This week I’ve been a little more pumped than usual about doing healthy activities, and way more engaged in my fitness routine (not that I haven’t been before). I’ve been thinking of some great obstacle course events to join again for quite some time now – though can’t get any of my fitness crowd friends to sign up for a Spartan race with me. Oh well….if anything, there’s always the less serious course called ROC. Aka Ridiculous Obstacle Challenge.

Finally….an excuse to wear my Spider-Man costume. (Sorry DC Comics.)

Clearly, you can see why it’s called ridiculous. Ridiculous…but fun. The best part is they have these obstacles all over the Unites States and Canada. So what do you do? Well…grab some friends, register for the event and buy the tickets. Then, suit up for the occasion. If bringing a group of more than five, I recommend dressing like The Avengers. Grab first dibs on Iron Man because well…he’s awesome. Or Thor….Thor works too.

Grab your Gatorade and hydrate well…because you’re in for a swarm of moon bounces, wrecking balls, gorilla bars and Tarzan swings. Don’t be fooled – though this sounds fun, it’s also just a pinch of a challenge. I mean come on – you’ve gotta lose some calories for the live music and beer garden afterwards. Yes – there are rewards for acting like your 5 years old again. Rolling around the mud and all. It’s 5k…so make sure your cardio levels are up. Who am I kidding – it’s not a real race, just an excuse to let loose. So have fun.

Lots and lots of fun.

What about after all that (partially) exhausting running around…? You’re used to being pampered, and after a day of being in the mud my guess is you’re looking for a manicure and a deep massage…maybe a soak in a Jacuzzi. Well, forget the Jacuzzi – it’s time to upgrade to better things – like hot springs. That’s right – if you’re gonna do it, might as well do it right – and the right way is the one with natural healing agents.

Prepare to feel those sore muscles relax.

I won’t lie…it’s been a stressful week for me. Somehow, I ran into the unfortunate incident of being screamed at by a midget. A midget. Don’t get me wrong – I have nothing against the little people….but damn – hostility much?

Which is why if you do choose to check out Jefferson Springs this weekend – you may just run into me there. Be sure to smile, say hello, share some stories. I don’t bite – might hug though. *shrugs* it’s been emotional. Anyway back on track – you’re probably wondering why it’s called Jefferson Springs and where the heck it’s located. Well, for starters, you can find these epic hot springs at Canyon Ranch SpaClub at the Omni Homestead, located in Hot Springs (go figure), Virginia .

Now for a little history lesson. To put it simply – after your well deserved massage and a bit of archery, you’ll be soaking in the same waters Thomas Jefferson once did back in August of 1818. It was a 22 day visit…the guy had rheumatism, apparently. Maybe that was an excuse, who knows, either way, the place is nice. So nice, that he logged his stay (and the price – only $2.12 per day, back in his time), and wrote (bragged) to his daughter that it was one of the finest springs in America….and voila. It was named in his honor.

After all that soaking, get creative with some buddies and reenact a battle scene off of Assassin’s Creed 3. For all you know, it may bring you closer to TJ’s life in the 1800’s…even if the timeline is a little off – *shrugs* still a good excuse.

Alright so you’re all detoxed and renewed and what not…what’s a great way to finish off a weekend? A field trip. To a gin distillery. That also makes whisky…and vodka….and we can’t forget rum. I’m talking about CH Distillery conveniently located in Chicago, IL right off the I-94, between Clinton and (can you believe it) Jefferson. Remember those field trips to the water plants when you were in grade school as a kid? Well, think another form of liquid, and there you go.

In case you’re wondering what the “CH” in their name stands for – it’s pretty simple. I’ll give you chem students a chance to think on that one for a minute.

…….no? Haven’t figured it out yet? Alright well….CH is, simply put, carbon and hydrogen. the key components in alcohol. So basically, when you visit here, you’ll get to see these guys make their spirits from scratch – in their state of the art facility. The best part is, you can raise your glass in pride the next time you toast, because they also support their local community – everything is both grown and harvested locally. So the money stays where it should be. Quality…consideration….attention to detail….

What better reason to support drinking?

Get this – you can sip on your G&T while watching how that same gin in your glass is made…talk about being close to the farm. Speaking of farm – there’s food too. If you’re on a date, remember this post and you can give him/her a little background on the place – it’ll make you seem more cultured – especially to the girls…girls dig cultured 😉

They also have bottles to go – so you can move it from the bar stool to your decked out skyline view city pad.

Gotta love Chicago.

– Rego

For The Weekenders: Not-So-Serious Fitness Fun, Hot Springs and Spas, Gin Distillery Getaways is a post from and appeared first on Rego’s Life