Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

Forgot to do affirmations this AM. But just did them now while brushing my teeth.

Today was a rest day, no workout to report, though due to my plantar fascitis, I did some calf rolls on my foam roller and stretched with a towel 3 times today, for 3 sets of 30 sec. Hope I wake up feeling better tomorrow for my leg/ab workout.

My right shoulder hurts and has been since yesterday. Hope it's better by Tuesday for my upper body workout. My twenties were filled with more emotional turmoil, but the body was much more functional. Of course, I didn't pay nearly as much attention to training, so perhaps the aches and pains would have occurred then anyhow.

Today's foods (1703 cals):

1/2 c oatmeal, 1/4 c raisins (280)

same thing 3 hrs later (280)

big salad: 1/2 lb. leafy greens, 1/2 onion, 2 clementines, 1 c Hi-Lo, 20 almonds (458)

Chipotle: chips w/salsa and guac (685)

I wanted to eat more but couldn't say I was truly hungry, so I just flossed and brushed. And now it's time to hit the hay so I can wake up refreshed and excited to work out tomorrow morning!

G'night, mateys!

Said affirmations this morning.

Today's workout:
SS1 3 sets
walking lunges (20 per leg--total 40 per set)
leg curl w/stability ball (didn't make it to 20--harder than it looks!)
SS2 3 sets
db step-up w/glute raise (20 per side)
Romanian deadlift (20)
SS3, WUx15, 4x9
rear delt machine, parallel grip
bent-knee calf raise
standing calf raise

These last two weren't happy for my poor plantar fascia.
Why can't my aches and pains realize I have workouts to do? BEND TO MY WILL, BODY! DON'T YOU REALIZE I CONTROL THE UNIVERSE?!?

25 min SS cardio, recumbent bike

20 min roll/stretch, focusing on rolling calves, towel calf stretch, then rolled hip flexors and glutes on medicine ball, then stretched out legs...should've stretched my glutes, but forgot!

Monday, Monday, hooray!

Yep, I've got control issues!

Did affirmations last night and throughout this morning, though not while brushing teeth as scheduled. The post its fell off the mirror, so they are on the rim of the bathtub, which isn't right in front of my face, so I forgot. My DH doesn't want to tape them to the mirror because of the residue tape can sometimes leave. I disagree, but I don't mind trying to find another way that suits both of us. He's thinking it's a good idea to tape them on some cardboard that I can then prop up against the mirror. I think I might manage to overlook that, but I'll give it a try so that if it DOESN'T work, I've got "See? Toldja it wouldn't work!" rights. After all, as a therapist, I would certainly prefer that my consumers (the new term for "clients"--hate it) try something before talking about why nothing will work. (OK, nothing will work...so why are you here?)

I'm pissed because my shoulder hurts. I worked out my upper body today, and prior to this, my shoulder felt almost recovered. None of the exercises hurt my shoulder in and of themselves. But now it's hurting worse. I'm angry that one thing after another keeps happening to my body FOR NO APPARENT REASON when I've got stuff I want to do. I was doing so well for a few weeks, and now this! My foot still hurts, though I think I've found some knots near my heel that I can perhaps massage out. I did this a bit in the shower for as long as I could take the pain. I will do some more with lotion tonight.

My workout took too long. I underestimated the amount of time it would take me to do my weights...thought it would take about 45-50 minutes, but it took a good hour. So cut 5 minutes off cardio so that I could thoroughly roll and stretch.

Weights:
SS1
pushups on medicine ball, alternating arms (WUx15 bent knee pushups, then 2 sets of 10, 2 sets of 8 on ball)
barbell 21-style curls (WUx21, then instead of 21s, did 2 18s and 2 15s)
SS2
bench press (WUx15, then 4x9)
hammer curls (WUx15, then 4x9)
SS3
incline press (WUx15, then 4x9)
shoulder press machine (WUx15, then 4x9)
decline oblique crunches (4 sets to fatigue)

Cardio: bike intervals, 20 min.

35 min. roll/stretch

Total: 2 hours, 15 minutes

I think I will switch to machines instead of free weights for the bench and incline presses, because loading and unloading the bar, as well as adjusting between sets, takes quite some time. I know machines aren't as good as free weights, but the alternative is to shave sets off. Although I guess that's a question: do I need to be doing this many sets? Is it possible I'm making myself more vulnerable to overuse injuries this way? Is it so necessary to keep the total workout volume the same when reducing reps per set? Realistically, although 4 sets of 9 and 3 sets of 12 have the same # of reps, the 4 sets take longer because of walking between stations and setting up for the 1st rep. Any thoughts? I probably should post these questions in another forum.

Yesterday's food (1783 cals):

FF multigrain bread, 1 slice
boca burger
flaxseeds, 2 T

Clif builder's bar

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.


beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

grapefruit
leafy greens, 1/2 lb.
med red bell pepper
onion, 1/2 medium
1 apple
Hi-Lo, 1/2 c
almonds, 12

The clothes washer is misbehaving, and I don't want to have to put something ELSE on the damn credit card. Grrr. I JUST WANT EVERYTHING TO GO ACCORDING TO PLAN AND BE UNDER CONTROL!!! I want to learn from these lessons the universe seems intent on shoving down my throat, but I'm too busy trying to deny they exist.

Hopefully, tomorrow I will be in a better mood and pain-free.

I have had a really bad last two days--not training/eating-wise, but life-wise. I don't want to go into it and upset myself before work, but it's been bad.

Haven't been doing affirmations since Tuesday night...sort of half-assed them this morning. At the time I most need to do them, I haven't been...I will change this by saying them to myself on the way to work.

Tuesday's food (1783 cals):
FF multigrain bread, 1 slice
boca burger
flaxseeds, 2 T

Clif builder's bar

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.


beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

grapefruit
leafy greens, 1/2 lb.
med red bell pepper
onion, 1/2 medium
1 apple
Hi-Lo, 1/2 c
almonds, 12

Yesterday's food (1092 cals):

CLIF bar

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

It's extremely rare for me to lose my appetite. On the plus side, the clothes washer is working okay today.

Today's workout (yesterday was a rest day/12 hour work day):

SS1 (3 sets)
20 sec wall sits on 1 leg
decline crunches to fatigue
SS2 (3 sets)
leg press x20 reps
leg raises on decline bench to fatigue
before 3rd set, standing calf raise, WUx15
SS3
standing calf raise (4 sets x9 reps)
Keiser leg ext (3x20)
SLDL (3x20)

30 min hard cardio on stairmaster--very intense, but not quite intervals (no recovery periods, and the highest intensity wasn't as high as during my self-designed interval training, though it was the "speed training" program on the machine)

5 min stretching. Skipped rolling. My schedule this AM was a bit different (related to the life issues I don't want to enumerate here), and I made the perhaps unwise decision to tempt fate by putting extra time in on the cardio and no time on the foam roller. I commit to resume the foam rolling tomorrow.

My foot is feeling mostly better. So is my right shoulder. My left shoulder is having some discomfort, and I think I must have slept funny on it...I've had about 9 hours of sleep over the past 2 nights with lots of tossing and turning.

Work in 20 mins...going to catch up on email.

I'm finally feeling back to my old self again, at least mentally. Shoulders are still a bit cranky, but foot is almost better. I've started doing my affirmations again.

Yesterday's foods (1783 cals):

FF multigrain bread, 1 slice
boca burger
flaxseeds, 2 T

Clif builder's bar

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

grapefruit
leafy greens, 1/2 lb.
med red bell pepper
onion, 1/2 medium
1 apple
Hi-Lo, 1/2 c
almonds, 12

Today's workout:

All exercises WUx15, 4x9 working sets
SS1
lat pulldown
rope pushdown
SS2
underhand asst pullup
seated dip machine
SS3
cable pulldown
cable row
shoulder press machine

Cardio: 25 min stairmaster intervals--kicked my BUTT! Felt awesome to finish, knowing I went all out and stuck it through...I did the same intensity as last week, but for 5 more intervals!

30 min roll/stretch

Hooray--it's Friday!

WTF?!? I already posted yesterday's food, and it's not here...here goes another try.

Did affirmations yesterday and today.

Rest day today.

Yesterday's food (1851 cals):

FF multigrain bread, 1 slice
boca burger
flaxseeds, 2 T

Clif builder's bar

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

grapefruit

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

leafy greens, 1 lb.
med red bell pepper
onion, 1 medium
1 apple
Hi-Lo, 1/2 c
almonds, 12

Rest day today.

Yesterday's Foods (2226 cals):

1 c hi-lo
1/2 c soy milk
10 almonds

CLIF builder's bar

1/2 lb leafy greens
med red pepper
1/2 onion
1c hi-lo
20 almonds
med apple

2 small pcs (heel & head) FF multigrain bread
1 boca burger
7 pickle chips
1T reduced sugar ketchup
few onion pieces

1.5 oz. salted cashews

2/3 c popcorn kernels, air-popped

2/3 personal watermelon (4.5 c)


Did affirmations last night but not yet this morning.

I think my shoulder pain may be related to the way we have the computer set up in the study and my mouse-reaching posture. Nevertheless, I am worried that I may not be able to do my upper body workout on Tuesday as planned.

Some good news: I lose some inches in my 2nd monthly measurements! Lost 3.25" total...5/8" on waist, 1/4" on abdomen (at belly button), 5/8" hips, 1/4" right thigh, 1/2" left thigh, 1/4" each calf. Bit bummed about the calves, as I'm trying to build them up and they don't appear to have fat on them...also, my thighs were perfectly symmetrical last month, but now they're not...but only off by 1/4". Overall, I'm very happy with the progress I've made this month physically.

And behaviorally, I don't remember the last month I was binge-free. Not to say the urge isn't still there...the thoughts of having a trough full of decadent goodies and just BURYING my face in it...but for the first time, I'm having reasonable portions of "off-plan" foods, foods which used to be synonymous with eating until I felt sick. NO FOODS ARE OFF LIMITS NOW, and it's so liberating! I'm eating chips and guac and losing inches! I'm having salty days and watching my weight fluctuate as a result...and I'm not freaking out. I'm listening to my body and giving it what it wants (not all the time, but definitely more than before)! I never have purchased cashews before, as they don't provide as many nutrients per calorie as almonds, but yesterday I wanted something salty and fatty, and my raw almonds just weren't it. So we went to a convenience store, and I got a single-serving package of Planter's...and it felt SO RIGHT! "Awww, yeah, that's the stuff!" said my stomach. (My stomach is extremely intelligent. It speaks in a Barry White voice.)

Anyhoo, here's to success...mine and "Joe"'s! He lost 2 inches this month, and his waist to hip ratio is now in the healthy range! Life is good.

Didn't do affirmations yesterday. Oh, well! I did, however, get the living room clean (kitchen was yesterday), chop all my fruits and veggies for the week, and get all my laundry squared away. So the rest of Labor Day is mine to enjoy!

Yesterday's food (2152 cals):

1 package apple crisps
1/2 c Hi-Lo
1/4 c soy milk

2/3 c oatmeal
2T raisins

CLIF builder's bar

CLIF builder's bar

1/2 lb. leafy greens
1c Hi-Lo
1 red pepper
1/2 onion
1 apple
20 almonds

1 bag 94% FF Kettle Korn

2 extra small pcs FF multigrain bread (heel & head)
boca burger
2T flaxseeds

2T raisins
10 almonds

On future weekends, I'd like to start making recipes from Table for Two, Vegan Vittles, and Juliano's RAW: The Un-Cook book. On days I'm not "on plan," I find myself settling for food that's not completely delicious sometimes and thinking, "Some soup would be awesome, or chili, or some sort of tofu dish."

I'll start looking at what gets in the way of me doing this now.

Today's workout:

SS1
walking lunges (3x20)
leg curls w/exercise ball (to fatigue--working up to 3x20--these are harder than they look!)
SS2
step-up w/glute squeeze
Romanian DL
SS3
rear delt fly machine, parallel grip
seated calf raise
standing calf raise

30 min SS cardio/treadmill hill (250 cals)

10 min stretch

TOTAL: 2 HOURS

If you have a moment, please visit and give feedback to a question I've posted in the general bodybuilding forum. I could really use some assistance! Thanks for reading, and have a fantastic day!

Did affirmations last night and this AM.

My right shoulder is STILL hurting, so I skipped the gym this AM, where I would have done a chest/bicep/shoulder workout. I could have gone, done cardio and foam rolling exercises, and called it a day, but I slept 2 more hours instead. I've been feeling tired lately, and maybe my body is needing a bit extra rest.

This is messing with my head, though, because I hate to miss workouts. I'm feeling anxiety about when my shoulder will be back to normal and guilt about not going to the gym at all when cardio and foam rolling would have helped the rest of my body stay fit and healthy. So right now, I'm mired in anxiety and guilt. Not a great way to start my work week. I'm trying to tell myself that part of being healthy is knowing when to just rest a bit, and that this is good for me. But maybe it's not. I just don't know.

Yesterday's foods (1955 cals):

1 slice FF multigrain bread
boca burger
2T flaxseeds

CLIF builder's bar

CLIF builder's bar

Chipotle: chips, 2 salsas

1 lb leafy greens
1 onion
2 apples
1 c Hi-Lo
20 almonds

Did affirmations last night and this AM.

Yesterday's foods (1513 cals):

FF multigrain bread, 1 slice
boca burger
flaxseeds, 2 T

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

grapefruit

leafy greens, 1/2 lb.
med red bell pepper
onion, 1/2 medium
1 apple
Hi-Lo, 1/2 c
almonds, 12

Today is a rest day (12 hour work day). Tomorrow, I'm going to work out lower body. Friday would be an upper body day, but oldest dog has vet appt. COULD work out after work if shoulder is feeling better. As of today, it's not yet. My plan, if I continue to rest my shoulder for the rest of the week, is to do 6 gym sessions next week instead of 4 (this week will have been 2 instead of 4) to make up for missed workouts.

Did affirmations last night and this AM, but focused on "I am a fit athlete, whose body heals itself, which makes me happy." My shoulder is feeling 90% better! However, I've changed my mind about making up the workouts...here's where I was yesterday:



In considering my husband's advice (the voice of reason for some things), I decided it's just not wise, even if my shoulder is feeling totally better, to double up on upper body workouts immediately after recovering from an injury. So I will simply let it go and accept that I didn't get 2 of however many upper body workouts done during this training cycle. The other option is to make them up during my week of rest, coming up, I believe, the first week of October. It is hard for me to be mentally flexible instead of all-or-nothing, to miss workouts without freaking out, but I need to take good care of my body.

Yesterday's food (1783 cals):

FF multigrain bread, 1 slice
boca burger
flaxseeds, 2 T

CLIF builder's bar

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

grapefruit

leafy greens, 1/2 lb.
med red bell pepper
onion, 1/2 medium
1 apple
Hi-Lo, 1/2 c
almonds, 12

Today's workout

SS1
1-leg wall sits (3 sets x25 sec.)
decline crunches (3 sets to fatigue)
SS2
leg press (3x20)
decline leg raises (3 sets to fatigue)
SS3
standing calf raise (WUx15, 4x9)
leg ext (3x20)
hamstring curl (3x20)

SS cardio on treadmill

25 min roll/stretch

I'm meeting next week with a trainer at the gym to get her take on whether I should focus primarily on building muscle or dropping fat...and the most effective way to achieve that goal during my next training cycle, which will take me through the end of the year. I may post some photos here to get other members' opinions on where to start (gulp)!


I was a bit leaner in my avatar, I think...

Said affirmations last PM, this AM.

No workout today--checkup for a doggie.

Yesterday's foods (1783 cals):

FF multigrain bread, 1 slice
boca burger
flaxseeds, 2 T

CLIF builder's bar

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

grapefruit

leafy greens, 1/2 lb.
med red bell pepper
onion, 1/2 medium
1 apple
Hi-Lo, 1/2 c
almonds, 12

Feeling PO'd at the world today...stressed and annoyed. I NEED TO LEARN AND PRACTICE RELAXATION TECHNIQUES! (Hmmm, what if I honored the quotation in my signature?)

Today's food (1783 cals):

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

grapefruit

beans, 2 oz.
edamame, 1/3 lb.

CLIF builder's bar

leafy greens, 1/2 lb.
med red bell pepper
onion, 1/2 medium
1 apple
Hi-Lo, 1/2 c
almonds, 12

Shoulder is still sore. Think it may be rotator cuff. Will start upper body work again on Tuesday, but will remove overhead exercises. Will also begin PT exercises for rotator cuff. If it's not a rotator cuff injury, it still can't hurt.

Yesterday's food (2029 cals):

1/2 c oatmeal, 2T raisins

3 CLIF builder's bars over the course of the afternoon

2 Tofutti Cuties

Ginormous salad: 1 lb. leafy greens, 1 med bell pepper, 1/2 jumbo onion, 1c Hi-Lo, 20 almonds, 1 apple, 1 tangelo, 2T raisins

I did my first run-through of a few PT exercises for my rotator cuff. Will try again this evening with light weight, probably 15-oz cans. None gave me trouble except for raising arms out to side (like emptying cans, palms down). Iced for 20 mins afterwards. Am going to see if I can find a shoulder specific ice pack at Walgreen's that will allow me to walk around while icing both shoulders.

Will restart my upper body weight training this week, but no shoulder press and no exercises that involve going overhead. Also am cutting the medicine ball pushups and sticking with stable machine exercises--for chest, those featuring rotary motion. Doing 3 chest exercises and 4 back exercises per week, as I think my chest is stronger than my back, which I suspect may contribute to potential muscular imbalance and injury.

Injuries suck! So I shall faithfully do PT every night and listen to my body as I re-enter the upper body workout domain!