One week ago today I began Best Body Bootcamp. It might be time for a check-in 
Week 1 went about as I expected. Monday I was up and ready to rock the first workout. Tina’s workouts involve supersets: two workouts back to back with no rest in between. Until last Monday I had never done a superset. I had heard of them (they are very popular on many of the fitness/healthy living blogs I read), but I never gave them a shot because… they sound hard. And they are. I found that I had to use 3-5 lbs lighter than i normally do because my muscles were completely exhausted by the second exercise of the superset. Supersets are a great challenge, but I doubt I will continue with this method post bootcamp because it involves a bit more pre-planning than I’m willing to commit to and to be honest, i prefer to just lift heavy.
Tuesday, I hit snooze a few too many times and had to complete the lower body workout at home to save time. This compromised the moves slightly because I only had one 8 lb dumbbell at home, but I knocked it out and I felt good about sticking to the program despite the initial laziness. I am a big believer in “anything is better than nothing” when it comes to fitness.
The rest of the week did not match up exactly with Tina’s plan, but the program’s aim is to increase overall fitness and Tina encourages you to continue taking your favorite group classes or train for races if that is what keeps you moving. I love that about this bootcamp, but I still struggled with a little guilt for not keeping up with the schedule because I slack a little when I get to decide what I’m doing. I skipped out on most of Tina’s recommended cardio, I made sure to move daily and even tried a new ballet/Pilates class on Saturday. I will call week 1 a success with some room for improvement in my commitment level.
With that, I’d love to share the amazing day I had two weekends ago in Red Hook, Brooklyn. Red Hook is a short bike ride away from Brooklyn Heights and feels like the final frontier of hipness. I knew very little about Red Hook before this adventure other than famed Baked bakery was there. Guess where we headed first?
I tricked Ted into coming here by suggesting we stop for iced coffee. (Ted is a huge coffee fan, but does not share my obsession love for all baked goods.) I got a side-eye when we entered and this was the immediate view.
Everything, i mean EVERYTHING, at Baked looked amazing. You want a close up example you say?
Say hello to the campfire cookie. S’mores and a monstrous chocolate chip cookie fused into a giant, freshly baked hunk of heaven.
We planned to bike all day so eating everything in sight was not in the cards.
Ted opted for a mini peach pie. Solid choice.
I was about to get their famed brownie when I spotted a dense brownie/cookie hybrid and was immediately sold. It was a pinterest dream come true!
Caffeinated and pumped full of sugar, we sped off and quickly spotted one of the most amazing buildings I have ever seen, which also happened to be one of the biggest and most impressive supermarkets I have ever experienced. This Fairway puts all other Fariway locations, all TJ’s and all Whole Foods to shame. Seriously.
Maybe it was just because it was Saturday, but I have never seen such a well stocked selection of anything you could ever want in a supermarket. The produce was particularly impressive.
Why was the building so cool? Check out the backside.
The Fairway building is at the edge of Brooklyn surrounded by fabulous views.
We biked around the waterfront park and explored the piers, which had tons of old shipping equipment that now looks like art. There is also an Ikea, but that’s only cool if you have a car and are not on your bike.
Red Hook is full of interesting shops, restaurants and artwork. 
Cacao Prieto is a new store located on Conover St. and happened to be giving delicious samples of rich, dark chocolate and a number of liquors, including a chocolate rum that I would love to use in a future desert. 
The area is very hip, but still a little sleepy and laid back because it is slightly lacking in public transportation options like other hip areas of the city like Williamsburg and the East Village. You need a car, bike or must be willing to hop on the bus if you want to party in Red Hook. Despite the minor inconvenience, I highly recommend you head out for brunch and make a day of it.
Another great find: Brooklyn Crab. This restaurant has two bars, mini golf, a pool table, tons of picnic table seating great for groups and upstairs deck that was totally calling to us after our long bike ride. I wanted nothing more than a cold beer under the covered roof to lap up the gorgeous views.
Can you spot the Statute of Liberty below?
Brooklyn Crab basically has any seafood you could ever want and lots of great beer to wash it down. (Note: I just learned that Brooklyn Crab will be having free shuttle service from Caroll Gardens. Amazing.)
I hadn’t had king crab legs in ages so narrowing down the extensive platter options was easy.
We feasted and drank beer until late in the afternoon and it was honestly one of the best Saturdays of the summer.
