strawberryriddick

It is a little important, since a lot of people's parents/grandparents have it. It's fibromyalgia. Basically, my brain tells my nerves to misfire and interpret everything as pain. There's no treatment, only drugs to sedate you. No thanks. A lot of people just give up when they have it. They fight to figure out what it is, then they have a diagnosis. Good, because they know it won't kill them; bad, because it just killed their spirits. It's a very depressing disorder, especially with people saying, "But you LOOK fine!" and "You weren't complaining yesterday!" all the time. Plus, there are some doctors that don't "believe" in it. Sorry, doc, I don't "believe" you went to medical school then! Anyway, if you ever meet someone in the fibro family, let them know that veganism can help. With the changing of the seasons and snowfall outside, my spasms are getting worse. I took a couple shots of whiskey to help calm my nerves. I'll still be workin' chest tomorrow, though

It was taken at Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Quite a lovely place, and I enjoyed all the food except the octopus I ate. People called me nuts for eating octopus in Mexico, but we were RIGHT ON THE WATER...I figured it was fresh! Thanks, I hope so, too

Thanks for laying this out, it's really great to see a side-by-side.

LocalBrada Oooh, I like that! Tuc Oh, yeah, I didn't upload an avatar. That would be fat gal to fit gal But I am happy to oblige. Before http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v391/strawberryp0cky/Computer/MeOnBoat.jpg After http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v391/strawberryp0cky/ablars.jpg http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/abortdave/Week4back.jpg http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b257/abortdave/Week4tricep.jpg Graduating Boot Camp http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v391/strawberryp0cky/BootCampGrad.jpg I did put on more mass before I became disabled, but can't seem to find the picture for it. Anyway, hopefully I'll be able to post some current pics when I get the nerve. I became a lot more body conscious after the disability. Veganism has given me a lot of confidence in my body back, though!

I'm a huge fan of lentils, and there are things like amaranth and quinoa which provide all your essential aminos just like soy.

Thanks Amy! I'm really diggin' all the different font colours available, too. Just figured I'd say something

Thanks for the welcome, you two!

The boosters have their pros and cons, as with anything. Part of the problem is that when you start a cycle, you need to take an off cycle to prevent your elevated estrogen levels from taking control...not everyone knows this and they see some rather upsetting results. Once you decide to take this step (on and off cycles), you end up relying on it for your size/strength/conditioning once you start taking it. I personally believe in manipulating your diet and regimen to overcome plateaus.

Keep in mind that any bodybuilding diet, even one that includes meat, is going to be highly scrutinized, timed, pre-portioned, etc.. It's something that is calculated and followed. Because of this, following a vegan/vegetarian bulking diet is actually no different than following an omnivorous diet. Since you're already scrutinizing your diet, work to ensure that you're getting what you need from various sources.

I'm just curious how many of you are taking testosterone boosters or even the actual 'roids. After looking at some of the pictures on the site, I was just curious if it was au naturel or if there was any help. No, I'm not trolling or anything, I'm just curious.

I'm excited to be a part of this forum because that means two things: 1. I'm hitting the weights again. 2. I'm vegan. I'm quite excited about both of those things, and I'll tell you why so ya'll can get a good idea of my history. I was fat growing up and when I got to college, that didn't change. I went to college only because I couldn't get my fat butt into the military. I had to take a physical education class for part of my general education requirements. There was no way someone my size (about 250lbs at 5'7) was going to do aerobics or track, so I chose weight lifting instead. I fell in love with it! I began to eat better to build muscle and decided to add cardio to lose the fat so I could see my muscle better. I realized that yes, I could lose the weight, so I decided to join the Marine Corps. It took me about 10-11 months to lose about 100lbs through sound diet and exercise. I was a bodybuilder and was completely obsessed. However, I became disabled in the Marine Corps and had to stop. The nature of my disability, without getting too technical, is that my nerves receive incorrect signals. I perceive almost everything as pain, and I spasm suddenly...most notably after I do a set of heavy weights, or any stupid reason this stupid crap wants to act up. As for veganism, it was something thought about for some time now, but I can first remember considering it when I learned of Daniel's challenge to the king to eat a vegan diet. I recently thought of it again because of my renewed vigor for the spiritual, enlightenment, and harmony...how could I live in harmony with the world when I ate the life in it, especially such tortured life that goes on in our slaughterhouses? Certainly, I would be much more comfortable hunting my own meat, because I could at least ensure that the animal doesn't live a life of suffering, and that honor and thanks would be given for the life instead of just an electrical zap to the brain and into a vat of boiling water. I think that many of you may disagree with this point, but the idea behind it is what was important to me...I'm not eating meat, lol. What really pushed me over the edge is that book I picked up. It doesn't advocate vegetarianism specifically (it mentions fish and also has recipes with meat), but does speak of vegetarian, vegan, and raw diets tested on patients with my condition, with the greatest results coming from the vegan and raw diets. So that's the history of my bodybuilding and my veganism. I am excited to report that I'm making faster gains than I thought possible, especially after going vegan. Due to my condition it took a little tweaking but I'm on point now.