flanders77

Welcome from germany! Have fun doing your weight training! Its the best!

Well, we'll have to make our own little Vegan Fitness Meet here next month

If you are not just joking: Where is that meeting? Maybe I can join you...

@wtf: WELCOME! Nice to have you here although you are not german and not helping us taking over this forum

Hi Aaron, welcome from the other german guy, too!

The whole plan sounds absolutely fantastic and I really would like to join you together with my little family! Sad but true I have to work in that period of the year since I am the Co-organizer of a congress on sports injuries and doing my dissertation in the same time. Hopefully I can take part the year after!

Thank you for sharing your sun with me! It is so great to see that you are on the right way! Being (even via internet) a small part of the other members lifes is the essence of our forum.

For ethical reasons I don't see the need of getting rid of old leather stuff.

As you can read in Richards, Madcats and Heros comments there are only ethical reasons not to use/sell/donate things that are made of dead animals. Of course there are economical (waste of money) and ecological (enviroment) reasons but I think most of us are vegan mostly for ethical reasons. Especially when considering how small our number still is we should try to make as few compromises as possible.

To those you think that the dead animal does not care about what is happening to his body or may want to see that something good is made out of it:

Using this kind of argumentation could justify almost every kind of action. But being vegan also means to avoid the avoidable.

Killing an animal is wrong. And using products made of dead animals is also wrong. It does not make a difference if you killed it, paid for the killing or if the killing took place years ago.

Doing something "good" with the dead bodyparts like giving it to homeless people is, from an ethical perspective, a dillemma. I think every killed animal just wanted to live and did not want to die. And constructing a reason why its dead was senseful (for us) does not work.

My thoughts to this issue:

1. Do not wear leather anymore.

2. Selling or donating leather is more difficult bause others could think that wearing leather is okay because even vegans sell and donate it. On the other hand by giving your old leather clothes and shoes away you reduce the number of this stuff sold (produced).

3. One could saythat of course wearing, selling and donating leather does not hurt any animal additionally. But I think we also care about the vegan-message and most of us have a really bad feeling wearing the skin of a dead animal.

Conclusion: Destroy or discard all leather products you own. Do not sell or trade them. Especially selling makes you a "part" of the killing industry. If you want to donate shoes to someone in need, buy new leatherfree shoes and donate these. Butaway: it is not good for ones feet to wear someone elses old shoes...

I´m from recklinghausen/Ruhrgebiet...

I live in Münster and work in Bochum at the University! Ruhrpottpower!

Guten Tag!

Welcome to our community! What do you mean saying: "i`m using bitch tits"? If you actually have enlarged tits you should think about testing your hormon levels. I do not think that tofu causes "bitch tits". Maybe you use bad quality protein pouder which is often contaminated with steroids...

The China Study. I read many books including Robbins and others but this one is really into science. Only one downer: The author was into animal testing in his long carrer. He is still sure that it is okay to kill animals for science which really benefits humans. Nevertheless it is the best books with the most arguments pro veganism and natural food a read.

@SeaSiren, Brendan, Corey and Hero: Thank you very much for the warm welcomes!

Welcome from me, too! I think it is great that you already started thinking in the right direction (e.g. against animal testing). Many of us started like that.

Welcome! and always re,ember: vegan nutrition is best!

Welcome from me too and keep it up!

@Gorilla: If you come to the cities of Bochum or Muenster which are both in the northwestern part of germany, let me know! Maybe we can meet and have a vegan meal together...

Welcome Doro! Nice to have another german here!

I do some Yoga, too. So I know that it is hard work doing it as good as you do!

Is there a reason why you favor power yoga (beside it obviously creates a absolutely fantastic body)? Do you meditate as well?

Maybe you also have advice for me how to enhance my lotus flexibility?

Best regards,

David

@everyone who welcomed me: Thank you very much! I already feel very much at home here! but away: Is there anybody else here having his/her own family?

@Ronnie: Yes "flanders" refers to ned flanders. Many of my friends call me neddy or flanders because of my lifestyle (having a regular job, living together with my girlfreind and daughter, not consuming drugs etc.).

@veggymeggy: Thank you very much!

@Robert: Here we go...

http://www.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/groups/sportlz9/spomed/david/starter.jpg

@Daywalker: I am working at the Chair for Sports Medicine at the University of Bochum. My main interest in science is the prevention of sports injuries. Since I live in Muenster I travel about 90 km via train to work.

Let me introduce myself:

Name: David Schulz

Date of Birth: 07/16/1977

Body height: 185 cm

Weight: 90 kg

Strength Training since: 1994

Starting Weight: 67 kg

Vegetarian since: 1995

Vegan since: 2004

Other Interests: Yoga

Girlfriend: Anke (29 Years old)

Children: 1 daughter Marla (4 Month old)

Profession: Sports Scientist at the University

I started being Vegetarian in 1995 for health reasons being influenced by the BSE-Drama. In 2000 my intake of animal food (dairy products) declined rapidly and since 2001 the only source of animal food was bread, honey and when my mother-in-law put some cream into dressings.

Inspite of being vegetarian herself my girlfriend does not agree with my way of eating. For her I am just too extrem. I did not manage to take her with me on my way of really acting responsible.

When I started strength training i was really skinny. After a few years and a lot of eating I gained about 13 kg. As long as I was eating dairy products I never managed to reach 85 kg. Since 2002 when I ate nearly no dairy products anymore I gained another 10 kg and became much stronger. Since I am vegan I lost some weight but became even stronger in the same time. My favority exercises are: dumbbell bench-press (45 kg each side), squats (140 kg) and dumbbell biceps curls (24 kg each side).

Since my daughter is born I only train 2 times a week for 1,5 hours with a plan spilt into two different days. I still manage to gain power and being stronger than many heavier athletes in my studio.

Besides strength training I try to do yoga as often as possible. Here I emphasize on meditation and doing the Asanas very slowly. Yoga for me is a way of living more than another kind of sport.

I hope it was interesting for you to read something about me...

See you soon here in the forum!

It is great that vegan Athletes from all the world can meat here!

David