I am a novice strength trainer trying to get in shape and documenting it as a sub-topic on my whole food-plant based motivational site. It is important to be a good example in homage to the program which turned around some health problems: the Starch Solution by Dr. John Mcdougall. Being thin, I look partly like what some perceive as a prototypical vegan. Changing that is attainable and I’m committed to making it happen.
I’m thin but I’m not eating to gain size. If it goes to the belly, which all of it does first (genetics), there is the risk of abdominal obesity, or central obesity. A person that is very low muscle mass and looks thin, but has enough belly fat to make it very unhealthy from a total mortality risk. Gaining weight with significant waist size increase is a ‘no’ for me since health is a priority. Mouth exercise won’t make me healthy at my current state, unfortunately. Only muscle building will work for me.
Keeping a thinner waist at nothing more than 32″ is the priority. There’s the BMI scale which is a general indicator of obesity but a better indicator is waist-to-hip ratio, and I won’t let mine get bigger than 0.9. I’m skinny all around with a 32.25″ waist, which is just under the cutoff for healthy value according to the link above. This is a strict value. Almost every American has a value substantially higher, as did I for many decades. I just happened on the whole food-plant based diet. It fixed a lot about me but uncovered another problem: lack of muscle.
The waist will drop as I progress on body weight strength program started in earnest this week, and I will eat to sustain my relatively light weight-until I reach a size of 29″. Then, I will run a slight calorie surplus until the waist hits 31-32″, and run at net zero until the waist hits 29″. I’m over 10 pounds from the minimum BMI healthy range, and won’t be dropping weight if I stick to this strength program. So running a waist from 29″-32″ for me in that range is 9 pounds total.
I don’t think I can drop the waist from 32″ to 29″ in a year maintaining weight and on a strength program. Although muscle building is highly variable, if I work out consistently on an moderate program for 1 year, at age 50 as a male it is expected I can gain 5 pounds of pure muscle doing strength training 2-3 hours per week. Here’s the muscle gain calculator I used: Scooby’s Muscle Gain Calculator. Losing 3 inches of waist typically requires a 9 pound drop in fat for me. I never dropped to 29 inches in my life so I don’t know the rate. It took a lot more weight to drop an inch when I was up in the 190 lb weight, but it came down to about 3 pounds per inch when in the 140 lb range and could be less during this process. No expectations at all, though. It could be a serious de-motivator to have waist size expectations during this process.
There are several disadvantages to this program which I am willing to accept to maintain closer to homeostasis through a fairly steady weight in my body. It is said that wild swings in weight are less sustainable, and I’m very close to settling in on a very healthy weight with an already very healthy diet.
Further, I have heard suggestions by science minded weightlifting coaches mentioning 1g/lb of protein is useful in this ‘recomposition’ phase. I do not wish to change my diet, and it is high enough at 0.75g/lb. Muscle building might be slower, yes. I accept it to stick on a very steady diet which has helped me in many ways, including lowering cholesterol, weight, blood pressure, heart rate and keeping all down for years.
Moderate time strength training: it won’t be hardcore. I will burn out, but it will be consistent 2-3 hours. However, the Scooby muscle estimator shows quite a bit less with the moderate program than hardcore: 5 lb in the first year versus 7.5 for hardcore. On the plus side, having no fat anywhere but the groin and belly will show any gains in a definitive way. Even AthleanX says that a person with lower body fat can look bigger than they are with relatively small muscle gain. I’ll never be a big bodybuilder unless I catch the bug and commit to hardcore workouts (and stay on it for a few years).
Challenges: Energy, and Consistency
It’s easy to churn over the science and methodology related to health and strength training. Getting in there and doing it is difficult. I need to remain consistent, but I need to increase my stamina to complete my routine in a tighter time frame, at least part of the workout. It is very difficult to perform the 6 sets of the L-sits, and Bulgarian Split Squats, intermixed with handstands for time The ancillary exercises are very easy, but I have to put in substantial breaks through the heavy hitters.
On a whim, I added a plyometric day. That’s very intense, and I may make it once a week to start. Plyometrics will quickly increase my stamina. I may keep my plyometrics quite short to start. I can’t set up another goal that may demotivate if failed.
Plyometrics benefits
- Builds superb explosive leg strength and with that definition along with the squats I do.
- It lowers resting heart rate, an indicator of overall health and cardiac fitness.
- It substantially improves cardiac fitness.
Some inconsistent and fairly high heart rate cardio I do is hiking mountain trails around Phoenix.
Reasons for optimism muscle building on whole food-plant based diet:
- Decreased time to recovery.
- Far easier to prevent unwanted weight gain.
There is the distinct possibility I may progress faster than expected due to optimal nutrition. This is by no means a real science experiment, but I feel like I’m a lab rat doing this specific way on this specific diet, keeping a steady weight and doing recomposition. Now, I could go on a stricter weight program, but for now watching money and being able to do it in my current location without driving saves money on car expense and gym expense. Still, the coaching availability and motivation of like minded people may be of great benefit.
Motivation and Testimonials for a Whole Food-Plant Based Diet 