duriandork

I can't stand when someone decides to sit around and text/lounge for long periods of time on a piece of equipment, especially when the gym is packed.

Hi Cubby, I noticed you said Psyclon Nine. I drum for them and just did a tour with them a few months back. It has been a while since I've been on here because I've been on the road a lot with them and other bands. Anyway, I thought that it was cool that you mentioned the band. Cheers, Jon

5'11" and 165 pounds

Wow, that is some crazy looking broccoli!

I haven't worked with nutritional yeast in years. I am considering using it again. I used to make vegan mac and cheese with it. It was a recipe that I had from the Soul Vegetarian Cookbook. I bet it would taste good with this or on a tofu sloppy joe sandwich. Thanks for the advice!

Right on, I have already noticed some differences since I posted this. My weekly schedule looks more like this: Monday -upper body Tuesday -legs and abs Wednesday-circuit training where I go fast through a full body workout but with less weight Thursday-upper body Friday-legs and abs Saturday-circuit train Sunday-rest My work is similar to the one I posted earlier but because I am focusing on a section of my body each day, I am able to fit more sets in and a couple extra exercises in my 45 minute training session. I can feel the difference and I definitely see why people in weight lifting forums suggest changing your workout up every 6-8 weeks.

I'm listening to Swans, Neurosis, Godflesh, Seabound, Combichrist, Babyland, Ladytron, TV on the Radio, VNV Nation, and my bands because I am rehearsing to our music: Mankind Is Obsolete, Dismantled, and Kidneythieves.

I make this baked tofu recipe for my girlfriend all of the time because she is vegan too but is allergic to garlic and onions. Before we met, I put garlic and onions in just about all of my dishes. Ingredients: 1 package of extra firm tofu 2 teaspoons of powdered ginger 1 teaspoon of black pepper 1 tablespoon of tamari soy sauce 1 teaspoon of olive oil Set your oven to 400 F. Slice the tofu into about 12 quarter-inch think rectangular slices. Make the marinade of all of the rest of the ingredients and pour over tofu in a bowl. Let this sit for at least 15 minutes. I usually always have this marinading overnight in the refrigerator almost every day though. Next step take, an oiled pan and lay the tofu on there and place in the oven. Allow it to bake for about 10 minutes and then flip all of the tofu over and brush some of the marinade on there. Let this bake for about 10 more minutes or until it is a light golden color. This recipe is good for many things. You can eat it straight out of the oven with mash potatoes and steamed greens or you can use it in a sandwich "hot or cold," or easily pack it for the road and eat it throughout the day. I work out and play the drums most days, so I eat this all of the time to help restore my energy.

Meal 1: Protein shake "soy protein, 12 oz of orange juice, banana, frozen berries, 1 TB of flax oil, 1 TS of Maca powder, 1 TB of powdered greens" and a multivitamin. Meal 2: Bowl or two of raisin bran cereal with soy milk and 2 cups of coffee Meal 3: 2 veggie burgers with lettuce, tomato, and onions on whole grain toast with tall glass of water Meal 4: Protein shake "soy milk, soy protein powder, some sort of fruit, usually berries, banana, or papaya." maybe a salad, a peanut butter sandwich or some fruit. Meal 5: A big vegan entree such as: chili with corn bread, baked tofu cutlets with mash potatoes and salad, lentil puree over baked potatoes with sauteed collard greens, etc.. Meal 6: Leftovers from the earlier meal or a protein shake with a sandwich *Depending on how hungry I am each day depends on my serving sizes. I generally eat every 2 or three hours and always try to have something on hand like a big pot of soup with bread, bean/rice dish or baked tofu strips, etc. to use for quick meals. I try to only cook once per day, but I'll make a lot so that it will last all day or maybe even a couple of days. It is usually my big meal like meal 5.

Right on, I am about to head to the gym now. I am going to move towards focusing on a couple of muscles per day instead of a complete body work-out each day to see if this helps create differences. I mainly use machines because I move fast in the gym and don't usually have a partner for spotting. I also am concerned with some exercises because I was recently diagnosed with having a slight hernia. I have really cut back on lifting heavy weights when doing squats or other exercises that could potentially cause more problems. I guess that brings me to another question. If anyone out there has a hernia, how do you approach certain bodybuilding exercises that could worsen your condition? Thanks!

Excellent, thanks Robert! I appreciate your help. Jon

I appreciate all of the feedback. I am guessing that my frequency of workouts may be part of the cause of my plateau. I also follow more of a circuit training regimen where I don't wait a lot of time between sets and I focus on all muscle groups. I also forgot to mention that I workout 5 to 6 days per week and each workout normally takes about 45 minutes. I do try to add additional weight on days where I feel stronger at the gym, but I go back and forth between energy levels. I usually try to make sure that I am not hungry going into the gym because that can sometimes cause problems with pushing myself to my maximum ability. I am going to try changing up my routine a bit with these ideas in mind but I am ultimately looking to only gain about 10 more pounds and then sustain what I've got. Thanks again!

Excellent, thanks for the advice! I've been to some bodybuilding sites that have video examples of some of these exercises. Do you recommend any sites that show examples of these?

I have been following a pretty steady work-out plan for the past 4 months and I'm wondering if I should change things up or just add more weight. My goals are to gain about 10-15 more pounds of muscle. I am not looking to be extremely huge but a larger chest and shoulders would be cool. I am about 160 and 5'11". I belong to the nearby gym and I have access to a lot of work-out gear. Below is my normal routine and I also break a sweat playing drums for an hour or two everyday as well. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks! Stretch for 10 minutes Run for about 10 minutes at 5-6 mph Shoulder Press: 3 sets with 10 reps 40, 50 and 60 lbs Chest Press Machine: 3 sets with 10 reps 100, 115, 130 lbs Pectoral Flyes: 3 sets with 10 reps 80, 90 100 lbs Lateral Pulls: 3 sets with 10 reps 70, 90, 110 lbs Seated Rows: 3 sets with 10 reps 80, 95, 110 lbs Bicept Curl: 3 sets with 10 reps 70 lbs Dips: 3 sets of 10 Pull-ups: 3 sets of 10 Squats: 3 sets with 10 reps, 80, 100, 120 lbs Leg Extension machine: 3 sets with 10 reps, 60, 70 , 80 lbs Calf raises: 3 sets with 10 reps, 75, 90, 105 lbs A combination of ab exercises for about 15 minutes Stretch 10 minutes

Hello, I am currently seeking employment in the Los Angeles area. I live in downtown LA and I have experience cooking and working in both vegan and raw food restaurants. I also graduated from The Natural Gourmet Institute in NYC. For a complete resume, please contact me at [email protected] or www.myspace.com/jonsiren. I am also a drum instructor and can teach drum set lessons as well. Thanks! Jon

Thanks! I haven't stopped training, even while on the road. I am just back to participating on the forums. It is more difficult to train while on the road, but I brought some weights with me and would do a lot of body weight exercises. If I was in a hotel with a gym or a friend's house that had equipment, I'd utilize it when I could. It is good to be training at a gym again though.

Hello! I noticed that $$ is a big issue. My suggestions are to shop at discount grocery stores. In Los Angeles for instance, there is the 99 Cent Only store and it rules! They have organic produce and soy milk there too. Its crazy! I shop there mainly for all of my food and I try to keep things around $30 per week. Here is a list of cheap vegan foods: potatoes sweet potatoes beans "all kinds" brown rice onions garlic carrots celery rolled oats *other fruits and veggies depending on the season I would definitely find a few really inexpensive recipes to start on. I make stews and soups such as chili, split pea, borsche, potato/leek, etc.. Cut back on the oil, and refined starches and focus on the beans, veggies and fruit. Try drinking shakes too. I blend some soy milk, fruit and protein powder and drink this combo throughout the day. It will help make you feel satiated and provide you with energy. I buy my protein powder online. I go for the cheapest stuff out there. All of the protein powders can taste good in my opinion once you blend them with fruit and soy milk, but that is just me. I would go on google.com and do a search for cheap soy, rice, or hemp protein and then buy in bulk. I'll usually buy 2 or 3 "5 lb containers" of protein at a time to help drive down the overall cost. I hope some of these ideas help.

Hi Robert, That's awesome! I hope to see you speak someday. You're very inspiring. I'll keep an eye out for you in LA. Jon

Hi everyone, I have been on the road with a couple of different bands for the past year and a half. It is good to be back though. I started up a new profile and I look forward to being active while I'm back in town. Jon