Getting Serious about Getting Big

[BeansNBroccoli]

Hey All!

I'm new to the site but I'm not completely new to veganism or weight training/fitness. I've been vegan for about two years and I've played sports and have been an active cyclist my whole life, although I am starting now to get back into weight training. I'm also still a little new to eating a completely whole foods-based diet, as the first year and a half of my veganism involved a ridiculous amount of processed vegan "food" like fake meat and cheese. I log every workout on WeightTraining.com (profile), and I'm going to try to also log here and record my daily food intake. Hopefully, if I'm doing this right it will serve as a resource, and if I'm not doing something right, someone else can call me out on it and I can get it fixed! I'm very open to constructive criticism and critique of my plans. I'm not following a specific plan, but I've done a lot of reading and combined bits of different plans that I like and that seem to work for me. Currently I weigh around 118-119 lbs, and ideally I'd like to bulk to 125 and I know that may take me half a year or longer if I want to do it clean and keep my fat intake low, but I'm prepared for it. Strength is the primary goal, and size/aesthetics are a close second for me. I've been the skinny kid my whole life and I'm done with it



WORKOUT 05Feb2013 (chest/triceps)

Incline Bench Press
10 x 45lbs
8 x 55 lbs
8 x 60 lbs
6 x 60 lbs (to failure)

Incline Dumbbell Fly
10 x 12 lbs
10 x 15 lbs
10 x 15 lbs

Tricep Pushdown
10 x 40 lbs
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 45 lbs

Skull Crushers (SS w/reverse curls)
10 x 35 lbs
10 x 40 lbs
8 x 40 lbs (failure)

EZ-Bar Reverse Curl
10 x 40 lbs
10 x 40 lbs
15 x 40 lbs (time to move up)

Machine Fly
5 x 88 lbs
8 x 75 lbs
10 x 63 lbs
10 x 63 lbs

Dumbbell Bench Press
10 x 15 lbs
12 x 15 lbs
12 x 15 lbs


NUTRITION 05Feb2013

Breakfast Juice, fresh n raw (1/2 apple, 1 carrot, 1/2 beet, 1/2 tomato, 1 cup spinach, 1/2 cucumber)
Coffee w/soy creamer

Homemade high protein pasta (w/Fire Roasted Tomatoes, Shallots, Bell Peppers, and Mushrooms)

Homemade Veggie Cobbler (onion, carrots, corn, celery, sweet potatoes, green beans, tofu, a little breading)

Hummus w/2 cups raw broccoli
Clif Builder Bar
Protein shake (first time trying it!)

2,035 cals
276g carb
114g protein
44g fat


I'm including the first of my progress pics, the lowest one from mid-Dec2012 and the two more recent from today, ~2 months of training 3 days a week and the past couple weeks I've really been hitting it hard 5 times a week and watching my fat:protein intake ratios a lot more closely.

[BeansNBroccoli]

Tonight I'm really feeling the workout from earlier this afternoon as well as the workout from yesterday. I woke up this morning (slept a little over 7 hours, Sleep Cycle says my sleep quality was "70%," which somehow measures how long I was in deep sleep) feeling more sore from yesterday than I expected, but I always welcome that morning soreness. Feeling sore the day after just makes me feel like I've actually done work, although I'm sure I'm far from being the only person who feels that way. Started my day off with a fresh raw juice as per usual which was fantastic, but as the day progressed I kept hitting snags and frustrations and by the time I was done with the work day and ready to hit the gym I was really ready to lift hard, get sweaty, and try to work off some of the frustration that I was feeling.

WORKOUT 06FEB2013 (legs/obliques)
Soundtrack: a lot of Bring Me The Horizon and The Chariot

Calf Press
15 x 180 lbs
15 x 230 lbs
15 x 230 lbs
15 x 230 lbs

Dumbbell Side Bend (each set superset'd with 15 reps Elevated Feet Oblique Crunches)
15 x 30 lbs
15 x 35 lbs
15 x 35 lbs

Squat
10 x 70 lbs
10 x 80 lbs
10 x 90 lbs
10 x 90 lbs
10 x 90 lbs
NOTE: usually I can hit 15 x 110 easily, but I backed weight way down today because I feel my form has been less than perfect and I wanna get my ass to the grass on these before I move up again, so I just increased the number of sets.

Kettlebell Windmill (each set superset'd with 15 reps Spiderman Planks)
15 x 12 lbs
15 x 12 lbs
10 x 18 lbs


NUTRITION 06FEB2013

Morning Juice, Fresh n Raw (cup broccoli, 1/2 apple, 1 carrot, 1/2 beet, 1/2 cucumber, 1/2 tomato, 1/2 cup strawberries)
Coffee w/Soy Creamer
Banana

2 servings Homemade Moroccan Lentil Soup (lentils, garbanzos, white kidney beans, carrots, onions, tomatoes)

Homemade Pasta from yesterday (high protein whole grain pasta, tomatoes, green pepper, shallots, mushrooms)

Clif Builder Bar
Protein Shake
2 cups raw broccoli w/4 tbsp hummus
Banana

2013 kcal
117g protein
314 g carbs
43 g fat

[vegan_rossco]

Yo! Welcome aboard, I'll be sure to follow your training along! Looks good so far matey plenty of compound movements there

[BeansNBroccoli]

Thanks Ross! Your log is one of the ones I've been following for a week or so before actually signing up. You're a lot of motivation!

[C.O.]

See, this is why I love this site so much. New members jumping in, posting quality routines and meal plans right off the bat because there are so many good examples from others here to work off of.

-Dylan

[vegan_rossco]

That means a lot thanks glad I've been some motivation

[BeansNBroccoli]

@Dylan
Yeah, all of the fantastic plans and information on this site have really helped me out, especially in terms of focusing in on my goals and setting standards so I can actually reach them. It's great to have a forum where you can talk about lifting and bulking and not be told that the only way to do it is to go drink some whey protein and then eat an entire bird every day hah
I hope that I can help continue some of the already excellent content this forum has. I feel I always learn the most from looking at what other people are actually doing versus hypothetical proposed plans, and then seeing the real-life outcome of the work people are putting in. It's all more motivating for me and gives me a lot more drive to actually get out there and get work done.

Another thing that I've liked about this site is that I haven't come across the sexism that I think is sometimes a big problem on other weight training sites. It feels like here, if you wanna lift big, you're encouraged to lift big. If you wanna lose weight, you're encouraged to lose weight. The general atmosphere seems a lot more supportive and positive, and I really like it.

[vegan_rossco]

You're right about the atmosphere on the forum dude, its like a little community of intelligent people as opposed to most fitness forums which are full of lad/bro types being sexist and using the word 'banter' to justify being complete assholes.
Occasionally someone will join and be extremely rude, or even attempt to troll the site but they're always removed pretty quickly haha anyway like I said before I'll definitely be following you on your journey my friend take care

[BeansNBroccoli]

Snowed like crazy yesterday in Chicago, and when I was given the option to go home early, I hit the gym early instead and let myself have a nice long lifting session, full of stretching and jump roping between sets. This workout made me feel really solid.
Pull-ups are really hard for me, and getting a better lat spread is definitely a goal, so I've decided to do some wide-grip negative pull-ups every few days.
Biking 6 miles in the crazy Chicago snow yesterday really hit my already sore legs, too! Feelin fantastic.

WORKOUT 07FEB2013 (back/biceps)

T-Bar Row
10 x 55 lbs
10 x 55 lbs
10 x 55 lbs

Wide-Grip Negative Pull-ups
3 sets, 5 reps each

Wide-Grip Lat Pull-down (SS w/hammer curls)
10 x 70 lbs
10 x 70 lbs
10 x 80 lbs

Hammer Curls
10 x 20 lbs
10 x 20 lbs
8 x 20 lbs (to failure)

Close-Grip EZ-Bar Curl (SS w/concentration curls and 21's)
10 x 35 lbs
10 x 35 lbs
10 x 35 lbs

Concentration Curls
10 x 15 lbs
10 x 15 lbs
10 x 15 lbs

21's (I never know whether to count these as 21 reps or 7 reps, but I'm sure you get the idea)
21 x 35 lbs
21 x 35 lbs
21 x 35 lbs


NUTRITION 07FEB2013

Morning Juice, Fresh/Raw (1 cup broccoli, 1/2 orange, 1 carrot, 1/2 cucumber, 1/2 cup strawberries)
Coffee w/Soy Creamer
Couple handfuls Pistachios (~1/3 cup)

Homemade Moroccan Lentil Soup (Lentils, garbanzos, white kidney beans, carrots, onions, celery)

Salad w/2 cups spinach, 1 cup pinto beans, 1 cup diced tomatoes, balsamic vinaigrette
Pabst!

2.5 cups raw broccoli w/3 tbsp hummus
1 package Trader Joe's Complete Oatmeal, Maple & Brown Sugar in water (if you have a Trader Joe's near you, this stuff is great. tons of protein and calcium)
Clif Builder Bar

10 oz Soymilk
Fuji Apple
3 tbsp raw peanut butter
Homemade chocolate chip cookie dough protein bar (Larabar copy from ohsheglows.com (recipe), really delicious but a little high in fat)

2,399 kcal
290g carb
102g protein
88g fat

[BeansNBroccoli]

This afternoon my motivation was the promise of a craft beer on the train ride home, and pushing as hard as I can because tomorrow's rest day and that means today is the day to go big as hell. I'm really looking forward to tomorrow because it's Saturday and my girlfriend actually has the day off (we rarely get to spend entire days together because of work schedules). Last night's sleep was really horrible (50%), and I think it's because I woke up a couple times to one of our dogs wandering around the bedroom, looking for trouble to get into. He's pretty convinced that if he isn't sleeping, I shouldn't be sleeping. Good thing he's so cute

WORKOUT 08FEB2013 (abs/shoulders)

Military Press (SS'd with dumbbell shrugs)
10 x 35 lbs
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 45 lbs

Dumbbell Shrug
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 35 lbs

Ab Plate Twist (SS'd with 3-point plank for 1:00)
15 x 25 lbs
15 x 25 lbs
15 x 25 lbs

Air Bicycle and Roman Chair Leg Raise Super Set
3 sets of 15 reps/exercise

Arnold Press
10 x 15 lbs
10 x 15 lbs
10 x 15 lbs

Front to Side Raises
10 x 8 lbs
10 x 8 lbs
10 x 8 lbs
NOTE: I'm not 100% sure what to call these. My trainer friend in college showed them to me. Essentially it's a front raise, then move arms to the side and down to the starting position for a side raise. Then side raise and bring arms/weights back together with arms extended in front of your body in a front raise, then back down to starting for one rep. Whatever they're called, this combo of front/side raises always kills and I really enjoy it.

Leg Press
10 x 90 lbs
10 x 110 lbs
15 x 110 lbs
I decided to throw these on at the very end of my workout because legs are usually Wednesday so I have plenty of time to recover, and I've been feeling really weak about my squat lately. It feels like when I squat, my back is what's actually stopping me from putting on weight rather than my legs. All of these sets were completely ass to ankles, literally. I touched down at the stop in the machine for every rep before going back up. Any tips regarding this would be very much appreciated, especially as to whether it might be preferable to switch to just leg press for at least awhile rather than doing squats. I have no intentions of competing, so being able to do squats for competition isn't a consideration for me. I just want to be strong and put on some muscle and weight.


NUTRITION 08FEB2013

Breakfast Juice, fresh n raw! (broccoli stalk, 1 carrot, 1/2 cucumber, 1/2 tomato, 1/2 cup spinach, 1 cup strawberries)
Homemade Breakfast Burrito (tofu, black beans, kidney beans, garlic, onion, bell peppers)
Coffee w/Soy Creamer

Salad w/2 cup spinach, 1 avocado, 3/4 cup pinto beans, and 1.5 tbsp balsamic vinaigrette dressing

1 Can Butter Beans

Protein shake w/two scoops protein today (usually only 1)
Clif Builder Bar
White Rascal Beer (found out that my favorite beer has 1.5g protein today when I scanned it into my food tracking app! win!)

2,353 kcal
298g carb
151g protein
60g fat


I probably won't be back to log again until Sunday, because tomorrow will be entirely devoted to resting up and relaxing with my favorite person in the world. Thanks for stopping in!

[BeansNBroccoli]

Stayed out of the gym for the weekend and into Monday, but I made up for it with some biking and generally just being really active for those few days. Generally I do a little lifting on the weekends from home, but I was lucky and had my lady home for most of the weekend so I had other priorities.
Got back into it yesterday though, goin hard.

WORKOUT 12FEB2013 (chest/tris)

Dumbbell Bench Press
10 x 15 lbs
10 x 25 lbs
10 x 25 lbs
10 x 20 lbs

Tricep Pushdown
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 45 lbs

Incline Bench Press
8 x 55 lbs
8 x 50 lbs
8 x 50 lbs
8 x 50 lbs
NOTE: I was really disappointed in my incline bench, but later realized it's likely due to the fact that I went harder than usual with the flat bench. My chest is probably my least developed area, so it's easy for me to get disappointed when I can't pull the numbers I want to. Any advice for a better way to build chest strength than what I'm already working with would be greatly appreciated.

Incline Dumbbell Fly
10 x 15 lbs
10 x 15 lbs
10 x 15 lbs
NOTE: These were really tough as well, but I used some of the frustration that I was feeling from the shitty incline bench day to push 'em as hard as I could and knocked out all of my sets.

Behind Head Skull Crusher
10 x 40 lbs
10 x 40 lbs
10 x 40 lbs

Reverse EZ-Bar Curl
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 45 lbs
10 x 45 lbs

Dumbbell Kickbacks
10 x 10 lbs
10 x 10 lbs
10 x 10 lbs


Then, later, after I got home... I ate dinner and was a little blazed and still feeling like pumping so I decided to use the bar I have at the house to start training deads and this happened...

EZ-Bar Curl
10 x 40 lbs
10 x 40 lbs
10 x 40 lbs
10 x 40 lbs
10 x 40 lbs

Deadlift
10 x 40 lbs
10 x 40 lbs
10 x 40 lbs

This was literally the first time I've ever done deadlifts and I used the maximum weight I've got at home. Usually when I lift at home I increase the reps like crazy because I just don't have the weight that I'd use at the gym. It felt good using a much lower weight than I'm sure I could pull because I focused very closely on my form which is really important when learning a new lift. I think I'm ready to tackle this one in-gym with substantially higher weights.


NUTRITION 12FEB2013

Homemade Breakfast Burrito (tofu, black beans, kidney beans, onions, garlic, green and red bell peppers, whole grain tortilla)
Coffee w/Soy Creamer

Homemade Lentil/Sweet Potato Shepherds Pie (2 servings)

Homemade Creamy Broccoli and Bean Soup (new recipe - tasted way too healthy even for me. i don't think i'll be making this one again, not enough nutritional content to make the taste worth it hah)

Almond Milk w/Protein Shake (2 scoops again)
Clif Builder Bar
Pabst!

1,989 kcal
269g carb
129g protein
40g fat
NOTE: obviously i struggled with total kcal intake today... some days are better than others. i had intended to eat a double portion of the broccoli and bean soup which would've bumped me another 300 but honestly just could barely get through the first one, so i stashed the extra and will try to slam it post-workout today. in retrospect i should've made myself a juice at the end of the day but life got in the way. oh well

[Michaël]

Hi BnB, you started a detailed log and i will be following your progress. your meals could be an inspiration for myself.
just a question, you're into hardcore/metal(core) music?
Greetz!

[BeansNBroccoli]

Hey Michaël! Thanks for dropping by. Yeah, I'm really into hardcore/metalcore. I played bass/guitar in bands for years, but my position these days is usually more that of a spectator/elbow thrower in the crowd hah
There's not much that gets me pumped up to go push plates as hard as I can better than bands like Converge and The Chariot and gLASSJAW. Pretty much any music where there's just completely raw emotion and I can picture the frenzy in my mind is the absolute best. Sometimes I even listen to my own band(s), but I don't usually advertise that as it makes me feel incredibly narcissistic

I'm backlogged on these, but I'm going to update a few days at once.

WORKOUT 13FEB2013 (legs n obliques)

Leg Press (taking a break from squats because my back isn't feeling it, and I want to get those quads pumped)
10 x 140 lbs warmup
10 x 160 lbs
10 x 160 lbs
10 x 130 lbs dropset

Dumbbell Side Bend (SS'd with 20 elevated feet oblique crunches)
15 x 35 lbs
15 x 35 lbs
20 x 35 lbs
NOTE: these are some of my favorites these days, and they're really getting my obliques popping. who cares about obliques? i do. apollo here i come.

Dumbbell Windmill (SS'd with 15 spiderman planks)
15 x 12 lbs
12 x 15 lbs
10 x 15 lbs

Deads
10 x 50 lbs
10 x 50 lbs
NOTE: first time hitting these in the gym. felt a little self conscious about the little baby plates on the end of my bar but everyone's gotta start somewhere.

Calf Press
15 x 180 lbs warmup
15 x 230 lbs
15 x 230 lbs
15 x 230 lbs
NOTE: starting to see some really good definition in my calves from these, and my calves were already pretty solid from all of my biking. nice.

Also, ended up walking 4 miles home from the bar in the middle of the night with my girlfriend, so I think that counts for something.


NUTRITION 13FEB2013

Breakfast juice, fresh n raw (don't recall exactly but probably apples, broccoli, bok choy, carrots, a beet, etc)
Coffee w/Soy Creamer

Homemade Black Bean and Bulgur Chili

TJ's Complete Oatmeal
2 Clif Builder Bar (1 post-workout, 1 late at night because i was hungry and walgreens isn't very clean-vegan friendly)
A lot of beer (girlfriend and i went out for pre-valentines shenanigans)
A couple bananas

1921 kcal
83g protein
266g carb
29g fat

[jungleinthefrunk]

Why do u want to keep fat intake low??

[BeansNBroccoli]

I try to get good fats in my diet with stuff like nuts and avocados, but I know my own personal tendency to go overboard with both of those things. I've also only been eating really clean for the past six months or so, and my diet before that had a lot of processed stuff with a lot of fat in it, so I'm really conscious of it now.
I'm certainly not anti-fat, but trying to keep my calories in check while getting as much protein as I want to get in kind of necessarily restricts my fats and carbs.