strawberryriddick

To my knowledge, the Clif bars are all vegan, but a type of Luna bar is not. They came out with a protein bar and it's not vegan. Their regular Luna bars and I believe their Luna cookies are vegan-friendly. I also like Vega.

For the cookies, what type, brand, and flavor of protein powder did you use?

I maintain one rule in the kitchen: "If you want to add it in, go ahead. Otherwise, you eat what I make you." End of story. I typically cook for my roommate and my boyfriend. My roommate is an omnivore and will occasionally add in chicken to his meal, but most of the time he eats my cooking and has no problem. My boyfriend was an omni when I met him, but didn't want to "burden" me by having me cook him separate meals, and my food was so delicious he didn't care. He began to notice how meat and cheese were affecting him, so he became vegetarian and skirts the line of veganism now and again, if one can do such a thing. Basically, you're making the food, you make the rules. As for "kid friendly," I don't quite know what that is other than "something nutritionally lacking that children like to eat." I didn't get that option as a kid. What mom made, I had to eat. I didn't have the option to go hungry, it was "sit at the table until you're done eating." Didn't matter what it was. Liver, chop suey (I hated it), onions, garlic, leftovers, whatever. I had to eat it, as did my siblings. There were no "kid friendly" meals. Mom made one meal, we all ate it. Maybe this approach is a little harsh for you...I don't know. What I do know is that, as the main meal maker in your household, your time is better spent making one meal that everyone sits to eat instead of trying to appease three different palates. You have two choices for meals. The Easy Switch This is the "vegan replacement for [insert food]" approach. Something like, say, a salad, vegan mac & cheese, and vegan chicken nuggets would fit the "kid friendly" bill and you and your partner wouldn't hate it, either. Vegan grilled cheese with hot tomato soup would also be a fun choice, and you can certainly jazz up the soup with a number of seasonings, or do that thing in the Campbell's commercial where everyone gets a bowl of tomato soup and adds their own stuff to it when they get to the table. With these vegan replacements, you'll find it's easy to make things like "meat"loaf with mashed potatoes and veggies, shepherd's pie, vegan sausage/bacon with tofu scramble and hashbrowns and pancakes (a "breakfast for dinner" thing), pasta with "chicken" or "shrimp," things of that nature. The downside is that these tend to be expensive and, depending on what you buy, come with preservatives and stuff your bodies don't need. The Hearty Meal This is built around the "fill 'em up and they'll be happy" approach. Staples will be things like potatoes, bread/pita, beans, and lentils, with everything else thrown in. Instead of using meat, use potatoes and/or beans in pretty much any dish. I've even made pizzas with potatoes! If you dice potatoes and saute them, then add them to a chili loaded with beans, diced onion, diced tomato, and diced bell pepper (along with whatever else you like...try cooking diced polenta with the potatoes and adding that in there), no one's going to complain (and if they do, tell 'em to shush or make their own next time!). One thing I made was lentil soup with chopped udon noodles added in. Holy crap, was it ever filling and AWESOME! And, to throw it for a loop, I took those ingredients and seasoned Mexican style. Strange idea, great main dish. Other ideas would include: -Casseroles with mashed potatoes as the base -Tacos, burritos, nachos, or enchiladas using beans or tofu instead of meat -Lentil soup served with pita bread + veggies and hummus -Large, gourmet sandwiches served with potato soup -Build-A-Potato (bake potatoes and then offer a variety of toppings) + salad and/or sides of veggies -Stir Fry with potatoes -Mexican-style pizza using vegan (aka fat-free) refried beans instead of pasta sauce Can't think tonight, those were all I could come up with. Anyway, give it a shot.

We Americans and our Canadian neighbors also have baked beans...just an FYI From what I hear, Chinese and Indian are quite popular in England. What about a little Mexican? Here's my twist on a white trash recipe called "Frito Pie." INGREDIENTS -Frito's or other corn chips -Vegan ground "meat," reconstituted TVP, or crumbled firm tofu or tempeh -Black or pinto beans (you COULD use your Heinz beans if you so desire) -Mashed potatoes -Vegan butter -1 can of diced tomatoes -1/2 large onion, diced -Diced jalapeno and/or chipotle peppers (optional) -Vegan cheese or vegan cheese sauce (optional) -Salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, chili powder -1 cup rice of your choice, cooked. -Fresh cilantro (I think you blokes call it coriander? This stuff: http://teluguabhiruchulu.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/cilantro-de.jpg ) -1/2 diced bell pepper (I think you blokes call it capsicum? These: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ceZKjb50a0c/SLYZyJba80I/AAAAAAAAA7w/3YpRxsaaHE0/s400/capsicum.jpg ) -1 avocado -Vegan sour cream (optional) TO DO Preheat oven to 205 degrees C. Mash potato with vegan butter, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Mix with rice and avocado. Set aside. Cook onion and capsicum together in oil until softened. Set aside. Heat and mash the beans with chili powder, cumin, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Set aside. Heat and season the meat/tofu/TVP/tempeh with chili powder, cumin, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Set aside. In a non-stick casserole dish (or bread pan), layer the potato/rice/avocado, mashed beans, canned tomato, onion/capsicum, jalapeno/chipotle, vegan meat/TVP/tempeh/tofu, vegan cheese/cheese sauce, and top with corn chips. Bake in oven about 15 minutes, or until heated through. Serve topped with fresh torn cilantro and vegan sour cream. If you can't get some of these ingredients, that's fine. I mean, it's hearty and delicious anyway even if you can't get some of these. I made this about 3 weeks ago for my flatmate and my boyfriend. My boyfriend is vegetarian, my flatmate an omnivore. Both loved it! Feel free to top with hot sauce.

Back in the game, reviving the thread. Controlled Labs "Thanks for the emails. All of our capsule products use gelatin. Orange triad has animal derived ingredients. Golden gains and purple intrain both have whey protein. The other items do not have animal derived ingredients."

The current round of seaweed caps is just fiber, which is why MRI doesn't use them. The new ones are supposed to replace softcaps and should be free of fiber...at least that's the impression I was given as the guy wants to use them for the supplement.

Awesome! Another professional athlete I can add to the list when I tell people that vegans aren't waif thin

How long have you been doing this? The thing you need to remember is that no one here can tell you what you should do, all we can do is give you suggestions so you have a few to try. That includes your personal trainer. Everyone's body is different. What's "too much cardio" for one person might be too little for another and just right for another. That's why I asked how long you've done this program. That is one thing you didn't state: the time frame of all this. There's a possibility that you haven't done this enough for your body to dump anything, but at the same time, there's a possibility that the sprinting/jogging you're doing isn't enough. Now, I'm not talking the hour...I'm talking the intensity. One thing I like to say is, "If you can do anything for an hour, you're doing it wrong." Unless you're training for endurance, you can seriously cut that hour WAY down and kick the intensity WAY up and find that's far more beneficial. I lost about 100lbs in about 10 months, and the last 35lbs to lose I was doing a significant change in cardio. First, I did it on the pavement after realizing the treadmill was absolute shit for me (I could go an hour on the treadmill with no problem, but as soon as I tried it on the pavement, I was dying after just 2 minutes). In addition, I seriously raised the intensity and, consequently, lowered the duration. Except for my endurance days, which were 45-60 minutes, my workouts were 25 minutes or less for cardio. I ditched the 35lbs in just 3 months, by the way. I, too, had a spotless diet and was doing heavy weight training (and got stronger, despite losing weight, so I know it was fat weight lost), as well as some ab stuff and 2-4 yoga sessions a week. That means I was working out 6 days of hard cardio, 6 days hard lifting, 5 days abs, and 2-4 days of yoga. Most people were like, "OMG UR OVR TRANINNNG" but the reality was that I was juuuuust fine doing that. The weight also stayed off, which is something that people who dangerously lose weight can't boast.

Some fitness competitors: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3067/2636086771_4ab6241ed5.jpg http://tour.ftvideo.com/content/genex/contests/2006/emerald//_/ecup5354.jpg Too big? Here are some from figure: http://www.fitnessatlantic.com/images/figure-competition.jpg http://tour.ftvideo.com/content/genex/contests/2006/emerald//_/ecup5354.jpg http://figureathlete.tmuscle.com/img/photos/2008/08-FIG075-figureathlete/image001.jpg Don't get me wrong, the ladies are gorgeous on this site and Ms. Prince is stunning...but the question here was about definition. It's the same with me. I train to get bigger and stronger, but I'm always smaller than I think I should be.

Oh, I absolutely agree. I don't walk in there saying, "Hi doc, I'm a vegan with fibromyalgia and having a problem today I need help with." I don't mention a damn thing, actually. Problem is, this being the veteran's hospital, my files follow me around whether I want them to or not. I come in to a see doc, they look at my record while asking me what's wrong today, and we go from there. The only time I mention being vegan is when they do blood work and tell me everything's within optimal levels, then I say, "That's nice to know. I'm vegan" or something like that to let them know that, yes, vegans can be healthy! Anyway, I realized last night that I was put on a new birth control about the time this started happening, so I'm going to ride it out and see if that's the culprit.

I am limited to the veteran's hospital. The way it works is that if there's a medical school nearby, the students there do their residency (don't know if it's a different term in Canada, but it's basically on-the-job experience) in the Urgent Care clinic. The other doctors who run different departments, like endocrinology or the women's clinic, are actual doctors who have been practicing medicine for some time. Being both female and under 50 and going to a veteran's hospital has some stigma attached to it. In fact, there was a push to give younger veterans better service because they were pushed to the side in lieu of older veterans who were coming to the hospital because they're in diabetic shock...you know, a condition that has nothing to do with being in the military at all, they're just not taking care of themselves properly. They get seen before young veterans like me who are only at the veteran's hospital because of what the military did to our bodies. Go figure. So, I'm not seen immediately because I'm in my 20's, and I'm not given optimal care because I'm seeing non-doctors in urgent care. Here's a good example of their care: yesterday, I saw my doctor (I see him once a week for treatment) and mentioned a problem I was having on Monday. I had emailed him on Monday about it, asking if he had any cancellations, and he was following up on it. What had happened was I woke up, stood up out of bed, and fell. I couldn't walk straight and stumbled at an angle to where I needed to go, so I had to get my cane to help me. I had work later that day and, figuring I was feeling a little better, decided to lift some weights before work as usual. No big deal, and because nothing was hurting, I wasn't going to exacerbate any pain symptoms (I don't lift when, say, my ribs are out of whack). I became very dizzy and was unable to get up off the floor, or even turn over, for about 15-20 minutes. I ended up pulling myself onto the couch and despite resting, I was still very dizzy. I had to call into work, and was like that the entire day. I couldn't even sit up to use my laptop. Tuesday was better but still somewhat similar, and Wednesday I was fine. Thursday I felt even better, but was still having a vision issue with it. You see, this dizziness thing isn't new...it's happened before...and I have a change in vision associated with it. Either the room spins, I see colored dots, parts of my vision are "missing," or I see a gray-white haze over everything. So my doc asks me if anything's still wrong, I say that the haze is still in my vision and I have trouble seeing things close-up without getting dizzy, but otherwise I'm okay. He sends me to urgent care. They send me to optometry. I had no idea that being dizzy and unable to move properly was the fault of my optical nerves.

That's debatable lol, I guess you're right!! Yeah...uh...I appreciate everyone giving this advice and, believe me, I'd give the same. The problem is that, because of my fibromyalgia, doctors will always rush to blame that as the reason. It doesn't matter what's wrong with me. If I'm stuck on the floor unable to move, it's fibromyalgia. Vision blurred? It's fibromyalgia. Symptoms of stroke? It's fibromyalgia. Unable to use legs and/or arms? It's fibromyalgia. And, yes, unable to eat? It's fibromyalgia. I've been in before because of it. No one gives a shit. It's fibromyalgia. Just kidding. Despite the fibromyalgia, veganism has given me the ability to have more energy. I love it. Not much. Not like I have in the past when this happens, so I don't think it's similar to that (no one can tell me what it is [it's fibromyalgia!] and from having to do my own research and try to find my own cure, I've determined that one of my ribs [several of my ribs dislocate] will fuck with something and cause me to be unable to keep any food down. This is not the case this time).

I did a detox where I pretty much went raw for a week. Drank lots of water. Noticed while on the detox that cooked food was too filling too fast for me, and made me feel really tired. Okay, no big deal, raw is pretty sweet. Then my appetite started decreasing. Then I was unable to keep food down. It's been like this about 3 weeks now. I'm not eating much of anything. I have no idea why, but I can't seem to keep food down. No, I'm not sick. Any advice?

You could try my energizer: -4 shots espresso (or 1 cup double-strength coffee if you don't have an espresso machine) -2500-5000mg powdered arginine -1/2 cup pumpkin puree -cinnamon to taste -1 scoop vanilla protein powder (optional...I add this if I'm taking this post-workout and need energy) Blend, drink, enjoy.

Everywhere on my back. I had to use my cane today.

Agreed! Happy birthday to a man who's an inspiration to so many!

Which reminds me of my ultimate point: always listen to the body!

Definition is all about body fat percentage. Even the scrawniest kid who never touched a weight in his life can have a 6 pack because his body fat is so low. To make that extra definition "pop," you do want to be solid with your training program to ensure you have something more than just skin and bones when you ditch the fat. It's a combination, really, for women since we don't have as much natural mass (muscle mass that just exists on the body without working out) as our male counterparts. Aside from protein powder, creatine is the longest-researched supplement available. It's also incredibly safe. Every creature on the planet that has muscle mass produces its own creatine...even us. Supping with creatine allows you to increase maximal performance in the anaerobic window...definitely a good thing!

Hiya Fitness! As a fellow femme, I'm going to say that I echo your observation! When I look at the profiles on veganbodybuilding.com, I see the guys with hard muscles and deep cuts, and then I see the, well, rather soft-bodied female counterparts. They aren't big and muscular, or even small and very muscular. I didn't make a thread like this because I didn't want to step on toes, but do know you aren't the only one who thought about it! Myself, I'm going for big. Not necessarily cut, though that'd be nice. Just training to get bigger and stronger. That's always been my goal. I see in magazines that "advocate" women lifting weights, but in reality they're just wanting to use muscles as a fashion accessory. Anyway, the thing you must remember is that not all people want to train to get big and cut, and even fewer women want to. Since vegans make up a small percentage of the population, that number of vegan women who want to get big and cut is going to be...well...it's going to be hard to find! It's all about training. I have no trouble adding muscle as a vegan woman. It's how you train and eat that makes the difference. Don't look at those pics and think that something about being female and vegan makes you smooth and less muscular than if you were to eat meat.

Unfortunately this doesn't work for most. The above method leads to huge muscles, but also to huge fat. If your standard intake is 2500kcals and you jump up to 4000, most of the weight you will be gaining is fat.... That all depends on your body, your training, how "clean" you bulk (no bullshit, just whole foods), and your current fat level. While I was doing this, I was losing fat and gaining muscle mass. I was losing weight when I started training (I'm a 5'7 woman and started at 250lbs), but I started eating like this when I was 195 and trying to get down to 160 (weight max for my height/gender in the Marine Corps). I was doing hard cardio, hard lifting, and 1.5 hours of yoga 2-4 times a week towards the end. Took me 3 months to lose 35lbs and I was eating around 3500-4100 calories per day. But your argument is that jumping from 2500kcal to 4000 overnight will make someone gain fat. Sure. But that doesn't mean that they can't add in 200-400 calories a day for a week, then add in more the next week, and eventually build up to the 4000kcal. I was just illustrating that's what needs to be aimed for. There's a supplement, and I'm not sure if it's vegan, called Black Hole by Controlled Labs. It's an appetite enhancer. I'll check on it.

Quinoa Protein Powder? Forgive my ignorance, but as a complete protein, can't you just mill that stuff into a flour and then...you know...use it in protein shakes?

Did anyone mention the part about cow's milk being higher in stronger, mammalian estrogen and yet no one cries that a man will get bitch tits.

That's up to your body, not our perceptions of your routine. Do you have enough time to recover? The easy way to find this out is if you're making any strength gains. Well, I'll tell you right now that I'd never do your program. When I go into the gym to see results, I want to focus on one muscle group at a time. Most people focus on two. It seems like you're doing some kind of hodge-podge, and if that gets results for you, great. I can't see how I could crush these into a 3 day routine without turning it into someone vaguely similar to something I'd do, so first I need to know why you're seemingly sporadically working out your muscle groups. Don't. There is a whole line of supplements dedicated to giving someone energy and even boasts of mental focus to make the user feel fresh, energized, and intense when approaching the weights. Doing cardio prior to weight training pre-exhausts you. When you don't approach the weights fresh, you aren't doing the best you can. When you aren't doing the best you can, then what are you doing in the gym at all? A good illustration is how we did it in the Marine Corps for our physical fitness tests. There are three parts: pull-ups or flex arm hang, crunches (an ab workout, but not like we think of "ab crunches"), then a 3 mile run. There's a reason they do it that way. Imagine if they asked us to run 3 miles, then to come back and try to do 20 pull-ups. Would that make sense? Or does it make more sense to try and do 20 pull-ups and then run 3 miles? The latter, of course. Save your cardio for after. I personally don't care to do a warm-up, never had a problem with it, but if you want to do a warm-up, do a warm-up set by using a light weight or even no weight and doing 10-15 reps of the exercise you're about to do. Be patient and hang in there for 4-8 weeks. Don't like it? Change it up.

Been meaning to post these for a while. The first article is on dietary nitrates, the second on the pH and muscle mass. These articles appeared back-to-back in Muscular Development's December 2009 issue (pages 138-141). These articles really helped me understand two things I found out after becoming vegan: I have more energy and my muscles don't waste as much. Because I'm typing out the entire articles, there may be a few typos as I hammer through them quickly. Please forgive me. DIETARY NITRATES: A New Way of Increasing Nitric Oxide Production -by Robbie Durand, M.A., Senior Editor Nothing beats getting a good pump in the gym. Traditionally, bodybuilders have resorted to using nitric oxide (NO) products to enhance NO production. Many bodybuilders know that nitric oxide can be increased via the synthesis of nitric oxide synthase, through the amino acid arginine. What many bodybuilders may not know is that NO can be produced via an alternative pathway without NO synthase. Diet is a major provider of nitrates in the body. Nitrates can enhance the production of nitric oxide, independent of the arginine-dependent NO synthase pathway. In 2004, it was demonstrated that inorganic nitrate from dietary sources could be a major source of circulating nitrite -- which enhances nitric oxide production independent of the arginine-NOS pathway. In one experiment, healthy subjects who ingested a dietary nitrate experienced a four-to-fivefold increase in plasma nitrite, It turns out that much of the dietary nitrite from food entering the stomach from saliva survives intact and reaches the systemic circulation. This suggests that inorganic nitrate from food can be a substrate for NO formation in the body. Nevertheless, based on numerous studies, it seems clear that dietary nitrates are indeed bioactive in the body. Sources of Dietary Nitrates Incorporating some fruits and vegetables into the diet in place of high protein can help facilitate greater production of nitric oxide production. A diet rich in fruits and vegetables is associated with a lower blood pressure and reduced risk of cardiovascular events. Despite extensive research, the active ingredient(s) responsible fo this effect has not been pinpointed, and trials with single nutrients have been largely unsuccessful. (StrawberryRiddick's Note: to me, this just promotes the importance of whole foods) Remarkably, in a recent study of healthy volunteers, the blood pressure-lowering effect of dietary nitrate supplementation was similar to what was seen in the healthy control group in the DASH project, a classic vegetable/fruit diet trial -- indicating that nitrate could be an important and active ingredient of this diet. This means taking a nitrate supplement could be just as effective as eating fruits and vegetables for increasing NO production. It should be noted that the dosage of nitrate used in the study (0.1 mmol/kg/day) is readily achievable through a diet rich in vegetables. So for those guys who are not eating fruits and vegetables, you may be missing out on getting better pumps in the gym. Beetroot Juice - A High Source of Nitrates In a recent study, Webb and colleagues found that blood pressure decreases if healthy volunteers ingest a natural nitrate source (beetroot juice). Researchers demonstrated that it was the nitrate in the juice that had the effect, and it occurred via the nitrate's chemical reduction to nitrite. In the study, 0.5 L of fresh beetroot juice decreased systolic blood pressure as much as 10 mmHg, and blood pressure was still significantly reduced 24 hours later. The researchers found that blood pressure was reduced within just one hour of ingesting beetroot juice, with a peak drop occurring three to four hours after ingestion. Some degree of reduction continued to be observed up to 24 hours after ingestion. Researchers demonstrated that the decrease in blood pressure was due to the chemical formation of nitrite from the dietary nitrate in the juice. The nitrate in the juice is converted in saliva, by bacteria on the tongue, into nitrite. This nitrite-containing saliva is swallowed, and in the acidic environment of the stomach is either converted into nitric oxide or re-enters the circulation as nitrite. The peak time of reduction in blood pressure correlated with the appearance and peak levels of nitrite in the circulation -- an effect that was absent in a second group of volunteers who refrained from swallowing their saliva during, and for three hours following, beetroot ingestion. A reduction in blood pressure was also demonstrated in 2006, in healthy volunteers, after three days of dietary supplementation with inorganic nitrate. In 2007, it was shown that dietary nitrate decreases whole-body oxygen consumption in humans during submaximal exercise. This could be due to the vasodilation of the blood vessel walls, causing less need for oxygen consumption by muscle. The nitrate-nitrite-NO pathway may be viewed as complementary to the classical arginine-NOS pathway. These pathways work partly parallel to each other, but when oxygen availability is reduced and NOS activity is decreased, nitrite reduction to NO becomes more pronounced. In sum, consuming natural foods high in nitrates may enahnce muscle pumps in the gym. Or you could try beetroot juice, which is naturally high in nitrates. References 1. Lundberg JO, Weitzberg E, Cole JA and Benjamin N. Nitrate, bacteria, and human health. Nat Rev Microbiol, 2004 jul;2(7):593-602 2. Lundberg JO and Govoni M. Inorganic nitrate is a possible source for systemic generation of nitric oxide. Free Radic Biol Med, 37, 395-400 (2004) 3. Larsen FJ, Ekblom B, Sahlin K, Lundberg JO and Weitzberg E. Effects of dietary nitrate on blood pressure in healthy volunteers. N Engl J Med, 355, 2792-2793 (2006). 4. Appel LJ, Moore TJ, Obarzanek, E, Vollmer WM, Svetkey LP, Sacks FM, Bray GA, Vogt TM, Cutler JA, Windhauser MM, Lin PH and Karanja N, A clinical trial of the effects of dietary patterns on blood pressure. DASH Collaborative Research Group. N Engl J Med, 336, 1117-1124 (1997) 5. Webb AJ, Patel N, Loukogerogakis S, Okorie M, Aboud Z, Misra S, Rashid R, Miall P, Deanfield J, Benjamin N, Macallister R, Hobbs AJ and Ahluwalia A. Acute blood pressure lowering, vasoprotective, and antiplatelet properties of dietary nitrate via bioconversion to nitrite. Hypertension, 51, 784-90 (2008) 6. Larsen FJ, Ekblom B, Sahlin K, Lundberg JO and Weitzberg E. Effects of dietary nitrate on blood pressure in healthy volunteers. N Engl J Med, 355, 2792-2793 (2006). 7. Larsen FJ, Weitzberg E, Lundberg JO and Ekblom B. Effects of dietary nitrate on oxygen cost during exercise. Acta Physiol (Oxf), 191, 59-66 (2007). The Role of pH and Muscle Mass -by Robbie Durand, M.A., Senior Web Editor This month I spent some time with MD's Evan Centopani, filming his training session in his off-season. Besides noticing that Evan is looking like a beast, I walked into Evan's house and noticed this small apparatus next to the sink that had some blinking lights on the side and was filled with water. I said, "Evan, what the hell is that?" Evan explained it was a water ionizer, which adjusted the pH of the water. By using a water ionizer, it helped to create a more basic pH in the body, and reduce blood acidity. Evan explained that he had been doing a lot of reading on the role of pH and health. He is correct that pH has a profound effect on health, but also on muscle mass. Having na acidic pH not only causes lower muscle mass, but can also lower plasma levels of IGF-1. Having an acidic pH is not conducive to building muscle. In fact, researchers make the blood more basic to counteract losses in muscle mass. Interestingly, a mild but progressive metabolic acidosis occurs in elderly individuals who are exposed to a continuous challenge from acid-producing diets (e.g., diets relatively rich in meat and cereal grains compared to the fruit and vegetable content). Oral administration of bicarbonate increases blood pH (makes the blood more basic) in a dose-related manner in healthy adults, both at rest and during exercise. Metabolic acidosis has long been known to promote protein breakdown and nitrogen excretion. In several studies, daily administration of bicarbonate -- which acts as a blood buffer and reduces acidity -- improved muscle power during intense exercise in healthy subjects. However, the role of pH and muscle mass has never been clearly defined, so researchers set out to examine if blood pH has any effect on muscle mass. Researchers from Tufts University examined 162 older adults and had them consume either a treatment with potsasium bicarbonate, sodicum bicarbonate, potassium chloride, or a placebo. Remember that bicarbonates reduce blood acidity and promonte a more alkaline environment. Interestingly, after three months of supplementation, only the bicarbonate altered the amount of acid production. The reduction in acid production resulted in less nitrogen excretion (greatr protein retention) iin men. In the men, the change in net acid excretion (the amount of acid being excreted from the body) was positively correlated with how much nitrogen was being lost. Although nitrogen excretion is not a specific indicator of muscle breakdown, in the setting of stable protein intake, exercise level, and bodyweight, a decrease in nitrogen excretion is consistent with decreased net muscle catabolism. Treatement with bicarbonate significantly lowered nitrogen excretion. Therefore, using a blood buffer such as potassium bicarbonate may be a way of reducing muscle tissue breakdown. Loss of muscle is associated with aging, but this occurs in conjunction with increased blood acidity. A possibility is that muscle wasting is influenced by the mild metabolic acidosis that occurs with aging. With muscle breakdown, amino acids released into the bloodstream provide substrate for the hepatic synthesis of glutamine. Glutamine is used by the kidneys to synthesize ammonia. Glutamine acts as a blood buffer when pH is acidic by being removed from muscle. So Evan may be on to something good. It seems that drinking alkaline water or eating fruits and vegetables or using a bicarbonate supplement may prevent muscle tissue breakdown. References 1. Frassetto LA, Morris RC Jr, Sebastian A (1996) Effect of age on blood acid-base composition in adult humans: role of age-related renal functional decline. Am J Physiol, 271:t-22. 2. Douroudos II, Fatouros IG, Gourgoulis V, Jamurtas AZ, Tsitsios T, Hatzinikolaou A, Margonis K, Mavromatidis K, Taxildaris K (2006) Dose-related effects of prolonged NaHCO3 ingestion during high-intensity exercise. Med Scie Sports Exerc, 38:1746-1753. 3. May RC, Kelly RA, Mitch WE (1986) Metabolic acidosis stimulates protein degredation in rat muscle by glucocorticoid dependent mechanism. J Clin Invest, 77:614-621. 4. Mitch WE, Price SR, May RC, Jurkovitz C, England BK (1994) Metabolic consequences of uremia: extending the concept of adaptive responses to protein metabolism. Am J Kidney Dis, 23:224-228. 5. Edge J, Bishop D, Goodman C (2006) The effects of training intensity on muscle buffer capacity in females. Eur J Appl Physiol, 96:97-105. 6. Cersosimo E, Williams PE, Radosevich PM, Hoxworth BT, Lacy WW, Abumrad NN (1986) Role of glutamine in adaptations in nitrogen metabolism during fasting. Am J Physiol, 250:E622-E628. 7. Dawson-Hughes B, Castaneda-Sceppa C, Harris SS, Palermo NJ, Cloutier G, Ceglia L, Dallal GE. Impact of supplementation with bicarbonate on lower-extremity muscle performance in older men and women. Osteoporos Int, 2009 Sep 1.

What Robert and VeganEssentials wrote on the first page really is the truth. When you're bulking, you eat. You cram high quantities of calorie-dense foods together and eat that shiz right up. I haven't bulked since becoming vegan, but my omnivore stuff was absolutely insane. I'd eat a pound of meat and double that in vegetables in one meal. It's that kind of quantity you're looking for if you want to bulk. Bulking is deliberate. It does not happen on accident (except for when you eat half a jar of delicious PB, lol), and that's what I tell people when I'm at work because, seriously, they seem to think that shiz is something that can accidentally pop onto them overnight. Muscle is deliberate, bulking is deliberate. You must deliberately eat lots of food that is high in calories.