Troy

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Currently I'm using NOW Foods brand BCAA's, "plain jane", by the spoon, rinsed down with either blended grapefruit or blended pineapple and papaya. The after taste stays in my mouth for awhile. I enjoy virtually all the food I eat by the way!!! And the gemma, kale, chia, and ezekiel cereal smoothie with no sweetners hit the spot just now!

DV, thanks... I am working my way to sprouting. My food prep time takes a chunk of time out of day as it is but as soon as I know enough info on the subject I'm going to start little by little. Thanks for the heads up.

Outstanding post. Just did a quick search for other prices... the cheapest I found was made by a company called Starwest Botanicals. The website LifesVigor sells the Starwest Botanical Organic Spirulina Powder for $14.01 a pound (including shipping) with a minimum purchase of 12 lbs. Do you have any experience with this brand? Otherise, like you mentioned all the prices were anywhere from $20 to $50 per pound. I don't think I can afford 50 pounds right now so I might just go with the site I mentioned. Let me know what you think...

Concluding from the above two statements, it seems possible that Carnitine may also be lacking in the vegan diet...?

I'm slowly moving away from protein powders as a staple and opting for natural food sources so I'd like to add some Spirulina to my diet... I don't know much about it, other than its a high vegetable protein source, but I'm planning on putting some in my "green smooths", or as my friend calls them "lake algae drinks" Should I be looking for raw, dried, or frozen sources? Any risks associated? Consumption limits? Where can I buy it in bulk...? L e a n and Green, I know you have thoughts to share...

Thanks DV, I forgot to mention that I am steaming the quinoa and long grain brown rice after I soak them. Thanks for your advice on the light aspect too. Will steaming the grains kill some of the bacteria?

I like change, and seeing someone new on the front page every couple weeks sounds like a great idea! I'm gonna work on a new video in the next couple months... nothing spectacular, just some different lifts and a new song... something fun.

Yeah, I think either one will be great for the front page! I was honored to grace the main page for so long. Maybe consider Avi for the future too, those new pics of are unbelievable!

All I could find from Udo was this: "Chia Seeds In the desert of New Mexico, natives eat chia seeds. These tiny seeds contain about 40% LA and 30% LNA. Their essential fatty acids (EFAs) are protected from light and air in the same way as the EFAs in flax, with a brown seed coat, which is further covered with water-absorbing mucilage like that which covers flax seeds. Chia seeds provide a well-protected sourse of w3 and w6 EFAs in the hot desert climate." - Page 292, Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill, Fifth Printing 1 ounce of Chia Seed vs. 1 ounce of Flaxseed Total Omega-3 fatty acids 4.92 g vs. 6.39 g Total Omega-6 fatty acids 1.62 g vs. 1.66 g Flaxseed contains about 30% more Total Omega-3 fatty acids... -Stats from Nutritiondata.com

Rock on Robert, those are things are "clubs"...! I'll give it my best shot once the forearm thread shows up...

Thanks _raVen_... I went with the Hidalgo Foods site that you suggested this time around because I bought 55lbs for $5.72/lb (including shipping)... comes in 55 individual bags too which is convenient for storage.

Sweet mother of pearl! I looked up the word "Man" in Webster's and it said see: Lehyani, Avi. Badass! His upper body is stacked...! curious to see what kind of tree trunks are holding that frame up?

dang, just saw this thread... i missed the bicep thread, now this one too, i need to stay more active on here. Maybe I'll catch the forearm thread and try to take Rob down

Totally agree! The movie made my day, all and out a great entertainment experience... as D.C. says "a cinematic adventure". Did you stay for the extra scene after the credits!? WOOO! RDJ looks like he trained a bit for the movie, put on some muscle. I am extremely jealous!

currently I'm just soaking quinoa and long grain brown rice overnight in a bowl of water, rinsing once or twice over a 24 hour period per Dr. Fuhrman's advice (to greatly increase the nutritional value of grains) from Eat to Live. Usually I keep the bowls on the stove under the stove hood with the light always on and the fan on too. Do I want air flow around the bowls? Do I want to keep the light on or do I want it dark? Is this process suitable or should I make some changes? I can see the grains aren't sprouting and I don't think they are suppose to but per Dr. F, reactions are taking place within the grain to increase the nutritional value...

C'mon DV, plain creatine tastes like candy compared to branched chain amino acids!

I'm just starting to do deads and I'm wondering about a silly thought I had... The size of plates you use determines how low the bar will go... so... starting out my deads are weak I was thinking of using 2-25lbs plates on each side instead of a 45... this way i could get a little lower to the ground. Are the same risks implied with relation to below parallel squats? Will make a difference or should I just stick with a 45 on each side...? let me know... ps. el flaco has powerful looking avatar!

I second the idea...maybe Richard could whip something together...? Also, checking the numbers on: http://www.exrx.net/Testing/WeightLifting/StrengthStandards.html ... The Elite column is outstanding, those are some strong numbers!

Thanks everybody... I threw in a vbb plug in there... I still haven't finished the answers for my profile questions here... Rob I'm on it bud. Monica interviewed me over the phone that how she got the info so fast...

No ability to pick things up and smash people as far as I know... you can use the baseball bat or wield the knife. Be patient Aaron, I had the same impression at first too. The game is long and highly detailed. Story mode plays very slowly at first. If you want high intensity battles go online for anarchy or collabs, otherwise you'll have to stick out the slowness for awhile until you move the story along... I'm at about 25% and things are starting to heat up.... battles with SWAT teams with 3 star warrants, gangs of drug dealers, races, more weapons. I'm slowly getting use to the game and the more I play, the more I like... its not an instant hit for me like Vice City or San Andreas was, but we'll see...

Brucie is hilarious!!!

Updated, leg pic on page 1... appears like I lost definition, a tan, and gained virtually no mass. Training and diet were inconsistent the last 4 months. No worries though, this gives me more motivation to build up the legs up over the next 4. I'm finally in gym with a squat rack and did my first squat routine in over 2 years. I can barely walk today.

Made some changes over the past few weeks. Per some peer advice, I'm discontinuing the use of Udo's oil. I am replacing the fat source with more chia, flaxseed, and walnuts. The addition of more whole foods has allowed me to reduce the amount of protein powder and Ezekiel cereal in my smoothies. 3 refined products being replaced or reduced with raw nuts and seeds in place of them. A wise choice? I will however be in search of a high quality vegan DHA supplement. Per Dr. Fuhrman's advice (to greatly increase the nutritional value of grains) from Eat to Live, I have started to soak quinoa and long grain brown rice for about 24 hours, rinsing about half way between the soak, and just before steaming. I'm not too knowledgeable on soaking and rinsing grains... is this sufficient? I reduced the number of meals to 5 instead of 6. I'm finding this is much easier to do, and I have been consistently getting all 5 meals in each day for the past couple weeks. I revised my original post to reflect my current diet, so head back to page 1 if you're curious as to what my daily concoction is now.

Yes it was. You might wanna check out the new GTA, it is proclaimed by virtually all video game review sites as the best console game to date. Adios Master Chief...