Chicken and Potato Salad

Today's pre-gym dinner (eaten an hour before my first spinning class ever):

CHICKEN (protein)

• marinate the chicken the night before in salt, pepper, and whatever herbs you have on hand. I used rosemary, lemon thyme, and parsley.
• Set on the counter while you preheat the oven so it has time to warm up to room temperature just a bit.
• bake at 450 for 40 minutes until the skin is crispy and the thigh is cooked through. I did this in my toaster oven, so it may have taken longer than a regular oven.

POTATO SALAD (carbs)

• Boil potatoes (I had seven large Russets, so I have more potato salad than one person should be allowed to own).
• Prepare a bowl filled with a tablespoon of salt, three tablespoons champagne vinegar (or whatever vinegar you like), two tablespoons dijon mustard, a half teaspoon of paprika, a half teaspoon of onion salt, a handful of chopped parsley, and three chopped scallions. Add herbs and spices as you see fit.
• Add a cup of peas and/or carrots to the mix,
• Peel potatoes and cut into six pieces (four for smaller potatoes).
• Put the potatoes into the spice mix, which should have sat and marinated while the potatoes boiled. Cover and let the potatoes steam everything a little. Then mix and cool.
• When the potatoes are cold, stir in a few heaping tablespoons of sour cream or mayo. Add half a cup of chopped red onions and/or cucumbers and mix well.
• As you can tell from the photo, this version of potato salad is like a cross between potato salad and mashed potatoes. The consistency is great for making a sandwich, but I just like to eat it as is.

As for spinning, I thought it was kind of a letdown. Maybe I had a mediocre teacher, but I also hate doing the same thing over and over, and I didn't feel it tired me out enough to warrant the excruciating boredom that kicked after the first half hour. I'd much rather be weight lifting or in a class with more variation in the routine. How many different things can you possibly do on a spin machine? Or maybe bicycling across San Francisco (yes, up and down the hills) has ruined me for spin forever.