Hi guys!
Sorry for the hiatus this morning. I admittedly succumbed to peer pressure last night and stayed up later at the hotel bar than I intended to. I didn’t have too much to drink, but I had a really good night with my co-workers. It was fun getting to know the folks I hadn’t met until this trip, and there were just a lot of laughs had!
Here’s where we spent the majority of our night:
However, last night’s fun in the lounge didn’t seem as fun this morning when my wake up call came ringing at 4:00am so we could get to the airport on time for our 6:00am flight. Woof. I not only get cranky when I’m hungry, but I get cranky when I’m tired too.
Flights home were pretty standard. Airport eats today included a banana, an egg white & cheddar breakfast sandwich on a skinny wheat bagel, and a nuts/dried fruit mix for the plane ride itself. Once we finally landed after a very bumpy flight, I was happy to be home, happy to have a few hours of downtime this afternoon, and was even happier that Tim had the afternoon off so we could catch up before my class tonight. With my crazy schedule lately we haven’t had much quality time, so when I got home we headed over to Cityside and just hung out for a bit. I had a big Cobb salad with no bacon for lunch, but it was just okay. I also tried to have a beer or two but really wasn’t feeling it too much today. As you guys know, I’m not normally a weekday drinker and did let myself indulge a bit more than usual this week!
Around 6 I headed home for week five of class (the class is over the phone), and I’m now ready to eat dinner and then faceplant.
But first, this week’s Move of the Week!
Modified Inverted Row
Looooove this move! I’m new to it, so I’ve started out with the modified version which means my feet are flat on the floor with my knees bent instead of keeping my legs straight out in front of me. I did try to do that first and it was too hard, so now I’m determined to build up!
Plus, this gem is great for me to make sure my shoulder muscles stay balanced. If you’re a new reader to Fitness & Feta, last fall I went through a really not so fun shoulder impingement injury that came about because I was working certain shoulder muscles more than the others. The inverted row is a great rear shoulder and upper back strengthener. So if you are like me and love your pushups and bench presses, it’s really important to incorporate moves like the inverted row as well so the muscles on the front side of your upper body won’t overpower the weaker ones in the back.
Here’s how you do it!
Start by lying supine on the floor with your shoulders under a secure barbell. Grab the bar with an overhand, shoulder-width grip. Make sure to keep your arms completely straight. Bend your knees 90 degrees, keep your feet flat on the floor, and lift your hips to form a straight line from shoulders to knee.
Step 2
Pull your shoulder blades back, then pull with your arms to lift your chest to the bar. Make sure to keep your core tight!
Step 3
Pause, then slowly lower back to the starting position. That’s one rep!
For a circuit strength workout that incorporates this move, click over to this post and check it out. It’s from Tina at Best Body Fitness, so I can’t take credit for it! I did this in a pyramid style so for Set 1 I did 15 reps, for Set 2 I did 12 reps, and for Set 3 I did 8 reps. I must say, these were so challenging to me and I had to stop during the set of 15 and then start up again.
If you try these out, let me know how they go!
Anyone ever tried these before? Does anyone have any other favorite rear shoulder / upper back moves you’d like to share?
I’m off to order Naked Pizza for dinner. I’m in DIRE need of some grocery shopping after being on the road this week, but I’m leaving that to tomorrow’s agenda.
Night, friends!