Snow Day

Yesterday we ended up getting about 5-6 inches of snow here in Maryland.

I swear Miss Buffay KNEW it was a snow day too. That little dog was jumping around the apartment, flinging her toys. She is worse than a little kid sometimes. “Mommy’s home today! Yipee!” 

We’ve been having some problems with static lately, as you can tell from her fur 😉

By noon the roads looked okay from my window so I hit the gym. I did a nice long session of chest and shoulders and some cardio. I’m very pleased with my progress lately. These two pictures are 8 and a half weeks apart.

What’s my secret?

Consistency.

Even when I wasn’t eating SUPER clean I lifted every day. All that muscle was under there, it was just hiding a little bit 😉

I also started to train back 2 times a week and it shows!

Some of my favorite back exercises that I think work the best:

• Old fashioned Lat pulldowns. Keep a WIDE grip to grow those wings. Remember a wider back gives the illusion of a smaller waist and we are all about that aren’t we?
• Barbell Rows. I get a better lift when I use a barbell versus dumbbells. I think it’s because one of my wrists is extremely weak. If you have problems with grip try the barbell instead. Switch up overhand and underhand grip.
• Dead lifts. I am not one of those people who love them. In fact, I HATE DEAD LIFTS. I know… how can a gym rat hate a dead lift? Well I do. I’m always afraid of aggravating my sciatica or pulling a muscle. If you do them correctly though, they are a great exercise.
• Standing lat pulldowns. By far my favorite exercise. Use the Lat pulldown bar and push the bar down to your quads and back up. You feel a great stretch in those lats on the way up!

Always remember to stretch. I’m big on cat stretches after back day. Feels so good.

Source

That’s it for today. Lift heavy and keep smiling 🙂

XOXO With a Cherry On Top,

-Minnie