vegandoc66

Thank you very much, Emrys & rickb. I'm totally enjoying the journey at this point. Much respect. VeganDoc66

Thanks for the information. That was what I figured. Slow & steady wins the race, I guess.

http://imageshack.us/a/img811/9171/z2c4.jpg http://imageshack.us/a/img689/6579/zzi9.jpg First picture is about a year before I went vegetarian and two years before I became vegan. I was 178 pounds (at 5'6") 24% bodyfat and had (poorly controlled) hypertension and type 2 diabetes. I lost a lot of weight (and probably a lot of muscle) when I first went vegan in January 2010. At the time I was not working out. At all. Diabetes and hypertension have vanished... ( ! ) 6 months ago I started putting on weight (while not being a perfect vegan). Fast forward to 2013. I discovered this site. Started eating CLEAN and working out. Couldn't really tolerate much more than walking on the treadmill at first but I have since graduated to Bodyweight workouts (YAYOG) 4 times a week, long walks (6 miles) on the weekends and a mix of cardio 5 times a week (HIIT, Sprints, MMA...) I am now 139 pound and 16% bodyfat. I would like to lower my bodyfat even more, become stronger and more muscular. (That would be a first....) My impulse is to continue to work out and maintain a calorie deficit in order to cut more fat. Not sure how or when increasing muscle mass comes into the picture. Any help from anyone that has been in this situation would be helpful. VeganDoc66

I am a 47 year old physician and three year vegan. I originally became vegan as (one of many previous) fad diets in January 2010. I followed the 21 day Vegan kickstart from PCRM and noticed an immediate difference in my mood, energy, overall fitness. I lost 30 pounds and kept them off for over 2 years. My lab tests improved and my doctor was amazed. During this tranformation I read everything I could and became increasingly concerned about the ethical dimensions of a vegan lifestyle. So I started out as a "health" vegan and increasingly became an "ethical" vegan. I strongly believe both should go hand in hand... ... "And he lived happily ever after..." Right? Wrong. Actually, I should say I am a 2.5 year vegan because I fell off the wagon from Sept 2012 to January 2013. An occasional piece of milk chocolate morphed into cheese and then (gasp) chicken and fish. Not proud to admit it; but there it is. Along with my backsliding came an equal amount of guilt and (frankly) self loathing. Not to mention 15 additional pounds almost overnight. In looking back; I think that the reason I slipped was because I had fallen into a rut. My food choices were repetitive, boring and uninspiring. I needed to turn things around. I believe I have started that turn around this year. I've been vegan (again) since January and exercising regularly since March. But I still want more from this lifestyle. That, is what brought me here. This is a site I have browsed and lurked for over a year; I finally decided to join in the conversation and take my journey to the next level. Thanks for providing me this forum. (This was a difficult post to write. When I fell off the bandwagon most of my friends didn't know. I felt like an addict when I ate non-vegan foods in secret.) Whew. Vegandoc66