now that I'm done with the Coan Routine. Truthfully, I think that I'm just a little too plump and have arms that are a little too close to a Tyrannosaurus to consider pulling conventional in a meet. It's probably smart to still do them as accessory work just to strengthen my lower back, but other than that I'll probably just stick with sumo. Stayed light and did reps to get back into the groove.

135 x 10
225 x 8
315 x 3
Added belt + Taylor Swift
315 + 40 lb. in chains x 3
315 + 80 lb. in chains x 3
315 x 120 lb. in chains x 3
Dropset 315 x 10

Speed squats low box (1 1/2" below parallel)
145 + green band (120-140 lbs. at top) + no belt x 2 x 8

T Bar row 180 x 10 x 4
Standing crunches with black monster band 30 x 4
Prowler pushes + 70 lbs. x 30 yards x 6 (30 second rest periods)

I'm sort off my training schedule this week because I had a huge exam earlier this week and didn't make it to the gym. Getting back on it though. Still at 260.5 in my weight so I think it's back to doing cardio and keeping a closer eye on my diet. I just have an abusive relationship with peanut butter.. sigh.

Exhausted going into the gym today so I did what I needed to and then got out as quickly as possible. I hate rep work too so this made it even more difficult to get motivated to bench. I used the Fat Bar today to try to cheer myself up. It only weighs 15 lbs. but it's significantly more thick; to the point that I can't wrap my hands around it and touch my fingers.

Bar x 20
105 x 15
165 x 12
205 x 10 x 4

DB incline 50 x 25 x 2
DB overhead press 45 x 10 x 4
Forearm work

Squats with the mastadon bar

Broom stick squat (this is more just to stretch than anything) x 20 x 2
Bar (60 lbs) x 10
150 x 8
240 x 5
Add belt 330 x 3
Add suit, straps down 420 x 3
510 x 3
Reverse light bands (take off about 80 lbs. at the bottom) + Suicide File
560 x 3
605 x 2
635 x 1 PR!!

Rack pulls at knee height, no belt
315 x 8
405 x 5 x 2
455 x 3 x 2

Black band standing crunches 30 x 4
Smith machine calf raises 225 x 12 x 4

Great training log to follow, the world needs more vegan powerlifters!

_________________
"A 'hardgainer' is merely someone who hasn't bothered to try enough different training methods to learn what is actually right for their own damned body." - anonymous

What's a mastadon bar Greg? I probably could Google it but I'd rather ask you so I get straight from the source haha.

Yes, three cheers for vegan PL'ers !! You ever heard about a lifter called Bill McCarthy, think he was actually profiled on this site a while back. Big, strong vegan PL'er.

_________________
1st Place Raw Champs 2011, 2012 (3 raw records)
Training for my first 100 mile running race

WEB: http://jimsty.wix.com/strength-vs-size
FB: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mini-Forklift/161273440616736?ref=hl
VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/user/kiwilifter?feature=mhee

It's basically just a longer, heavier, and thicker bar.

To be fair, I'm vegetarian. I've been vegetarian for about eight years now, but am heading toward being more vegan. I don't eat a ton of dairy or eggs now (80% of my meals are vegan), but I'm trying to ween those out.

Deadlifts
135 x 8 x 2
225 x 5 x 2
315 x 3
Add belt + Slayer
365 x 3
365 + 40 lbs. chains x 2
365 + 80 lbs. chains x 2
Drop set 315 x 10

Double-banded (orange EliteFTS) narrow rows x 12 x 4
Green band face pulls x 12 x 4

Short session tonight. The gym was crowded and I have a TON of homework and studying to do so I cut it short.

They are nice, aren't they? I've watched one of the guys at our facility squat 800 with one and do some 900 lb. rack pulls with it, not a millimeter of flex, and nobody could pile enough weight on one to ever have a need for more room

_________________
"A 'hardgainer' is merely someone who hasn't bothered to try enough different training methods to learn what is actually right for their own damned body." - anonymous

I'm not where near being able to handle that kind of weight... yet. Good to know that I'll have the right equipment for when I am!