Although I'm already a couple of weeks in, I've decided to start a training log for my experiences with NROL4W. When I introduced myself in the NROL4W forum and mentioned that I am a vegan, some people commented that they were interested in seeing what sorts of foods I ate while taking part in this program. So I think that, in addition to posting my workout information, I will dedicate some time to my food intake.
I am a 21 year old college student. Extremely unathletic and a little on the chubby side for most of my life, I took up running towards the end of high school. While I lost a little bit of weight from that, running became a sort of obsession, because I figured if I just could run a little bit MORE (and eat a little bit LESS) I would achieve the type of body I wanted. This never happened, though, and no matter what amount of food I ate and how many miles I ran, my body never looked any different. I started to dread running and would usually feel pretty lethargic.
At the beginning of December, I joined a gym because I was tired of running outside in the cold. Planning to pretty much only use the treadmill, I was approached by a trainer on my second visit who told me that it was probably in my best interest to cut down the running and incorporate some strength training. She provided me with a pretty easy strength training routine and told me to do intervals three times a week, and if I wanted, to do one or two longer cardio sessions on other days. I was skeptical at first because I was afraid that if I cut down on my mileage I would gain weight. After doing her routine for a couple of weeks, I noticed that I hadn't gained any weight, but also didn't feel like I'd been getting much stronger, either.
It was around this time that I read NROL4W. The book first reinforced a lot of what the trainer had already told me, making me feel a lot more comfortable with the idea of backing off the cardio and getting into the heavy weights. But more significantly, I learned about the importance of diet and the role it plays in training. While I've been a pretty healthy eater for a while, the vast majority of my diet was made up of carbohydrates, and I was neglecting to feed my body enough.
Embarking on the program outlined in NROL4W, I have already found myself gaining strength. I continue to take the occasional steady-state run, but focus the majority of my cardio time on intervals, which I really enjoy because they are short but still intense. Concerning my diet, I have made a huge effort to take in as much protein as possible, and have brought the level of carbs way down. I have also embraced the idea of eating small, frequent meals, and feel great about it. At this point, I'm not really interested in counting out calories or macro ratios, but rather doing what feels comfortable and seeing how it works out. So far, I am pleased.
I didn't take any measurements at the beginning of Stage 1, but since I'm only a little more than halfway through it, I'm sure these current measurements aren't too different.
Today was a rest day regarding NROL4W, but I did take a 25 minute run outside this afternoon since the weather was nice. For those who are interested, here is what I've eaten over the past two days.
2/4
8:30a - oat bran with rice protein powder, almond milk, and agave nectar
11:30a - PWO shake of almond milk and soy protein powder
1p - baked lima beans with tomatoes, 1/2 yam
5p - rice protein power bar
7:30p - kung pao tofu with peanuts, asian eggplant salad
9:30p - frozen banana with peanut butter
2/5
8:30a - oat bran with 50/50 mix of rice and soy protein powder, almond milk, agave nectar, 3 prunes
12:30p - braised tofu with kale, brussels sprouts, and sundried tomato, pumpkin seeds
4:15p - almond bread (made with almond meal and flaxseed) with hummus
for dinner i'm having a chickpea cutlet with marinara, and kale with white beans, and for a snack later i will probably have a frozen banana with grain-free granola (chopped almonds, pumpkin seeds, macadamia nuts, and raisins baked with cinnamon and vanilla)
Keep in mind, most vegetable and grain based protein sources DO NOT have complete protein profiles.
I remember asking this before, the complete ones are:
soy
buckwheat
quinoa
spirulina
amaranth
Anything else requires a composite. I know from Dos that legumes and grains are a good combo (thus, beans and rice is a complete protein source) and one other I forget.
So, you're doing rice and almonds, that should work.
Do you like rice milk? I'm thinking rice milk and almond butter with your soy protein powder might make a pretty potent combo.
You do seem to have a handle on it for the most part. There was a query earlier in the month from someone who wanted to try the lifestyle, but didn't really research it. You should be able to help a lot.
I know that in order to get complete proteins one would usually have to combine beans and grains, but the beans and grains don't have to be eaten exactly at the same time. It can be spread out throughout the day. I think since I have oats for breakfast pretty much every day, it completes the beans that I usually have later.
I like rice milk and will look into combining it with some soy protein and almond butter. That sounds like a great idea.
As far as actual macro numbers, I haven't really been keeping track, though I know I could only further benefit by doing so. I will have to start doing it, maybe logging the my food into fitday or something like that.
Nice to have you aboard. Remember that trainer should you opt for some personal training sessions. She sounds like she knows her stuff. (Good on her for approaching you to help you out.)
__________________
Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
I definitely plan to keep in touch with her and possibly work with her again in the future. I only got a chance to work out at that gym while I was at home during winter break. When the semester ends in May, I hope to go back there.
And yeah, I really appreciate the fact that she approached me, because I doubt I would have sought out anyone for advice. She really set me on a whole different path that is working out a lot better.
Today was workout B5 in Stage 1. I went for a casual run outside yesterday, which I hadn't done in a while, and I think it took more out of me than I anticipated. Today's workout felt HARD!
Due to the wacky nature of my school's small, over-crowded gym, I usually have to use the cardio machines before doing anything else. So I did 15 minutes of HIIT on the treadmill. I know its a lot better to do cardio after weights, but that isn't really do-able right now.
-Deadlifts - 3 sets of 10 at 65 lbs
-Shoulder presses - 3 sets of 10 at 12 lbs
I can feel myself getting very close to moving up to 15 lbs. I think it will definitely happen in workout 7 when I lower the reps.
-Lat pulldowns - 2 sets of 10 at 50 lbs, 1 set of 10 at 60 lbs.
-Lunges - 3 sets of 10 at 20 lbs
-Swiss ball crunches - 3 sets of 12 with arms extended behind me, holding a 10 lb weight
I was finding the crunches with a weight on my chest still very easy, so I tried this more difficult variation. It was a lot more challenging, it took a LOT to keep my balance!
I feel like I worked really hard today and am definitely looking forward to resting tomorrow. I think, for a little while at least, I'm going to eliminate any extra runs aside from HIIT running in order to save my energy.
Thanks for stopping by in my log! Looks like you're doing really well! I know the problem of overcrowded gyms... Moreover, in mine, they are not used to people, and especially girls, doing "weird" programs
Thanks for stopping by in my log! Looks like you're doing really well! I know the problem of overcrowded gyms... Moreover, in mine, they are not used to people, and especially girls, doing "weird" programs
Yeah, the vast majority of girls at my gym stay either in the cardio section or in a small matted room to do endless amounts of crunches. When I walk over to the real weight area and then start doing step ups on one of the benches, I get some weird looks!
Today was workout A6 from NROL4W. I was sort of afraid I wasn't going to be able to do this workout today, because my back was extremely sore from the previous workout's deadlifts. (I think it is an error in form, something I will be working on.) When I woke up this morning, though, I felt almost completely better, and went ahead with my workout.
-Squats, 3 x 10, @ 75 lbs first set, @ 85 lbs second and third sets
-Pushups, 3 x 10 BW -Bent over rows, 3 x 10 @ 15 lbs
I use the alternative bent over row instead of the seated row because my gym is always super crowded and its hard to hold the row machine while doing pushups, etc..
-Step ups, 3 x 10 @ 15 lbs
-Prone jackknife, 3 x 12
I also did 15 minutes of HIIT. After watching the video that Natalia put up on the NROL4W forum regarding HIIT, I decided to walk my recoveries instead of run them slower. This enabled me to do faster intervals, and I was still plenty tired by the end. I did my recoveries at 4mph and intervals at 8.3 mph on a 1.5 incline.
I feel really good about today's workout. I've been really hungry lately so have been eating a lot without much regard for calories. It is always good, clean food, and I don't feel like its having any adverse effects, so I'm not worried. I'm trying to not get too hung up over counting calories unless I find it becomes absolutely necessary because I feel like it would just make me crazy. Regarding the vegan aspect of my training, here's what I ate yesterday:
8:30 am - oat bran with almond milk and rice protein powder, 3 prunes 12:30pm - tofu sauteed with kale, brussels sprouts, and sundried tomatoes
4pm - frozen banana slices with peanut butter
8pm - greek salad (minus the feta) with hummus, soy cappucino
11pm - homemade protein bar made following cassandra's recipe in NROL4W, subbing soy protein for whey
So far today I've had the same oat bran breakfast, and a PWO shake of almond milk and soy protein. For lunch I plan to have baked lima beans with tomato and some sweet potato. I'll have a rice protein bar for a snack, and tonight I get to eat out, and am going to splurge on some vegetable sushi which I love. At some point after dinner I'll probably have some fruit and peanut butter
Nice work. I love to reward myself with sushi as it's not something I can make at home and for whatever reason it makes me feel good. When doing hard workout like these your appetite will definitely increase so managing your food intake becomes important.
__________________
Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
i make sushi at home sometimes, its pretty easy and since i make it with brown rice, pretty healthy.
as you mentioned that its important that i manage my food intake, does it seem like i am eating enough? today, for instance, i ate what felt like a hearty amount of food, but still felt kind of run down.
i make sushi at home sometimes, its pretty easy and since i make it with brown rice, pretty healthy.
as you mentioned that its important that i manage my food intake, does it seem like i am eating enough? today, for instance, i ate what felt like a hearty amount of food, but still felt kind of run down.
That's something you'll have to figure out over time. AC's workouts do take a lot of out of you, so calorie intake's at a premium. Only thing I can suggest is to try eating near your maintenance (as I believe the book suggests). If you find you gain fat then you need to drop that number a little. If not, then it sounds like you're ok.
__________________
Tom
No "happy hours" makes for a lot of miserable days. - Mahler
Today was workout B6 from Stage 1. I felt pretty energized and am really looking forward to moving onto Stage 2 in a couple of weeks!
Deadlifts: 3 x 10 @ 55 lbs
I backed off the weight a little bit because last week's workout left me in serious amounts of pain, and I wanted to be able to concentrate on my form.
Lat pull-downs: 2 x 10 @ 55 lbs, 1 x 10 @ 52.5 lbs Shoulder presses: 3 x 10 @ 12 lbs
Lunges: 3 x 10 @ 20 lbs Swiss ball crunches: 3 x 12 with feet resting on a weight bench. This was a LOT more challenging than any of the previous swiss ball crunch variations I've done.
Also did 15 minutes of HIIT on the treadmill with 8.3 mph sprints and 4 mph recoveries at 2.0 incline. Good stuff!
The first week I started the program I dropped 3.5 lbs, then .5 lb the week after that. This week, another 1 lb. Not sure if that is good or bad, but I've been eating more than ever. I can't believe I haven't gained weight with all the peanut butter I eat.
Eats for today so far:
8:30 a - oat bran with almond milk and rice protein powder
11:30 a - PWO shake of almond milk and soy protein powder
2 p - kidney beans with spinach, olives, red peppers, and oyster mushrooms along with some peanut butter on a slice of ezekial sprouted grain bread
4:30 p - cassandra's protein bar with soy instead of whey protein
dinner will be a chickpea cutlet with roasted eggplant and tomatoes, and i'll probably have a frozen banana (my favorite) with some peanut butter before bed.
Hi Marygrace! Welcome from a fellow newbie. I'm just in week 4 of the NROLFW program--today I did workout B from Week #5. The switch to the 3 sets of each move is a toughie, eh?
I'm interested to see your menu because while I eat meat and some dairy (not much dairy, it gives me sinus problems so I try to reduce it), I try to eat organic meat so that translates to not eating a lot of meat because organic meat is crazy expensive. I have to admit though, since starting this program I've been focused on the protein so I'm letting those standards slide--so I'll be interested to see how you manage it and maybe will steal a few tricks. I do love browsing good vegetarian/vegan recipes so I'll make sure to share any good ones that come my way. Are you a fan of Mollie Katzen? I have a couple of her cookbooks and find them very inspiring! I know they're vegetarian, not vegan, but she's good with the whole foods.
My mom has a very old copy of the Moosewood Cookbook, but it seems to center pretty heavily on dairy and sometimes eggs, so I don't make much use of it. Of course, I still think Mollie Katzen is a pioneer in vegetarian cooking.
I used to work at Whole Foods Market and I remember the meat, while top quality, being very expensive. If you are looking for some cheaper alternatives that still provide good protein, you should check out tempeh. It is a fermented soy food that has close to 20g of protein per serving, as well as lots of fiber and some healthy fat. I find it is an acquired taste, but if you are interested in cooking with it, The Post Punk Kitchen: Vegetarian cooking & vegan baking with no attitude has some good recipes.
The rice protein is alright. I use the unflavored version because it has a lot less calories, and the taste sort of reminds me of whole wheat flour. Not the worst thing in the world, but it definitely could be better. Taste-wise, I really prefer vanilla or chocolate soy protein, but since embarking on this program and trying to get as much protein as possible, I've been cautious about consuming huge amounts of soy. I usually do the soy in my PWO shakes and use the rice protein for other things like mixing it in with my oatmeal, as a variation on one of Cassandra's recipes in NROL4W.
Workout A7 today, getting closee to be doing Stage 1!
Squats: 2 x 8 @ 85 lbs, 1 x 8 @ 95 lbs
Bent-over Rows: 1 x 8 @ 20 lbs, 2 x 8 @ 15 lbs Pushups: 3 x 8 @ bw
Stepups: 1 x 8 @ 20 lbs, 2 x 8 @ 15 lbs Prone Jackknife: 3 x 15 @ bw
Also did 12 minutes of HIIT at 2.5 incline on the treadmill. Sprints varying between 8-8.3 and recoveries at 4.
I was pretty hungry all day, here's what I ate.
8:15a - oat bran with rice protein and almond milk
11a - PWO shake of soy protein and almond milk
12:45p - chickpeas and edamame with shiitakes and greens, 1/2 yam
4p - unsweetened applesauce with rice protein and mixed nuts, 1 T peanut butter
7p - shake of soy protein and almond milk
8p - eggplant salad and split pea soup
10p - cassandra's homemade protein bar with soy instead of whey
Deadlifts: 3 x 10 @ 55 lbs
I backed off the weight a little bit because last week's workout left me in serious amounts of pain, and I wanted to be able to concentrate on my form.
What kind of pain? Strained back? DOMS in the hams, glutes and quads?
I also tried the protein bars of Cassandra, but they didn't turn out very wel... They fell apart, actually
If you drop weight too quickly, maybe you need to eat even more?
My first batch was a little crumbly as well. The second time I made them, I added a little more water until the mixture came together as kind of a stiff dough and it worked out better. Refrigerating them for a while helps, too.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cynic
What kind of pain? Strained back? DOMS in the hams, glutes and quads?
My lower back felt very strained. It wasn't the kind of soreness that usually shows up the day after a workout, it developed only a couple of hours after lifting.
A couple of days later, I asked a trainer to demonstrate the lift for me and then watch me do it. She said I shouldn't have been going into so much of a squatting position, and that I should sort of be squeezing my glutes on the lift. When I did it that way, I felt no pain in my lower back, but my hamstrings felt pretty sore for a couple of days.
Deadlifts: 1 x 8 @ 55, 1 x 8 @ 65, 1 x 8 @ 75
The lighter weights felt a little easy, but by the last set I felt a lot more confident in my form and will start with this higher weight next time.
Lat Pulldowns: 3 x 8 @ 55 Shoulder Presses: 3 x 8 @ 15
Lunges: 2 x 8 @ 45, 1 x 8 @ 55
I had been using 20 lb dumbbells to do these, and I figured if I went much higher it would get pretty hard to keep my grip in that position, so I switched to using the bar over my shoulders. I like this method a lot better. Is it still as effective as long as the weight is challenging? It felt challenging. Swiss ball crunches: 3 x 8 with feet on weight bench with 5 lb plate on chest
I also did 15 minutes of HIIT on the treadmill, with intervals varying between 8-8.5 mph and at an incline of 2-3.5. I really saw improvements during this workout and am pleased. Also, my weight stayed steady this week, which I think is a good thing.
I came up with a new variation for Cassandra's homemade protein bar recipe. I was originally following the recipe completely, just subbing chocolate soy for chocolate whey. I'm trying to get away from so much soy, though, and today used a combination of flax, peanut butter, brown rice protein, applesauce, cinnamon, and vanilla. It tastes pretty good, and has 30 grams of protein per bar (compared to the original recipe's 20) for only 40 more calories. I am really happy with the results and plan to make these often instead of relying on more processed soy protein bars.
Great workout! Nice that you saw improvements. That feels good, doesn't it?
That new variation on the protein bars sounds great--I'll have to try it. I'm going to pick up the rice protein powder soon. Only problem is that I'm finding all these supplements very pricey...and I'm really vaccuming through my huge tub of prot. powder.
I'm so glad I discovered your log! I love that you're posting your meals as I am trying to transition to a more plant based diet but it's sometimes difficult for me to come up with meals containing protein sources other that soy. Your meals look great and are giving me some ideas!
Question: what brand of rice protein powder do you use? Is it sweetened? I use Nutibiotic's chocolate flavored rice protein unsweetened. It's OK but I have to mix it with pea protein powder because it's a bit gritty on its own. I thought about making Cassandra's bars with rice and pea protein powders. I would likely have to add some sweetener (probably stevia) to the mix since the powders aren't sweetened. Any thoughts on this? Do you sweeten your bars? If so, what do you use?
Looking forward to visiting you regularly!
Alexandra
Great workout! Nice that you saw improvements. That feels good, doesn't it?
That new variation on the protein bars sounds great--I'll have to try it. I'm going to pick up the rice protein powder soon. Only problem is that I'm finding all these supplements very pricey...and I'm really vaccuming through my huge tub of prot. powder.
How's your back doing? Hamstrings still sore?
The rice protein is a little expensive, but for me definitely worth it. And yeah, its easy to go through it fast!
My back is all better, and the hamstrings are doing pretty well too, thanks =D
Quote:
Question: what brand of rice protein powder do you use? Is it sweetened? I use Nutibiotic's chocolate flavored rice protein unsweetened. It's OK but I have to mix it with pea protein powder because it's a bit gritty on its own. I thought about making Cassandra's bars with rice and pea protein powders. I would likely have to add some sweetener (probably stevia) to the mix since the powders aren't sweetened. Any thoughts on this? Do you sweeten your bars? If so, what do you use?
Hi Alexandra, thanks for coming to my log! I also use Nutribiotic brand, but the unsweetened kind. I do agree that the texture is a little gritty, but have just decided to deal with it, at least for now, because I really don't like pea protein. If I could find an unsweetened version of pea I might go for it, but I found the flavoring in the vanilla to be very overpowering.
I actually made two versions of the bars yesterday. The first was with applesauce, and since the applesauce already had some sugar in it, I found I didn't need to add anything else. The second batch I made with pureed pumpkin, and added a tablespoon of agave nectar to it. I've never used stevia before, though its something I'm interested in trying out at some point. With my ingredients, the bars aren't too sweet, but I don't mind that. For someone who likes things a little sweeter, I could see only the applesauce or one tbs of agave not being enough.
Getting Strong Veg Style
I'm just in week 4 of the NROLFW program--today I did workout B from Week #5. The switch to the 3 sets of each move is a toughie, eh?
Linear Mode
