If you’re a vegan, you’re probably sick of hearing “but where do you get your protein?

It may come as a surprise to some, but meeting your protein (as well as all other nutritional) needs on a vegan diet is actually really simple and cheap!

Great sources of vegan protein include: beans, chickpeas, lentils, tofu, tempeh, edamame, quinoa and many more. Not only are most cheaper than their meat or dairy alternatives, but they also come packed with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants!

Contrary to popular belief, a vegan diet actually has many benefits, and if followed correctly, can make it a lot easier to ensure your hitting your vitamin and mineral goals.

However, there are a few things you should consider and be aware of if you’re looking to go, or are already a vegan. You need to make sure they’re getting enough , calcium, iron, zinc and especially vitamin b12.
Vegan diets are particularly low in vitamin b12 as it is mainly found in meat products and very few natural sources. While it is also found in sources such as mushrooms, you’ll be much better off supplementing vitamin b12 or opting for fortified foods, as a deficiency brings some serious health risks with it. A lack of vitamin B12 can lead to anemia and blindness. It can also cause muscle weakness, tingling, and numbness .

This is by no means a fundamental flaw of the vegan diet, or that other diets are superior in this sense, but in the modern sterilised world, vegans are absolutely at a greater risk of getting a vitamin b12 deficiency. Vitamin b12 is naturally only created by bacteria and thus only found either in soil or untreated water. However, in our day and age, you’re unlikely (of course not impossible) to meet your b12 needs by relying solely on those sources and you might also incur other risks / costs. Why run the risk when supplementing with b12 is just very cheap insurance?

The Deadlift is often regarded as dangerous and the cause of all back pains, but is it really? Are you someone that is suffering from bad posture, sitting at an office desk all day or want to build muscle whilst gaining crazy strength? Famously known as the “king” of all lifts, the Deadlift is one exercise that you should be implementing into your program if you aren’t already doing it.

What are the benefits?

Well, one of the many benefits of performing deadlifts is it targets multiple muscles in your body at once. This one exercise will target your hamstrings, glutes, lower and upper back. You will also build a core of steel due to your abs and erector spinae being engaged. When that many muscles are being engaged and utilised, from the thigh to the core to the neck, it will release hormones such as testosterone, endorphins and growth hormones which means you will be in building muscle, burning fat and in feeling in a better mood.

Dangers of Deadlifting…

Without learning the proper technique, you risk the chance of injuring yourself. The deadlift is a hip-hinge movement which means you should avoid rounding your back, which is the cause of most back pain that people experience when performing the exercise. No other lift is as devastating on your Central Nervous System as the deadlift, which means you should avoid trying to go heavy each workout or doing high amounts of reps as it could burn you out for up to 5 days. You can often get away with a bad deadlift, but it will be very straining on your body and recovery may take a few days.

Things that you should avoid…

Make sure you are not creating flexion at the trunk, which will result in rounding of the back. Don’t start the lift with the bar away from your shin as this will not engage your hamstrings and glutes properly and could cause your hips to rise too fast. Don’t lean too far forward as this will allow the bar to swing forward, creating momentum to cause your whole body to shift forward and increase the risk of injury.

What you should remember…

Always remember to engage your Lats by retracting your scapula as this will ensure that you are in the starting position with a straight back. Keep the bar close to your body from the start of the lift to the end as this will allow you to maintain control throughout and reduce the chances of injury. Learn how to brace your core properly by breathing deep into your diaphragm and not your chest. When you feel your stomach expand instead of your chest, you are doing it right. Bracing will allow you to stay tight throughout the whole duration of the lift and engage your muscles properly.

How often should you Deadlift?

Since the Deadlift is such a demanding exercise on your nervous system, it only needs to be performed max 2 times a week. If you are doing high reps, stick to a low weight to ensure that your technique is spot on and that you don’t reach exhaustion on one exercise. If you are an intermediate to advance lifter, doing 2-3 sets of good quality reps is the sweet spot.

Cheat meals are often thought of as the dark and evil temptation in a dieting phase, that are sure to ruin all the progress you’ve made. But are they really? If you find yourself unable to stick to your diet, constantly falling off due to cravings and temptations ending in a cheat meal and finding yourself back at square one, then incorporating strategic cheat meals into your diet might just be the thing you’re missing.

But won’t a cheat meal ruin all my progress? Not if it’s scheduled into your diet and you know how to incorporate it! What most people fail to understand is that it all comes down to balance – not just the cliché saying but actual calorie balance. For example, if you know that you get cravings on weekends or you want to enjoy a pizza with some friends, you simply need to work out what your weekly calorie balance needs to be in order for you to drop weight. Then roughly equate how many calories your cheat meal will be and eat a little bit less either the day before, the day after or even the entire week leading up to the meal to meet your weekly calorie target – be flexible!

If you’re one prone to falling off your diet, doing this and actually incorporating cheat meals into your diet will ensure that you stay on it and continue making sustainable progress. It’ll give you something to work towards and look forward to throughout the week, making the dieting phase a lot easier and enjoyable. You won’t have to shut yourself off at social events by declining to eat out and won’t miss out on anything. Best of all, it won’t leave you with any regrets after – it’s easy when you know how!

What is a dirty bulk?

Dirty bulking has seen a constant rise and decline in popularity within the weight training scene over the years. A traditional dirty bulk refers to going all out in terms of putting on weight when trying to gain muscle. No mind is payed to where the calories come from – the general rule of as much as possible applies. Typically, the bulker will opt for very calorically dense foods such as fast food, lollies, ice cream and neglect any vegetables to fit in more. The dirty bulk bro won’t pay attention whether it’s fat or muscle, as long as the scale increases from day to day, week to week, it’s a win in his eyes! But is it really a win?

Why do people do it??

Sure, speedy weight gain and always being in an overfed state have their perks in the weight room. Who doesn’t mind strength gains and massive pumps? The bulking bro will inevitably make gains when focusing on progressive overload and being consistent with his routine, but there are a couple of caveats to consider when opting for this method of muscle building.

The Problem!

At some point, the trainee will get to a point where he’s reached a level of bodyfat that leaves him feeling uncomfortable, lethargic, with no appetite and some nasty consequences typical for high levels of bodyfat. Constant sweating, feeling nauseous during training sessions and bad skin, just to name a few – yum!

Now comes the bulking bro’s time to shine. It’s time to finally shed all the accumulated fat and reveal the muscle he’s worked so hard for. This is where the problem starts. To get back down to a decent level of bodyfat again, he’ll have to either cut very aggressively for an extended period of time, or diet for at least twice as long as he’s been gaining for – it’s not uncommon to have to diet for an 8-10 month period after making this mistake. This means that no matter how diligent you are with your diet, you are bound to lose muscle.

What you should do 🙂

In conclusion, you are way better off at trying to make progress in the gym by only running a slight calorie surplus of ~300cals above maintenance and focusing on progressively upping your lifts in the weight room instead of going all out in the kitchen. This way you’ll ensure minimum fat gain with near max potential muscle gain and you won’t have to diet for very long once it’s time to shred down – meaning there is exponentially more time for you to be in a surplus and make gains instead of being in a deficit, losing them and spinning your wheels by constantly fluctuating up and down in
weight. So stop wasting your time and opt for patient, consistent progress!

If you want a more in depth review of a dirty bulk, click here:
https://barbend.com/dirty-bulking/

Winter is fast approaching, and we all know what that means right? No more Suns out guns out. It’s that time of year where we can no longer show off our lean gains in a singlet or T-shirt and are forced to cover up. But never fear, bulking season is here! To make this a memorable bulk, Dukes is here to give you some pointers and teach you how to get strong and jacked this winter – not fat!

Firstly, your training and programming will have to be in order. To ensure you’re not spinning your wheels and look the same next time it’s time to get out the guns, solid programming is a must. Focus on training each body part at least twice a week, with as much volume as you can recover from and progress with.

Progress is the key here. If you progress all your lifts with equal or better form in a calorie surplus, you WILL gain new muscle tissue, there’s no way around it. You should ensure that all your lifts in the gym are increasing as the weeks go by. If you’re not doing so already, logbooking is a must! If you’re not keeping track of your numbers session to session, week to week, you won’t be able to look back and see if you’re making any progress even if you think you can remember the numbers. Let your logbook be your guide for programming if your lifts stall for longer than 3 weeks or even regress, you need to re-evaluate if you’re doing too much or too little to ensure muscle gain.

Now that we’ve ensured you’ll be gaining all sorts of muscle and strength this Winter, we need to clarify a few things in regard to bulking nutrition to avoid gaining too much excess fat along with your hard-earned gains. A calorie surplus is a must! If you’re not consuming more calories than you’re expending, you will gain next to nothing, as recovery will be your limiting factor. Aim for a calorie surplus of ~300 calories per day, made up of around 2g of protein per pound of bodyweight, 0.5-1g of fat per kg of bodyweight and fill the rest with carbohydrates. Why so many carbs? Aren’t carbs the devil? Nope, carbs are your body’s preferred source of energy and will grant you gnarly pumps and strength during your workouts!

Try these pointers during your bulk this winter to ensure you’ll be making your best gains yet and ensure you’ll be getting strong – not fat!

As far as being vegan goes, the most frequent questions asked by the common meat eaters are, ‘do you get enough protein in your diet’ and ‘where do you get your protein from.’ Contrary to what is said on online bodybuilding forums, it is actually unnecessary to consume excessive amounts of protein. The body can only absorb a certain amount of protein at once, and by trying to hit such high numbers, you are putting stress on your liver and not to mention that protein is the most expensive macro nutrient; It is important to assess your own goals and activity levels when determining how much protein you need to consume to meet your goals.

Back to the topic of vegan protein, many people may be unaware of the amount of protein they are consuming in their daily meals if you just take away the animal protein. Take oatmeal for instance – a half cup of oats can have as much as 7 grams of protein as is! Pair that with a scoop of vegan protein and your bowl of oats has been transformed into a protein packed meal.

Here is some other great plant based sources of protein that you can add into your diet or substitute in place of animal protein.

VEGAN PROTEIN POWDERS (pea protein & rice protein)

There is an abundance of vegan protein powders available in the market if you just have a look. not only is it a more natural, minimally processed form of protein powder, but the protein content in some varieties vary from 20g to 30g per serving which is more than enough for a post workout shake. Although the texture is slightly different (may need a bit of getting used to), it carries a lot of benefits; even if you are not a vegan, it is a great form of protein powder for those who are lactose intolerant or suffer from bloating when drinking whey.

TOFU

With as much as 16g of protein per 100g serving, tofu is one of the most popular sources of complete protein in any vegan’s diet. Common in many south east Asian cuisines, it is high in essential minerals such as manganese and has an adequate level of unsaturated fats –  the good fats that help to lower cholesterol levels.

Tofu can be marinated like meat as it has a unique spongy texture that will absorb any sauces or marinates it comes into contact with. It can be used in soups, stir-fries, salads or generally substituted for meat in a meal.

TEMPEH

Tempeh is what tofu is before it is tofu. It is pretty much soybeans fermented and formed into a block, packed with more protein, fiber and antioxidants though the fermentation process. It is ore easy to digest because of the fermentation and per 100g can pack as much as 20g of protein, and as a complete protein, it has all 9 essential amino acids

Much like tofu, tempeh can be marinated and is popular in stir-fry’s, boiled in stews or grilled and used in place of sandwich meats

BEANS & LEGUMES

A staple in many middle eastern and Indian cuisines, beans and lentils are not only a great source of protein, but packs a punch in fiber ( you know what they say about beans!). When bought dried they are inexpensive and can be stored in the pantry for ln periods of time until they are required. The bean variety with the highest protein content is black beans with 11g per cup – others include chickpeas, lentils and kidney beans.

Once soaked and boiled, beans can be used in soups and stews or even formed into veggie patties and used in place of meat patties in burgers. To make it a complete protein, simply consume with rice so all 9 amino acids are covered.

NUTS

Not only are nuts a quick and easy snack, they are packed in protein as well as unsaturated good fats. They are best in their raw state and per small handful can contain as much as 7g of protein. It is important however, to keep in mind the recommended serving size as they are pretty calorie dense, so nothing more than a small handful!

LEAFY GREENS

You know what they say about Popeye and his love for spinach! By adding leafy greens such as spinach, peas, kale, collard greens and broccoli, you are unknowingly adding more protein to your meals. In addition leafy greens offer many other health benefits such as being rich in vitamins and minerals such as iron

For instance, by adding one cup of cooked spinach to a stir fry for instance, you are adding at least 5g of protein in that meal

SEITAN

Also known as wheat meat, seitan is created by mixing wheat protein with a combination of sauces, spices and liquid to create a product that mimics meat in terms of taste and texture. This is what is used for many ‘mock meats’ around as you can manipulate the taste of the seitan by adding different spices and flavorings to it. It is low in carbs and fat and extremely high in protein – up to 40g per 100g serving! Pair seitan with soya sauce for the added amino acids to transform it into a complete protein