fitness

Zinfandel Trail in Cupertino

 in Fitness  tagged fitness / hiking / lifestyle / outdoor fitness by
zinfandel trail cupertino

Hiking outfit: black jacket / tee-shirt / jeans / G buckle belt / backpack / waterbottle / spring nail polish / hiking boots /

Last weekend, we decided to check out the Zinfandel Trail in Cupertino. This trail is adjacent to a beautiful winery by the name of Picchetti Winery. It is also part of the Steven Creek County Park which we have hiked in before.

This is a fabulous trail whether you are hiking with children, or a group who might be interested in wine tasting after the hike. We were with friends who had small children, and they were able to hike for two hours without complaining! It was great! That being said, don’t think is an easy trail. There are hills, twists and turns. If you hike the entire trail, you will end up on the other side of the reservoir; which is a long hike, but worth it for the beautiful views and amazing exercise.

I really enjoyed the Zinfandel Trail because a good portion of it was in the shade. This meant we had enough sun and shade to not overheat or get burned. Of course, always wear sunscreen! We did!

There were some cute little wildlife sightings along the trail which the kids enjoyed. We saw large and furry caterpillars, as well as various types of lizards in red, green, and grey. There was a variety of birds, and an unidentified animal sound which the kids enjoyed trying to guess what they heard.

The one sad part about this trail is that you can see how low the reservoir is right now during our drought. To top it off, the pond along the trail is completely dry. We are in the middle of spring, which is the end of our rainy season. This means our ponds and reservoirs should be full and thriving. Unfortunately, that is not the case at all. Let’s pray for an odd rainstorm to help us out!

Despite being low, the reservoir still provided a beautiful view and a glimpse at some pretty water. The Zinfandel Trail does provide some spectacular views! You will be rewarded for the work you put in to hike it. I would call this a medium trail.

Of course, if you leave the kids at home, the winery opens at 11am for wine tasting. You can not only have the reward of fabulous views, but a little vino too! Love that! We had kids with us, so we admired the pretty winery from afar.

The Zinfandel Trail can be accessed off Montebello Road which is off Stevens Canyon Road. It is an easy find off highway 85.

I hope you have a chance to check out this beautiful trail!

Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO
Cathy

Spring 2022 fitness routine and gear

 in Fitness / Shopping  tagged fitness / fitness gear / spring 2022 by
spring fitness gear routine

Spring 2022 fitness gear from top left: spin shoes / yoga mat / yoga socks / weight set / fitness shoes / hiking boots / leggings /

Spring is here, and my hip has healed. Yay!! This means I can finally get back into a somewhat normal workout routine for the spring season. Of course, a healed hip does not give me carte-blanche to go back to the way I was working out last summer, I did end up with a little bit of collateral damage.

Once my hip had healed, I decided to go on a walk with some steep hills. This was not a good idea after having not been doing anything for three months. I ended up getting some sharp pains in the arch of my foot and have been dealing with an injury to my arch since November. Now that we are into the spring season, my foot is healing, and with proper orthotics inserted into my shoes, I can finally do a fitness routine seemingly close to how I normally workout.

In order to protect my planter fasciitis tendon, I need more than proper arch support, I need to insure I am doing exercises which will not put strain on my arch yet allow me to rebuild the muscle I may have lost from months of not working out at the level I previously enjoyed. This means low impact cardio, limited squats and lunges, and allowing for rest days in between heavy days. So, without further ado, here is my current spring fitness routine!

Monday: BodyCombat (I am doing this cardio kickboxing class without jumping or any impact. I am still getting a good workout and protecting my arch.)

Tuesday: 30-minute Core class and 50-minute yoga class (this allows me to not put pressure on my foot while still getting a little workout, building strength, and stretching out)

Wednesday: Spin class (this is low impact, and if I feel pressure underneath my foot, I can sit down during the standing portions of class. This is a great way to get a cardio workout while protecting my foot)

Thursday: Cardio machine such as the PhysioStep or LifeCycle, full free weight workout, 15-minutes of core work, and at least 20-minutes of stretching. This is a great way to control my workout and build strength without injuring myself.

Friday: 30-minute walk and stretching

Saturday: Rest, rest and rest!

Sunday: Hiking with my family, who is very understanding if I need to rest and/or stop

Well, that’s it! This fitness routine for spring is currently working really well and protecting my foot while rebuilding my strength. What are your favorite spring workouts?

Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO
Cathy

Stevens Creek County Park hiking trails

 in Fitness  tagged fitness / fitness gear / hiking / hiking gear / lifestyle / outdoor fitness by
stevens canyon hiking trails stevens creek county park cupertino california
stevens creek county park hiking trails cueprtino
stevens creek county park hiking trails stevens canyon cupertino hiking outfit ideas

Wearing: winter jacket (machine washable and packable! Under $100) / knit hat (old, also love this one) / long sleeve tee / backpack / G buckle belt / light wash skinny jeans / spring nail polish / hiking boots (old, also love this pair) /

How pretty is this view! We hiked at Stevens Creek County Park for the first time last weekend, and it was a real treat! This large park puts you out in the wilderness just steps from Cupertino. There is a large network of hiking trails, some of which allow dogs, if your dog enjoys hiking too. You can also ride your bike on the some of the trails. Please refer to the trail map when you arrive to see which trails allow dogs and/or bikes.

The hiking trails at Stevens Creek County Park start from the multiple picnic areas where you can enjoy a picnic and then catch a trail. We hiked the Stevens Canyon Trail for the majority of the hike, which was just over three miles, and roughly two hours long. We had my daughter’s girl scout troop (they’re teenagers) with us, and her friend’s parents brought two dogs along for the fun. We had a blast!

The main attraction from the Stevens Creek County Park hiking trails is the view. You can see Silicon Valley from the viewpoints along the trails, and of course when you get to the top. These trails are medium difficulty and offer a lot of elevation changes, which is super fun!

Stevens Creek County Park is easy to get to from Cupertino. If you are traveling down N. Foothill Blvd, it turns into Stevens Canyon Road. As soon as you stop seeing homes (civilization), there will be a parking lot on your left. That’s a great place to park and enjoy the park! The ranger’s station is a few yards from the parking lot, hidden down the road. This is where you can find tri-fold maps to take with you on the hike. There is also an ancient communications device at the ranger’s station, aka a pay phone-and it works, we tested it! haha

For more information, please visit the county’s website.

If you’re local, I hope you have a chance to check out Stevens Creek County Park!

Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO

Cathy

stevens creek county park hiking trails