troubleBound

Well I've lifted before, but I think I'm at beginner level cause i haven't done it in quite a while. I have been doing some bodyweight squats trying to get the form down perfectly (I'm still lacking a bit of flexibility for the deep squat). So, I think I might do Rippetoe's for a while before doing Mahler's (unless someone has a better beginner program... I wanna put on some mass and gain strength as quickly as possible. I'm gonna eat as clean and as much food as I can). I've never tried to bulk up, though, cause I've just been trying to get rid of the love handles and moobs first, but after so long, I don't think it's gonna happen. I'd rather pack on some chub (hopefully not on my chest) but pack on a lot of muscle than be as skinny fat as I am right now.

Well, I am currently just doing whatever bodyweight exercises I can to stay in shape. I don't have access to a gym. But I've thought about what I will do once I get back home. I want to bulk up now (changed my mind about the cutting fat... it seems like I'm getting skinnier and skinnier and lighter, but the lovehandles and moobs are still there and won't just go away, so maybe I need to put on some muscle) and was wondering about a couple of things: 1- Diet: Are there any vegan diet/cook books out there that you recommend for new vegans? Also, what type of diet would you suggest, and which micro nutrients would be found where? Also, what macro and micro nutrient distributions should I try to go for? 2- routine: Well, I was thinking about going back to Rippetoe's Starting strength and starting from scratch, basically. But this program caught my attention too: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/mahler78.htm Anyway, I would be most grateful if I could hear some suggestions. I really wanna make some strength gains fast (and I'm considering joining a sports club... dunno which. Probably would have to be rugby cause I don't have much skill on anything, really. So I guess I am interested in some conditioning too, but more concerned with bulking at the moment). 3- and finally, "supplements"... I don't know how many of those I'd take, but I would like to buy a protein shake at least, I guess. Which one would you recommend that's good and well-priced? Thanks in advance.

Thank you all for your replies. I will look up tofu scramble recipes. Also, what should I eat if I get an injury, for instance... I haven't been training this week (because I have a pretty bad skin injury on my knee) and was told to eat red meat, but I find it hard to believe that there isn't a vegan substitute for that... I'm not talking about taste, but about protein amount and how readily absorbable that protein is.

I'm between 6' and 6'1" 180lbs skinny fat. Somehow I wear size 34 pants but I've definitively got love handles and no six-pack, and flabby butt and the back of my upper arm is a bit flabby too. I'm not vegan as of now, but I really want to go for it because of many reasons (primary health reasons, but some ethical too). I eat a lot of vegetarian food (tofu, vegetables, almond milk instead of regular milk, fruit, nuts, etc) and there's been times when I go for weeks with no meat, but still eat eggs (if somebody could suggest another low-carb high-protein breakfast option, I'll definitively discontinue eating eggs, especially if said substitute is low-cholesterol too). So, I am a student, trying to cut some fat. I've done boxing for a bit, but saw little to no result, and will have to stop for the summer because I will be studying abroad in Europe, and only recently added weightlifting to my latest routine (not the first time I've done lifting, though. Just this time around I started doing boxing, running and bodyweight exercises only until 2 weeks ago when I added weights to it. I think the lack of heavy weight lifting and a less-than-perfect diet might be why I'm still skinny-fat despite working out very hard and being in pretty good shape endurance and strength-wise). So I have a book on capoeira conditioning and will be doing those exercises over there, especially if I don't find a cheap gym with barbells. I would like someone to tell me how to get started on a vegan diet. I'm willing to do some cooking (I'd prefer stuff that doesn't take more than 20 minutes cooking) and all. Lifting-wise I've been doing Rippetoe's starting strength (full of compound exercises), so I think I've got that part down, but I definitively need help with diet. Thanks for your help, in advance.

I'm new to this board. I'm not really vegan, but I'm seriously considering going vegan because of many many reasons (health being one of them). I'm between 6' and 6'1" and weigh about 180lbs (skinny fat though, cause I look almost normal shirt-on... Somehow I wear size 34 pants, but I definitively don't have a six-pack and have love handles and flabby legs, chest and back of my upper arms). I eat a lot of vegetarian food (There's been times when I don't eat meat for weeks at a time, just tofu, vegetables such as peppers cabbage, lettuce, onions, drink almond milk instead of regular milk and so on. But still eat eggs, but if there were a high-protein low-to-no-carb substitute for it, I'd stop eating eggs too), but it seems to me like it's way too easy to eat too many carbs. I mean, I'm not really a carb-o-phobe, but I work out pretty hard and just can't seem to get lean. I would like to get cut first, then work on bulking. I've done boxing but I think maybe because of my diet and having no heavy weight lifting combined with it, I just never lost a lot of fat. So, if I were just trying to improve my endurance, or trying to bulk up, I would have no problems, but I would like to cut fat... So what would a good diet look like for me? I know it takes preparation and what not, but despite being willing to learn some recipes and cooking some meals, I have to add that most of the time I just don't have time to do more than going to an asian restaurant and ordering vegetarian, or frying some vegan patties on olive oil and stir-frying some frozen veggies in olive oil... So, will someone give me a hand, please? Thanks in advance.