Most likely.
rear end looking jacked in that pic, must be all the leg day excitement.
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All thanks to you and your friend Berry!
This is how my dad always refers to butts. So now I feel like my dad complimented my butt. Gross!
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Full-ish Body Workout
- Trap Bar Deadlift
I didn’t keep track of ramp up sets, just worked up to a few working sets of 5. Note the cutie in the background.
- Dumbbell Bench
Ugh, this reirritated my shoulder probably because I went too low with it. If you have shoulder issues, a completely full ROM on these is completely stupid. It did happen to light up the pecs though and I had really good control over the 45s.
- Lat Pulldown
Probably shouldn’t have done these considering the shoulder. But I kept it light and controlled.
- Leg Extension
Went heavier than I thought I could. Cranked out somewhere around 6-8 reps but didn’t officially count.
- Alternating Curl
Just used 22 pound dumbbells, higher rep.
- Tricep Extension
Didn’t pay attention to load or rep count, but went to somewhere around 2 RIR.
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I don’t see him… but there’s me trying Gareth Sapstead’s landmine reverse lunge without weight. I did 2 reps and my body said, “This is new. Stop. No.” I’ll try it fresh next time.
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Lmao and now I feel as old as your dad. I am dad of 2 girls and a big car guy so maybe that’s why we say rear end.
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Better “rear end” than “undercarriage” as far as I’m concerned.
+1 for girl dad / car guy
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Haha it’s a super common term but it just reminds me of him for some reason. 
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Very true! Ha!
Aw yeah! 
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Sunday Lower Workout
- Back Extension
I started focusing more on these because it occurred to me recently that my low back is not as lean as I’d like. Two things make this a controversial statement.
- It’s now trendy to do back extensions only for glute growth with the upper back curved over. But I prefer to focus on building spinal erectors because this movement will still hit my glutes due to having a long torso and extra vertebrae.
- Since about 1995, the fitness world has said there’s no such thing as spot reduction… but that’s overly simplistic. Because there is such a thing as muscle hypertrophy. And when you build an area, you change the composition, or muscle-to-fat ratio of that area, which will obviously look better with more muscle. And muscle is metabolically active, so it’s not completely unreasonable to think that adding more of it to an area will eventually make it leaner – especially if you’re eating wisely.
- Walking Lunge + Push-Up (superset)
I intended to do split lunge jumps to get some plyo in, but my shoe situation prevented that. So instead I made this more of a metcon type thing. Reminds me of the BBHH mantra Dr. Jade Teta used to write about. He said to make exercise “burning, breathless, hot, and heavy” which is fun to say and pretty fun to do.
- Machine Hip Thrust
Started with the first set too heavy. I couldn’t feel or get tension in the right place. Went down one plate and it lit up the glutes like nothing else. Added pauses at the top for some extra pain. I have some nice soreness this morning as a result.
- Front Squat
Just did a controlled 5 x 5 with plenty of rest between sets. Front squats – even light ones – are far more taxing for my body than the trap bar squats I’ve been doing, so I do both (not on the same days). But one thing you can say for sure about the trap bar: you get a nice arm, shoulder, and back pump while doing a lower body lift, which is a perk. With straight bar squats, sure, you might build more lower body muscle but there’s no accidental hulking-out of the upper body.
- Stability Ball Ham Curl
If this is too easy for you, good news! You’re doing it wrong, and you have a brand new opportunity to grow. It doesn’t matter how strong your hamstrings are, you can always make this one harder. Simply doing it right is the first step.
Other Stuff
I don’t keep track of body fat percentages and hardly ever step on a scale. Why? Because once you’re in the healthy ranges, these numbers don’t really matter. You either look and feel great or you don’t.
That said, on rare occasions, I’ll step on a scale to see what I weigh just as a point of reference for future potential goals.
So this is 153 with no pump:
If I could wave a magic wand and gain 10 pounds of pure muscle I would, but I don’t think that’s doable and I’m not willing to gain a lot more fat just to add a little more muscle. Traditional bulking has never worked well for me; it has only made me chubby. But if you love it or enjoy it, yay! Do what works.
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Upper Body (Fueled with Igniter)
Woke up with achy shoulders, so I had to start today’s workout with some banded arm drills:
- No Money Drill
- Overhead Raise Drill
Within the first set of these, I developed a shoulder pump. Yay!
- Machine Chest Press
I need to figure out some better shoulder-friendly chest exercises because this was not great. It forces you into a pronated grip and the strength curve makes no sense. Might as well have done a conventional bench press.
- Lat Pulldown
Super controlled reps, moderate load.
- Trap Bar Loaded Carry + Push-Up (superset)
Loaded carries are the best. Probably didn’t need the push-ups though considering the shoulder irritation. Lesson learned.
- Alternating Curl
I started with a one-minute isometric hold and then did a few sets of alternating curls with a mechanical drop set into hammer curls. Arms got huge.
And another thing…
Anyone else see the Sturgeon Moon a couple nights ago? Here’s an unimpressive iphone picture to show you how it didn’t look.
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Self Doubt, Sensitivity, and Plausible Deniability
There are people who will make you feel small and insecure in certain situations. And if I clock that the first time, I will question my own perspective, doubt myself, and try to do better. I’ll refrain from making any judgments against the person.
If I clock it a second time, I’ll trust my instincts, but give that person the benefit of the doubt. Maybe it was a bad day or a bad week. Or maybe I’m rubbing him the wrong way for some reason… and hope that next time will be better.
But if I clock it a third time, it’s a pattern that’s building. And there’s no point in trying to figure out why someone is being a hypercritical turd. It’s better to just remove yourself from their presence, in this case the improv-101 class I was doing with Chris.
And so, I’m out. This is a hobby, not a career. Hobbies are supposed to be fun and the beginner class is no longer fun.
The thing that makes this tricky is the plausible deniability. Because if you address it, the person making you feel shitty can just say, “I was just teaching you. Can’t you handle instruction?” Or, “I just have high expectations for you since you’re in the advanced class.” Or “You need to develop a thicker skin and be less insecure.”
And all of that may be true, but if you’re sensitive enough, you can tell when the way someone treats you has shifted from being productive and warm to being catty and judgy. At this point, their goal is no longer to make you better, but to intimidate you. It can be very subtle. But for my brain, it’s poison.
Especially if I like and trust someone. If that person makes me feel ashamed when I’m trying my best, then I will start adopting their beliefs (that I’m not good enough) and it’ll seep into other areas of life.
So the win for me is stepping away. I don’t hate this person at all, but for whatever reason, I’m not his cup of tea right now, and that’s okay.
I just refuse to spend another minute playing the shit-on-Dani-game.
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Honestly, I love the way you dealt with this.
I’m the type to either respond with claws out, or just NGAF because I’m arrogantly confident about most things. Both of my responses would not have been attractive to see coming from a woman.
Keep doing what you’re doing, Dani.
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Thank you! I actually wish I could be more like you. But I would handle it so poorly that I’d lose my cool and my credibility to anyone observing.
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You have done the right thing and I applause your perception and intelligent response.
We at TN still think you are amazing Dani and lets face it, that is all that really matters. 
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Hahaha that is super sweet and totally makes my day. 
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Well, if this is the case, there is always another hobby. Start writing novels and publish on Amazon?
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Love the suggestion! New hobbies are always a cool idea. I’m going to finish out the advanced improv class and then play it by ear in September.
I still want to get a better grasp on practical shooting but my progress is stagnant at the moment. So I have a coaching call in about an hour with a shooting expert/trainer who’s going to teach me about mental management.
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I don’t like people like that. If somebody thinks they have to be like that, they were either taught wrong or they learned wrong.
That doesn’t make it ok though. They still suck. But my preference is that they suck somewhere else or with someone else.
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I agree, and at the same time I have to make sure I’m not blowing things out of proportion. So the first couple times it happens I have to ask, “am I being too sensitive?”
Maybe? I don’t really know.
But I do know that if you feel worse every time you’re around someone — who may start to negatively influence your self image — the solution isn’t to try to become the version of who they want you to be, it’s to leave.
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