Sock Winner

In a random drawing of all eligible entrants... Congrats to Jayne.  You are the new owner of Drymax Socks!!!  Your socks will be sent to you shortly.

We Are Finally Running

We have finally been able to run more than 2 days straight. We have been using the weather as an excuse, but now that it is nice out, we don’t have any excuses.




Yesterday was our third straight day running. The first day we ran the 5K distance on the trail. It’s a little slow going this year, but it felt good to get out there. Our biggest problem is that we struggle motivating ourselves. Last year we had some races to look forward to. We had never run in any races. This year, we have the Road Apple 5K to look forward to as our first race of the year, but because we have already accomplished this race last year, it isn’t as big of a goal to work towards. So it has been a struggle to keep motivated this year.



Even though there isn’t as much motivation this year as there was last, as we keep running, it’s going to get easier for us to turn it into a habit. Last year, we knew if it was nice out after work, we were going to run. It was a given. So far we have been stuck in first gear and we think with this recent weather, we can now shift it into a higher gear.  Plus we have some other races we are looking to add to our schedule.  We believe that anyone that is a novice runner, like ourselves, having that race as a goal to work towards is key. This year our goal is to do more races and try to improve on our times as we go along. Our ultimate goal this year is to be able to run a full ½ marathon in October in Columbus.



Chad- I’m surprising myself when I go out and run. I basically took off from running after our ½ marathon (relay) in October in Disney until there were hints of spring in the air a month or so ago. It’s not like I planned it that way, but I just hate running when it is cold out and refuse to run on the treadmill. I was sure that I had lost all of that hard work I did last year in my training, but this year it’s not as bad as I thought it would be. I won’t say that I am in the same shape I was back in September, but I could run a 5K today (slowly) and not have to stop. Last year at this time, I would have had a hard time running a complete 5K. Obviously, it would have been easier if I would have kept up the training, but call me a weenie… I just don’t want to run in the cold and I HATE running on treadmills. My main motivation this year is to improve on my times and trim my winter weight off. It’s easy for me to lose weight when I am running, so I hope to get back into the swing of things and get back in shape. If we don’t ever run another race, it is nice just to get outside and the feeling after working out/running is something that is so easy to forget when you would rather sit on the couch and watch TV, but it is such a wonderful feeling of accomplishment. I want to try to keep that feeling in mind when I feel unmotivated to run.




Julie- I have a hard time getting the motivation to get out and run. But even in the past three days of running, each day has gotten easier. I was actually looking FORWARD to our run yesterday and was kind of sad when I thought the rain might ruin our plans. Was I in better shape last October? Sure. But am I in significantly better shape than I was last April/May? Most definitely. Excuses need to stop and we need to get out and run. If it's raining - we need to use the treadmill or view it as an opportunity to do some weight training.  And on a very lazy day, there's always the little doggie that would love nothing more than to go for a nice long walk. Motivation can be found anywhere if you're looking for it!

Baked Chicken Nuggets

Ingredients


3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs (We used plain)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried thyme (We omit this)
1 tablespoon dried basil
1/2 cup butter, melted
*We add some chopped garlic to the butter
*We also add some cayenne pepper to the bread crumb mix

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
Cut chicken breasts into 1 1/2-inch sized pieces. In a medium bowl, mix together the bread crumbs, cheese, salt, thyme and basil. Mix well. Put melted butter in a bowl or dish for dipping.

Dip chicken pieces into the melted butter first, then coat with the breadcrumb mixture. Place the well-coated chicken pieces on a lightly greased cookie sheet in a single layer, and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.

 
This is another one of my go-to meals.  It's easy and we generally have all of the ingredients laying around.  They're good dipped in whatever your favorite dipping sauce is (ranch, ketchup, BBQ sauce, etc.)  After having these, I can't go back to the frozen option - they just taste so processed compared to this recipe.

Try them out and let us know what you think!

Sock it to me!!!!

Socks.  What a boring subject.  We have been wanting to blog about socks for a while because we have discovered some great new running socks (I know... we need to get a life).  Julie couldn't write the blog because she says that her feet don't sweat.  Which leaves me and my wet stinky feet.

Last year one of my friends recommended sweat wicking material socks.  We love sweat wicking anything (see prior post on Bondi Bands), but I never thought it was necessary to actually spend money on these types of socks.  I would use the regular 'athletic' socks that I have always used. After starting this blog and getting some new running shoes, we tried some of these 'sweat wicking' socks by Drymax. 

Julie said that she can't tell a difference because she apparently doesn't have sweat glands in her feet.  However, I'm used to pulling my socks off after a run and ringing the sweat out of them.  The days of swishing around in my shoes in my own foot sweat are over.

I love these new socks so much, we have an extra pair that we want to give away to our fans. 

If you would like a pair of free pair of Drymax socks, you have several ways to enter to win.

1. Share this post on Facebook (let us know if you do- post a comment).
2. If you aren't already a follower, become one.
3. Go to the website www.drymaxsocks.com and then leave a comment on our blog about what your favorite features about these socks are.

You may do all of these or a couple or just one in order to enter to win a free pair of socks.  I know that socks are kind of boring, but I guarantee that if you run or sweat in any way, you will love these socks.

We will do a random drawing for the eligible participants on May 16. 

Good Luck Vaughn!!

We might have a blog about running, but don't let it fool you, we are not 'runners'.  We run so we can eat.  We love to eat.  We have fun running, but we aren't going to win any races.  We would be what some would consider to be a 'casual runner'.....

On the other hand, there is Vaughn.  He is a friend/coworker/boss that is running the Boston Marathon this weekend.  I complain about running when it is a little chilly out.  However, it was raining this morning on my way to work, and Vaughn was out running because he was preparing for the marathon.  Running in the rain takes dedication, but running one of the most prestigious races in the world... that's just impressive.

Good luck Vaughn.

Spring Has Sprung

If you have a pulse and live in the Midwest, you cannot help but to be excited this time of year. The winter is finally breaking and the birds are chirping. There is a sense of optimism in the air.

10 Reasons we are excited about spring…..


1. Mowing- By the end of the summer my tune will change and I will hate mowing, but for now, the smell of fresh cut grass and being outside making my lawn look nice, sounds delightful. Feel free to drive by and make fun of my ‘Forrest Gump’ mower and how I cut my lawn. Why do I mow a complete circle around my house? Try mowing with ‘Snappy’ (our Snapper mower) and you will know why I do laps around my house.
2. Grilling- We love to cook on the grill. We cook anything out there that we can. We don’t have a ‘fancy pants’ grill but it gets the job done. Our favorite is grilling pizza (recipe coming soon). I also have a knack for making some killer steaks on the grill. Bring some meat over and I would be glad to grill it on our grill.

3. Sitting on our front porch- There really isn’t anything like enjoying a couple of drinks and watching hoards of Amish drive by. I should also mention that our giant porch is perfect for some cornhole.

4. Bonfires- When I say bonfire, I should probably say ‘tinny smoking twigs in a ring’. We have one of those ‘fire pits’ in our back yard that we like to sit around on a nice clear night. Sometimes we roast some wienies and others we just sit there and watch the fire (or sometimes a lack thereof when there is a lack of dry wood).

5. Fishing- I only speak for myself here because Julie hates to fish. I didn’t really do much fishing the last couple of years, but it is my goal this year to get out as much as I can. I especially like to catch catfish. I hate bluegills and they could all die for all I care.

6. Camping- Again, I only really speak for myself here. Julie tends to think that if our bed is within driving distance, why not sleep there? I see her point, but it really is fun to camp out for a weekend.

7. Taking Teddy on a walk/bike ride- I know Teddy loves this and that is the main reason this really makes the list. It’s not as much fun for Julie and I to take him on a walk or bike ride. We have tried all sorts of training techniques and he still wants to pull and choke himself when we go on a walk. When we take him on the bike, we have a little ‘doggy basket’ that he fits in. He usually barks the entire ride because of how excited he is. It really is annoying but he likes it. Sometimes a parent has to make sacrifices.


8. Air conditioning- I know, it’s not that hot out yet and that doesn’t really mean that we like spring, but I argue that there really isn’t anything more refreshing than being sweaty and hot and walking into a building that has it’s AC on. LOVE IT!!

9. Kayaking- We don’t do this a lot, but we do enjoy going when we have the chance. Last year we went down the Mohican river twice. It’s such a nice way to relax and cool off. I think I would like to try it on a bigger body of water this summer.


10. Running on the trail- We HATE running inside. Now that it is warm enough, we can actually run outside. We are very fortunate that the trail runs really close to our house. It really has been a great way to get outside and keep active. I don’t know that we would run as much as we do if we had to run on the road or drive to a track.


Why are you excited spring is here?

Hurray for Running!!!

Supposedly this is a running blog, but for the last 2-3 weeks, we haven't run.  Shame on us.  Let me get my excuses out of the way now....

1. The weather in Ohio has been horrible the last couple of weeks. 
2. My shins have been killing me.
3. We needed new shoes.
4. My schedule didn't allow for us to run on certain days.
5. Teddy needed more mommy/daddy time.
6. We will run so much when it's warm, we might as well enjoy not being able to run.
7. The NCAA basketball tournament was taking up most of my time.  I had to study for my brackets.
8. We were busy trying settle NFL lockout.

I could keep going, but I will save it for future posts. 

So we are pleased to announce that we went for our first run tonight.

The problem with Julie and I, is that when one of us doesn't want to run, the other follows suit.  We have made a pact that if one doesn't want to go, that the other has to remain strong and push the other to run anyways.  Tonight, it was Julie's turn to push me.  I wanted to run, but it was cold out.  And as we all know, I am a little girl when it is cold out.  She told me to bundle up and pack up my barbies... we are going for a run. 

So a-running-we-did-go.  It wasn't a very far run, nor was it a very fast run (it wasn't a warm run either), but it was a run.  The thing that we often times forget is how good it feels to run.  The gratification of sitting on our butts all night does not compare to the feeling of accomplishment one gets after burning some calories. 

We are both very pleased with our new running shoes (and of course our bondi bands).  Altogether, it was as successful as it could have been for our first run of the spring. 

If you haven't been able to get out and run yet, we hope that you too can get our soon and knock off some of the winter cobwebs.