BAY Hiking

The Bay Area is one of those places that has incredibly effortless access to awesome hikes, great views, and city life. It's a great place for people who like to stay active... which is why I sort of envision the prototypical Bay Area Yuppie to reek of the following characteristics:

• yoga enthusiast
• membership to a climbing/crossfit/aerial yoga gym
• some kind of animal person (most likely dog so you can take it on your outdoor adventures with you)
• foodie with [typically self-imposed] dietary restrictions
• has tried online dating

It's incredibly easy to get into all these things with how well tech jobs pay in San Francisco. And understandably, if you have the means to care for your health, why not? Yoga builds flexibility and strength; climbing/crossfit gives you a total body exercise; et cetera, et cetera.

Maybe, like me, you are averse to the conventional and don't want to succumb to yuppie-hood. I like to think I maintain some semblance of my roots through basketball and frugality. In many ways, however, I am on my way to assimilating BAY characteristics for what they are worth. Health, independence, being career-oriented... they're pretty decent qualities for people my age...

Hiking here is especially rewarding (especially with a great partner to motivate these explorations). Outdoor running in the Bay Area never gets boring. It burns my legs but it's never boring. Here are some examples:

San Bruno Mountain State Park, Daly City/Brisbane

The Dish Trail at the Stanford Foothills, Stanford

Westborough, South San Francisco

The Big C, Berkeley

Beaches along PCH (Pacifica -> Pescadero)

Muir Woods National Monument, Mill Valley

Hills... mountains... beaches... the Bay Area has it all. It is reason enough to move out here for at least some portion of your life. 

Granted, the above hiking ventures were not strenuous by any means. As my knee improves (18 weeks post-surgery this week!), I've been able to get out a lot more. I am still not in ideal shape, however. The inactivity had me gain a bit of pudge which my knees have been complaining about. (WebMD says 1 pound of weight loss unloads 4 pounds of joint stress in people with osteoarthritis)

Since we're doing the Alps this summer in Europe, I've decided to go ham with a weight loss goal and ward off any shame while changing my dietary habits. It's taking a lot just to write about it in a public blog... mostly because people around me keep telling me I don't need to lose weight and as a result, I feel shame for wanting to. Based on appearance alone and healthy weight ranges, I don't need to lose anything. But as someone who likes to stay active with a slowly recuperating knee, I definitely need the stress relief. So let me wave off society for a bit and let me subject myself to my own goals. 

#trainingforthealps