21 Apr 2010

R: Another infamous Riis outting was actually pretty tame. We headed out to a local beer garden in Astoria despite the gross weather and found ourselves in what is probably one of the diviest beer gardens I've ever been too. I was actually surprised that the beer list was so short (twenty or so listed on the menu), but I enjoyed my Golden Pheasant and whatever it is I drank afterwards.

C: To help with the jet lag, I purchased a couple of inexpensive workout DVDs to take with me to Nigeria. A few of our lab staff who more frequently travel swear that it helps reset the internal clock. Ironically, I actually anticipated that the trip would be a good jump-start to strict regimen for exercise, something I've been trying to establish for awhile now.

Of course, I am still in Boston. The weather has been favorable enough for running, but I figured that I start with the DVDs since I bought them already. For $10, I got a solid, 50-minute lesson that worked the core (of course), the arms and even a decent workout for my legs. The latter has always been a challenge for me, as I am an hourglass-leaning-toward-a-pear-shape; despite being a runner for the better part of a decade, Papa's muscle-building genes did me no favors toward achieving slender, girly legs. So far I've found that intermittent workouts and minimizing runs is the only way to avoid thunder thighs and monster calves that only guys seem to envy.

Though I suspect the muscle fatigue that I'm feeling today is probably more due to being unstretched, I find this promising towards building a leaner shape in my bottom half. However, the nearly pancaked bottoms of the instructor and her class worry me a bit, but I suppose a good stair workout every now and then can fix that easily...