Monday morning was a tough wakeup, even harder being a Patriots fan living in NYC. Rather than sulk over the loss, I thought I’d try to undo some of the damage done during the game and start the week off right. I went for a lovely sunrise run along the west side highway. With everyone being up late last night (and presumably eating and drinking a lot) the running paths were unusually clear. It was the perfect 4 miles of peace that I needed to remind me that every loss makes you appreciate every win. 

I’m convinced any residual nausea I may have felt during this morning’s workout was a result of seeing Cameron Diaz feed A-Rod popcorn and not because I ate way more than my body could handle. Gross.

On that note, I threw shorts on this morning (crazy, I know, but I was in a shorts mood, plus all my workout pants were in the laundry) and ran to the gym. Despite not feeling awesome, I got in a four mile run and 2.5 miles on the elliptical. I tried doing intervals of going forward and backward on the elliptical for a new challenge, it was really cool. It would be great to find some legit elliptical interval workouts that involve going backwards. Anyone have suggestions?

Buffalo Chicken Dip for Superbowl.

I hosted a bunch of my friends for the Superbowl Sunday. Since none of us were fans of the teams but almost all of us are in advertising, our focus was on the ads and the food. As soon as I saw our amazing spread, I was thankful I had gotten in a 75 minute yoga class this morning.

Just a heads up, this dip cannot be considered healthy from any angle. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t unbearably delicious. To balance the unhealthiness, I usually provide celery and carrots (in addition to the expected tortilla chips) to get some value out of it. R exclaimed last night that I’m like a mom trying to slip veggies in when the kids won’t notice.
I like to make a few variations on the below recipe-I prefer mine hotter and like adding more Frank’s, I don’t like bleu cheese dressing so I use ranch and I prefer to boil and shred my own chicken than use canned, but it’s up to you to find what you like best. The dip is gooey, delicious and a perfect game time snack.

1 package cream cheese
1/2 cup Frank’s Red Hot sauce
1/2 cup shredded mozarella cheese
1/2 cup ranch or bleu cheese dressing
Two 12.5 ounce cans chicken

Preheat oven to 350. Spread the package of cream cheese on the bottom of a pan, I find microwaving it for 15 seconds makes this much easier. Add the Frank’s, dressing and cheese and mix. Once consistent, asdd the chicken. Cook for 20 minutes of until heated through.