Healthy Living in Connecticut Blog

I have made a lot of improvements this past week in my muscle building initiative. I decided to wear this new shirt I got in support of Rip Esselstyn, a former fire fighter turned author. Rip is the author of the Engine 2 Diet. He was also responsible for turning his fellow firefighters into healthy "plant strong" eaters to help save a colleague, who had very high cholesterol. His term "Plant Strong" really says it all, describes my goal perfectly.

So this week, I increased weight for both my chest and arms. I only go up small increments but to me, it's a big improvement. I'm no where near my goal yet, but eventually I would like to bench press my body weight... got a long way toward that goal!

I've been so much focused on weight lifting I haven't been thinking about my body fat percentage. I really haven't had it checked for a while but I know body fat is important in order to see 6 pack abs. Judging from all the advice I've seen online regarding ab definition, the body fat needs to be in the single digits. The last time I wrote about it, I believe my abs were at 10.38 percent.

I let the body fat talk subside as I wanted to focus on the strength. In order to build muscle, I needed to put on some weight. Once I start seeing more results with the muscle, I'm sure my focus will then go to the body fat percentage again.

I've heard many people say "what foods can you eat as a vegan", implying that the foods for those who eat plant based are limiting. Nothing could be further from the truth.

I eat a large variety of foods and during the past few months I have been trying new things. I think it's important to eat a variety of foods to get all the nutrients you can from the different foods. Plant based eaters can thrive if they aren't eating just one or two different foods each day.

I began the "Shred It!" challenge with a lot of confusion. I did vegan challenges before where I would give up animal products for weeks at a time. I never imagined I would go this long without any turkey or eggs and feel good in the process. All I have to say is that the challenge works!

I may not have perfect muscle definition yet, but I'm closer than I ever was. Yes, 13 weeks might be enough for some people, but for me it will take a while longer. However, I can feel the muscle growth, especially in my arms and chest. A lot of the loose skin I had there is now covered with muscle. There is still some loose skin left on the arms, but I know I'm on the right track.

I'm almost done with the Shred It! workout journal, just a few more workouts. As this challenge winds down, I've come to realize that everyone is a work in progress. It's not like once I finish the challenge, that goals will have been reached.

I'm still evolving and learning a lot about muscle building along the way. This challenge has been a real eye opener though. When I think of how much money I wasted on protein powders before this, it's so unnecessary! They were plant based protein powders so they were less damaging to the body than whey protein, but still, I could have achieved netter results over the past few years just eating whole plant based foods. But that's why challenges are so important, you hopefully learn how to better yourself.