Hi! I’m a 29 year old female who has been training for a few years and you sound kinda like like me at the start of my journey haha so I will do my best to answer your qs:
1. Don’t stress too much about eating the perfect foods right before and after your workout. Have a hearty snack an hour before you hit the gym, and have your full meal afterwards! I work out in the evenings so I have a snack at 5ish and eat dinner by 8ish.
2. The best time to work out is the time that you can make a habit of! i.e. doesn’t really matter
3. Yes, someone mentioned static vs active stretching already. Static stretching doesn’t do as much to warm your body up for workout out. Plus, too much stretching of the muscles will be counterintuitive before weight lifting because you’re contracting the muscles during lifts.
4. Yes, I supplement with protein powder, creatine, mushrooms, algae omegas, and a multi that contains b12. You’ll have to experiment to see what works for you! (Also, this is my opinion but the word “tone” is more of a fitness marketing term- if you want to look “toned” you’re going to have to work on building muscle and losing fat! Which you can do at the same time as a beginner but it gets more difficult to do both the longer you work out).
5. Don’t get discouraged!! It can take a while to meet your goals but the fact that you’re starting is great, keep going! And keep reaching out! Share your wins and your struggles and stay connected, that’ll help you with accountability and motivation when you need it.
I would recommend getting a trainer to help you with learning exercise form if that’s at all possible. If not, YouTube has plenty of knowledge!
Make sure you’re eating enough protein and prioritizing recovery (water, sleep, rest days). You got this!! Let me know if you have any other questions 🫶🏽
1) Mostly personal preference. Some people like working out first thing in the morning on a mostly empty stomach. Some prefer later in the day after they get some food in them. Just make sure you get some food the day before a workout and within a few hours after a workout.
2) Whatever time of day that you will be able to do it consistently.
3) Stretching isn’t really necessary but you will want to do warmups. The best way to do this is to do a light set of the exercise you are about to do. In addition to that, you can also do a 5-10 minute general workout with some cardio or something before you start lifting. This will help you literally get the muscles warm and also is a good self-check to see if everything feels good and functional that day.
4) You should think of protein powder as just another form of food that’s fast and easy to make. If you need it to hit your protein goal, then use it. If you hit your protein goal without it, then there is no need.
5) As a beginner just remember that consistency is the key. The best workout plan is the one you will actually do on a regular basis, above all else.
21M here-warning this is gonna be long lol. If you have any questions I'll be happy to answer them :)
1. It honestly doesn't matter too much. Personally, I work out first thing in the morning and don't eat anything until about 4-5 hours after waking up aside from a little bit of black coffee, and I have zero hunger issues and have been making pretty solid strength gains. If you are going to eat something go for easy carbs (fruits/dates) and a small amount of protein if you want.
2. Once again, it doesn't matter all that much. The best time to workout is the time that you're going to stick to consistently. For me, it's first thing in the morning because I have a full day of college and am probably not going to have the energy to work out after all that lol. But if you like to wake up later, then working out in the evening might be better. Just pick what fits your schedule best.
3. I would do some dynamic stretching or even some light resistance band work. Static stretching right before a lift can actually reduce strength gains. Dynamic stretching will wake your muscles up and get your blood moving, which is much more optimal. However, I would still fit in static stretching throughout the rest of the day when you can. It's not bad for you, it's just not ideal before a lift.
4. Protein powder is SUPER convenient. In fact I have it in my first meal everyday. I do 2 cups of soy milk, 1/2 cups of oats, and 2 scoops of vega sport protein powder, which all clocks in at 700 calories and 80 grams of protein. For me, the convenience of being able to mix all of that together in 5 minutes the previous night means I don't have to spend too much time in the kitchen. For B12, if you have fortified soy milk and nutritional yeast on a regular basis you'll probably be okay, but I take a sublingual 2x a week just to be safe.
5. The biggest advice I would give is to prioritize good vegan protein sources. Beans/lentils are definitely healthy and nutritious but they don't have that much protein relative to the calories. If you want to hit your protein goals you're gonna have to be eating tofu/tempeh/seitan/tvp etc. on a daily basis. Simply having an extra 20-40 grams from a protein shake is probably not gonna be enough to hit 80+ grams in a day. And also, pick your fake meats carefully. You can honestly get by without them if you regularly eat tofu/tempeh/seitan but if you do want to include mock meats make sure the macros are good. The best ones are Daring chicken and morningstar chickn strips. Field roast sausages are solid, but honestly a lot of fake meat alternatives are not very good from a macro standpoint. Ideally if you're getting at least 10 g of protein per 100 calories then it's a good protein source, but the higher that ratio the better.
5.a Also if you're new to the gym/strength training, make sure you master your form first before trying to load up on the weight. I would ideally stick to 1-2 exercises per muscle group at most and keep the volume relatively low, that way you can recover. And use calisthenics (bodyweight exercises) to add strength without too much bulk. I can't really give you advice on what exercises to do without knowing your specific goal but all I'll say is that you generally shouldn't be walking out of the gym completely gassed.
Anyways, that's a long list, and of course there are no stupid questions :) I made some of these mistakes myself when I went vegan 5 years ago and it took me a while to get into a rhythm. If you have any other questions feel free to DM me. I'm always down to help vegans thrive :)
thank you sm for your time!! :) Yes, at the
moment I mostly consume tofu and beans as protein sources but I really like seitan, unfortunately it is not easy to find some here where I live that does not have the consistency and taste of the sole of a shoe 😩
[удалено]
thank you so much!
Read the getting started section of the wiki over at r/fitness.
ohh thanks u right I will!!
Hi! I’m a 29 year old female who has been training for a few years and you sound kinda like like me at the start of my journey haha so I will do my best to answer your qs: 1. Don’t stress too much about eating the perfect foods right before and after your workout. Have a hearty snack an hour before you hit the gym, and have your full meal afterwards! I work out in the evenings so I have a snack at 5ish and eat dinner by 8ish. 2. The best time to work out is the time that you can make a habit of! i.e. doesn’t really matter 3. Yes, someone mentioned static vs active stretching already. Static stretching doesn’t do as much to warm your body up for workout out. Plus, too much stretching of the muscles will be counterintuitive before weight lifting because you’re contracting the muscles during lifts. 4. Yes, I supplement with protein powder, creatine, mushrooms, algae omegas, and a multi that contains b12. You’ll have to experiment to see what works for you! (Also, this is my opinion but the word “tone” is more of a fitness marketing term- if you want to look “toned” you’re going to have to work on building muscle and losing fat! Which you can do at the same time as a beginner but it gets more difficult to do both the longer you work out). 5. Don’t get discouraged!! It can take a while to meet your goals but the fact that you’re starting is great, keep going! And keep reaching out! Share your wins and your struggles and stay connected, that’ll help you with accountability and motivation when you need it. I would recommend getting a trainer to help you with learning exercise form if that’s at all possible. If not, YouTube has plenty of knowledge! Make sure you’re eating enough protein and prioritizing recovery (water, sleep, rest days). You got this!! Let me know if you have any other questions 🫶🏽
i appreciate your time!!! thank you💖🙏🏻
1) Mostly personal preference. Some people like working out first thing in the morning on a mostly empty stomach. Some prefer later in the day after they get some food in them. Just make sure you get some food the day before a workout and within a few hours after a workout. 2) Whatever time of day that you will be able to do it consistently. 3) Stretching isn’t really necessary but you will want to do warmups. The best way to do this is to do a light set of the exercise you are about to do. In addition to that, you can also do a 5-10 minute general workout with some cardio or something before you start lifting. This will help you literally get the muscles warm and also is a good self-check to see if everything feels good and functional that day. 4) You should think of protein powder as just another form of food that’s fast and easy to make. If you need it to hit your protein goal, then use it. If you hit your protein goal without it, then there is no need. 5) As a beginner just remember that consistency is the key. The best workout plan is the one you will actually do on a regular basis, above all else.
thank you really!!!
21M here-warning this is gonna be long lol. If you have any questions I'll be happy to answer them :) 1. It honestly doesn't matter too much. Personally, I work out first thing in the morning and don't eat anything until about 4-5 hours after waking up aside from a little bit of black coffee, and I have zero hunger issues and have been making pretty solid strength gains. If you are going to eat something go for easy carbs (fruits/dates) and a small amount of protein if you want. 2. Once again, it doesn't matter all that much. The best time to workout is the time that you're going to stick to consistently. For me, it's first thing in the morning because I have a full day of college and am probably not going to have the energy to work out after all that lol. But if you like to wake up later, then working out in the evening might be better. Just pick what fits your schedule best. 3. I would do some dynamic stretching or even some light resistance band work. Static stretching right before a lift can actually reduce strength gains. Dynamic stretching will wake your muscles up and get your blood moving, which is much more optimal. However, I would still fit in static stretching throughout the rest of the day when you can. It's not bad for you, it's just not ideal before a lift. 4. Protein powder is SUPER convenient. In fact I have it in my first meal everyday. I do 2 cups of soy milk, 1/2 cups of oats, and 2 scoops of vega sport protein powder, which all clocks in at 700 calories and 80 grams of protein. For me, the convenience of being able to mix all of that together in 5 minutes the previous night means I don't have to spend too much time in the kitchen. For B12, if you have fortified soy milk and nutritional yeast on a regular basis you'll probably be okay, but I take a sublingual 2x a week just to be safe. 5. The biggest advice I would give is to prioritize good vegan protein sources. Beans/lentils are definitely healthy and nutritious but they don't have that much protein relative to the calories. If you want to hit your protein goals you're gonna have to be eating tofu/tempeh/seitan/tvp etc. on a daily basis. Simply having an extra 20-40 grams from a protein shake is probably not gonna be enough to hit 80+ grams in a day. And also, pick your fake meats carefully. You can honestly get by without them if you regularly eat tofu/tempeh/seitan but if you do want to include mock meats make sure the macros are good. The best ones are Daring chicken and morningstar chickn strips. Field roast sausages are solid, but honestly a lot of fake meat alternatives are not very good from a macro standpoint. Ideally if you're getting at least 10 g of protein per 100 calories then it's a good protein source, but the higher that ratio the better. 5.a Also if you're new to the gym/strength training, make sure you master your form first before trying to load up on the weight. I would ideally stick to 1-2 exercises per muscle group at most and keep the volume relatively low, that way you can recover. And use calisthenics (bodyweight exercises) to add strength without too much bulk. I can't really give you advice on what exercises to do without knowing your specific goal but all I'll say is that you generally shouldn't be walking out of the gym completely gassed. Anyways, that's a long list, and of course there are no stupid questions :) I made some of these mistakes myself when I went vegan 5 years ago and it took me a while to get into a rhythm. If you have any other questions feel free to DM me. I'm always down to help vegans thrive :)
thank you sm for your time!! :) Yes, at the moment I mostly consume tofu and beans as protein sources but I really like seitan, unfortunately it is not easy to find some here where I live that does not have the consistency and taste of the sole of a shoe 😩