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By Robert Cheeke

It might not be common knowledge. But many vegan and vegetarian athletes consume adequate, quality protein on a plant-based diet and thrive with high levels of health and fitness.

Building muscle on a vegan diet should not be considered a challenge, an oxymoron or an improbable task deemed for failure.  Like anything else in nutrition, getting enough protein in your diet comes down to the basics, and common sense.  Eat frequently, eat quality whole foods and consume an adequate quantity to elicit the kind of muscle gains you’re looking to experience.

If your goal is to build muscle, it must be understood how muscle grows in the first place.  You can’t expect to pack on muscle without understanding how the process works.

For starters, you have a basic minimum caloric need just to maintain your weight, muscle and health.  This is determined based on your age, size, weight and gender, and primarily based around how many calories you’re expending (burning) each day.

You burn calories in everything you do — from sleeping to walking to exercising. And the more intense the activity, the more calories you burn.

Due to the nature of physical activity, athletes burn far more calories than non-athletes. So they require more calories through the consumption of food than their non-athlete counterparts.

We know we need to eat well and eat often. But what we eat — and what we choose not to eat — are also important factors.  It’s pretty common for an athlete to require 0.8 – 1.2 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight to maintain muscle.

Building muscle, which is our specific topic, often requires the consumption of 1.2 – 2.0 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight.  It may seem like a lot. But thousands of bodybuilders and athletes — who dedicate their personal or professional lives to building muscle — have found that this system is effective.  It’s just the way the body works.  It is a system which supports any sports interest from tennis to running to lifting weights.  We break the body down through exercise and need to build it back up through sound and adequate nutrition.

You’re probably not used to consuming this volume of food. But it’s also one of the main reasons why “vegetarians” as a group get the reputation for being underweight. It’s not a baseless stereotype and it’s something that I work hard to eradicate through my Vegan Bodybuilding lifestyle.

Of course, it’s not just consuming a lot of food that is important. It’s also an exercise program that supports the food intake.

Muscle grows as a result of the micro-tears that happen within a muscle following resistance training, usually weight training.  Lifting weights or putting your body under physical stress in other ways (such as manual labor or bodyweight exercises) causes the muscle fibers to tear.

The food you eat, supplements you take, and ensuing rest you get all help in the recovery process that builds you back up bigger and stronger.  Without exercise, you’re likely to gain fat eating a higher than usual calorie diet. That’s because the caloric consumption will greatly outweigh the caloric expenditure.

When put together appropriately, they work harmoniously and create outstanding results of proper nourishment, fat-burning and muscle building.  You can “have your cake” and burn it off too.

Consuming a gram to two grams of protein per pound of bodyweight isn’t an easy task. If it were, we’d all be walking around as muscle-bound citizens mimicking cartoon super heroes.  Of course that image isn’t the goal of many, but recovering properly from any type of exercise is our primary goal.

It usually requires the consumption of six to eight meals a day with the right amount of protein, carbohydrates and fats throughout the day.

Regardless of your sports interest, consuming smaller meals throughout the day keeps you constantly nourished and fueled for a run, a tennis match, cycling, swimming or anything else, providing important nutrition to start the day, throughout the day and pre and post-exercise.

The percentage breakdown for an active person may look like this:

• 50% of calories from carbohydrates
• 30% coming from protein
• 20% coming from fats.

The exact percentages may change daily based on diet. They also vary per individual based on factors such as your food preference, your rate of metabolism (your body’s ability to burn fat) and your specific athletic goals.

Though it’s not an easy task to consume enough food, it’s also not extremely challenging either, it just takes some dedication, focus, planning and preparation.  I personally enjoy eating frequently throughout the day.  My meals tend to be a bit smaller and I get to incorporate a lot of variety, flavors, themes, etc. because I am eating more frequently than just three or four meals a day.

In general fruits are the easiest to digest and are often best eaten alone rather than combined with other foods such as proteins.  Consumed at the same kind could slow down digestion in many people so some people choose to eat fruit by itself and consume other carbohydrates with proteins in other meals throughout the day.

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Robert Cheeke is a competitive bodybuilder and the 2005 and 2009 INBA Northwestern USA Natural Bodybuilding Champion. He is also President and founder of Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness, a company dedicated to supporting natural vegan bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts. Check out his website at www.veganbodybuilding.com.

What is 7 Minute Muscle?

The 7 Minute Muscle by Jon Benson is a Muscle building System that demands that you workout in a gym, but only for 7 minutes at a time (and he guarantees GREAT results).

If you’re really ambitious or if you’re a bodybuilder, you only have to workout for 14-21 minutes.

Sounds too good to be true, right? That’s what I thought as well.

But I am a self-employed guy who frankly don’t have much time at all, so when I head about this claim, I was all ears! So I bought the program just a few days ago and thought I’d share my findings with you guys, too. (I reckon if it was a load of crap I could just refund my money anyway)

So who is it for?

If you are currently spending 5 to 15 hours a week in the gym (and that doesn’t count cardio, meal planning, food prep, etc.) then you may want to read this review word for word.

7 Minute Muscle is for those who are interested in saving time and saving money on wasted supplements.

If you’re a woman, this program is also suitable  for you. The 7 Minute Muscle System is perfect for getting the look you really want. Slightly larger muscles and less bodyfat THAT is “toned!” In fact, there are three girls in the videos. One is a doctor and a mom with three kids.

Also for LADIES, there’s a bonus audio that shows you how to get a great butt and shapely legs without needing a gym. All you need is a ball, bench, and possibly some light dumbbells. My girlfriend is actually excited about this program because her current program requires her to workout for at least 60 minutes per day – 6 to 7 times a week! (insane, right?)

7 Minute Muscle is for…

• The busy executive who can only squeeze in a few minutes a day to exercise (like me)
• The frantic mom who still wants to keep in top shape even with the job and kids.
• The hard-core bodybuilders and muscleheads who are always looking for that edge
• Beginners who don’t want to waste time
• The frustrated “no-gainers”
• The athlete who need to train but also need to focus their energies on training for their sport
• The super-busy college student

Basically anyone who wants to save time—male or female, young or old, beginner or advanced lifters.

Who is the Product NOT for?

You’d think 7 minutes for a workout sound too easy. Well actually it’s freakin’ torture.

So it’s not for wimps, whiners, or quitters.

It’s also not for those who thinks they “Know a lot” about muscle building already and aren’t willing to be open-minded to principles that goes against what they know. I obviously read a lot about these kinds of stuff so this was particularly difficult for me to do.

Who is Jon Benson?

It all started when Jon Benson realized that he was practically living in the gym and didn’t have much time for anything else. He felt that he actually did NOT have much of a life (I’m sure you can relate, right?! LOL) and he wanted it back.

He discovered that much of the advice from mainstream fitness publications were written by “genetic freaks” (his words, not mine) supplement-mongers and steroid-abusers.

So he tried to find out what it USED TO BE like – back when there were no supplements and no steroids. What did the best muscle builders do?

He found out that they were getting results in just minutes a day – NOT hours.

From then on, answering the question, “How can I get the most results in the least amount of time?” became Jon’s obsession. And it lasted for 3 years, after which he was able to produce 7 Minute Muscle.

AM I Really Just Supposed to Work out for 7 F*$@ing Minutes?

My thoughts exactly. And the answer is Yes.

The exercise protocol is timed at exactly 7 minutes for Level 1 trainees. Jon’s routine is setup to do extremely high-intensity exercises in short bursts.

There are protocols for high-level intermediate trainees. If you are at this level, you can try the 14-minute protocol.

But if you’re truly hardcore and you need to train longer (elite-level bodybuilders, or people who just like the gym a hell of a lot), there’s a 14-minute and 21-minute protocol you can do. It sounds easy, but apparently not even Jon Benson does this protocol.

Be aware that these protocols don’t involve Cardio. But the over-all routine given includes a TOTAL fat-burning routine for ….wait for it…. a whopping 9 minutes extra 2-3 days per week.

What makes this product Different from other similar products out there?

7 Minute-Muscle is practically going AGAINST what mainstream bodybuilding programs teaches:

Pros
The ebook is actually short (under 100 pages) so I like it a lot

Saves time. It’s tһе quickest workout I’ve used, but it’s also tough (hell yeah it’s challenging enough).

Saves money that you drain out for sending hours in gym and for dietary items

Helps you get rid of 6 meals a day program

Very concentrated workouts (bу body раrt)

Easy-tο-follow videos explaining each exercise

Provides a free email or electronic mail course.

Cons

You really need to get into a GYM to do this program. So if you don’t want to commit to a gym membership or you have no access to a gym, you can still do this program but you won’t get the optimal results.

The program goes against almost everything you have been taught so far about muscle building that you will really need A LOT of open-mindedness to get through to this one and really apply it. In fact it asks you to FORGET everything you know so far and start over with a clean slate of a mind and then just DO what the program says.

And oh yeah, be ready to do some “Woo Woo” stuff. LOL

There’s a section in the book that teaches you about the science of “Psychophysiology”, or how the mind and body affect one another to increase performance. So Mind-over-muscle stuff.

You’ll learn about Jon’s “3-Flow Technique” and how it alone will increase your training results by over 200%. You’ll discover how a particular brain wave that you produce every day naturally can be stimulated without anything but your thoughts (specifically, where you choose to put your attention) that will increase your results even more.

Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Yeah it’s for weirdos like me.

What’s included the Package again?

On top of the 100-page e-book, there are 7 Videos:

• Introduction to 7 Minute Muscle
• Chest
• Back
• Shoulders
• Legs
• Arms
• Butt & Legs (Home Workout video)

Is it really good value for money?

I think it is. The main thing about the offer that attracted me is that you can potentially get a fantastic body exercising just under an hour per week. I currently spend 6 hours every week in the gym. That’s a difference of 5 hours, and even though I absolutely LOVE bodybuilding, I have a business to run as well so when I heard about this benefit I just grabbed the program right away.

If you work out for 5 hours a week, you would gain 4 hours every week = over 1 year of extra life if you are 30 – more if you’re younger.

So the amount of time which 7 Minute Muscle saves you is massive. We’re talking years! It can give you hours of free time each week. You’ll easily make up for the $77 $44 price tag. Also, as I said before, if you’re not so sure it, you have 60 days to make up your mind.

Most of the quality muscle building program available online today are now more expensive than 7 Minute Muscle, so you’ll be paying less for such an exceptional program.

Conclusion

Overall, if you’re looking to spend less time at the gym and still get results, this is a program worth having in your arsenal.

If you apply yourself using 7 Minute Muscle for 60 days and for ANY reason do not find it the most effective, time-saving, muscle-building workout you’ve ever done, Jon will gladly refund your money. No questions.

I recommend you check it out now. 7 Minute Muscle has just been picked up by a Fitness Publishing House. That means that 7 Minute Muscle will be licensed to the publisher, and they will likely keep it at the $77 price (if not more).

So Jon wants to blow it out and give you massive discount before the Fitness Publishing House takes over. The program used to sell for $77 but now he’s offering it at $44.

Grab your copy of the 7 Minute Muscle here.

Let me tell you what he can do, and very well, at that. Arnold can write a book that’s around 800 pages long, full of information and tips on modern bodybuilding and weight training. Dubbed as “the bible of bodybuilding,” Arnold’s latest release even covers other aspects such as history, diet and nutrition, sports psychology, the treatment and prevention of injuries, competing, and training principles and routines, each demonstrated with wide-ranging photographs of some of the stars of the bodybuilding world these days.

To let you in a bit more on all the information this guide will be providing you when you read it, here is a more in-depth summary of its subsections or Books:

Book 1
This is the section where Arnold takes you back in the history of bodybuilding. This 90-page part prepares you for what’s to come ahead as you read further, showing pictures of past and current bodybuilders.

Book 2
Arnold then becomes thoughtful of the readers who may just be starting to get into bodybuilding, discussing the basic training principles, such as what a rep and a set mean, and what various equipment are used. The different body types are also included in this book, which serve as a guide on what to strive for in bodybuilding that is achievable with the body type that you have.

Book 3
This book is centered in teaching various exercises and techniques, from the basic routines, to the intensity boosting ones such as super-setting, forced reps and slow negatives. Arnold explains step-by-step his training guide by tackling each body part, from stretching the muscles to training the weak points. The exercise guide, equipped with pictures and detailed instructions, is very useful for the beginners and experienced trainers alike. I was able to pick up a number of routines that I would like to incorporate in my regular workout.

Book 4
Arnold then moves on to the competition part of bodybuilding. From the various poses as demonstrated in the generous number of pictures in the section, to the tanning, hairstyles and other aspects that entail competing, this section is very useful for those who really aspire to join hardcore bodybuilding contests. And who to get tips on this but from 7-time Mr. Olympia himself, right? It definitely emphasizes on the advice that not all poses work for all bodybuilders so this section will help you figure out which poses are suited for your assets.

Book 5
The last part of The New Encyclopedia is also equally important because in here the different diets, supplements, vitamins and minerals, and the various injuries you can acquire in bodybuilding and how to treat them are all discussed thoroughly in this section.

Why I would recommend this book

All in all, this new book is an ideal guide and reference for bodybuilders no matter what level you’re in. It covers almost everything if not all aspects of bodybuilding, from the diet, to competing, to training techniques. The photographs from the nice look-back in the history of the sport are also a great highlight of the book. In addition, you get direct motivation and words of encouragement from Mr. Schwarzenegger himself. I personally learned a few more ideas on certain phases of training after reading the whole thing, which I didn’t really give special attention to before, such as Arnold’s emphasis on improving on your weak points in your workout, as well as the general idea that not one routine applies to all is also emphasized in the piece.

Why I wouldn’t recommend this book

What I didn’t like very much about this book would be Arnold’s application of some of his “old school” routines, principles and supplementation. And I don’t mean to disrespect Arnold, but his suggestion to work out 2-3 times a day, six times a week is a little extreme and obsolete. For the exceptionally skilled trainers, who have been in the industry for so many years, this book may not be much of an attraction simply because it just republished many of the facts about bodybuilding that they already know.

My verdict

In general, I still recommend this book for all bodybuilders to read, especially those in the beginner and intermediate levels. I kept reinstating all throughout this review that it’s the Arnold Schwarzenegger who penned this book, and that will be my perfect reason for you to make the $25 purchase. Anyway, it is, after all, an encyclopedia, and it passes with flying colors the must-read criterion, the fact that it provides its target readers the much needed information on bodybuilding.

Get the book here:

The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding [NEW ENCY OF MODERN BODYBUILDIN]

If you’re more interested in Multimedia programs that you can download right away, see my reviews of various Muscle Building Programs available online here.

P.S. I had a little fun competition on Twitter the other day (follow me by clicking here) where I asked if anyone could guess the Arnie flick I had just watched before going to the gym. Truly, I was astounded that only one person managed to guess the correct flick – it was of course Pumping Iron! So as a show of gratitude for playing I’ve promised to mention the winner here:

Bryn Moore aka @CalmTheDragon, runs an Anger Management training in North Wales + the North West of England UK. His website is http://angermanagewales.co.uk.

Thanks Bryn!

I think it is fairly common for many hardgainers to fall into the trap of unhealthy eating. Because they are “eating to gain weight”, they eat anything and everything, without any discrimination as to what’s in the food or what potential effects they could have on their health. In their minds, as long as it’s food, it has the potential to make them gain weight so they will eat it – lots and lots of it.

And just because they struggle to put on weight, they equate this to being immune to health risks.  This is insane. Of what use is looking good if inside you are as healthy as a 9-stone old man?

So in this post I’d like to share some of the harmful ingredients commonly found in packaged foods, because these foods are often staples of normal weight gain diets of skinny people who don’t know any better.

Most packaged grocery foods contain one or more harmful chemicals that can undermine your health. We are going to look at four ingredients here: trans fats, artificial colorings, artificial flavorings and MSG.

Trans Fats

If you eat cereals for breakfast like most people in the West, why don’t you go and take your cereal box out now. If you look at the back of the box, you’re going to find the list of ingredients. Read each ingredient out loud and if there is anything there that you cannot pronounce, chances are is that it’s not good for you.

So let’s find trans fats here. If you look at the top of the bag where it says Nutrition Facts: you’ll see ‘Trans fats’ on the left column. What number is on its right? Does it say zero?

Here’s where it gets interesting.

If it says ‘zero’, it doesn’t really mean there is no trans fat in this product. The Food and Drug Admin (FDA) allows certain amount of trans fat in the food without requiring food manufacturers to mention it in the food label!

But don’t worry, there’s one way to still spot it. Just go down and look at the “Ingredients” and look for the word: “Hydrogenated oils” or “partially hydrogenated oils” – which actually are trans fats!

Sneaky, huh?

If you don’t know it yet, trans fat is the worst kind of fat – much worse than saturated fat. It really increases the risk of coronary heart disease.

Artificial Flavorings

So now let’s look at artificial and natural flavorings. Most of the processed foods that you buy today come with artificial and natural flavorings. Basically, if you are buying something in a packet or a box, it is most likely highly processed food (what I call fake food).

Next time you go to the supermarket, go down the Cereal aisle and look for fruity cereals. You know – the ones that claim to have “fruits” in them? Pick one up and look at the ingredients list. You might see it says, “blueberry, cherry, orange, lemon” (or whatever) and some other artificial flavorings or “natural flavorings”.

Artificial flavorings are simply a mixture of chemicals that mimics the flavor of natural, real food. And they have taste and smell components designed to make processed food taste and smell like real food.

Interestingly again, the FDA does not require food manufacturers to disclose the ingredients of artificial flavors itself. And natural flavor does not really mean healthier or better flavors. Natural flavors and artificial flavors are manufactured at the same chemical plants now.

Artificial Colorings

Another element to watch out for are artificial colorings. Again, if you look at cereal labels you will often find it on the ingredient list – yellow 6, red 40, yellow 5, etc. Those are all artificial colorings which are approved by the FDA and they are derived from petroleum, acetone and coal tars.

Many of these additives were banned by the food standard agency in Europe after many parents complained that their children suffered from mood swings after consuming bright and colorful sweets, cakes and drinks. The researchers of Southampton University had warned that were at least 7 additives as harmful as lead in petrol which was banned after it proved to lower children’s IQ by 5 points.

The research in magazine called Lance found evidence that artificial additives worsen the behavior of normal children as well as those diagnosed with ADHD. Thankfully, many colorings are already banned in US even after being used for many years because they proved to be carcinogenic.

MSG

MSG, or monosodium glutamate is usually found in the “Ingredients” section. Most of the processed food has MSG, commonly found usually in canned foods, Chinese food, soups and processed meats and as a processed product.

I can go on and on about the harmful effects on this one, but the FDA has a different opinion about it. After having scientific data about safety of glutamate, it came to the conclusion in 1995 that MSG is safe for human consumption. But the FDA acknowledged that some people have short term reaction to MSG and even has a name: MSG Symptom Complex and it includes:

• headache
• flushings
• redding
• sense of facial pressure or tightness
• numbness or burning in or around the mouth
• rapid fluttering heart beat (heart palpitations)
• chest pain
• shortness of breath
• nausea
• lack of energy / fatigue

Conclusion

Don’t adopt a weight gain diet solely for the purpose of gaining weight per se, with no regard to the potential health risks you are placing yourself in. Educate yourself, read about sound nutrition principles, be aware of harmful ingredients lurking in the foods you buy, and start eating real, unadulterated foods!

Specifically speaking, stress and ageing are co-related and by the following reasoning we can see how stress affects your muscle building efforts.

As one grows older, the metabolism of the body slows down and fat starts to accumulate around the stomach. Along with this natural ageing process, a sedentary lifestyle, bad eating habits and stress contribute to that belly fat. This fat, also called visceral fat is the most dangerous fat in the body. Since this fat is located behind the abdominal wall, it has the fastest access to the heart and other important organs of the body.

This abdominal fat is not content with simply resting on the stomach. It is very active, releasing substances into the organs which are very harmful to the body. Free fatty acids are released into the systems which impair the functioning of the body. Belly fat is bad for everyone but, it can have dire consequences especially for men. The amount of abdominal fat one carries is a sure indicator of heart disease risk.

Although behavioral response to stress is the main cause of weight gain, there are physiological reasons also. Under stress, the body lets go of a hormone called cortisol.

This hormone is also known as the ‘fight or flight’ hormone because of its ability in increasing blood pressure and blood sugar to help us run away from or fight a stressful situation. When anyone faces an adverse situation, the immediate response is to overcome it and this is propelled by cortisol. These responses use a lot of energy, so cortisol simultaneously tells other important physical functions to either slow down or shut down. These functions maybe digestion, physical growth, reproduction, immunity and they combine to put fat on the stomach.

Cortisol is a hormone naturally produced by the adrenal glands and is a major age-accelerating hormone. It also interferes with learning and memory.

It doesn’t stop there.

In the body, the release of Cortisol is a signal to increase appetite and store fat. This means that whenever we are stressed out, the hormone in our brain tells us that we are hungry while simultaneously instructing our fat cells to store as much fat as they can. Unfortunately, most of this fat is stored in the midsection.

In small amounts cortisol is essential for the body to control carbohydrate metabolism. But, too much of it spells doom for the body because it tends to cause a build-up of abdominal fat and this is how stress thwarts your 6 pack quest and muscle building efforts.

People who experience daily stress like work deadlines, family demands, traffic, less sleep, very strict dieting are more prone to falling prey to an increased waist line. If workplaces opportunities are increasing, stresses are also increasing side by side. When people get so consumed with their work that they start ignoring their emotional needs, then the stress hormone kicks in and conspiring with other factors contributes to weight gain in the abdomen. In these various ways we see how stress affects belly fat.

When we are feeling low and stressed out, our appetite increases due to the kick-start of the stress hormone which causes us to invariably reach for food without realizing whether what we are eating is right for us or not. If this happens often enough, gradually fat deposits start building up on the stomach and this is also how stress affects belly fat.

So how do you combat this?

Don’t worry, there’s some good news.

To combat cortisol, you just need to learn to produce 2 other hormones : DHEA and Melatonin.

DHEA is also produced by your adrenal glands. DHEA is a precursor, or source ingredient, to virtually every hormone your body needs. DHEA level is a key determinant of physiological age and resistance to disease. When levels are low, you’re more susceptible to aging and disease; when they’re high, the body is at its peak—vibrant, healthy, and able to combat disease effectively.

DHEA acts as a buffer against cortisol, which is why as you get older and make less DHEA you are more susceptible to stress and disease.

A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine (December 11, 1986) found that a 100 microgram per deciliter increase in DHEA blood levels corresponded with a 48% reduction in mortality due to cardiovascular disease—and a 36% reduction in mortality for any reason! So DHEA is very important.

Melatonin is a hormone that helps to create restful sleep. We make less of it as we age, and since during sleep many important rejuvenating substances are created in the brain, the inability to sleep soundly can dramatically affect the quality of your recovery period and therefore your muscle building ability. (Not to mention decreasing the quality of your life and greatly accelerating your ageing process!).

So how do you produce more DHEA and Melatonin?

By learning to relax!

Great Ways to Relax and Deal with Stress

Stress can be controlled by doing things that make you happy, relaxed or any activity you find fun to do. Watching silly but funny things on the internet might also work for you.

You can also try meditation, yoga, art…whatever takes your fancy. Of course you need to couple these with good dietary habits, regular exercise, adopting a more positive, relaxed attitude, and having a more holistic (or dare I say Spiritual) approach to life. Knowing how to control your emotions and thoughts by having a calm and positive outlook will enable you to deal with any challenging situation without necessarily losing your cool.

If you adopt these along with sensible eating habits and regular exercise, there is no reason why the benefits of a fit stomach cannot be enjoyed!

You can get more information on how to achieve a set of flat abs by signing up to the Muscle4Hardgainers newsletter. Just go at the right hand top section of this page and enter which email address you want us to send it to.

Unlike what most think, the bioavailability of protein is not just a function of the essential amino acids that are present and how they relate to the body’s requirements. It’s also dictated by the structure of the protein. Some proteins are more amenable to being broken down (digested) than others. To better understand this point, let’s discuss briefly how proteins are assembled from amino acids and the various shapes those proteins take.

There are some 20 different amino acids which are commonly identified. Each and every protein is made from these 20 amino acids put together in varying order and in varying amounts and combinations, thus providing the possibility of almost limitless combinations. That said, most proteins are large molecules that may contain several hundred to many thousand amino acids arranged in branches and chains.

The assembly of amino acids into proteins is actually determined and directed by information encoded in your genes. Each protein has its own unique amino acid sequence as specified by the gene encoding that particular protein. Protein synthesis takes place inside cellular cytoplasm and can actually reach a rate as high as the joining of up to 20 amino acids per second in a given cell. In fact, the assembly of amino acids is responsible for more than just the creation of protein. It is also responsible for the creation of peptides and polypeptides, which can be thought of as “short” or “incomplete” proteins.

The size of a synthesized protein can be measured by the number of amino acids it contains and by its total molecular mass. Some proteins may contain just a few hundred amino acids strung together, but the largest can contain close to 30,000 amino acids all chained together.

So how does a protein composed of a chain of 27,000 amino acids achieve stability? And the answer is through structure. These long chains fold in on themselves to form stable structures.

Most proteins fold into unique 3-dimensional structures. The shape into which a protein naturally folds is known as its native state — although proteins may shift between several related structures during the course of performing their biological functions.

For our purposes, there’s one primary reason for being aware of protein structure. Protein structure plays a major role in determining how readily it can be broken down into its constituent amino acids during the digestive process. In other words, it plays a major role in determining the bioavailability of the protein and its propensity to stimulate allergic responses.

How what you eat with protein affects your health

When found in nature, protein never comes by itself. Whether from animal or vegetable sources, protein comes in the presence of various fats and carbohydrates. In most cases, their presence is a non issue. But in a small number of cases, these “extras” play a major factor in determining the digestibility of the protein.

For example, some accompanying nutrients can inhibit proteolytic enzymes that would normally break down the protein, or can suppress the release of stomach acid necessary for the digestion of the protein, or simply cover the protein so that enzymes and stomach acid cannot reach it.

Determining protein bioavailability to optimize nutrition

Protein bioavailability is the sum total of the three factors we mentioned above:

1. The mix of amino acids in the protein — or in the combination of proteins eaten during the day. Remember, the shortage of an essential amino acid provides a limiting factor on how much of the overall protein can be utilized by the body.
2. The structure and size of the protein molecule. The larger and more tightly folded the molecule, the less able the body is to break it down. Large proteins that frequently undergo incomplete digestion include those found in wheat, corn, dairy, and soy. It is not coincidental that these foods are identified by the FDA as being highly allergenic. (We will discuss protein allergies more in our next newsletter.)
3. The other foods (or components in the protein source itself) that inhibit the breakdown of the protein.

Protein utilization can be measured

There are several tests for measuring protein utilization, or bioavailability, although they’re a bit like the story of the blind men describing an elephant — each one gives an incomplete picture. The blind man who feels the trunk says an elephant is like a snake. The one who feels its legs says an elephant is like a tree. The one who feels the ears says an elephant is like a giant fan. And the one who feels its body says an elephant is like a massive wall. Each one provides useful information; but each one also provides an incomplete picture.

The Kjeldahl method is the standard for measuring the total protein concentration in food. It provides the number that you normally see on nutrition labels on the side of food packages. Unfortunately, it tells you nothing about how much of that protein actually gets used by the body — which in some cases can be very little.

Biological value (BV) measures how much of the protein that you eat gets incorporated into your body tissue. It does so by measuring how much of the nitrogen in the protein you eat is absorbed by the body and then how much is excreted. The assumption is that the difference is what got incorporated into your body protein. Its weakness is that BV varies greatly depending on how food is prepared and according to what other foods were eaten in the recent diet that can alter nitrogen measurements. Although the following three methods all provide better measures of protein utilization, BV is still commonly used by nutritionists out of force of habit.

Net protein utilization (NPU) is the ratio of amino acids converted to proteins to the ratio of amino acids supplied in the protein source. Experimentally, this value is calculated by determining the amount of dietary protein you are consuming and then measuring how much nitrogen is excreted. It is significantly affected by the limiting amino acids (as discussed earlier) in the particular food.

Protein Efficiency Ratio (PER) is based on the weight gain of a test subject divided by its intake of a particular food protein during the test period. Theoretically, it is a biological assay of the quality of a particular protein, measured as the gain in weight of an animal per gram of a particular protein eaten. At one time, this was the industry standard, but unfortunately PER is based upon the amino acid requirements of growing rats, which differ noticeably from that of humans.

Protein digestibility corrected amino acid score (PDCAAS) evaluates protein quality based on the amino acid requirements of humans. This is now the preferred standard. Nevertheless, it too has holes. PDCAAS takes no account of where proteins have been digested and cannot account for proteins that are absorbed by bacteria in the digestive tract.

PDCAAS is calculated solely on the basis of single protein consumption and therefore once again does not calculate the changes in protein utilization resulting from the intake of complementary protein sources.

Improving protein utilization for optimum health

Now let’s take what we’ve covered so far and see if we can extract some benefit from it that will help us improve our ability to improve the utilization of the protein we eat.

As we’ve discussed, protein utilization is defined, to a large degree, by the limiting protein in the diet. Even complete proteins (those containing all of the essential amino acids) can still be out of balance so as to limit maximum utilization. Although dairy and egg tend to be well balanced and largely avoid this problem, they present other allergenic issues such as gas, bloating, and cramping. Meat, chicken, and fish, on the other hand, can benefit from the consumption of other proteins that help balance them out. And soy, most definitely.

Bottom line, the key to high protein utilization is to be cautious of the type of protein you are ingesting. To learn about the different types of proteins and what is the most beneficial for overall health, check out my blog about Protein Types.

It was 12 hours straight of hiking. For someone who has never done any hiking before, that was a tough challenge. But I was able to do it, thanks to my gorgeous girlfriend, who lovingly prepared food enough to feed a whole army!

One of the stuff she did for me was these awesomely light but lush flapjacks. It wasn’t sweet compared to normal flapjacks you can buy from stores, but it was so wholesome and healthy. Best of all, it fuelled me and kept me going. They were so delicious, too!

Flapjacks are ideal for:

• breakfast on the go
• pre workout food
• post workout food
• emergency snacks (keep in your car/work drawer)

It’s also a perfect food to help you gain weight because of its complex carbs content. That is, if they are the healthy kind!

Flapjacks have a reputation for being a healthy snack. Yet when you look for them in grocery stores or supermarkets you almost always get the ones that had been made with heavily processed grains, have generous amounts of butter/margarine and loaded with refined sugars.

Yeah they’re healthy alright!

So here’s the flapjack recipe that my girlfriend used. It’s  super fast and super easy to make, and of course super healthy. This recipe will approximately take 30 minutes. It’s perfect for you if you’re always on the go.

Ingredients:

• 500 g of mixed grains (organic rolled jumbo oats, buckwheat flakes, quinoa flakes)
• 1 finely chopped apple
• 3 squashed bananas
• 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
• roughly chopped seeds and nuts
• dried fruits or raisins or dates
• 1 cup of fresh orange juice (if you’re going to buy it from the shop, opt for the Not-from-concentrate type)
• a cup of olive oil

Optional:

add your favourite supplement powder if you like. I recommend Sun Warrior Protein Powder.

Steps:

1. Pre heat oven at 180 C or gas mark 4
2. Put grains in a mixing bowl
3. Add orange juice
4. Mix in all the other ingredients (seeds, nuts, dried fruits/raisins, apple, bananas)
5. Mix it all up
6. Drizzle the oil evenly
7. Mix again
8. Spoon golf size balls onto non stick greased baking tray
9. Pop in oven for 20-25 mins, depending on how well cooked you want it to be.

These programs have been created for women and the quantities of food are based on approximately 125-150- pound active women.  They are just samples and exact foods and quantities can be altered based on interest, size, age, and activity level.  Keep in mind these are designed for active women who are burning more calories throughout the day due to exercise/sports than a sedentary person, and require extra nutrition (calories) to recover from exercise.

Women’s Meal Program #1

Meal #1

• 3 pieces of whole fruit
• Fruit smoothie
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #2

• 2-3 servings of assorted nuts
• Flax crackers with hummus
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #3

• Burrito filled with quinoa, veggies, avocado, and greens
• Small green salad
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #4

• Vega Whole Food Health Optimizer Protein drink
• 1 baked yam with broccoli and small spinach salad
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #5

• Bowl of brown rice, kale, beans and coconut curry sauce
• Green salad with a variety of greens, seeds and nuts
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #6

• 3 pieces of whole fruits
• Fruit smoothie

Estimated Totals:

Total Calories = 3,000

Total grams protein = 120g

Total grams of carbohydrates =  518g

Total grams of fats = 50g

Total water consumption = 116 ounces (factoring in water for protein drinks too)

Women’s Meal Program #2

Meal #1

• Bowl of oats
• Green Smoothie
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #2

• 3 pieces of whole fruit
• Fruit juice or fruit smoothie
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #3

• Bowl of lentil or vegetable soup
• Large green salad with greens, sprouts, seeds, nuts, avocado with Vega EFA Oil
• 8 ounces of coconut water

Meal #4

• 2 whole-food based energy bars
• Green Smoothie
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #5

• Brown rice with steamed broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and other veggies
• Green salad with dark greens including kale, spinach, and collard greens
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #6

• Vegetable sushi with seaweed, rice, avocado, and cucumber
• Small bowl of ginger soup

Estimated Totals:

Total Calories = 2,900

Total grams protein = 135g

Total grams of carbohydrates =  482g

Total grams of fats = 48g

Total water consumption = 108 ounces (factoring in water for protein drinks too)

I’ve found that the more enthusiastic you are about supporting your active lifestyle with a sound nutritional program, and the more meaningful your reasons for doing so, the greater your success will be.

That’s just the nature of enthusiasm.  In general, the more you care about something, the harder you’ll work to achieve it.  Exercising and eating well is a lifestyle decision that allows me to live, work and play as a vegan bodybuilder.

My career opportunities, interests, and long-term goals are all dependent on my ability to stay motivated.  The harder I work, the more success I experience, and the more personal fulfillment I achieve.

What are YOUR unique reasons for wanting to build or maintain muscle?  Why do you care about it, and what does it mean to you?

————-

Robert Cheeke is a competitive bodybuilder and the 2005 and 2009 INBA Northwestern USA Natural Bodybuilding Champion. He is also President and founder of Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness, a company dedicated to supporting natural vegan bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts. Check out his website at www.veganbodybuilding.com.

In this article you will see sample Meal Programs that will help you to get ripped whilst eating extremely healthy foods that will promote well-being and yes – help to keep disease and illness away. Sound like a good dea? Read on…

(By the way, if you’re a woman, Robert has also listed here some meal programs from his book that are custom made meal programs for women based on general fitness, not bodybuilding per se.)

————————————————-

by Robert Cheeke

These nutrition programs are for an average 170-pound male looking to maintain and build muscle, but the themes throughout are consistent for any gender, any size; just tailor your own programs to your individual caloric needs.  These are simply examples and have not been approved by the FDA or other governing body.  They are purely based on my experiences and observations as a competitive and champion vegan athlete over the past 15 years.

Men’s Meal Program #1

Meal #1

• Bowl of oatmeal
• Green protein smoothie
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #2

• 3 pieces of whole fruit
• 1 cucumber
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #3

• Large green salad with mixed greens and Vega Omega 3-6-9 EFA Oil
• 2 artichokes and bowl of mixed beans and sprouts
• Protein drink (Vega Whole Food Health Optimizer)
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #4

• Celery sticks with almond butter
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #5

• Ethiopian food dinner (bread and beans, greens, lentils, hummus, and a variety of other dips)
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #6

• Tofu “chicken” sandwich with vegan mayonnaise, lettuce, and tomato
• Bowl of rice with peanut sauce
• 16 ounces of water

Estimated Totals:

Total Calories = 4300

Total grams protein = 175g

Total grams of carbohydrates = 675g

Total grams of fats = 100g

Total water consumption = 120 ounces (factoring in water for protein drinks too)

Men’s Meal Program #2

Meal #1

• 2 pieces of whole fruit
• Yerba mate drink
• Fruit Smoothie

Meal #2

• Whole food based Energy bar
• Assorted fresh vegetables (carrots, cucumbers, peppers)
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #3

• Burrito with rice or quinoa, greens, beans, and avocado
• Small green salad with Vega omega 3-6-9 EFA Oil
• 12 ounces of hemp milk
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #4

• 3 pieces of whole fruit
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #5

• Large green salad with steamed green vegetables and tempeh
• Bowl of carrot/ginger soup
• 12 ounces of almond milk
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #6

• 2 whole food based Protein or Energy bars
• Protein drink (Vega Whole Food Health Optimizer)
• 16 ounces of water

Estimated Totals:

Total Calories = 4,000

Total grams protein = 180g

Total grams of carbohydrates = 660g

Total grams of fats = 70g

Total water consumption = 104 ounces (factoring in water for protein drinks too)

Men’s Meal Program #3

Meal #1

• 2 pancakes with maple syrup
• Small bowl of potatoes and broccoli
• Green Smoothie
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #2

• Almond butter sandwich
• Whole food based protein drink (Vega Whole Food Health Optimizer)
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #3

• Collard green wraps with hummus or vegetable pate, beans, sprouts, and vegetables
• Bowl of lentil, bean, or vegetable soup
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #4

• 3 pieces of whole fruit
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #5

• Bell peppers stuffed with rice and seasonings
• Green salad with Vega omega 3-6-9 EFA Oil
• Bean sprouts and fresh or steamed vegetables
• 16 ounces of water

Meal #6

• Whole food based Protein drink (Vega Whole Food Health Optimizer)
• 2-3 servings of assorted nuts

Estimated Totals:

Total Calories = 4,500

Total grams protein = 160g

Total grams of carbohydrates = 760g

Total grams of fats = 90g

Total water consumption = 104 ounces (factoring in water for protein drinks too)

—————

Robert Cheeke is a competitive bodybuilder and the 2005 and 2009 INBA Northwestern USA Natural Bodybuilding Champion. He is also President and founder of Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness, a company dedicated to supporting natural vegan bodybuilders and fitness enthusiasts. Check out his website at www.veganbodybuilding.com.

Aminoacidemia and How Whey Contributes to It

Aminoacidemia is a condition in which extreme quantities of amino acids are present in the blood. In this case, if there is nothing in the diet to account for it, it is possible that there are missing or defective enzymes in the liver, which are important for the breakdown of nitrogen containing amino acids in the body. If your system fails to properly break down amino acids, it can result to generalized hyper-aminoacidemia, and eventually to neurotoxicity and early death.

Furthermore, new studies reveal that aminoacidemia may be a contributing element in the onset of diabetes. Specifically, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has confirmed that whey’s high Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score actually guarantees a rate of amino acid delivery that is too rapid to sustain the anabolic requirement during the postprandial period (the period right after a meal). This is bad news for bodybuilders, who believed for years that excess amino acids dumped quickly into the bloodstream is a helpful condition for building muscle!

For years bodybuilders have claimed aminoacidemia as a helpful condition for building muscle, making it an effective selling feature of whey protein in the bodybuilding community. The explanation is that muscle growth is about staying in a positive nitrogen state. Due to exercise, which damages and stresses the muscle, the body is thrown into a negative nitrogen catabolic (breakdown) state. This leads to the idea to take yourself out of a catabolic state and into a positive nitrogen anabolic (building) state by consuming the fastest absorbing protein you can get your hands on — whey. And there is no question that whey protein induces a short term dramatic increase in blood levels of amino acids — i.e. aminoacidemia. Sadly, new research on the matter now show that this rational, taken as a whole, may not necessarily be true.

Looking into it, studies have confirmed the “paradox” of the highly soluble proteins found in whey and whey isolate, which, despite their high Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score, ensure a rate of amino acid delivery that is too rapid to sustain the body’s anabolic requirement during the minutes and hours after eating it — thus, not really helping in the development of muscle. To make the long story short, the latest studies find that aminoacidemia may not provide the benefit many bodybuilders think it does.

To make things worse, aminoacidemia may actually lead to acquiring long term health consequences – for example, diabetes. Despite the fact that short term aminoacidemia can actually lower blood sugar levels since it stimulates higher beta-cell secretion and a related increase in insulin levels (by as much as 40%), over time, this constant stimulation may overstress and degrade the ability of beta-cells to produce sufficient insulin when called for and may eventually, contribute to pre-diabetic and diabetic conditions in the body.

In addition, ammonia, the end result of excess amino acids being converted along with carbon dioxide and water, is toxic to the body and is a primary cause of premature fatigue. Normally, the body handles excess ammonia by converting it to urea then filtering it through the kidneys, but if the ammonia is too much, it overstrains the kidneys, which is why doctors would advise against high levels of protein intake in cases of kidney disease. And ultimately, although there are studies on the question of high amino acid levels in the blood (i.e., high protein consumption) and bone loss, the most convincing studies indicate that there is a problem.

For bodybuilders, the paradox of aminoacidemia says that the main feature of whey, its high Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score, probably generates a rate of amino acid delivery that is too rapid to sustain the anabolic requirement during the immediate hours after eating it – thus, not really helping in the development of muscle.

Whey and Intestinal Toxemia

Despite it being a somewhat, catch-all phrase that the alternative health community came up with to describe a set of conditions that occur in the intestinal tract as a result of bad dietary options, Intestinal toxemia is not a medical condition. It has three primary manifestations:

• Putrefaction, which is caused by bacterial action on undigested proteins. Guanidine, histamine, mercaptans, indol, phenyl, skato, and other organic toxins may be formed as a result.
• Rancidity refers specifically to the spoilage of fats. This can actually occur in the digestive tract itself — not just from the consumption of rancid fats in the diet. The primary concern is that rancid fats promote the production of peroxide free radicals in the body.
• Fermentation is caused by the action of bacteria and yeasts on carbohydrates. Excessive gas, increased blood alcohol levels (that’s why excess sugar can give you a hangover), and Candida hyper-growth are just three problems associated with intestinal fermentation.

Intestinal toxemia takes place when large particles of undigested food enter the small intestine and colon. This undigested food accumulated in the small intestine and colon then become a fertile breeding ground for bacteria and yeast fermentation since these parts of the digestive tract were not designed to handle excessive amounts of undigested food. These bacteria then produce harmful by-products that damage the intestines, reduce nutrient assimilation, create excess gas and bloating, and lead to persistent diarrhea. This is because proteins putrefy, carbohydrates ferment, and fats become rancid. Other than that, mild to intense stomach pains, the result of muscle cramping and excessive gas are experienced. Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Crohn’s Disease may be the eventual results should intestinal toxemia extend.

Whey protein can be a major factor in promoting intestinal toxemia. Whey contains no fiber, which is important to keep things moving well through the intestinal tract. Since it is highly processed, whey protein contains no live enzymes to break down the large whey proteins. The body actually has a difficult time breaking down the three primary proteins in whey. When combined, these problems provide an ideal environment for disadvantageous intestinal bacteria to thrive in. And since whey is very acid forming, it increases the pH level of the normally alkaline environment of the intestinal tract, thus favoring the development of harmful bacteria over beneficial bacteria.

Conclusion

I have long stopped taking ordinary and dairy-based supplements and found that my body responds best to Vegan protein supplements, but my decision wasn’t just based on some random ideas. I encourage you to investigate what really is in your protein supplements and observe how they really affect you.  If you happen to have the symptoms I mentioned in this article series, try stopping your intake and then see if your symptoms stop.

For a list of the Best Vegan Protein Supplements in my opinion, click here.