Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

Well, I keep a written one of these for myself but I'd love to get feedback and also be held accountable and be encouraged along the way - nothing like feeling support!

Yesterday was the start of week 5 of my new nutrition and training program, but also what I am dubbing 'neo week one' of a more structured and disciplined approach of twelve initial weeks to get me into a habit which I intend to maintain. The last four weeks have been a great learning experience for me.

Yesterday began with me waking up even earlier than normal - 6.00am - but forcing myself to sleep until 6.30am knowing I had a long show (3hrs) that evening to do. Naturally, the show was cancelled later in the day due to illness on the part of the client! but c'est la vie, he'll book again.

Then it was up and downstairs for a 15 minute stretch before 45 minutes on the pole, working on a new move that is giving my hell and that I know I have to especially strengthen my abs for.

During my pole workout I had my protein shake and fibre drink then it was off to the gym for 20 minutes of interval cardio on the elliptical.

I start off at a brisk walking pace which develops into a fast jog. The first two minutes are a warm-up at a working load personally designated as 'level 5 intensity'. After the first two minutes I increase the working load by 2 points every minute until I get up to a 'level 9 intensity' before dropping back down to level 6. I repeat this until the second last minute where I push up to level 10, then drop back down level 5 for a cool down on the final minute. Afterwards, I am flushed red all over and very sweaty, usually on an endorphin high and feeling great. I increase the starting load every couple of weeks.

After my shower, it's into work where my food day begins.

10.00am: Apple pieces - 44 calories - Biodynamic fat-free yoghurt with almonds, pepitas, sultanas, pineapple and apple - 327 calories
1.00pm: Four beans mixed with corn - 176 calories
3.30pm: Miso soup - 90 calories - Carrot sticks dipped in houmous - 75 calories
7.00pm: Grilled tandoori tofu with steamed broccoli, asparagus and green beans - 300 calories plus a tablespoon of peanut butter - 123 calories

I also had another protein shake after dinner - they're 110 calories each.

This morning it basically started off the same way, with the exception I cooked up a huge mound of brown rice, and took a single serve into work with me with some steam-ready broccoli and cauliflower. I'm about to have that as my first meal of the day.

I was intending for tomorrow evening to be my first weights day of the week, but I may have a show to do so it might be Thursday morning instead which will mean the second will be on Saturday. My gym is only open until 3.00pm on Saturdays which requires me to be organised!

Anyway, I am seeing the nutritionist at 12.00noon on Thursday and looking forward to her advice. I am determined to see some changes in my body and am going to commit myself to eating better and with greater thought. Let's see how I will go...

Yesterday:

Physical Stuffs
6.30am - stretch and pole workout (one hour)
9.00am - 20 minutes interval cardio

7.00pm - Swingdancing class (one hour)

Food Stuffs
7.00am - Protein shake and fibre mix
10.15am - brown rice, steamed broccoli and cauliflower
1.30pm - Four bean mix and corn, miso soup
5.30pm - seitan plain reheated in microwave (so much for little gluten!), steamed broccoli, silver beet, asparagus and beans with a little tahini dressing, carrot sticks in houmous

Total calories:
1200

Bad Naughty Things:
2 coke zeros. Calorie wise, they're negligble but all the nasty chemicals are bad. I had them after work at swing dancing, basically just being weak as I had a one hour show at 10.00PM.

I was in bed by 11.30pm and absolutely konked out.

Feeling a bit frustrated and depressed with the excess fat though a couple of people have said I've lost weight since I began four weeks ago. Since I am trying to shed only a small bit of excess I know it will be hard and I have to keep with it.

Today:

Food stuffs:
7.00am - protein shake and fibre mix
10.30am - brown rice and veg
1.30pm - yoghurt, fruit and nuts
5.30pm - beans and corn, miso soup, small slice of seitan

few cups of detox tea, lots of water

Exercise stuffs:
6.30am - one hour stretch and pole work
7.30am - ab work with pilates exercises - crunches, 100s prep, 100s, criss-cross and roll-ups. ouch.
9.00am - twenty minutes interval cardio

had to have a little snooze in the middle of the day today - work has been crazy with the next few days full of both day and night work. Only time will tell how i hold up but I did resist the jellybeans in the office jar - that I instigated!

Last night when I got home after my show, I was very hungry so I had a protein shake and some Weight Watchers jelly which has about 9 calories in the whole thing.

Waking up today was very hard as I didn't sleep well at all. But I dragged myself out of bed and got to the gym for my first weights day of the week. Luckily my boyfriend stayed over so he could drive me to the gym Before going onto his own gym. I felt very groggy and plus was a little hayfeverish right up until my cardio which revitalised me.

I only do two weights days per week. My goals are a bit different to the regular body-building sort - yes I want to shape my body, but also increase strength mainly for poledancing, and not spend too much time in the gym. That is what my program was designed for.

All around me people are pushing and lifting and pulling their weights at an accelerated pace, but I take about six seconds on each rep. I used to do them quickly too, but slowing down has definitely achieved better results, faster. My capacity to increase my weights every two weeks has grown.

My gym has a mix of kilos and pounds. I know approximate conversions but not definite ones so I'll just write them out as they are.

Don't laugh at my puny weights, I'm a girl and a relative beginner!

Lateral pull-down:
42.5lbs x 12
1 min rest
50 x 10
rest
55 x 8
rest
62.5 x 6
rest
super set!
62.5 x 12
straight onto the Row:
68.5 x 12

A couple of minutes rest down to the free weights section for lunges and leg press.

Holding a 5 kilo weight, I do the following on each leg
12
10
8
6
followed by super set! on leg press
60kgs x 6
then another super set!
12 on each leg
followed immediately by leg press
60kgs x 12

Time for chest. When I began I was so weak in the chest it was a struggle to push even 17.5 pounds.

Chest Press:
37.5lbs x 12
42.5 x 10
50 x 8
55 x 6
super set time! i debated leaving it at 55 but decided i would rather finish the full set than fail halfway through as i felt could probably happen - on saturday i am going to try for 55 though
50 x 12
drop immediately to floor for 12 push-ups!

Then it was time for cardio on my old friend the elliptical... I even have a favourite machine!
I was really into my music today which helps me work harder. I had a good time on the elliptical.

Sadly, when I got home I spent some time looking at myself in the mirror and now feel really depressed and frustrated. I've been working hard the last few weeks but though my eyes can see the muscle definition improve, I can't tell if I've lost any weight. I've been told that I have, but it all seems the same to me. I'm so glad I'm seeing the nutritionist today, hopefully we can work something out to help me achieve my goals...

Keep up the good work A log like this is a great way to track your progress...
Remember not to take into account, too much how you look in the mirror as when you lose fat you can lose definition temporarily as the skin is loose and takes a while to tighten up again.
I find taking measurements and getting your body fat percentage a better way to plot my progress, it can be really surprising sometimes...

Thanks! Yeah I don't even want to measure right now... give it another four weeks and then see!

Well, the nutritionist really had nothing to add! She said I might need a bit more vegie and fruit variety and more protein for the amount of exercise I do. That's it! Oh and I might be deficient in zinc and b12 but that's got nothing to do with my weight. I feel a bit disappointed really although I suppose I could consider that it basically validates the way I am eating at the moment as being the right way to continue...????

I have lost about 2 kilos since four weeks ago though. *shrugs*

She said one cheat day a week is ok, so long as it wasn't toooo crazy in terms of portion sizes.

I got a few ideas at least for a hopefully good way to slip in a bit more good stuff... so... back to the grindstone!!!

You can gain weight and lose fat. So while you lost two kilos you might've lost 3 kilos of fat and gained one of muscle?

It's something I have to remind myself of sometimes

Totally! I don't even bother checking the scales usually, cos I know I'm probably gaining in muscle. I guess at this early stage, and given that I look at myself in the mirror all the time i can't really see properly where fat is dissolving. Seeing an actual loss on the scales therefore is kinda comforting!

Thanks!

Yesterday

Food stuffs:
6.30am - protein shake, fibre mix
my first meal was delayed due to weights day taking longer than just cardio
11.00am - steamed broccoli, spinach and asparagus with grilled cajun tofu
2.30pm - brown rice and seitan
5.30pm - beans and corn and miso soup

sadly, my clients that evening had wine and chocolate specifically bought for me which puts me in the awkward position of refusing and being rude or accepting and breaking my diet. :/ I accepted, but only had a glass and a half (though more was being shoved at me ) and a few choccies. Choccies did not taste as good as they used to, and the wine selected was awful. oh well!

I had a Hungry Jacks vegie burger craving afterwards which ocassionally happens to me after a few drinks. I resisted it though it was touch and go for a moment... !

Exercise stuffs:
weights and cardio

I am thinking of ways to get more veg variety in my diet whilst keeping time spent down and ease of taking it to work. I figure sundays I will make a big yummy lentil and vegie stew and take a serving of that with some brown rice or quinoa to work.

I was way too busy over the weekend to update this.

Saturday, my second weights day, was good. I did, however, fail at the 55lbs x 12 on the chest press, which made me sad. My upper body, is, however, looking pretty good... starting to at any rate!

Over all I am noticing a different shape to my body. My heavier bottom half is very very slowly shaking off the weight.

I am thinking of the possibility of going raw/fruitarian. Or giving it a two week trial to see how I feel.

Eating wise, the weekend was half good half bad... I'm back on track though and not missing junk at all. I will get back into updating this hopefully regularly.

Yesterday foods:
Protein shake - 7.00am
Apple, boiled egg and avocado on 2 corn thins - 10.00am
Lentil stew and nuts and dried fruit - 1.00pm
Beans and corn and miso soup - 4.00pm
broccoli, beans and grilled tofu, protein shake - 7.00pm

exercise:
cardio
pole

on advice from the nutritionist, i'm including an extra protein shake in the evening but the more i think about the visit (now exactly one week ago) the more annoyed i feel - she really gave me no new advice, nothing on how to structure my diet, what percentages of stuffs i need, how to best get them... i learn more reading this forum than i did from her.

i'm also a bit overwhelmed by the dozens of options and also the varying advice i've gotten here, most of which seems very sound and sounds sensible and authentic. so i don't know which path i really want to take. i can finally start to see that i've lost a bit of weight so for another couple of weeks i'll continue as i have been while i continue to mull over what i'd like to change and how best to go about it...

I came into work after a good weights day feeling very happy, healthy and high on endorphins.
We had a new employee today and our manager got a cake to welcome her. Since I’ve been doing well and since I didn’t want to be anti-social, I had a slice.

I now have a headache and slight nausea and general feeling of being not 100%.
I’m also experiencing a great deal of guilt and want to go throw up!

Is it the cake or am I coming down from endorphins!?!
I’m having a bit of a fat day so that doesn’t help.

making better choices:
i am making overall better choices though. i got a sweet tooth at uni and went looking for a banana (would've been chocolate before!). No nanas! so i had fresh made veggie juice instead with orange celery beetroot carrot and ginger.

I’ve contacted a sports nutritionist to see if I can get some better advice than from the person I saw last week

Aww, well don't let it get you down. Just start fresh; the past is done and guilting only serves to perpetuate it and keep your mind from being as clear as it can be to get back on track You're doing fine.
Sometimes people understand and don't take it as hard as you think. Depending on the situation, you can tell them limited information, like, "Oh, thanks, but I'm staying away from sugar right now!" and you're not being deceptive or elaborating at an inappropriate time.




Yes, that can happen. I wonder if the headache is an allergy? Maybe a gluten or dairy allergy. Might be good, actually: nothing like an allergy to keep you away from cake


Ugh...I'm sorry. That's tough. I used to feel that when experiencing bloating. Definitely sucks.



So is sugar your poison? It could just be you need more fruit in your diet so that's good you are reaching for it. I used to keep portable-type fruit with me all day when I was running around. Bananas, apples, grapes are good and not too messy and travel well. Dried fruit is a good one, but it's too concentrated for me and hard on the teeth; but in small amounts and in situations like being stuck with nothing, it's definitely good to have a some in your bag or car! How about some nuts? Those keep well too.

Keep up the good work. You seem very motivated :^)

Hi Raven - I guess it was partly me just wanting some cake
a couple of works ago we had a training program at my work and though it was catered i resolutely stuck to my own food! though there was some tempting stuff there like veggie pastries and (supermarket processed) dips... the only thing i took was an apple, once! noone seemed to mind.

sugar can be poison, yes, though the cravings are less and less. i keep worrying that every single time i do eat something naughty that i've undone all my good work in breaking down the cravings for it.

well, after the cake i had a small bowl of uncooked beans and a couple of painkillers. one of them worked! i felt better. i definitely relished the taste of the beans.

my motivation doesn't seem to be decreasing... it's great to have this forum to keep me motivated! today i am enjoying the little tenderness that comes after a good weight training day and after uni it will be cardio. i'm knocking off the pole today to give my muscles a chance to recover cos tomorrow is another weights day! i was pleased to reach 68.5lbs on a couple of sets yesterday and 62.5lbs on chest press which a couple of months ago would've seemed like an unattainable goal - it's definitely my weakest area. in the next six months i would like to build all the way up to lifting my own body weight. i believe it will be attainable.

my exercise has been excellent, but diet has been up and down - brilliant mostly during the week and then naughty on weekend. i try to make it so during the days on saturday and sunday i'm still following my good nutrition and only splurging out in the evening. it's weird because i really do enjoy my good food and i think the splurging is mostly psychological.

oh and Raven - I ordered that book you're always recommending! i was intrigued enough to see what it could show me. mind you, there is so much good advice on the forum, it is hard to decide where you want to go next!

That's usually the case; but it's nice to see someone who actually admits it!




Ooh, ooh, good, good! If your cravings are lessening, then you are doing well. Just try to be naughty with fruit


Awesome!



It will! I shocked myself when I did my first pullup! It's such a high



Yep! You seem to really know yourself well; that's good. It is most likely psychological, and if you know that now, it's easier to get through it. The best part is when you get to the point where you have no cravings for the naughty stuff. It just isn't there. It's not like even a choice -- you actually want the good stuff and the bad just starts looking bad to you. It's really miraculous.




Ah! You did? You already ordered it? If not, I can send you my "lender" copy; all you have to do is send it back in a week or so "Eat to Live," right? After I read it, I went out and bought some copies to give away to loved ones! I also bought a "lender" to lend/send out to people really serious about it; when they are done, they either send it back to me or I have them send it out to the next person
Let me know! I can send it out to you right away, if you want.