First Post-IM Workout

This past weekend was time for me to finally do some sort of real workout again.  We've walked a bunch since November 20, but nothing I could claim that was a "workout."  It was almost like I was nervous.  I thought about going to the gym and was wondering if I would even remember how to just "go to the gym" anymore (of course I do, but I still wondered).  Nick suggested we go to The Dish because every time we rode our bikes past it I would comment, "I still have never hiked The Dish!"


The Dish is a radio telescope in the Stanford foothills.  

It's used for academic research for the university, but the land is also a recreational area made up of a 4 mile loop for walkers and joggers.  I walked most of it (and panted as I'm still getting over a head cold and can't breathe properly), and just enjoyed the beautiful day.  


On the way out, I noticed we could see downtown San Francisco and downtown Oakland (the city is the unfocused part thanks to an uncooperative camera).

And, on the way back, I could see both cities again to the north and downtown San Jose to the south.  


For those in the Bay area looking for a leisurely walk (or running with some hills and maybe throwing in a few hill repeats) with some nice views, I recommend it.  Prior to IM, I spent a lot of time hiking and jogging Rancho San Antonio, but it's all trails and I would be pretty dirty when I got back in my car.  Although The Dish is much smaller than Rancho, it is a nice alternative because it's 100% paved.  


Training for an Ironman is hard.  Yet, here I was dreading taking that first step to do something again.  How silly is that?  But this little hike (if you can even call it that) was a really nice segue for me to start cross-training in the off season.