Shoulder day! I changed up my shoulder workout last week. These are a few exercises from my workout. They had my arms burning after. I was actually quite bit sore the next day! I love that feeling. šŖš»
1ļøā£ Upright row with rope 4×10-12
2ļøā£ Behind back lat raise 4×10-12
3ļøā£ Cable front raise with rope 4×10-12 (my right arm burns out around 8-10)
4ļøā£ Single dumbbell front raise 4×10-12
Happy lifting šŖš»š
I found this picture a few years ago and was shocked at how tiny I looked! My arms were so scrawny! I remember thinking back then I was āfatā and had weight to lose. I would spend almost two hours in the gym some days. I wish I could go back and slap my former self! š³
When I was a teacher, I always started our mental health chapter by showing this picture and beginning the discussion of body dysmorphia. I would explain that sometimes you canāt see what others see, especially when it comes to your body.
Body dismorphia by definition is the obsessive idea that some aspect of one’s own body part or appearance is severely flawed and warrants exceptional measures to hide or fix their dysmorphic part.
This was a topic I actually spent two days on in both my health and leadership classes. Body dismorphia has become so prevalent, especially with the amount of social media channels now available.
Two days may seem like a long time to discuss a topic like body dismorphia but youād be amazed at how into the topic they got! Kids will tell you the struggles of social media and how it affects their view of themselves. Itās brutal for kids now days. Its just my opinion, but Iām thankful I grew up in a time with no social media and cellphones that didnāt take pictures!
One of my favorite discussion questions to ask was āif we did away with social media (yes I know we never will but letās just say hypothetically) would body dismorphia be less prevalent?ā
We then followed up with a question like….. ādo you think social media makes kids/teens now days tougher or weaker?ā This question led to a full day of back and forth discussion (most of the time). In my leadership class we actually used it as a debate question when we did our debate section.
I was so incredibly impressed by the raw honesty of some of the kids in my classes. I was pretty quiet in HS and was always afraid to share my opinion for fear of ridicule. Obviously thatās changed now! š
I have my moments where Iām critical of myself, but I think Iām more logical now. Maybe thatās something that comes with age. But I look back at old pictures vs current and I feel like I know what āhealthyā looks like now on my body. I also use social media as a tool! I love to read what new recipes people are trying or how other moms are getting through similar struggles. Yes social media has negative aspects and some people use it to vent and complain. But if you ignore all of that there are some really fantastic people out there in the world talking about so many great things. Find those people who encourage you and follow them! Remember, positivity breeds positivity! š
Today I went to the gym to try to get my body moving. Itās been over 24 hours since my fever broke. I always press for people to avoid workout when sick or right after sick. However, light exercise right after being sick is ok, depending on the illness. I took to a spin bike and did light resistance. Just a little to get my legs moving and blood flowing. šŖš»
Ever wonder why they say not to workout while sick or before your fever breaks? Hereās a brief explanation why……
Stress of workouts creates these microtears in our muscles. These microtears from the stress are a normal process of damage and repair. The body uses inflammation to signal and start to repair the damage caused by working out. Inflammation in the body is maintained by the immune system. When you workout while sick or before your body has fully recovered from being sick you are diverting the immune system away from fighting the infection. Instead itās working to repair muscles. If you were almost over the illness, you can actually cause it to come back!
While working out is great for our health, in some instances it can be damaging. Listen to your body. If you donāt have much energy, or feel exhausted, the gym is obviously not a good idea. Wait until you are feeling a little more like yourself. Make sure you have an appetite, especially if you are like me and got that 24 hour flu bug! Make sure your body is ready to go back. When it is, ease into your workout to be safe. Better to start out slow than push yourself and do more damage! š³
You only get one body in this lifetime! Take care of it! š
Recently someone asked me why I do bosu squats because everything they read said they are horrible to do and can cause injury. This is semi true. You should NEVER do bosu squats on the ball side. There is not enough stability for your ankle and leg. Performing heavily loaded squats, lunges, hip thrusts, or deadlifts with your feet on the ground is risky enough. Stepping onto an unstable surface while performing big movements like those only increases your risk of injury.Ā When you are on an unstable surface, your body is working to keep its balance and because of that your muscles are ādistractedā from the task at hand
Bosu squats on the flat side are ok to do. This is because you have a flat (semi) stable surface. You arenāt fighting to keep your balance as if you would on the ball side. Placing the Bosu with the flat-side up is great for building core strength ( abs/lower back area) and improving overall balance while toning abs
Hope this gave a little more clarity! Happy Friday! š
ā¢Bosu ball squats 4×12
ā¢Side lunges (both sides) 4×10-12
ā¢Cable bar squats 4×12
The bosu squats definitely take some balance. I would try them without a weight first just to get your footing and make sure your comfortable doing them. If itās too difficult for you to balance with the bosu ball, forget the ball and just do regular squats! Better safe than sorry! š
Good side vs bad side. We all have them. No Iām not talking about good vs evil. Iām talking about your left vs your right side of body! We all have a side that ālooks bestā in our opinion so we typically turn that side to a camera when taking a picture. Some people do it without even realizing it!
My good side is my left. Which is weird because I have a big scar on the left side of my nose that I hate. That aside, I still like my left side better. If you notice, in pictures itās always me turned to show my left side or my left arm is the one thatās out. Thatās because I have nerve damage in my right arm and hand from years of gymnastics and cheerleading. It causes me a lot of pain making it hard to lift on that side. I strain a lot when working out because of the weakness of the arm and the pain from the nerve damage. My right side doesnāt build muscle the way my left does. So my left arm always looks more toned than my right.
I know it sounds ridiculous but itās my little insecurity. We all have them and this is mine! Does my right arm look bad? No! Does it look oddly different from the left? No! I just prefer how the left looks to the right. So I know when I do pictures itās always on the left side.
This may seem like a minor and stupid insecurity but itās mine! Everyoneās insecurities are different. We all have them, we are human. The goal is to make sure you donāt fester on them. Work with or around your insecurities! Donāt let your insecurities, no matter how big or small, direct your life. God gave us two ācheeksā for a reason ššŖš»
Food can be VERY deceiving. People see certain meals and because there are healthy items in them, they automatically think itās a healthy meal. What we often forget is the added sauces and things that completely kill the meal. For example, my dinner last night was an ahi tuna salad. It has seared tuna, arugula, mango, tomato, noodles, avocado, almonds and a ginger dressing. Doesnāt sound too bad right? Take a look at the nutrition breakdown:
920 cals
64g fat
60g carbs
33g sugar
36g protein
Notice how high the calories and sugars are! 920 calories in ONE serving. Just because itās a salad does not mean itās going to be healthy. The little items like dressing, noodles, and the avocado jack up the sugar, fat and calories drastically! Yes things like avocado are great for you. But in the proper amounts. If you removed the dressing, noodles and cut the avocado amount in half, you would see a drastic drop in these numbers
By no means am I telling you to not eat certain things. Im just encouraging you to be cautious. Enjoy a salad like this every so often. But I wouldnāt recommend it daily. As I said before, just because something has healthy items in it, that doesnāt make it healthy for you. Know what youāre eating! Donāt be afraid to be high maintenance at a restaurant and ask to remove things or put dressing on the side. Especially if youāre trying for a healthier option. You can make restaurant meals work for you and your diet!
Happy eating! š“šš
āStrength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.ā -Napoleon Hill
I love this picture. It was taken in 2013 on Lake Lewisville just outside of Dallas. I got this crazy idea to do a handstand on the nose of the boat. I held it for a good three seconds before a wave hit from another boater and knocked me over the side. š
I used to love to do handstands anywhere, on anything. I got it from my father. He was a gymnast growing up and whenever he went to a new city he would pick a landmark or a cool location and do a handstand picture.
When I got pregnant with Ryder I had major balance issues. It was a weird feeling. I was a gymnast and a cheerleader so balance was never a problem for me before. While pregnant I was constantly stumbling or running into things. It was almost like being tipsy drunk, just without the alcohol! My doctor said that happens to some people but it eventually goes away. It went away completely about 6 months after I had him. And thank goodness because itās not a fun feeling to have regularly. I had so many bumps and bruises on my legs from running into things. It was not a pretty sight.
I donāt know that Iāll ever do a handstand on the nose of a boat again but Iād like to think maybe one day I could. Iām still building back my upper body strength and working on my balance. For now Iāll stick with on the ground handstands. But this will forever be my favorite handstand picture. Iāll keep it as my āgoal picture.ā Balancing on a boat just standing is one thing, but doing it in a handstand position is a whole other level!
Everyone has goals, big and small. It’s your focus and determination that will get you there!
ā¢Side step squats with plate
ā¢Front lunges
ā¢Barbell deadlift
The side squats take a little coordination since youāre squatting then lifting the plate. Sometimes I look funny because I zone out, get off on my squat/lift and get myself all confused. š
I typically do 4 sets of 12 for each. But you can adjust to whatās best for you! Happy lifting!
ā¢Close grip lat pulldowns
ā¢Rows
ā¢Straight arm pull downs
ā¢Wide grip lat pulldowns
I typically do 4 sets of 10 for each exercise but youāre free to do whatever works for you! Happy lifting! šŖš»
Fit Dallas Mom Blog 