amawalke

I've been reading about raw food a lot lately, and the more I read about it the more it seems to make sense to me. I've been reading Ani Phyyo's website and book, and other articles about going raw online. I don't know if I'll ever go 100 percent raw, but it's definitely something I've been leaning toward for a while without even realizing it. I'm not sure how eating raw and working out in what I hope is a (relatively) anti-inflammatory way will contribute to my getting in shape for a Bikini Division Competition; these learning experiences are reasons why I haven't set definite deadlines on a competition date. I feel like I'm moving towards my goal more and more, but it's a process I'm feeling my way into. Here's my food from yesterday! meal 1: 1/2 cup oatmeal (150) 2 tbsp cocoa powder (20) 2 tbsp brown rice protein (120) 1/3 cup blueberries (30) coconut oil (130) meal 2: apple (70) post-workout: vega (110) meal 3: salad with hummus, tofu, cucumbers, tomato (300-500) meal 4: nectarine (70) meal 5: almonds (180) blueberries (30) cocoa (10) squash (100)

..the message posted before I finished! Anyway, djshrew, if you have any advice I'd love to hear it! Have you done a few competitions? What has been your personal experience with it?

Thanks djshrew! I'm trying to find a competition next summer so I don't have to worry about focusing on school at the same time, and it'll give me plently of prep time. What I'd really like to do is get in good enough shape that I don't have to cut too much for competition; I know a lot of fitness models (like Alicia Marie) stay in shape year round, and then only have to cut around 5-7lbs or so for competition. I feel like for me, that would be the healthiest way (physically and mentally) I could prepare for a competition. I want to compete but have been nervous about building and then cutting somewhat drastically towards the end. A bikini competition seemed like the best kind of comp for me because the girls aren't too "cut", just in great shape; which is the look I'm going for! Honestly, I'd like to look like a fitness model year round. That may sound unrealistic, but if I shoot for big goals and don't make it, at least I'll still be in great shape! I couldn't find any comps that far out; do you have any recommendations for websites where I can find a listing of competitions in the colorado area

Thanks guys! I'll think about your comments. I'm hoping to compete within the year, but haven't picked out a competition yet. The sooner I get in competition shape, the sooner I can find a competition in the area

meal 1: 1/2 cup oatmeal (150) 2 tbsp brown rice protein (120) 1 tbsp cocoa powder (10) 1/3 cup blueberries (30) coconut oil (130) meal 2: apple (70) post-workout: vega (110) meal 3: spinach (15) edamame (90) avocado (100) balsamic viniagrette (15) bell peppers (15) salsa (15) meal 4: acai berry drink (125) meal 5: spinach (15) jicima (15) avocado (100) edamame (90) onion (10) meal 6: cocoa powder and stevia (10) green antioxidant drink (30)

Today I had a TON of homework and a bunch of Air Force meetings to go to...I managed to squeeze in a circuit training workout for 45 minutes tonight, and I kind of snacked throughout the day after lunch. Improvise, adapt, and overcome! meal 1: 1/2 cup oatmeal (150) 1/3 cup blueberries (30) coconut oil (130) 2 tbsp brown rice protein (120) meal 2: 2 tbsp brown rice protein (120) meal 3: spinach (15) tempeh (320) bell peppers (15) onions (10) balsamic viniagrette (15) meal 4: apple (70) meal 5: luna bar (180) post-workout: vega (110) and green antioxidant powder (30)

Yesterday I re-evaluated my diet, and had a surprisingly easy time with the minor changes today; even going to my friends house for dinner wasn't hard! Also did 30 minutes of circuit training because my trainer told me to take the day off but I wanted to do a little something at home (shh don't tell!) Here's my food for the day: meal 1: 1/2 cup oatmeal (150) 1/3 cup blueberries (30) 1 tbsp coconut oil (130) cocoa powder (20) meal 2: 2 tbsp brown rice protein (120) meal 3: salad with 3/4 cup edamame (180) spinach (15) salsa (15) balsamic vinegar (15) carrot (15) bell pepper (15) post-workout: vega (110) meal 4: peach (70) <- didn't want to eat fruit after lunch, I won't tomorrow! My friend brought one just to have me try so...I felt like i had to. I know, excuses. meal 5: tempeh (240) salad greens (15) baked tomatoes (50)

I'm trying to cut my carbs a lot over the next few weeks and lower my fat intake, so I've cut out a lot of the nuts I eat during the day and most fruit. Is squash (my favorite is acorn squash!) one of those "starchy" veggies I should cut out too? THANKS!

I know I eat relatively healthy, but there are several things about my diet that I've been totally in denial about. I didn't want to admit it, but when I take a close look at my diet I know I'm eating too much fat, even if it is good fat! Also, my fruit intake is really high...both these things aren't helpful when trying to make major changes to my body. I'm not trying to eat less calories, I just want to make sure I'm eating as many nutritionally dense calories as I can fit into my day. For me, that means replacing a lot of my fruit and fats with vegetables and high-quality proteins. I didn't arrive at this revelation until after lunch yesterday, and you'll see my diet choices shift there. Today should be even better! Here's yesterday: meal 1: 1/2 cup oatmeal, 1/3 cup blueberries, coconut oil, cocoa powder 2 tbsp brown rice protein meal 2: apple post-workout: vega meal 3: smoothie with peanut butter, banana, cherries, green antioxidant stuff, and spinach meal 4: 2 tbsp brown rice protein meal 5: salad greens with tomato, onion, cucumber, and tofu

Yesterday I talked to my mom, and my family is going through some rough issues. I thought I was okay with it, but then last night I had bad dreams, and I kept waking up in a cold sweat just worrying about them. I didn't know everything had gotten to me as much as it did! It didn't feel like much of a holiday; I spent most of the day doing homework and trying not to worry about anything, but it really bummed me out. Then my trainer bailed on me, and I couldn't get the motivation to go to the gym by myself. I felt awful about it, and eventually did some yoga tonight to try and even out my mood and re-center. I wish I'd gone to the gym today, and hopefully next time I'm having a rough day I'll remember today, and that going to the gym could have been a great stress relief. At least I somewhat kept to healthy eating today. meal 1: 2 tbsp hemp protein (110) green antioxidant stuff (30) 1/2 cup oatmeal (150) 1/3 cup blueberries (30) meal 2: nectarine (70) meal 3: toasted bagel (240) with peanut butter (180) meal 4: nectarine (70) meal 5: tempeh (160) and smoothie with frozen cherries (80) green antioxidant stuff (30) brocolli (15) spinach (15) cocoa powder (20) coconut oil (120) meal 6: 1/3 cup frozen blueberries (30) almonds (180) cocoa powder (10)

holy crap girl you look so awesome! What are you worried about?!? I know you'll be awesome by your competition!

Also, Angela: Congrats on blasting away that baby weight and getting into shape for a competition! Do you have any pics of where you're at right now? I know you'll do great! I am lifting "heavy" right now (for me anyway!) and I'm hoping to get some of those beautiful muscles I keep seeing on girls in competition!

I had such a great time yesterday; hiking with the dogs, swimming in the pool, going out to dinner, and doing some shopping that I totally spaced posting my food for the day! It was also my day off from the gym, so I didn't get in a workout that day. meal 1: 2 tbsp brown rice protein (120) 1/2 cup oatmeal (150) 1/3 cup blueberries (30) <- I actually blended all these together yesterday for a morning smoothie! meal 2: apple (70) meal 3: tempeh (160) spinach (15) bell peppers (15) 1/2 avocado (150) and 1 tbsp olive oil (120) meal 3: vega (110) nectarine (70) meal 4: cashew "ricotta cheese" wrapped in lettuce (?) delicious mixed green salad with tempeh, dried cranberries, sunflower seeds, and no dressing (?) I gotta start figuring out the calories for these restaurant meals!

also...this video is awesome.

Angela; I just saw you replied to my post! I've only been to one show before, and it was about a year ago. I heard there's one in the Denver area (I'm in Boulder) in October, and I'm definitely going to go! Do you think it's necessary to get a coach for your first competition? I ordered a book and a posing dvd, and was hoping to avoid the expense of a coach. But if you think it's worth it I might look into it. I'm so excited for you about your first bikini comp that's coming up! What do you think of the preparation it takes to get to where you are?

Saturday night!!! Yes, I know it's early to be in for the night But when I've got puppies to take care of (beagles!) and an ear morning workout, it's nice to get all my social activity done with early in the day, and then have the night to relax and record how I've progressed! Today was a legs day at the gym; I was frustrated at first because I can't lift very heavy; I used to have some pretty serious back issues, and I still have to be careful how much I strain it. I just made sure to keep the reps high, and in between sets if I felt like I couldn't get my heart rate high enough, I'd do a quick set of sit-ups, lunges, or step ups to get the blood pumping! After working legs I did abs on the ball, and played basketball for about half an hour. Saturdays at the gym are always fun because less people are there and I get to play around after my workout! meal 1: 2 tbsp brown rice protein meal 2: apple post-workout: vega and a nectarine meal 3: smoothie made of green superfood powder, coconut oil, frozen cherries, spinach, and brown rice protein meal 4: luna bar and a nectarine meal 5: potluck with friends in the park! I tried a little bit of lots of dishes, but think I kept it relatively in control; ate lots of raw veggie dishes, some dates stuffed with almonds, and a lots of fresh fruit! The Potluck was actually a vegan meetup with some people in my area; we had a couple of amazing speakers come and talk to us about how to improve our outreach. My main goal to compete in a bikini competition (besides looking and feeling awesome! and doing something I love!) is to bring attention to my lifestyle as a vegan. I loved hearing the creative ways I can spread the word, and plan on using a lot of those strategies soon. More on that later!

I was so excited because today I found some awesome resources online! I'd been looking for a great book on competing in bikini and hadn't found anything until today; the book is sold out but should ship after they restock (after Sep 28th) so I should have the book soon. I also ordered a dvd on bikini comp poses and that should get here sometime next week. The video also talks about competition basics and shows footage from a competition, so that will be great to look into! Today I worked shoulders, abs, and did some stairmaster. I know that eventually I can look the way I want to, I just wish I was there today! It's Friday and I'm excited to take a weekend off from school, hang out with friends, and hopefully hit up the farmer's market tomorrow meal 1: 2 tbsp brown rice protein (120) 1/2 cup oatmeal (150) 1/3 cup blueberries (30) meal 2: apple (70) post-workout: vega (110) meal 3: salad with tempeh (160) spinach (15) olive oil (100) carrot (20) bell peppers (15) meal 4: nectarine (70) meal 5: miso soup (30) with onions (5) carrot (20) edamame (120) also acorn squash (80) meal 6: 1/3 cup frozen blueberries (30) almonds (180) and cocoa powder (20)

Hey! I'm fairly new to the website, and am super excited to see all these amazing athletic vegans! I'm going to enter my first competition within the next year, and have been working hard at the gym since I decided to do it (about 2 weeks ago now!). I know a little bit about figure competitions, and I went to one last year, but I feel like I have so much to learn! Also, I've seen a lot of books on Bodybuilding and on Figure competitions, but not Bikini Division competition. The poses seem much different than figure, and obviously the girls have less muscle. Does anyone have advice on a book I could read, website I could browse, person I could talk to? Does anyone know of coaches in the Colorado area? Thank you so much in advance!!

I just got some vegan workout shirts in the mail yesterday, and will be wearing mine that says "Shiny Happy Vegan" when I do my gym workout today!!

honestly, I can't find one in Colorado next summer, I don't think they post the comp dates that far ahead of time. I just decided to train for a competition last week, but I've made it my goal to compete within the year. I want to be as fit, confident, and ready as I can be. I'm still learning so much, I feel like I need to get a lot more knowledge about what I want to do. Do you have any suggestions, resources?

Today actually felt really great at the gym! I've felt so sore these past couple of days I thought it would only get worse, but maybe my muscles are actually adapting! Either that or I'm mentally getting used to the workouts. Either way, it was nice to have a workout that felt like it rocked my arms but didn't leave me completely dead afterwards. I worked biceps, abs for 15 minutes, and then 15 minutes walking at a 9.0 incline on the treadmill at 4.2 mph. My legs were super sore from yesterday and it felt good to walk it out! Later today I went and got this beautiful salad from Whole Foods for dinner, which I've been doing once or twice a week lately. The only thing that's hard about that is I'm not sure the calories in the salads I make! Do you think that's an issue early on in my training? Should I be restricting my calorie intake more or does it look like I'm doing okay? I want to make sure I build muscle, but I don't want to have to seriously cut when it comes closer to competition; I don't want to have to lose more than 5lbs when I'm a month or too out from the competition; I want to make sure I'm where I should be! meal 1: 2 tbs brown rice protein (120) 1/2 cup steel cut oats (150) 1/3 cup blueberries (30) meal 2: apple (70) post-workout meal: vega (110<- the vanilla flavor has 10 more calories than the berry flavor but tastes SO much better in my opinion!) meal 3: green superfood powder (30) banana (70) strawberries (50) cocoa powder (20) coconut oil (100) spinach (15) meal 4: delicious whole foods salad with tofu, lots of veggies, blueberries, strawberries, garbanzo beans, tomatoes, and no dressing (500? 700?) meal 5: banana! (70) cherries (70) cocoa powder (10) some almonds (80)

I was so frustrated at the beginning of my workout today! It was triceps day, and because I work out with a GUY it’s hard to compare my non-existent arm strength to his massive muscles! My arms were still sore from arms last week at the gym, and close-grip bench presses were NOT happening no matter how hard I tried! Luckily, the last part of my workout ROCKED because I got to try out all the awesome glutes exercises I read about yesterday in Oxygen Magazine Glutes edition My legs were shaking by the end…shaking=progress? We’ll see! Oh, and the cocoa powder obsession ended today as quickly as it started a few days ago…what’s up with that?? meal 1: 2 tbsp brown rice protein (120) 1/2 cup oatmeal (150) 1/3 cup blueberries (30) meal 2: 1 apple (70) post-workout: vega (100) meal 3: tempeh (160) and shake with banana (70) 4 strawberries (50) cocoa powder (20) coconut oil (100) and green superfood powder (30) meal 4: apple (70) meal 5: Salad with tofu, hummus, cucumbers, tomoato slices, and 2 dolmas with no salad dressing at Dushanbe Teahouse (500?) meal 6: frozen blueberries (30) and almonds (180)

Hi!! My name is Amanda! I'm new to the boards but have been reading the articles in veganbodybuilding.com since I became a vegan last Easter. At the time I'd been running relatively long distances (half-marathons) and was working towards longer distance running. Because I was running so often, I started to cut out my time at the gym; my true passion! After reading Robert Cheeke's book "Vegan Bodybuilding and Fitness" I realized I needed to narrow my activities to revolve around what I truly loved to have the most impact on others and gain the most enjoyment from life. I realized that my passion is my time spent at the gym, and the only thing that's held me back from competitions is fear of judgment and failure. But I know that if I work as hard as I can as effectively as I can, failure is not an option! I also know that my lifestyle supports my love of animals and the environment; I hope that if my friends and those around me see the amazing changes I'm making in my life they'll ask me what my influence or motivation is. From there I have the perfect opportunity to share my vegan lifestyle and spread the word in a non-preaching way! I am excited to have everyone here come along for my journey and continued advancement into my passion!

great booty here I come! Today was my off day from the gym, so I spent some serious time reading Oxygen Magazine, various forums on competition, and reading many many many posts by Robert Cheeke! Meal 1: 2 scoops brown rice protein powder (120) 1/2 cup steel cut oats (150) 1/3 cup blueberries (30) 1 tbsp cocoa powder (10) meal 2: apple (70) meal 3: spinach, bell peppers, tempeh and almond salad (300) meal 4: vega (100) and apple (70) meal 5: shake with green superfood powder (30) 2 scoops brown rice protein (120) brocolli (15) banana (70) and 3 strawberries (30) and 2 tbsp cocoa powder (20) meal 6: almonds (180) 1/3 cup frozen blueberries (30) and 1 tbsp cocoa powder (10) I'm still going through a chocolate phase, but I think the unsweetened cocoa powder has the perfect dark-chocolate flavor! Until I stop craving it, I don't feel bad about eating it!

and here are some front pics, it only lets you post 3 at a time! These are my least favorite angles, which is why I was going to attach them last