It’s 8 degrees out right now.
EIGHT! 
You know how you can get your tongue stuck to a pole when it’s super cold outside?
![2114529[1]](http://iowagirleats.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/21145291.jpg "2114529[1]")
Don’t worry I didn’t, but my car’s front bumper pulled a Flick and, somewhere between 15 and 8 degrees this afternoon, adhered itself to a snow bank in the parking lot at work. The water droplets on the bumper must have froze to the bank, which created a thick sheet of ice-glue that I had to push the pedal to the metal in reverse to get out of. Yeesh!
Came home to slice off multi, small-portions of last night’s cornbread and pretend that calories don’t count when they’re cut thinly. You agree, right?
ps the cornbread dropped overnight, and is now as dense as fudge. Amazing.
All the while I was cooking up an easy-peasy dinner of chicken & potatoes!
I’ve told you before that I rarely cook “just chicken” because it’s oh-so boring. This recipe for Frank’s Crispy Chicken caught my eye the other day, though, because it looked easy and seemed to really jazz up plain chicken breasts.
I basically followed the recipe, and started by popping two chicken breasts in a marinade of Frank’s hot sauce, brown sugar, honey & water last night, then coated them in homemade, seasoned breadcrumbs tonight.
ICYWW: I prepare most dinners as much as I can the night before I make them. Whether it’s a crockpot meal where I toss all the ingredients into the insert at night, store in the fridge and pop into the machine in the am, or marinating meats overnight and all day then cooking them at night – food’s less fragile than you think. If you can get the majority of dinner done the night before – why wouldn’t you?
At any rate, I popped the chicken into a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes then turned the heat up to 400 degrees for another 10 minutes or so.
The coating was crispy, the chicken was tender,
and my God the marinade was good! I LOVED it. Kinda spicy and a little sweet. Ben didn’t like it as much as I did, because he doesn’t like sweet things for dinner, but I thought it was fabulous.
I forgot to get any green vegetables at the store this week (I know, who am I?) but luckily I had a trusty sweet potato sitting pretty in my fruit basket to make into a side dish of mashed potatoes. 
All I did was microwave a whole sweet potato for about 6 minutes (flipping 1/2 way through) then peeled and mashed the pulp with unsweetened vanilla almond breeze, cinnamon, salt and a little butter.
Thick and low-key sweet.
For my guy, I pulled out the big guns and made Garlic Mashed Potatoes. Capital GMP!
My poor, meat-and-potatoes husband puts up with my crazy tofu, vegetarian recipe, fake ice cream shenanigans day after day without a complaint, so sometimes I like to spoil him with a crazy, decadent treat. Mashed potatoes are his favorite food in the world, so I knew he’d love ‘em!
All I did was cook up 3 white potatoes, then whipped them with ungodly amounts of butter melted in warm 1/2 & 1/2, salt, pepper and garlic powder.
omg, I couldn’t keep my spoon out!
He ate the entire thing. I was a little shocked, actually! 
In other news, after I unstuck myself from the snow drift after work, I drove to the gym where I circled the parking lot…then left.
I circled the parking lot then left. Ugh!
I tried to blame it on the fact that there were no parking spaces, but in reality I just wimped out. Despite my best efforts, this seems to happen to me when it’s particularly cold and/or snowy out. All I want to do is go home at night, get in my PJs and eat carbs.
The sad thing is that as I was circling the lot I knew leaving was the wrong thing to do, but I did it anyways. I was disappointed in myself. 
I proactively packed my bag to head into the gym tomorrow morning before work, so there’s no chance of tempting myself to bail tomorrow evening.
You can only look forward!
‘night!
~~~~~
What are your biggest barriers to working out? No time? Kids need your attention? The weather? Your job?
That meal looks great! I can’t decide if I am more excited to make the sweet potatoes or the chicken.
My job and time are usually the factors that prohibit me from working out. I try to workout in the morning so that I just don’t have to worry about it if the day gets too hectic!
Don’t feel too bad about the gym, it is so hard to get there when it’s snowing!! Plus, there is always tomorrow!
Work gets in the way a lot. After work, I have papers to grades, emails to answer, etc. I try to get out of there by 445, and get to the gym. But sadly, my gym is super small, and lots of times all the treadmills are taken.
And I don’t have a lot of time to just wait for one. Even though I know I could other things there. 
I just like to run!
Those potatoes look awesome!!! I wouldn’t have been able to keep my spoon out of them either!
My biggest work out barrier is that my two little ones need attention and by the time that they go to bed, I’m just tired and don’t want to work out. I am currently trying to get out of that thinking and work out when they go to bed!!
time and weather are the factors that i use as excuses…especially during the winter when it gets dark early. i’m not a fan of running in the dark or the cold and that is my primary workout.
I was NOT feelin’ it today, so I worked out for 35 minutes and then left! I felt icky while I was there, my stomach was not agreeing with me and quite frankly I wanted to be home, in my PJ’s, eating carbs;)
Sometimes I just simply don’t have time, but what I’ve realized is that I can find or make time if I really want to. Most of the time I just don’t really want to;)
Aw.. that’s why I always workout in the morning. By the time you get to work, you’re more awake, and you get to look forward to being DONE at the end of the day.
Don’t be disappointed in yourself. Tomorrow is a new day! Just remind yourself how proud you’ll feel when you finish a workout next time.:)
I didn’t even circle the lot! My mentality today was “No sun, no workout.” All I did was eat carbs and snuggle. I’ve worked out against my will enough times to know there’s no point in forcing it. You know?
I have no excuses. I get a free gym membership through my work, and the gym is in the building I work in! Sometimes when I’ve had a rough day, its hard to see my clients when all I want to do is zone out with The Food Network while on an elliptical! On those days I just go home and take the dog on a nice long walk by the lake. Win win!
The only excuse I have is my 3 kids. And they take up every.available.minute! All day every day… kinda sad, really! But by the time they are all done with homework, fed, bathed, and sleeping I’m shot! Summer is easier beacause I can take the little ones out for walks and stuff. Good luck tomorrow!
i think it’s okay to be disappointed in yourself…how else do we ever set goals & change??
tomorrow is another opportunity! just remind yourself of how good you feel after working out and motivation will come. 
Oh, I’ve definitely done the whole drive to the gym and don’t go in thing. Not my finest moment, but I always like to tell myself something was holding me back…possibly for a good reason. Maybe if I went in, I would break an ankle or something? Probably not, but why else did I not go in, ya know?
It is a chilly one here today too! That’s kind of funny your car got stuck in the snow bank. (And btw, I’m so glad you called it a “snow bank.” My husband said banks aren’t meant for snow.)
I would feel disappointed in myself as well. Hopefully this will help the next time you’re tempted not to go to the gym.
Pure laziness- at least today!
My barrier to working out right now is my kids. I was doing so good about getting up at 5:00 to workout and then right before Christmas my 20 month old twins started tagging teaming me and waking up throughout the night. One night one would sleep and the other would be a pistol and then they would switch places the next night. That coupled with the cold dark mornings has sabatoged me. When I get off work I rush to the sitters to get them because I miss them. (And saw our daycare bill for last year. OUCH.)
I have to work out in the morning before everyone else is awake, otherwise it doesn’t happen. Like someone else said after work by the time we do dinner/homework/kids activities/ect I am pooped and ready for bed.
Ben’s tators look pretty yummy!
I try to switch my workout times between morning and evening, depending if I have plans after work. That actually helps keep me motivated – but it can be hard to get excited to hit the gym after a long day! I’ve definitely been in your shoes, but you’ve prepared yourself for tomorrow and you will feel better afterwards!
Definitely circled the lot Saturday .. it was PACKED. I meant to go back later, but I napped instead. Oops! I agree, winter time is so discouraging to working out. I love running outside and the treadmill and elliptical just get SO BORING. Plus, it’s just never fun when the gym is that packed. It will calm down soon, hopefully!
Picturing a car circling the lot and then leaving made me giggle… b/c I can imagine myself going through those same thoughts. I am sorry you felt bad about leaving — but tomorrow is a fresh start. 8 degrees is crazy cold so I’m glad you had a great night in.
At this point in my life I’m pretty free to work out whenever — no complaints here. The best for me is to work out FIRST thing in the morning (as in 5:45am). If I had to wait until the end of the day or post-work, it likely would not happen.
One day won’t kill ya! Just get in a great workout tomorrow:)
My biggest barrier is just being TIRED. I work out in the morning to get it over with, so fatigue is really the only obstacle.
Hmmmm I might have to try that chicken recipe!
Funny story – my husband knows I read your blog daily and use alot of your recipes. Eating dinner tonight, he goes “where’d you get this recipe from? Indiana Girl Nom Noms?” LOL!!!!
unexpected plans, feeling too tired after work, and before moving into an apartment w/a gym, it was definitely the actual drive to the gym…(too much traffic/it’s raining/no parking)
I think it takes some serious talent to get your car stuck to a snow bank…that’s awesome! And honestly…my biggest barrier to working out is pure laziness. I have plenty of time, but in the winter I just like to do nothing! Hopefully I can get out of this rut soon. I’m sure you can get in a great workout tomorrow!
Sometimes you just need a break from working out!
My biggest barriers to working out are school and the weather. Once I finally get home and have a pile of readings to get through, I’m not really motivated to get back out in the cold to go to the gym. I am going to start P90X next week, so hopefully inside workouts will work better!
I love the simple meals! That’s how I roll as a college student. And between classes, homework, and 5 degree weather…some times the gym is the LAST place I want to go. But I’m always grateful when I suck it up and get moving. It can be hard though!
oooooooooo I like the looks of everything in this post!! That chicken looks amaze!
I didn’t go either! With the snow around here I didn’t want to drive. Is that wimpy? Probably, but I am a horrible driver. I can admit it!
biggest hurdle to working out? Definitely the fact that I get too many iron’s in the fire! Most days, though, the runner’s high keeps me goin!
cheers,
cathy b. @ brightbakes
ummmm…that would be lazyness on my part.
My biggest challenges is having a little one, a full time job, trying to keep a home, etc. It really is a lot! But I try to do what I can on breaks and at lunch on days I can and that way, my evening belongs to fractions!
Honestly, I give you credit for at least driving to the gym!
I made the fiancee’s mom drop us off at my apt’s gym today. I knew that if I went home and then had to walk there it wasn’t going to happen! (Sadly, I still had to walk home in the COLDDDD!)
My barrier right now is that I need a knee replacement and it’s not covered by the insurance (poor) that I have now:( And yes, it’s driving me crazy.
I’ve learned to be a bit flexible over the years and create little rules to help me with my workouts. Before kids, the gym I liked to go to was around 35 minutes from my house which made it easy to want to skip on a cold day. Instead, I changed train stations and took the train station that was five minutes from the gym. That way, the gym was on the way home and then I didn’t skip:) I also made friends at the gym and created contests in the winter (I created a 100k club where you had to bike 100 kilometers in one sitting.) Or in my city, one of the buildings has 100 floors so I would do the stair climber and try to see how fast I could run up 100 flights of stairs. My goal was to do it in under 15 minutes! I’d also play games with myself and tell myself that I’d go to the gym 7 days a week in January, six days in February, five days in March…until May was three days. The other days of the week my activity would be outdoors so I might do three days at the gym and three days of running outdoors or some other activity. There were many years at that time where I exercised seven days a week (now we know you should take a day of rest!).
Fast forward up to after I had kids and before my injury… I joined an online exercise group to stay motivated where I posted my workouts every day. I did my exercise after my son got on the school bus and before I did anything else. In the summer, when my son was off (he’s in a wheelchair), I’d take him for a 3.5 mile walk on a walking trail to get in my exercise. For intervals, I’d take the longer 4 plus mile route and go up through the hilly neighborhoods pushing him up and down those hills in the wheelchair was a HUGE workout! I recorded all of my workouts in Excel (and all of my steps too!) and had a rule of no more than two days between workouts. All of those things worked well for me. It’s really hard now because I miss working out.
P.S. The chicken marinade sounded really good!
My biggest challenge is the cold weather as well…! Hurry up spring.
oh, i love the chicken recipe…i’ll be making that next week and my husband will love me for it! yum
Kristin that chicken looks fantastic! And don’t be too hard on yourself, my gym has been INSANE because of the new years resolution peeps and there were lines at all the machines (I hate lines) and then I realized over the weekend that I hadnt worked out YET in 2011!! Sometimes our excuses get the best of us, but all you can do is move forward
Woohoo – you’re human! I mean that in the nicest way, which is to say that everyone has days (or many of them) that they don’t want to workout. I really appreciate you admitting that you bailed on the gym. You are obviously very dedicated to your health but this tidbit of honesty only makes me like your blog more! Awesome dinner, btw!
Eh – it happens. Don’t beat yourself up over it!!
All of the food in this post looks incredible! I love that chicken recipe. It seems simple and it looks like it tastes amazing! I am most definitely making it. I love all of the recipes you post on your blog
OMG I lol’d when you said only taking small portions of the cornbread doesnt count calorie wise haha! I TOTALLY do that with pizza! I portion everything I eat and only allow myself 2 slices at a time when I splurge, but sometimes I just can’t help myself and will take my own pizza slicer and slice off a fraction of another piece.. and then even the one to the side out too. HAHA Greatness
that chicken looks so bomb girl!!!
My biggest hurdle is working Mom guilt. I work from 7:30-4:30 everyday while my girls are at school and preschool. When I get off I just want to go home to see them, but I try to work out twice during the week (and hit the gym on the weekends too).
Definitely the cold weather is my biggest hurdle to working out! But when it’s too hot I also find myself lounging on a couch under a fan! I know I’ve talked about how cold it is up here in Canada before, but I just had to share my reaction to your reaction to the cold weather… so when I first read it, I thought, ‘Wow, 8 degrees F must be ridiculously cold!’ Out of curiosity I checked a fahrenheit to celsius converter and saw that it was -13 C. Currently it is -28 C here and that is considered fairly typical! (if not milder than it could be) -13 is considered unseasonably mild for this time of year here! Hehe, wow! But I guess winter is relative!
Don’t feel bad! When I’ve done that I just think “it wasn’t meant to be.” If the universe wanted me to work out then there would be a parking spot for me!
Plus, there’s always tomorrow!
Yesterday, I put on gym clothes and sat in them for 2 hours trying to will myself to go. Didn’t happen. So now I’m going the next 4 days, yikes!
These recipes look wonderful. And no lie, when I was about 6, I licked an icy mail box and got stuck…not my proudest moment!!!!! Have a great day, stay warm!
Oh – just know that it happens to ALL of us and anyone that says it doesn’t is lying through their teeth!
I’ve always thought that the important thing is that you just say you’re going to better tomorrow. We all have days like that so don’t beat yourself up too hard! You have a great attitude as always!
Don’t sweat it, we’ve all gotten to the gym and left! I think my biggest barrier is the routine. I go to my gym at work, and leave my makeup and hair stuff at the office so I HAVE to go in…no excuses! But some mornings I just want to get ready at home! So I try to have a new playlist, or a new workout to motivate me to go.
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Some days it’s definitely hard to get motivated to work out. Most of the time it just feels like I don’t have the time to devote to it. I always tell myself, “You’ve never regretted working out, but you will definitely regret not working out.” Even that logic doesn’t work sometimes, though usually it does!