🏋️‍♂️ do these 7 moves to craft a bigger, stronger back

Today’s BarBend Newsletter is a can’t-miss. In this edition, you’ll score muscle-sculpting tips, a motivational feature story, and more fitness knowledge than you can shake a dumbbell at.

Here’s what to expect this Hump Day:

• Seven row variations to broaden your back.

• How a busy working mom found the time to prep for a Bikini bodybuilding show.

• A 73-year-old powerlifter’s massive deadlift.

Now, let’s get to the good stuff.

Exercise Tips

Back to Work

A big back signals to the world that you know a thing or two about hoisting heavy weights. You’ve paid your dues to forge a broad pair of wings and dense traps, and that likely includes countless sets of deadlifts, carries, and rows.

But if you really want to maximize all that real estate between your glutes and shoulders, you can’t repeat the same ol’ exercises over and over. You need a variety of moves that hit your muscles from every angle.

We’ve got you covered. Peep our list of seven row variations below, and you’ll learn why and how to implement each to build a well-rounded, powerful back.

Bodybuilding

The Balancing Act

Prepping for a bodybuilding competition can seem like a full-time job. So, what do you do if you already have a 9-to-5? Oh, and a new baby at home? Jennifer Parise can tell you.

After giving birth in February 2022, this new mom and busy flight attendant buckled down and entered her first Bikini division bodybuilding competition. And despite the cartoonishly hectic schedule, she scored a third-place finish in her class at her debut back in April. And that’s without adjusting her work hours to accommodate her training.

How did she do it? We got Parise to share her top tips and tricks for balancing a hectic personal and professional schedule with the demands of physique show prep.

News

Pulling Chains

Age is just a number. And 73-year-old powerlifter Mary Duffy proved this old adage right and pulled out another impressive number: 140.6 kilograms (310 pounds). That’s how much the Amateur Masters powerlifter managed to deadlift (chains included) during a recent training session, which she shared on her Instagram page.

That mighty pull was nearly triple Duffy’s body weight and edges out the 136-kilogram (300-pound) raw trap bar deadlift that she notched back in 2022. While it’s unclear when she’ll step on the competition platform again, one thing is certain: With numbers like those, it’s only a matter of time before she impresses again.

Everything Else

Conan the Barbarian Is No Hulk

• Arnold Schwarzenegger looms large in Hollywood history as a blockbuster star, but he apparently came up short for the role of the Hulk.

• New York Times Bestselling Author (and Schwarzenegger’s personal advisor) Adam Bornstein recently joined the BarBend Podcast to discuss his new book You Can’t Screw This Up. If you need a new perspective on dieting, this is it.

• And lastly, if you want a creative way to get stronger abs and boost your endurance, learn how to master the plank jack today.