Christopher Posted July 8, 2007 Share Posted July 8, 2007 Hi. I've checked out Vegan Bodybuilding for awhile and finally decided to join the discussions. My name's Christopher and I live north of Ft. Worth, Texas. I'm 38 years old and went vegetarian in 1999 and vegan in 2000. When it comes to fitness, it's never been something I did regularly, but a health scare and being a couple years shy of 40, I know taking care of myself is the best thing I can do for me and loved ones. In my early 20s, I went vegetarian on a dare. I was a vegetarian for almost three years before going back to an unhealthy diet. While eating better for those few years, I biked 10-20 miles a day and juggled a couple hours each day. There were days for no real reason that left me feeling wiped out, but during that time, I felt great. I've had a battle with weight most of my adult life, but I've always been able to get out and hike, bike, or do what I wanted (even when I topped out around 400 lbs.). When I made an effort to lose weight, however, it was always very difficult--no matter how hard I tried (even after going vegan). In 2004, I was diagnosed with a two centimeter brain tumor (a benign pituitary tumor). The pituitary tumor explained the lousy feelings that came out of nowhere--and it explained why I had a tough time losing weight. There are many different types of pituitary tumors--the kind I have flooded my body with the hormone, prolactin...which drove testosterone almost completely out of my body. Finding the energy and drive to workout was tough, but once the tumor was treated, I dropped over 100 pounds. I had a recurrence with the tumor in late 2006/early 2007; it was worse than the first time around and I decided to really fight it. If my legs hurt, I worked them. If I felt tired and sluggish, I kept moving. Since February, I've been lifting and walking regularly and I know this time I'll stick with it and get down to my ideal weight, whatever it is. I'm 6' 4" and currently weight about 285. Testosterone levels are still low, but for the first time ever, I'm building and maintaining muscle mass. I still have a ways to go, but I know discussing fitness keeps it at the front of the mind, and I'm sure veganbodybuilding.com will be the final thing I need to get to the level of health I've dreamed of. Christopher Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert Posted July 8, 2007 Share Posted July 8, 2007 Welcome Christopher! Thanks for the great intro. We're happy to have you here and we look forward to hearing more about your progress and we're here to help people reach goals, offer support, suggestions, and all that stuff. Explore the forum and get to know some of the people here in our community. All the best and welcome aboard! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trev Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 Welcome, Christopher! If there's anything we on this forum are good at, it's keeping fitness at the front of the mind! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 Welcome to the forum Its seems like you've been going toward the right track and working hard through these things. I hope everything works out for you and you can get what you need from us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RawSteve Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 Welcome!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
offense74 Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 Welcome Thanks for the great intro! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Odidnetne Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 Welcome to the forums. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veganitaliana Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 Welcome! I'm sorry to hear about your health problems. I hope you find help and support here. Ciao Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markc7 Posted July 9, 2007 Share Posted July 9, 2007 Welcome aboard! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christopher Posted July 9, 2007 Author Share Posted July 9, 2007 Thanks for the warm welcomes, everybody. Lots of great info--I've been doing a lot of reading since yesterday. Christopher Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loveliberate Posted July 10, 2007 Share Posted July 10, 2007 Hello & Welcome Christopher! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flanders77 Posted July 10, 2007 Share Posted July 10, 2007 Welcome and thanks for your great intro!I wish you all the best and especially a lot of strength to become healthy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christopher Posted July 12, 2007 Author Share Posted July 12, 2007 I wish you all the best and especially a lot of strength to become healthy! Thanks! I've always lurked, here and there, but never really spent a lot of time going through all the content on the forums. Great stuff! Christopher Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle Posted July 13, 2007 Share Posted July 13, 2007 Welcome, Christopher! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bunnylalu Posted July 16, 2007 Share Posted July 16, 2007 Welcome Christopher! I just moved from Dallas to Oregon, but I know there are a great group of vegans in the DFW area. PM me if you want more info on how to contact them I'm sorry to hear about your brain tumor - and thankful that it is benign, although still problematic. Health problems suck! But this is a great place to keep positive about your fitness goals! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christopher Posted July 17, 2007 Author Share Posted July 17, 2007 Welcome Christopher! I just moved from Dallas to Oregon, but I know there are a great group of vegans in the DFW area. PM me if you want more info on how to contact them Sorry to miss you...looks like there are a few D/FW vegans right here on Vegan Bodybuilding. Cool deal. I'm sorry to hear about your brain tumor - and thankful that it is benign, although still problematic. Health problems suck! But this is a great place to keep positive about your fitness goals! If nothing else, it's made me stick to working out this go around, and there are a lot of symptoms I don't have that a lot of pit tumor patients have. My endocrinologist feels there's a good possibility that being vegan for seven years has helped sidestep some of the really bad stuff. It's speculation on his part, but all the doctors I've encountered think the vegan thing is cool and that it's probably helped out. Christopher Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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