Fitness Testing for Santa Cruz Mountains
Professional metabolic testing for mountain athletes and outdoor enthusiasts. Serving Boulder Creek, Ben Lomond, Felton, Bonny Doon, and all Santa Cruz Mountain communities.
Living in the Santa Cruz Mountains means world-class training terrain right outside your door. Our downtown Santa Cruz facility (20-30 minutes from most mountain communities) offers:
- Professional Korr CardioCoach metabolic testing
- Four equipment options for sport-specific assessment
- Sea-level baseline testing to compare with mountain training
- Understanding of altitude effects on performance
- Detailed training zones for mountain terrain
The Santa Cruz Mountains are a mecca for trail running and mountain biking:
- Trail Running: Big Basin trails, Skyline-to-Sea, Fall Creek, UCSC Upper Campus
- Mountain Biking: Soquel Demo Forest, UCSC flow trails, Braille Trail
- Hiking: Castle Rock, Berry Creek Falls, varied redwood trails
- Road Cycling: Empire Grade, Bonny Doon, Highway 9, Alba Road
VO₂ max testing provides heart rate and power zones essential for training on variable mountain terrain.
Why test at sea level?
- Establishes your true baseline aerobic capacity
- Provides comparison data for altitude effects (mountains are 500-2000+ feet)
- Most races occur at sea level or low elevation
- Training at higher elevation with sea-level baseline data is ideal
Your sea-level VO₂ max becomes your reference point for adjusting zones at mountain elevations.
VO₂ Max Testing: Complete aerobic capacity assessment. Choose NOHRd SprintBok treadmill (trail runners), Wahoo KICKR Bike (mountain bikers and road cyclists), WaterRower, or Jacob's Ladder XL (hikers).
RMR Testing: Resting Metabolic Rate-especially important for mountain athletes with high training volumes and calorie demands.
Package Pricing: Comprehensive metabolic profile with both tests.
Boulder Creek: 30 minutes via Highway 9 south to downtown Santa Cruz
Ben Lomond: 25 minutes via Highway 9 south
Felton: 15-20 minutes via Highway 9 or Graham Hill Road
Bonny Doon: 20 minutes via Bonny Doon Road to Highway 1
Training for Skyline-to-Sea trail races or just running this epic route? VO₂ max testing helps:
- Build endurance base for long mountain efforts
- Understand proper effort for sustained climbing
- Heart rate-based pacing on technical descents
- Zone 2 training for ultra-distance preparation
Soquel Demonstration Forest offers some of California's best mountain biking. Testing benefits:
- Power zones for shuttle-less climbing days
- Endurance pacing for all-day epics
- Recovery zone guidance for active rest
- Understanding fitness for repeated climb-descend intervals
Living in the mountains often means an active outdoor lifestyle. Whether you're logging, building, or just exploring trails, metabolic testing helps optimize your fitness for mountain life demands.
VO₂ Max Test: $250
Complete cardiovascular fitness assessment.
RMR Test: $75
Metabolic rate testing.
Fit Evaluations
311 Soquel Ave
Santa Cruz, CA 95062
Contact:
Phone: 831-400-9227
Email: info@fitevals.com
Convenient access from all Santa Cruz Mountain communities: Boulder Creek, Ben Lomond, Felton, Bonny Doon. 15-25 minutes down the hill.
Professional Testing for Mountain Athletes
Schedule your appointment-convenient access from all Santa Cruz Mountain communities.
Book Your Test🏔️ Train High, Test Low
The classic "live high, train low" concept applies here. Get sea-level baseline testing in Santa Cruz, then train at elevation in the mountains. This provides the best of both worlds: accurate baseline data and natural altitude training benefits. Perfect for mountain athletes who race at sea level.