The Perfect Saturday Workout

This Saturday, I convinced my boyfriend to run the Greenwich and Filbert steps with me.  Little did I know, he would actually have to double back to help me get up the stairs during one of our 3 passes.  Yes, struck by an intense feeling of nausea, I had to sit down for a few minutes and admire the view.  My legs felt heavy, my skin cold.  Though I was so gung-ho at 8 am to do this workout, I found myself ready to call it quits halfway through.  Elliot reminded me that the "I'm going to die" queasiness meant that I was really giving it my all.  I know this, I've felt it before (running a hill near King's Park in Perth), but it's so easy to forget.  The reminder has a way of putting things into perspective.  I am doing my best.  I am working so hard that I'm making myself sick.  This is an achievement, and I should feel proud to be here, right now, feeling like this.  And it all will pass in 5 minutes.

After we rewarded ourselves with a shared Blue Bottle latte at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market (yum!), we mulled over the idea of hiking up Mount Sutro, something we'd been wanting to do for a while.  We were already out.  With often busy schedules, when might we get another chance?  Wouldn't brunch be even more delicious?  Onto the Muni we went, Sutro bound.

If it's possible to leave the city while still staying in the heart of it, this hike is the portal.  With leafy ferns, vines of gentle and violent varieties, tall trees covered by mosses and ivies, and a well maintained switch-backed path, it's easy to ignore the ascent to the top.  On the descent, you can catch your breath and remark on the beauty of it all.

Lucky for us, the mist held of just long enough for us to take cover under a tree at our bus stop, and the rain long enough for us to catch the bus home.  A perfect Saturday workout.  Good locations, good views, good company.