Back in the Saddle

After spending four days walking like an old cowboy I made it back to the gym yesterday. Felt good to get a full workout in, and even though my energy wasn't great, I was well rested and able to put in a good effort.

One thing I recently learned was the value of doing weights before cardio at the gym. Apparently your body uses the energy that is freely available during the weightlifting, and then is forced to get into the fat reserves during the cardio. I figure this is why my Saturdays are always so productive.

Have I mentioned what a fan I am of the elliptical yet? Okay, so I'm not as big of a fan of that as I am of the Cleveland Browns, say, but for something that's sole purpose is to deliver pain to me, I kind of like it. Now that I think about it, I'm not sure how that distinguishes the elliptical from the Browns in any way...

I only had a half an hour where I could do the cardio, and with my calves still tender I figured I'd give the elliptical a shot (as opposed to the sinister stairmaster, which I in no way could have done). I cranked out the first "mile" in 10 minutes and then did two more at a sizzling 9 minute mile pace, and it felt good on my calves. Got a great sweat going and a nice caloric burn, and it was pretty effortless to go that fast, all without a lot of impact on my knees, etc.

Last night we went over to a friend's house for dinner. I shared the cooking duties with him, and since he too is on a low-calorie diet, we were both able to be conscious of what we cooked and ate. He made a nice Italian soup for an appetizer, which is great diet food as it is filling and not dense in calories. I made a crab pasta - recipe as follows:

1.5 pounds King crab legs, shelled and cut into large bite sized chunks (640 calories)
4 servings pasta (880 calories)
2 cups fresh English peas (240 calories)
1 tbsp olive oil (120 calories)
1/4 large red onion, chopped
1 clove garlic minced
1/4 cup sweet pequillo peppers (small little sweet peppers found in the olice section, with just a hint of spice. Delicious, substitute red bell for these if you can't find)
1 tbsp capers
2 Meyer lemons, juiced
Splash of Marsala or Sherry of some sort
1 large green tomato diced
1 tbsp minced oregano
sprinkle of crushed red peppers as you dare
S&P to taste

Soften the onion and capers in the oil until the onion is translucent and add garlic and peppers. Deglace with Sherry and lemon juice. Boil peas and pasta together until al dente. Toss in tomatoes, crab, oregano, and red pepper to warm the crab (seconds of time) and then immediately toss in the boiled pasta. Serves 4, about 485 calories per serving (I gave everyone a serving and a half of pasta to bring it to 6000 calories or so).