Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

It's been one hell of a journey. I peaked at 295 pounds about a year ago. Since then I've become vegetarian, and then finally vegan, and made a dedication to walking a couple of miles daily (which I haven't been sticking to because of the cold weather). I'm now down to 237 pounds and full of energy.

For the "Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness Contest 2007" I aim to get down to 200 pounds and I'm keeping this log to keep track of my progress. And also, since I've become quite the fan of walking ridiculously long distances, I also want to use this to keep track of increases in speed and distance as I train to walk across the U.S. (from Portland, OR to New York City).

If I disappear for more than a couple of days, please do me the favor of getting on here and yelling at me.

Will do

Thanks!

Today: 3.4 Miles in 61'31"06

About an 18 minute mile. A little slow... though walking in town meant I had to stop for lights and traffic. That, and I have a bad habit of getting distracted and slowing down. I want to make sure I'm pulling a consistent 15 minute mile (which is more than reasonable) and then work from there.

right, no problem
hey, you're the first one starting a contest log - I'm sure you'll reach your goal!

I hope so... the before pictures are horrendous. I have to justify parting with the first batch of pictures.

Well... I screwed around today until it was dark outside (not that it takes much, since it gets dark so early). I decided to just do half an hour on my stair stepper since that way it would both be warm and well lit. On the plus side, the last time I'd used the stair stepper was before summer (it's just so boring, and with it being in my garage I would have died from heat exhaustion). Before I would have been able to go about 20 minutes at the same pace and even then I'd be breathing hard and drenched in sweat. I've come a long way... today I barely broke a sweat (which probably means I should have either picked up the pace or gone for a longer amount of time).

I also did a set of dumbbell rows as Kathryn suggested to work on my weak upper back. Working with dumbbells feels weird to me though, so I'm going to wait until I get back to campus and then I might wander over to the gym and see what kind of machines they have.

Hey, way to go with your distance walking! My wife and I are also going to be in this contest, and we also travel long distances by foot (we're ultramarathon runners). Good luck!

Thanks! I've grown really fond of it. I don't think there's any freer feeling in the world. You can go just about anywhere the other modes of transportation can keep you from, there's no dependence on vehicles or fuel (and the amount of money that goes into those), and you can really take in the world in a way that you can't do from a vehicle. I'm lucky that both at home and on campus that I'm close enough to stores that I can do all the shopping that I have to do (which really isn't all that much) on foot.

As for my exercise routine today... I was going to make the 6.4 mile trek to Goodwill and back to see about finding some books (I love Yahoo! maps... I can plan an exact route and get the mileage )... but I decided to take a different approach today.

Somebody (don't remember who off the top of my head) suggested carrying a pack to work on my back in hopes of strengthening it up and eliminating my poor posture. Since this is something that will mimick the longer treks I'll be taking by foot, it seemed like a good solution (on top of other work I'll do when I get back to campus and can work in the gym).

I put two 15 pound weights and some clothes in a backpack and wore it around for about 2 1/2 hours. I didn't want to make a 6.4 mile trip with the extra weight, so I did another half an hour on the stair stepper with the pack on today. Boring, as usual, but I'll live.

I definitely feel like I'm sitting and standing straighter now. I liken it to a baseball player taking practice swings with multiple bats or with a doughnut on the bat; after being forced to straighten my back out with extra weight on it it's a lot less hassle when I take the extra weight off. I'll wear it for a while tomorrow and then think about whether I want to continue packing it around on campus or if I'd just rather go to the gym and do all my back work there.

On the downside... I've gained four pounds. I've been working a little bit more vigorously the last 2 or 3 days, but I don't think I could have gained that much muscle. However, the 3 weeks that I've been home I haven't been hidrating like I should have been (or eating or sleeping or exercising well for that matter). I hidrate better on the days that I do at least some sort of physical activity... so it might be from all of the water I've consumed in the last few days. I'm not too worried about it and expect it to drop off again after I get back to campus and can concentrate on exercising more and can stock up on raw veggies at the all-you-can-eat salad bar.

Thanks for sharing your struggles with weight - and how you are working to improve your health and fitness.

You can count on me - your pastafarian friend - to be here for you during this contest!

Well... I'll have to chalk up the previous two days as an operational loss. Or as rest days.

I managed to get in about two miles today. Didn't time it. Hoping to get back on track... these short days are just killing me... it's hard to get motivated when it gets dark so early.

Hopefully I'll have better news tomorrow.

don't worry, there will be bad days from time to time. rest assured that we will be there to give you a little kick when needed
take care

About 2.5 miles today. And now I know that a walk around the main part of campus is almost exactly a mile, so until I get bored with that, I won't have to figure out how far I'm walking... just have to keep track of the number of times I go around campus.

Got in another 2 miles or so yesterday. I need to plan out a longer route... although it was raining last night, so I didn't really want to stay out any longer than absolutely necessary.

Somewhere in the neighborhood of 7 miles yesterday and another 3 or so today.

Wow, 7 miles. Not bad!