Vegan Muscle Building Again

It’s been a while since I blogged but I’ve been busy. I’m back to my normal workout schedule. Ever since resuming the gym in March, I have been focusing on regaining the muscle I feel I lost by not going to the gym

As I stated in my book, I know I will never be a competitive bodybuilder. I’m built more like a runner, and I do love doing cardio. But muscle is important, especially to keep my chest and arms tight after my weight loss. Lifting weights also keeps my bones strong.

I’m still wearing my vegan shirts at the gym! I still have to advertise that I’m a vegan bodybuilder. I want my peers to realize that I’m not the typical whey drinking bodybuilder, doing anything they can to gain muscle without giving a thought to their health!

So how's it going? I’m doing 5 days a week of strength training. I divide up the exercises to certain muscle groups per day. I focused on chest and arm exercises today. I also did the stair stepper for half an hour. If you ever want to find an exercise to make you sweat... the stair stepper is it! I’ve used the exercise bike and elliptical but never get as sweaty as using the stair stepper. I’m slowly going back to running.

My knee injury from a few months ago is doing great! I’m taking my time easing into it as going back to fast might trigger the swelling again. The physical therapist suggested to ease back into it slowly and Im listening. That’s another reason why my focus is on muscle.

After my workout, I still finish with a smoothie consisting of banana, kale, celery, cucumber, turmeric, cacao nibs, etc. I also have a salad with greens, pepper, fennel, cucumber, sweet potato and avocado, topped with sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds, with balsamic vinegar. IT refuels me after my intense workout.

The only drawback to working out in the gym is we have to wear masks. I actually have gotten used to it, although I can’t wait for a day when the masks won’t be required there. It’s great to be able to workout at the gym though. When I took time off in the fall to avoid getting sick, it was tough. I did have weights at home but it wasn’t the same. It’s great to workout again with my peers.