What is a Weekend?

A weekend is apparently when I get lost in television shows. I’ve finished the entire 3rd season of Downton Abbey. Once I started watching it, I couldn’t stop. I’m glad I don’t have to wait each week to see an episode but I’m sad that it’s over now and I have to wait until season 4 comes out–whenever THAT is! Anyone else a Downton fan? I love the show. Maggie Smith is by far the star of the show, no matter what anyone else thinks. The zingers that the Dowager Countess has in every single episode always have me laughing.

Oh Granny. Every scene in Downton Abbey should include you. Of course, since I’ve already seen all of season 3 there’s TONS of stuff I want to talk to people about but can’t! I won’t spoil it, I promise. But dang, I can’t wait for everyone to get caught up.

Last week my knees were particularly achy and sore. I have no idea why. I don’t know why I had a flare-up but it had me in a cranky mood all week. There’s nothing worse than being in constant pain. And when it’s something like your knees that impact your daily life in such a big way, it’s hard to ignore it. I took it easy with my workouts. Last Wednesday evening I skipped cardio completely and only focused on upper body weights. I did a bunch of free weight exercises for my shoulders, biceps and triceps and then used the kettlebells.

Thursday I took a rest day, Friday night I swam (it went ok, pretty pain-free) and by Saturday I was feeling a little bit better. Unfortunately this week Michael also had a flare-up of his old back injury! We were quite the pair. 🙁 Saturday I took it easy and did some elliptical work (easy on the resistance) and then weights. I felt pretty good by the end of it.

Saturday afternoon I asked my lovely readers and friends on my Facebook fan page if they had a favorite chicken recipe. The idea of chicken was so boring that I almost dreaded making dinner! Thankfully, someone had a great recommendation. It was called “The World’s Best Chicken.” How could you go wrong with a title like that??

I used the Calorie Count website to calculate the recipe. It came to around 400 calories, of course that depends on the size and weight of the chicken. I only changed the recipe with one thing: paprika. I added a dash of paprika to the mustard mixture. I also chopped up some onions to include in the roasting chicken. If I’d had potatoes I would have added some of that too.

With dinner I had a glass of Hopwork’s IPA. Michael got a growler for us for Christmas. We finally got it filled! The IPA is hoppy and makes me feel like I’m eating a lemon in the middle of a forest. Earthy, hoppy, citrusy. Yum.

With dinner I made polenta (from Trader Joe’s) and steamed broccoli. I used the leftover mustard sauce to drizzle over the broccoli. The whole dinner, including the beer, was around 800 calories. Michael really liked the dinner. I cooked the chicken for about 35 minutes and it was perfect–not dried out at all. I liked the dinner but I wouldn’t qualify it as the best chicken in the world. I’m still in search of that!

QUESTION: What is your world’s best chicken recipe? How was your weekend?