GUEST BLOG: Adventures in the kitchen by Anastasia

Anastasia is a powerlifter who has a BSc in Chemistry, MSc in Chemistry/Life Sciences and is currently PhD candidate in Biochemistry at the University of Cambridge.  She also has a love of healthy eating & the fitness lifestyle, so is often in the kitchen whipping up wonderful treats that actually aid you in your fitness goals.  If you are after looking good or performing well then we'll be a adding a few recipes & training ideas from Anastasia to help you reach your very best whilst still enjoying healthy treats you can put together together in minutes.
Remember to join Anastasia over on her facebook page where she puts up recipes, training & recovery advice.


Chocolate Cream Pancakes

Ingredients

Pancakes:
-       30 g buckwheat flour
-       30 g pea protein powder
-       1 tbsp. pre-cracked or ground flax seeds
-       1-2 tbsp. cider vinegar
-       Backing powder
-       Stevia or other sweetener
-       ½ cup cannellini beans
-       ½ tsp. coconut oil


Omega-3-Choco Cream:
-       10 g flaxseed oil
-       10 g cocoa powder
-       10 g agave nectar


Method

1)      Combine flour, pea protein, flax seeds, vinegar, backing powder and stevia
2)       Add ¼ cup of water
3)      Add beans and process everything to obtain a mushy constancy
4)      Spread coconut oil on a frying pan
5)      Pour the pancake mixture into the pan (gives 5-6 pancakes)
6)      Cook 3-4 minutes on each side (pancakes’ upper side should start blistering before you turn them)
7)      Combine ingredients for the Choco Cream and mix thoroughly
8)      Serve pancakes topped with Choco Cream and fruits

Gives one serving. Approximate nutritional information:
Pancakes: kcal 351/ carb 40g/ protein 37g/ fat 5g
Omega-3-Choco Cream: kcal 150/ carb 10g/ protein 2g/ fat 11g

Preparation time: 10 min


High Protein Chocolate Berry ‘Cheesecake’

Ingredients

Crust:
-       ¾ cup porridge oats
-       3 tbsp. almond milk
-       Pinch of cocoa powder
-       1 small pinch of salt

Cream:
-       2 cups cannellini beans
-       ¼ cup almond milk
-       2 tsp. stevia or other sweetener of choice
-       1 scoop pea protein powder
-       Vanilla

Chocolate layer:
-       ½ tbsp. cocoa powder
-       1 tsp. stevia
-       1 tbsp. almond milk

Berry layer:
-       ½ cup berries
-       1 tsp. stevia
-       ½ scoop pea protein powder


Method

Crust:
1)      Combine the curst ingredients and mix thoroughly
2)      Put the mixture between two sheets of backing paper
3)      Roll out
4)      Transfer the crust into a cake tin or food container

Cream:
1)      Combine 2 cups of beans, ¼ cup of almond milk, stevia and vanilla and process
2)      Whisk in one scoop of pea protein powder
3)      Take ½ cup of the mixture out
4)      Stir in chocolate layer ingredient
5)      Spread the chocolate layer on the crust
6)      Add ½ cup of berries and additional sweetener to the residual cream mixture and process it
7)      Whisk in ½ scoop of protein powder
8)      Distribute the berry layer on top of the chocolate layer
9)      Garnish with coconut flakes and berries
10)     Refrigerate for at least one hour to obtain a ‘cheesecake’ like consistency

Gives four pieces. Approximate nutritional information per piece: kcal 216/ carb 33g/ protein 17g/ fat 2 g

Preparation time: 10-15 min
Cooling time: at least 1 hour

Notes: This cake has a low GI, contains mostly complex carbs and is high on protein. If you don’t try to avoid high GI carbs in your diet, you can always substitute stevia by more natural/ whole foods. Bananas and dates are a great alternative to stevia.
Protein powder: I use pea protein because it can be used as thickening agent. You could substitute it with other plant protein powders (sunwarrior vanilla is a tasty alternative), however, you have to add more to achieve the same consistency.
 

GUEST BLOG: Ground Based Nutrition, "Natures Best... Nothing Less!" - Amber Sperling

Are you looking for an all-in-one nutritional shake derived from only the finest whole foods? Look no further, Ground Based Nutrition, an innovative leader in the health and food supplement industry has you covered. 

As a plant-based athlete, I have experimented with various supplements in a pursuit to find the product which best fits my needs. With that being said, I believe I found my catalyst.Ground-Based Nutrition’s super food protein smoothie provides me with the energy I need to push-through my workouts, and provide me with a nutrition packed on-the-go drink for those hectic mornings! 

About Ground Based Nutrition

"Nature's Best... Nothing Less!",  Ground Based Nutrition emphasizes their belief that, better health starts from the ground up. In a market saturated with artificial sweeteners, man-made synthetic chemicals,  dyes, and additives, it becomes cumbersome to differentiate between what is good and bad. Ground Based Nutrition states clearly that their products are created with only the finest ingredients derived from mother earth, as nature intended; all of Ground Based Nutrition's products are made with 100% natural organic ingredients,  no artificial sweeteners, colors, dyes, additives, or man-made synthetic chemicals. 

Superfood Protein Smoothie
 

Ground Based Nutrition's Superfood Protein Smoothie is a nutritional shake which contains a blend of plant-based proteins, greens, fiber, healthy fats, vitamins, minerals and digestive enzymes.

Plant-based protein: Pea protein isolate, organic hemp seed protein, whole grain brown rice protein, sacha inchi protein, and European potato protein isolate provide a superior nutritional and functional value.

Greens: Alfalfa, wheat and barley grass combined with broccoli, kale and spirulina provide a powerful and complete super greens complex

High Fiber: Both hemp seed and sacha inchi protein are excellent sources of dietary fiber, and inulin is an all-natural soluble vegetable fiber that nourishes the good intestinal flora which helps promote digestive health and improved immune function.

Healthy Fats: Hemp seed protein and sacha inchi protein are high in essential fatty acids (EFAs) and both contain healthy Omega-3, -6 and -9 fats in an ideal ratio.   Medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) derived from coconut oil are used by the body for energy.

Vitamins & Minerals: Spirulina is a type of blue-green algae which provides vitamins, minerals and antioxidants to the body to help prevent cellular damage.  Maca is a nutritionally dense superfood that contains high amounts of minerals, vitamins, enzymes and all of the essential amino acids.

Digestive Enzymes: A proprietary enzyme blend facilitates the breakdown of nutrients for higher absorption and assimilation.

Ground-Based Nutrition’s Superfood Protein Smoothie nutritional profile is at the top of it’s competitors. Not only that, it tastes amazing and mixes easily! Check out how it stacks up against the competition here: http://www.ground-based.com/resources/daily-health-2/how-does-your-plant-based-protein-stackup.

Make sure to check out our facebook page for helpful hints, recipes, and discounts: https://www.facebook.com/GroundBasedNutrition.

More about Amber can be found at http://www.veganbodybuilding.org/amber.htm

GUEST POST: Soy Protein Isolate by Rob Di Franco

Editors note: Soya is a hotly debated issue, which is surprising as the science has all really pointed one way in recent years.  Issues of GMOs & propaganda has muddied the issue to such an extent that many people are unclear what is fact & what is fiction.  On the Vegan Bodybuilding forum we've have spent some time gathering a lot of the science about soya together.  We don't really delve so much into the whole GMO side (as the science hasn't been done on that at all), but more the whole oestrogen/feminising effects debate, you can find a lot of the research about soya & health on the forum & we are adding to it all the time as new information is discovered so you can join in & keep up to date by going here & checking out the forum. Now on with the post...

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Ideal for Vegans, Soy Protein Isolate offers a lot more to consumers than your average protein shake.

For those who are unsure, Soy Protein is made from Soya flakes that are defatted and have most of the carbohydrates removed. It’s considered an excellent protein source amongst fitness enthusiasts and contains essential amino acids.

Soy Protein Isolate also boasts the highest score of protein digestibility corrected amino acid (PDCAAS) meaning that it’s of the highest quality protein. It’s also a slow digesting product, making it ideal to consume during the evening to fuel your body throughout a period in which your body looks to recover the most (during your sleep).

Ideal for building and maintaining muscle, Soy Protein Isolate is gluten free and lactose friendly. Aimed also at improving your general health, this impressive supplement also consists of a high Arginine content, which has been shown to increase blood flow in the body, thus leading to an increased recovery time.

It was once thought that Soy Protein Isolate would affect oestrogen production but, further research has shown that it doesn’t and in fact only affects oestrogen in a positive way by contributing to healthy oestrogen levels.

Soy Protein is an ideal supplement for vegans looking for a high quality protein supplement, which is rich in amino acids and provides you with numerous health benefits. 

A note about the author:
Rob Di Franco works for the supplement company Pro-10, for more details about their company check them out here

REVIEW: American Weightlifting DVD

I just got this disc through the post yesterday.  It's the new video by Greg Everett looking at weightlifting in the US today.  If you are into weightlifting, you will know that the US is not a great weightlifting nation, but it does dominate the media in terms of reporting weightlifting.  It is the names of the Americans that most us actually know in the English speaking world.  This DVD is more of a retrospective look at the sport than I expected, it had mostly the older guys in the sport & not so much the newer people, which was fine as it helps give us some idea of where these newer people actually came from & the possibly the reasons why the US is going through something of a revival in weightlifting at the moment.  One of the best things I noticed about the DVD was the use of females of all weight classes.  It seems in society today that it is ok for the strongest guys to be bigger guys, but for some reason woman are supposed to lift big & yet be totally skinny?  Well, I do have news for you, to lift the biggest weight you are going to be big!  You will have a belly, you will not be lean, you need what could be called "functional fat".  To be honest I'm not sure the science is totally understood, but it is a fact that mass moves mass & you will never be the strongest, most powerful person without some fat.  If you are in a lighter weight class, then yes you can do well as a super lean lifting athlete, but as a super-heavy you will carry some fat to be the best whether you are male or female.  So, it was great showing that a female carrying more fat is a true athlete & to be honest my max was almost certainly her warm-up weight.

It's great to see someone other than a super-thin female lifter represented in a movie

This wasn't a movie for you if you have no interest in weightlifting.  It is not a 'how to' guide, it is simply a look at weightlifting in the US today, where it came from & where it is going in the future.  It showed youngsters lifting, a few teams lifting, if you looked it showed that if you wanted to try the sport then you should be prepared to fail as often (or more often) than you succeed, that you will be stuck at a weight for weeks, maybe months at a time & that you will never master the sport.  It is probably one of the least rewarding sports in terms of monetary or results as a lot of the time it will cost you money to do, it will take you years to actually get reasonable & then once you get beyond that every Kg will be a battle.  On the up side, every Kg you add is like a real victory, every contest you meet up with great people & there is something very unique in the lifts that cannot be found by doing curls or dumbbell kickbacks (not that I have problem with either of those exercises, but trust me when I say it is not the same as throwing a weight over your head & catching it).  For those who try it, you will either like it or you won't; for those that do like it, then this DVD is for you, for those who don't then maybe 'pumping iron' or the Ed Coan powerlifting DVD might be a better choice depending on the sort of lifting you enjoy?  I enjoyed it a lot, so hopefully some of you will as well.

GUEST POST: My Journey to the Roof of Africa by Luke Berman

BIO
Luke Berman is a vegan of six years and extremely passionate about wildlife, conservation and especially primates. He has worked for local authorities, social enterprises and charities like ‘The Conservation Volunteers’, where he developed skills in teaching people how to manage and look after the environment. He is now developing a career in Primatology and is off to Kenya in February for six months working with Colobus monkeys; before hoping to start an MSc in Primate Conservation at Oxford Brookes in Spetember 2014.

1) When and why did you decide to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro?

 
It all started in November 2012 when I wanted to do a big fund raising challenge for Wild Futures & to promote the benefits of a vegan diet. Wild Futures works to protect primates and habitats worldwide. It also has a Monkey Sanctuary where it gives ex-pet primates a home for life as they can never return to the wild. Unfortunately it is still legal to keep primates as pets in the UK and it is currently estimated there could be around 5,000 primates kept as pets. Due to the fact most primates live in large social groups and are not domesticated they suffer very badly, physically and mentally, as pets. At the Wild Futures Monkey Sanctuary some rescued monkeys have deformed bones, diabetes (caused from being given sweets) and carry out repetitive actions like rocking or head spinning.
    I have been volunteering for Wild Futures since 2005 and spent a year living and working at the Monkey Sanctuary, in Cornwall, from 2010 and have been an ambassador since 2012. This charity is very close to my heart and it was a privilege to be able to undertake this challenge for them.

2) How long have you been a vegan and what made you go vegan?

 

Uhuru Peak 5895m 'The roof of Africa'

I actual went vegetarian when staying at the Monkey Sanctuary in 2007 for a month, then when I went home two weeks later I decided to go vegan. Six years on I still believe that was the best decision I have ever made.
    Before going vegan I was a heavy meat and dairy eater and was a big stocky rugby player. As I was going through my university degree (Wildlife Conservation at Plymouth Uni) I was learning more and more about the environmental impact of a western diet, and the animal cruelty involved in producing meat and dairy. For example a vegan diet uses about a third less land than a standard western diet. Also, why should animals be cooped up in cramp, painful conditions and then be killed just so I can have a meal. I decided that I didn’t want to be a contributor to this anymore and wanted to make a positive difference. The fact it was also healthy was just a great bonus.

3) What preparation did you do for the climb? 

Joey was in a cage alone for 9 years

As mentioned earlier I decided to do the climb in November 2012 and that left me ten months to prepare; as the climb was in September 13. I already had an alright level of fitness as I like to go the gym, do long walks and running, but I knew I would need to build endurance for this challenge. You are walking for eight days for up to ten hours, so it is a mental challenge as well as a physical one. I started going for long walks on the weekends to build up my leg strength. On top of this I was doing a lot of bodyweight training, which are exercises such as push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups etc to build core strength. Within a month of the climb I started to go for eight hour walks and find as many hills as possible; the dog was very pleased.

In all honesty nothing could have prepared you for the summit climb. After climbing for six days we began the final walk to the top. Leaving at 11pm in -10 degrees and dropping to -20 we climbed 1400m in altitude and walked uphill for eight hours. After three to four hours you are relying on mental strength alone, water bottles have frozen, eyes are closing, and the top looks so very far away. Once at the top you can only stay for an hour due to the altitude and so must then climb down for three hours, have some lunch and then another three hours to the camp where you sleep. All in all it was seven days up and one and a half days down.

4) How did the rest of your group react to you being vegan?

 

Luke & the guides

There was not as much shock as I thought there was going to be. Our climb leader was a vegetarian and so was another woman, however, everyone else had a standard diet. I did get some early questions regarding how was I going to get enough energy from not eating meat and dairy, but I think the fact I was always at the front of the group and not as out of breath as the rest made them soon realise I was not going to have a problem. The best moment was when one member of the group turned round to me, about half way through the trip, and said ‘I have a whole new understanding and respect for vegans. Before I didn’t know much and thought it was unhealthy, but now I can see it is perfectly healthy.’

5) What did you eat during the trip, and was it easy to get vegan food?

  We were above the clouds for 4 days

I took high protein & carbohydrate energy bars with me, as well as bags of peanuts and raisins to snack on during the walks. The cook we had with us was excellent and went out of his way to make sure food for me was prepared correctly and without animal products. Mornings consisted of porridge made with water, I added nuts and raisins with a cup of ginger tea (an excellent pick me up in the morning). Lunch and dinner mainly consisted of a carbohydrate (pasta/rice/potatoes) with a vegetable and bean sauce. There was also a meat one for the others. The food porters would always bring my food in separately small Tupperware boxes, which was such a nice gesture. The fruit at dinner time was really appreciated as the food got quite samey.
Are there any vegan Tanzanian delicacies?
There are a couple of Tanzanian breads using local flour and water which are quite tasty, but I am afraid most of their dishes contain meat. But they do love cooking with bananas, which were lovely to eat.

6) Have you got another adventure planned?

 Joey & Charlie playing

I am looking at Tough Mudder, which is a twelve mile run through obstacles such as crawling under barb wire, running through fire and swimming through frozen water. I am definitely up for more challenges after this.

Support and keep in touch

Please do check out Wild Futures and think about adopting a monkey, which is a great way to support the charity and protect primates for the future.
www.wildfutures.org        www.adoptamonkey.org        @wildfutures

Also, donations are still being taken for my climb through justgiving – www.justgiving.com/luke-berman
My contact details:

Email – lukeberman@hotmail.com       Twitter - @lukeberman
I also coordinate activities in London for Wild Futures, please let me know if you want to get involved.

West Midlands Vegan Festival 2013

We had a great day at the West Midlands Vegan Festival.  To check out our day including the results of the push-up contest click here

REVIEW: Curry & cobnuts

This is a mixed bag of stuff today.  First off Curry!
Panjaban curry

I found these curry sauces at the London Vegfest.  The Naga was the hottest (I believe), but I also bought several milder versions to test out.  I never normally like bought curry sauces as much as those made from scratch, but these were actually pretty good.  They may not be perfect for some people on a very low calorie cutting phase, but at the moment I'm jumping up a weight class, so getting enough calories is my main issue.  If you are on an average calorie intake these will be an good choice if you want to knock out a curry at speed.  I tried four of the flavours & everyone I tried was pretty good (obviously it depends a couple are quite hot, so be aware of the hotness before buying).  I'd give them a thumbs up :-).
You can find out more about these curries by clicking here

Cobnuts

I'm not sure if you can even get these in other countries, but in the UK, for a few weeks in Autumn, you can find the elusive cobnut.  Cobnuts are a type of hazelnut.  They are grown in Kent as far as I know & that may be the only place for all I know?
These do not taste like hazelnuts.  They have a shell you can bite open (assuming your teeth are reasonable).  My method is to peel off the outside leafy cover, crunch the shell open with my teeth & then tuck into fresh cobnut! As you only get a few weeks to enjoy them, it's a brief fab treat as you have 12 months before you can get them again.
Here we go a brief cobnut background (thanks Mr Google!!!) seems there are only about 700 acres of cobnuts in the whole of the UK! I'm guessing calorie-wise they are about the same as other hazelnuts?
I think they are a super cool nut, so I thought you'd be interested.

Now all we need is for someone to invent a cobnut curry :-)