Robert promotes vegan bodybuilding worldwide and has appeared in FLEX Magazine and Natural Bodybuilding & Fitness Magazine. Visit his website, www.veganbodybuilder.com, for more photos, information, contests, message board and more.

What do you like best about being vegan?

There is an endless list that describes the things I like about being vegan. If I had to choose what I like "best" I'd have to say is the fact that I am saving lives and having a positive influence on the environment, and ultimately the planet. Other things I like about being vegan include my high energy level, the unique opportunity I have to influence others and assist in their transformation to a healthier way of living, and the fact that there are so many great vegan foods. There is a vegan alternative to nearly every non-vegan food, and nearly 100 percent of the time the non-vegan alternative is much healthier and better for you. It also causes less damage to our environment to produce the vegan foods. In my opinion, and the opinion of many, choosing a vegan lifestyle is one of the best things you can do for your health, and for the health of our planet.

What do you think of these bodybuilding magazines which promote eating so much meat? Reading them can make you feel like there's no way to be a veg teen and gain muscle without the protein from meat.

The first thing to understand is that these massive bodybuilders featured in the magazines (depending on which magazine you look at), did not get that way as a result of eating meat. The majority of them are genetically gifted athletes who train hard, but rely on anabolic steriods and muscle enhancing drugs to gain their muscle mass and build their physiques. Of course, many of them do eat meat but not all of them. They promote meat eating because that is what they do (eat meat) and for some reason attribute their muscle building success to the consumption of meat. Protein is the key element they are seeking, and meat is just one form of that. Just as I promote vegan proteins like tofu and isolated soy protein and attribute those proteins to my bodybuilding success.

Back to the magazines...I do like the muscle magazines like FLEX (which I've appeared in each of the past three years) and Muscle & Fitness, etc. because they feature bodybuilders who initially sparked my interest in bodybuilding and inspired me to be a bodybuilder myself. I am also friends with many professional bodybuilders, so it's nice for me to read the magazines to see what they have been up to.

Don't get discouraged as you look through those magazines. Realize that most of them are filled with advertisements for ridiculus, muscle-enhancing drugs and photos of unattainable physiques that are fun to look at. Some magazines do supply a decent amount of training and nutrition information, and some supply a very high quality amount of information to help you build your body and improve your health. Keep in mind most of their information is targeted and directed toward meat-eating, drug-using bodybuilders. Check out some of the natural bodybuilding magazines like Natural Bodybuilding & Fitness or Muscle Media Magazine as well as many others. They focus on natural bodybuilders and fitness athletes with attainable physiques. Many of them also focus on the consumption of animal products, but that is just a representation of our society. I will have a book coming out next year that is all about vegan bodybuilding, fitness, and healthy living. Read it for inspiration and quality information on how to achieve your desired results the compassionate way, with vegan muscle!

What kind of supplements do you take?

I do take supplements, but I don't believe that they are in any way necessary. The only reason I take them is because I'm a bodybuilder and like to have excess amounts of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, etc. because my workout program is so strenuous and taxing on my body.