I am thrilled with the loss this week! I have been working out extra hard, not because I was focused on weight loss( even though I was sort of) but because I wanted to get extra conditioning for our weekend. We have decided that we are going to really push our hiking these next 4 weekends leading up to our first 14er, which we hope to do the first week of July.
Here is a random moment of shock from this week. I was looking at the pictures we took on our Gem lake hike and noticed what I thought was swelling just above my knee….. thinking great all I need right now is a knee injury. I kinda stewed on it for a few days because I didn’t want to admit there may be a problem. I finally had Aaron check it out and he is like,” um yeah you are developing that muscle it is not swollen, look it’s over your right knee too”. I have had muscular legs before, in fact I had powerhouse legs in high school when I played sports, but I have never developed muscles like I have been getting with hiking. It makes me want to wear short skirts! I guess I kinda knew it would build me some strong legs, but it never really hit me until these past few weeks when I throw on shorts and am like, whoa whose legs are those!
It is finally getting good and warm here but the snow is still holding out at those higher elevations, so this weekend we are going to do 2 hikes. One is a repeater but a little higher than we have been able to get so far, I saw it on my girlfriend hike and there was no snow at the summit. The second one I have been changing my mind on every 5 minutes so it is still a mystery to even me! I know that I am looking for a shorter hike with high elevation.
hiking to healthy 
Amazing! You go Girl!
Thanks! I feel really good about it!
Now this is good news! Yay!
Thank you! It was exactly the kind of week I needed!
Congrats on a good week, and have fun shopping for those short skirts!
Ha! Thank you not sure I could really pull them off yet but soon I am sure!
Nice! Which 14er will you be doing? I’ll be heading up on that week as well!
I am thinking either Quandry or Lincoln…. Not sure which one yet.
Way to go! Go get it with those strong legs!
I also have a question and thought you’d be a great source to turn to – I’ll be meeting up with some friends from out of state in south Denver next weekend (Centennial, to be more exact) and we only have a few hours but they might want to squeeze in a quick hike. Do you know any trails that are pretty, not too long and quickly accessible from that area? I haven’t done much hiking in the Denver area so I’m at a loss but it seems like you cover that area a lot. Any suggestions are appreciated – thanks!!
I think the best place would be Castlewood Canyon, it is a state park in Parker and the trail does have a canyon option to hike along with great views of the front range. If you are looking for more of a challenge, I think Deer Creek Canyon has its own charm and quick 3.2 mile loop gives you a good work out with decent views of Denver. It is in Littleton and you want to stick to the Meadowlark and then the lower part of Plymouth Creek for the loop. Those are the closest to Centennial with the biggest bang for your buck. Let me know if you end up trying one I would love your opinion!
Thanks so much! I’ll let you know what we end up doing! I also mentioned the Coors and/or Stranahan’s tours to the guys coming to visit so I think it’ll totally depend on their level of motivation come Saturday… I’d totally rather hike. Then maybe hit up Coors if there’s time 🙂
Ohh if you are going to Coors, then go to White Ranch Park, the Rawhide loop from the West parking lot is a great 5 mile hike with good views of Denver! Going from the West parking lot is key, the East parking lot has harder trails and you have climb quite a bit to get any views. Or you could hit North Table Mountain and see Coors from several of the trails. Plus there are lots of rock climbing done here which can be entertaining to watch as you walk by. Both are Jefferson county open spaces, free parking great maps online.
You know EVERYTHING and I love it! If we have time for the Coors/hiking plan I think that’s the winner. I’m just going to have to see what I’m working with. Thanks again so much!