Yesterday I started the morning with a nice bowl of hot oatmeal.
- (just shy of) 1/2 cup oats
- 1 T Wheatena
- 1/2 cup water
- splash almond milk
- 1/2 cup warmed frozen berries
- almond butter w/ roasted flax seeds
- cinnamon/salt/stevia
We hadn’t done the grocery shopping for the week, so I just threw together a quick 10-Minute Vegetable Soup using a box of chopped spinach, half a bag of frozen corn, and 7 ounces each of cooked chickpeas and kidney beans.
Sprinkled with a teaspoon of nutritional yeast for a little cheezy goodness, it was the perfect light lunch!
Ari and I had a bunch of errands to run around the city. We threw on our gym clothes so we’d be ready to work out as soon as we got home; while I sometimes can just phone it in and skim exercising when I’m by myself, when another person commits to it with me, it’s harder to back out.
While we were out and about, we split a Peanut Butter JayBar. It was better than the Cashew Coconut in terms of taste and texture, but it still wasn’t very good. Sorry Jay, but I won’t be buying these again!
When we got home, look what was waiting on my doorstep!
I’d finally caved and ordered two jars of Nuttzo Omego 3 Multi-Nut Butter (made with valencia peanuts, cashews, hazelnuts, brazil nuts, sunflower seeds and flax seeds) from Kath’s OpenSky shop, and could hardly wait to try it out.
I wanted something a little bulkier than nut butter for a pre-workout snack, so I had a sliced Granny Smith apple with a mini Babybel cheese. Don’t get me wrong- I certainly love my fancy cheeses, but I often find that when I open up a big block of sharp cheddar, it goes bad before I get to eat it. These little round cheese are individually wrapped, so I don’t have to worry about them getting green and fuzzy! Fun fact: I lost my first tooth in a Babybel cheese!
We sauntered over to the gym intending to do some light running on the treadmill, but when we signed in, one of the gym’s managers let us know that a class was just about to start. I haven’t taken a gym class in months, so I smiled sweetly and asked Ari if he’d be interested. Reluctantly, he said yes, and we spent the next 60 sweating through Total Body.
Total Body was divided into two parts: the first 30 minutes was organized circuit-style. We broke into groups and took turns rotating through five stations: wall squats, Step, push-ups, abs, and cardio of choice. By switching it up every minute or so, the time flew by and wasn’t boring at all! The second 30 minutes of class was devoted to upper-body strength training and abs. It was great to get such an efficient workout in, and doing it with Ari made it even more fun. We both felt a little awkward at first because we’re a little out of shape, but we settled into our groove in no time.
After Total Body, we came home to make dinner. I’d planned on making one dish, but one of the key ingredients had gone bad :-# No matter! I surveyed the ingredients and came up with a quick, nutritious meal.
Shrimp and Spinach Soba Noodles
- 4 oz soba noodles
- 12 cooked shrimp, tails removed
- 1 cup mushrooms, sliced
- 2 cups fresh spinach
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 t olive oil
- 1 T low sodium soy sauce
Serves 2
Cook soba according to package directions. Drain.
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a medium-sized skillet until it glistens. Add garlic and cook over medium-high heat until fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Add mushrooms and sauté until softened. Stir in shrimp and cook until heated through.
Add cooked soba noodles to the skillet and toss until well combined.
Remove from heat and stir in low-sodium soy sauce and spinach. Spinach should wilt slightly.
I gave Ari a heavier portion of soba noodles, and served mine over a bed of (additional) spinach. I also gave each of us 1/2 sweet potato with cinnamon and steamed broccoli.
Dinner got two thumbs up from both of us! Not bad for a quick weeknight meal. We ate on the floor watching the first episodes of True Blood: Season 2. We’re speeding through the DVDs and will be caught up in no time!
For dessert, I stirred a small scoop of Nuttzo into a container of Caramel Oikos. Delicious combination!
I really liked the Nuttzo, but I have to say: it doesn’t taste that much different from Trader Joe’s Valencia Roasted Peanut Butter or Almond Butter with Roasted Flax Seeds. Good to know!
Do you attend classes at your gym? Which are your favorites? Do you like to work out alone or with others?
I definitely like to workout by myself unless I’m just going on a leisurely walk, catching up with a friend. Spinning and yoga are the only classes I enjoy at the gym, but I’ve had to take it easy lately due to a hamstring injury
When I’m running or using a machine at the gym, I prefer to just put my music on and zone out. But I enjoy classes at the gym as well! Right now I’m loving Body Pump.
If I’m doing cardio I prefer to do it alone since it gives me a chance to read—sometimes the only way I can make time for class readings—but I do love a good yoga class. Since I’ve been nursing mini-stress fractures in both arms this summer, though yoga’s been out (finally got the okay to ease back into it, though!). I tried belly-dancing with a girlfriend near her place on the UWS and am actually really digging it!
Your bowl of oatmeal looks lovely as always, and the soup you made sounds interesting. Oh and I agree with your comment on my blog about the crumpets, I love them with butter and marmite.
Oh my, your soba salad looks delicious. Oh the woes of self hosting, apparently my blog went down yesterday as I was sitting in the airport, but all is well now. Total Body sounds like a good workout.
you and ari were the marathon couple of the century! gym + dinner cooking
LOVE it!
haha when i saw your post go up this morning i was like waaaait a second i didn’t know you were training for a job! hahaha
i usually only really take spin at my gym. all the other classes just plain out suck!
I like a mix of working out with others AND by myself. Especially when I’m running, I just like to be by myself…but sometimes the classes are a fun way to mix it up!
I love soba noodles
I just had to renew my url too and nearly forgot about the yearly submission. Good thing they reminded me or I would have done the same thing.
I LOVE classes! I’m actually thinking of getting my Les Mils certification so that I can start to teach classes. Total Body sounds like a great workout!
Hmmm, the nutzo even looks like TJ’s PB. I hear its good but I’m not sure it’s worth the small fortune.
Hope you are having a great week!!
Haha awesome that you guys went to a class together! Sounds like fun!
I love soba noodles. They make everything so tasty. That dish looks amazing.
I love attending strength training classes at my gym. I need the extra motivation on that exercise front, and I like having an instructor set the agenda!
Babybel cheeses may be perfect for that very reason in my dorm room fridge! Noted!
the noodles look amazing! i’ve never had soba noodles; do they taste particularly different?
Why have i forgotten entirely about soba noodles?! That meal looks fabulous!
I’ve been to maybe two classes at the gym- I’m kind of inpatient and would rather do stuff on my own, excluding yoga classes of course. I’m college I took an awesome class – women’s weightlifting. It wad a really relaxed atmosphere with only women (besides the instructor) here I learned how to use all the intimidating weight machines at the gum. Totally worth my time!
Inpatient or impatient?! That was a fabulous spelling error
I know exactly what you mean about the babybels – they are so handy to have in the fridge when you don’t eat loads of cheese and just fancy some now and again. Your soba noodles look delicious!
Yes! I couldn’t find you and panic ensued! Glad that you are back and I am caught up! My parents are heading your way soon.