Skip to main content

Spin & Super Fast Pasta Dinner

Weight-Free Wednesday
Well, I have some nice DOMS going on today in my shoulders and biceps. My next weight workout will be chest and back, but I decided to take a day off from weights so that when I do chest and back, the soreness won't get in the way of a good lifting sessions.

So, today Jason and I decided to do the Group Ride (spin) class at our gym after work. I was really itching to do a workout at lunch, but I had already declared it a weight-free Wednesday. The gym does have Group Ride at noon and we may try that next week perhaps.

The only problem is that it will mean a really long lunch and I'll have to actually shower and get ready at the gym. I have never showered at a gym. So, it sort of freaks me out thinking about how much crap I'd have to pack in order to get ready there. Plus, there are only two showers, so if they are in use, then I have to wait, and that could mean even longer getting ready.

Do you shower at the gym? Any tips or hints?

I will say that I ended up with a horrid headache just before lunch. It was an Excedrin kind of headache for me. Thank goodness I had one left - must add to Target list. I used to get headaches and migraines all the time at my previous job and popped Advil, Excedrin, and Imitrex like candy. Now I rarely get headaches so when they hit, I'm caught off guard.

I had committed myself to the spin class though. It was either going to help the headache or make it worse, but I was going (stomp foot). It ended up being a great, sweaty class, and I'm so glad I went. It gave me a much-needed energy boost too.

Dinner in a Flash
Because of the spin class and not getting home until a little after 6:30, dinner needed to be fast. Unfortunately, I didn't have any rice pre-made this week. So I went with a fast pasta dish since I did have some squash and zucchini to use - "Sausage" & Veggies Pasta.


"Sausage" & Veggies Pasta
Ingredients
8 oz whole-wheat rotini (or penne)
2-3 Tofurky Kielbasa, cut in half length-wise
1/2 white onion, thinly sliced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1-2 tbsp tomatoe paste
Minced garlic (to taste, I like a lot)
1 zucchini, diced
1 yellow squash, diced
1 can diced tomatoes (no salt added)
1/4 cup white wine (may need more or use vegetable broth)
To taste: salt, pepper, red chili flakes, oregano, basil, parsley, nutritional yeast flakes.

Directions:
Cook pasta according to package directions.

In large skillet, sear the "sausage" on both side and remove from pan and dice.

Saute onions and garlic in wine or small amount of olive oil until soft. Add in tomatoes, tomatoes paste, and spices and combine well. Add in squash, zucchini, and "sausage" and allow to simmer and begin to thicken and veggies soften, re-season if needed and add more wine if gets too thick. You can either toss in the pasta or spoon over pasta.

This is super simple and versatile. You can add in any veggies you prefer such as eggplant or broccoli. You can use any veggie/vegan sausage or even the real deal or substitute with chickpeas.

Commenting System Update
I am going to try to get this fixed as soon as possible, but for the time being, you have to be on the day's post to see the commenting section. I think this is mostly a problem for people using Google Reader. Also, you can sign up to receive a notice when I reply to your comments (or you're supposed to be able to).

Popular posts from this blog

Love in Photos

In honor of Valentine's Day - Love in Photos Husband Family and Furbabies Friends Even if you're not a fan of Valentine's Day - I hope you have a wonderful day and remember the loves in your life.

Hump Day and More Pineapples

Full-Body Workout  I'll readily admit that getting up this morning was quite painful and almost didn't happen. I forced myself out of bed though not exactly excited about tackling a full-body Pyramid workout. Sort of daunting at 5 am really. I did the warm up from Shock Cardio Cardio Core Circuit (cardio only premix) then hit the weights. It was a pyramid up only so I increased my starting weight. I topped it all off with the first 2 1/2 drills from the cardio workout. I ran short on time and was basically spent. Squats into Plie Squats Step Ups (seriously hate these especially at 5:30 am) Incline Chest Flyes into Chest Press Pullovers into DB Underhand Rows Step Ups (freaking again) Static Lunges Overhead DB Press into Lateral Raises Deadlifts Kickbacks into Overhead Extensions Hammer Curls into Alternating Curls Calf Raises I am so excited to report that my new cross-trainers and running shoes arrived today. Can't wait to test both of them out. I waited way way way too

Hitting the Gym and Lazy Means Creative Tex-Mex Creation

Sunday, Gym Day Why do vacations and min-vacations go by so quickly? Just doesn't seem quite right. Anyway, we left Branson around 9:30 am to head back home. It was a pretty uneventful drive back, which is usually a good thing. We got home and unpacked, then I headed up to the gym. I started with a 10-minute treadmill run to warm up before hitting the weights for back and light legs then abs. I went with a giant set for back then supersets for legs. GS - 4x8 Underhand barbell rows Pullovers Double-arm rows SS#1 Rear-leg elevated lunges (Bulgarian Split Squats) - 3x8 Calf raises - 3x20 SS#2 - 2x8 Walking lunges Plie squats with low-end pulse Single-leg deadlifts - 2x8 I did some ab exercises, stretched, and called it quits. Lazy = Crazy Dinner I may have made it to the gym and washed a few loads of laundry, but I never made it to the grocery store - lounging in the pool trumped grocery shopping. This meant getting creative with dinner. We had another package