We have a piper down

September 16, 2013 by Meridith

It started on Thursday evening. The sharp, shooting pain in my quad wasn’t one to be ignored. I audibly gasped and my husband asked what was wrong. I shook it off as the pain slinked away, thinking that it was nothing more than a freak occurrence that wouldn’t happen again.

Except every time I moved that night, the pain woke me. In my mid-sleep haze, I wasn’t exactly sure what motion was causing it. But I was pretty sure that it was the worst pain I’d felt in awhile, and that possibly I was going to die (the mind works in crazy ways).

In the morning (after having a panic attack, which my husband talked me through) I began moving my leg in different ways to assess what motion caused the pain. Not straightening. Not bending slightly. Not bending a little bit more. BENDING AT NINETY DEGREES. Holy hell, I saw stars. Raising my leg with my knee bent. THAT TOO. My leg shook at the thought of feeling the pain and naturally my mind raced. What about running? What about my Alex’s Lemonade Million Mile Run streak? And training? Or even walking down the stairs?

After a visit to the doc in which he made me move my leg to show him the pain (Couldn’t he just take my word for it? No. He could not.) The diagnosis was a torn/strained quad muscle. The treatment? Follow RICE: rest, ice, compression and elevation.

As I sit here on my couch, with my leg propped up, ice pack strapped around my ace bandage, I’m left wondering… now what?

This probably comes as news to no one but I’m not very good at resting. I mean, sure, I complain sometimes about the whole running thing but generally speaking I’d rather move than not.

I’m also fully aware that I need to give my muscle a chance to heal. Over the past few days my range of motion has advanced and I’m able to do things like squat slightly.

However, if I squat slightly more than slightly? Well, let’s just say that it still feels like someone is stabbing my quad with a shiv. That is not a good feeling, folks. But I’m also encouraged that I’m able to squat slightly, because last week? I could not. Maybe there’s something to this RICE thing. Maybe.

So I’ll just be over here, trying to rest and impatiently waiting for the healing to happen.

I’m not used to injury – how long do these things typically last? When was your last injury that made you RICE (or at least take a couple of days off)?

It’s Electric! The Electric Run DC

September 12, 2013 by Meridith

There’s no greater compliment that I can receive than “you inspired me to run”. Sometimes I hear feedback like, “Well, I was going to bail on this run but then I heard a voice in my head that sounded very much like you telling me I can and I will and I kept going!” And other times apparently people are cursing me in their heads. Either which way, I’ll take what I can get!

My high school bestie, Keri and I were chatting a couple of months ago while she was doing the Couch to 5k program and I told her that she should pick a race and we’d do it together.

Meet my friend of 21 years, Keri! We don’t see each other nearly enough but when we do, it’s like no time has passed.

Keri picked the DC Electric Run, we signed up as soon as registration opened (in April) and began planning! In July I happened to be in Philadelphia, where I run many of my races, when their Electric Run got shut down because of a particularly bad thunder and lightning storm. It was the same weekend as the Philadelphia Zoo Summer Ale fest and Jog ‘n Hog and I saw many disappointed runners throughout the city. Thankfully we didn’t have the same fate but I definitely felt for those people (as we all ran through the rain together in search of taxis!).

We paid the extra $5 for race day pick up since neither of us are particularly close to the packet pickup locations – National Harbor is about forty minutes from Keri’s abode – and arrived super duper early to claim a good parking spot in one of the garages. Our first stop was packet pickup and since we arrived right at the beginning of the time window, we waltzed right up and got hooked up with shirts, bibs, glow bracelets and glow glasses. It’s worth noting that the women’s shirts run fairly small (I got a XL, for reference).

For the love of Pete, somebody help this giant! The Awakening.

Since we had plenty of time, we wandered around National Harbor before settling at McLoone’s for dinner. Perfect weather lead to eating outside where we got to see other Electric Run participants, a wedding party, boats, and all around general awesomeness. We saw a couple of the Electric Run’s “Worlds” set up and ready to go!

After our dinner we ditched our race packets in the car and readied ourselves for the run. We came prepared with at least 60 glow bracelets which adorned not only our wrists but our necks (two hooked together), shoes (pretty sure this isn’t what SKORA had in mind), and hair.

We headed into the corral area a little after 7pm where they were checking bracelets to make sure that everyone was on the up and up. Finding ourselves close to the starting line, we knew that we’d be going out in the first wave.

Now… it was time for the sun to get the heck off our lawn so we could Electric Run! GO ON, sun. Shoo!

There was a really, really tall dude standing right next to us. Keri isn’t shy (*I’m so demure*) so she asked if he’d take a picture for us. I love this picture because it really gives you an idea of the sheer magnitude of the crowd. And what an awesomely diverse crowd it was!

Getting darker! We were antsy at this point – time was creeping along but the Electric Run’s DJ, MC, and staff did a great job keeping the interest going with giveaways of glow sticks, glow rings, hats, and other fun stuff.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwDNvKNiE5k&w=640&h=480]

The race started around 10 minutes after 8pm and we were off into the Electric Run experience!

Something I’ve noticed during “fun runs” like the Electric Run and The Color Run is that there are a lot of people who plan to walk the entire course, which is GREAT, because they are out and moving. However, I think that as walkers, many don’t realize the etiquette that runners have come to expect during events (walkers to the right, runners to the left). It would be pretty rad if the event coordinators could make mention of this, perhaps in both race documents and while the participants are lining up and they’re hyping the crowd.

Once the crowd thinned a bit, we were able to find a really nice, comfortable pace and take pictures along the way.

Each of the “worlds” had speakers with music pumping! I think the phrases “HOW FREAKING COOL IS THIS?” “SO FREAKING COOL!” were the only ones that Keri and I uttered for awhile. It was very “Dude!” “Sweet!” of us.

BECAUSE… IT WAS SO FREAKING COOL.

Once we went through a couple of tunnels, we found ourselves on gravel, right along the water. I have to say that this course ranks in the top three favorites. (And there were hills, so I think that really says a lot.) It was absolutely gorgeous! There were volunteers along the course, pointing us in the right direction. I suppose the “wrong” direction would have been swimming and since none of us had signed up for an aquathon, we continued along on the path.

The first hydration station we reached had Rockstar Energy Drink but we were in search of plain old water. Thankfully, there was a lovely table of water cups just ahead!

Soon after we hit the water station, we got to a really gravelly portion of the course. Not to mention, it wasn’t too well lit. And oh, there was a hill. We took this part slow and tried to see where we were going based on the glowing luminaries ahead. It might have been helpful to have little luminaries along the path in the particularly dark areas. Oh, if only I were in charge of the world!

I think that Umbrella Land was one of my favorite parts of the course. Just as we arrived Coldplay’s “Paradise” started playing and it was just so perfect. It was dark, the night bugs were talking, the umbrellas were floating in the trees (that’s not something you see every day) and we were running. Honestly, it reminded me a bit of when we used to dance in the headlights of our cars at night. Yes, we really used to do that. I blame Footloose and being theater geeks.

Keri and I were talking after the run and she said she couldn’t stop smiling (like the first day she rode a bike as an adult) and I agree. IT WAS REALLY FREAKING COOL. Ahem.

See how cool I am?

Just after we ran under the glowing arches, we came to light-up walls with projections on them. Ran through that and wound up right near a father and son duo. The son was probably around eight (my older son’s age) and the dad was giving the pep talk that I’ve given so many times. “Just a half mile to go! You’ve got this! You’re looking strong, buddy!”

Keri wasn’t sure the significance of the mouse – but we rolled with it! When the dad said we were only a half mile out, it made both of us kind of sad. We wanted it to go on forever!

Just after we went through these lit up trees, we hit a steep uphill. But there were actually spectators at this point in the course and we knew that we were nearly done so naturally we tapped into their energy and RAN up that hill. I think Keri might have actually said “WEE!” at one point.

And thankfully, where there’s an uphill, it’s usually followed by the downhill! We flew through the streets of National Harbor, lined with spectators and picked up steam as we went. Faster and faster, we ran through an area of fog (thanks to the fog machine) and then saw the FINISH arch! Keri was so happy speeding along, she nearly missed the fact that we were AT the finish!

We grabbed the post race water and granola bars, took a very glow-y picture, and made our way to the post race par-tay!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Un1hGbqIC6I&w=640&h=480]

Thanks to Keri for this video – I was dancing. Naturally!

I’m so very grateful that not only did I get to experience this race but that I got to run it with Keri. I think I’ve said this before; I was the girl who walked the mile in gym class. Keri was the girl who walked right next to me. For us to do this and enjoy it all these years later? Ah-maz-ing.

Ever do an Electric Run or night race? My next night race will be runDisney’s Wine and Dine! And I’ll be cheering at the Philly Rock ‘n Roll half marathon this weekend – look for me with my bright yellow sign, hopefully with a Scoot a Doot shoe logo if I’m able to get crafty. 😉

Best Lemonade Ever… No, Seriously!

September 9, 2013 by Meridith

As you probably know by now from our blog posts, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook accounts we are participating in Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation’s Million Mile Run. ALSF raises funds and awareness for pediatric cancer research. If you’re wondering why, exactly, we need Childhood Cancer Awareness month, please check out the infographic from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia at the end of this post. I learned a lot that I didn’t know and think that you might be surprised too!

But first, my family and I have hosted two Alex’s Lemonade Stands at our home for the past two years. I thought that I’d share our lemonade recipe. You might be thinking… lemonade from a mix is easy and convenient, why don’t they do that? You would be correct. But if you’ve met me, you know that I roll with the Type A crowd; why do something easy when something hard can be done? Fortunately, this lemonade isn’t too hard and it’s also deemed as the “best lemonade ever”. No, really, it’s first the first recipe that shows up when you Google that phrase!

Of course, we can’t just make one serving of the best lemonade when we are hosting a lemonade stand. That’s crazy talk! Especially when we need to fill our ridiculously large glass carafe.

The “small” version calls for 1 3/4 cups of sugar, 1 1/2 cups of lemon juice and 8 cups of water. However, when we MEGA-SIZE it, everything jumps up. If you ever want to hold a lemonade stand of your own and make a large amount of lemonade… this is how we do it (cue Montell Jordan).

Ingredients:

7 cups of sugar
32 cups of water
6 cups of lemon juice (we use a combination of freshly squeezed and bottled. The squeezing of lemons is a favorite activity for my boys!)

Directions:

In a large pot, combine sugar and 4 cups water. Bring to boil and stir to dissolve sugar. Allow to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until chilled.
Remove seeds from lemon juice, but leave pulp. In the carafe, stir together chilled syrup, lemon juice and remaining 28 cups water. (If you have a carafe like ours, make sure the nozzle is CLOSED before you do this. Yeah. Yeahhhhh. That’s all I’ll say about that little blunder.)
Ice and slice! We usually buy bags of ice for both the carafe and each cup of lemonade. Add slices of lemon to the carafe to make it extra delicious.

My husband and I decided to try to make an adult lemon beverage for this post. We settled on a Gin Fizz.

But, um, the finished product tasted like lemon flavored cleaner. Or ~~maybe~~ it was a “guy” drink that I just didn’t enjoy at all because he drank his. And mine. So I can’t in good conscious share the recipe. You just let me know if you want it. (You don’t.) (Or maybe you do. If you like drinking lemon flavored cleaner. Not that I have anything against lemon flavored cleaner as cleaner… just as a drink.)

And hey, if you’re looking for a delicious sounding foot scrub for after those long runs or if you just need a little pampering, check out Sara’s post at The Classy Crafter.

Now for the most important bit of this post…

Childhood Cancer Infographic

The final “Chick on Chick” – Cam Takes Center Stage

September 6, 2013 by Meridith

Cam and I have known each of for the past three years, although I can honestly say that I feel like I’ve known her forever. She’s one of those people I can’t get enough of; I love every minute we spend together, miss her when we are apart (most of the time) and get legitimately excited when I hear from her in any form of communication. While the other Chick interviews were written, we decided to go a different route (mostly because I miss her so much) and do our interview video style.

Cool? Cool!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpxBcohjJ4w&w=640&h=360]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRd8UKuXyAo&w=640&h=360]

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOHFHBHauZU&w=640&h=360]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEdaGpOQC_4&w=640&h=360]

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHIcSggotFE&w=640&h=360]

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RfEArgQcJOY&w=640&h=360]

That concludes our first Chick on Chick series! If you missed anyone, feel free to check out our past interviews: Mer (that’s me!), Bec, Brooke, Jess and Vic.

Happy Friday!

Don’t Call Us “Mellow Yellow”

September 4, 2013 by beewhobabbles

We’re painting the month yellow here at Scoot A Doot, and we’re off to an incredible start. I am so inspired by my chicks and our friends who’ve joined our team. It’s only been three days, and already we’ve run, walked, skipped or jumped over 145 miles! We’ve also raised over $600. IN THREE DAYS. I’m completely bowled over by the support for this cause, and so thankful that I know wonderful people, who know other wonderful people. (And I’m sort of lost with the words over this. Truly.)

When we decided to participate in the Million Mile Run, we weren’t sure what our goal would be. Teams are supposed to run 100 miles, collectively, and right away, we knew that we’d surpass that with ease. Some of us are training for long distance races, one of us is running her way through Napa this month, and one of us walks as her primary mode of transport. We’re a pretty ambitious bunch though, and since our mindset for this event was “Go BIG or go home,” we each set our sights on an individual goal.

BEC:

My goal is 13.1 miles for the month. I’m hoping for more but i wanted a workable goal and I’ve done a half in a month before so that seemed good.

This will be achieved primarily through walking, although i am restarting C25K, so there will be some running.

Because my phone died, and my replacement phone is on backorder, I’ll be using the local high school track as my mileage guide, and logging my time manually in Runkeeper. And once my phone gets here, I’ll be all about my Runkeeper and Couch to 5k training apps.

JESS:

I typically walk about three miles a day, so I know I can hit 90 miles by the end of the month without any problem. My secret goal is 100 miles – still doable but it will definitely require more effort. I’ll be stoked if I hit that!

To achieve it, I plan to keep doing what I’m doing: by walking around the city as much as possible. Once I’m back to 100% health (summer colds are the worst!) I plan to run on the weekends as well.

I’ll be tracking miles with My Fitbit One, of course!

MER:

My miles for the Million Mile Run will be taking place during gym warm up (I usually average two prior to an hour of strength/cardio) and while my kids are at school. I’m going to try to streak as much as my schedule will allow this month and get at least a mile a day because, really, why not? The weekends will be dedicated to long runs.

I usually use my Garmin or just general knowledge to track my miles (I do my quarter mile stretch prior to the gym sans watch). However I’m getting a Fitbit within the next couple of days so perhaps I’ll use that to track my mileage. I’m excited to play with a new gadget and there’s really no better way to break it in!

VIC:

The Million Mile run happens to fall into my schedule at the same time I ramp up my mileage as I prepare for the NYC Marathon. As I look at my training schedule, I see that my long runs alone total more than 60 miles in September. So – I’ve decided to set my goal for 100 miles. I think my training should bring me pretty close, if not over the century mark. I was already nearly 1/5 of my way to my goal on Sept. 1, as I run an 18-miler in Watertown, NY.

I plan to run 4-5 days each week, with a little cross-training of swimming or spinning thrown in. Now while I do train with a Garmin (forerunner 210, folks!) I typically am lax about downloading said information into a fancy spreadsheet, but I do write my mileage, pace and time on my weekly running log. Now don’t laugh, but it’s all kept in a weekly pocket calendar from Target’s dollar spot. It’s old school, but it works for me.

BROOKE:

As for me, I plan to run 75 miles this month. I’m at the beginning of my training for Wine and Dine, and 75 is slightly over the planned mileage, but I’m going over on most of my runs already anyway. (Sorry, Hal Higdon.)

Cross training will be walking with my family or hanging with Hannah on the elliptical (does that count?), and all miles will be tracked by my trusty Garmin.

I’m sporting my yellow today (good thing I have a lot of it!) and I can’t wait to see how much we run- and raise- to help support children’s cancer research.

Please donate if you’re moved to do so. Thanks.

Have you ever done a running streak? What are you currently training for? Tell me how much you love your FitBit (my mom has a birthday soon and I’m eyeing it for a gift!) What yellow clothing do you have in your closet?

Run Real with SKORA

September 3, 2013 by scootadoot

You might have heard the buzz about SKORA on Twitter or seen the many Instagram pictures of the shoes from diehard fans. The Chicks originally heard about SKORA shoes from our friend, Evelin. Naturally we were intrigued by the idea of minimalist shoes and were stoked when Vic and Mer were chosen to give the shoes a try!

We plan to try them throughout the month of September before writing a full review but here are our first thoughts.

Vic’s SKORA FORM

Vic: I am really excited to give them a whirl. So far, I’ve only walked/run about a half-mile in them and I LOVE how light they are on my feet. But it’s a very different feel than I am used to. I wonder if I will be faster when I run in them? I sure feel snappier!

Mer’s SKORA CORE

Mer: Thanks to the rainy New Jersey weather, so far I’ve only been able to try these on the treadmill. I did a mile walk to start before racking up two additional miles on the first day and three the second. Honestly, I can’t wait to get these outside. I really like how I’m able to feel more of the ground when wearing them and I also appreciate how my feet have the opportunity to spread with each step.

We’re both looking forward to logging some quality miles in our SKORAs! We’ll keep you posted with a full review in a couple of weeks!

Have you tried SKORA shoes before? Ever try barefoot running?

We were provided with the shoes from SKORA. All thoughts and opinions are our own.

Picture Pages: The Color Run NJ

September 3, 2013 by Meridith

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=urSPH95DHng&w=480&h=360]

What Do You Put On Your Race-Day Face?

August 20, 2013 by beewhobabbles

When I was a four years old, my aunt let me play with her make-up. Shimmery pink blush, purple eye shadow, frosted fuschia on the lips and voila- I was beautiful. My mom wasn’t happy about it, but after that, it became a ritual. Every time I visited my aunt, I headed straight for her vanity. My experimenting continued as I got older; in high school, my friends and I would drive to the best mall in our city and head straight for the make-up counter at Saks. In college, my friends would “schedule” appointments with me for make-up before sorority functions. I still love make-up. I love to wear it. I love to play with it. I have fun trying different products and colors (I wore a bright fuschia lip recently, much to my husband’s dismay. He prefers my “natural” look). I could spend an hour in Sephora and then head across the street to Ulta. (Sorry, husband.)

Fun make-up for a super cool concert we saw a few weeks ago. Alright, it was Kidz Bop. Le sigh.

Earlier this month, I went for a run at 3pm. That morning, I applied some light make-up, and neglected to scrub it off before heading outside to exercise. Well, within five minutes, my tinted moisturizer and mascara were stinging my eyes! Ouch. I sweat a lot when I run, and get pretty flushed, so there’s really no need for make-up. If it didn’t melt off of my face (or into my eyes), one wouldn’t be able to see it post-race anyway. I wondered if my friends wore make-up during their races, especially my girly-gals, so I decided it was time for some chick chat.

BEC:

I don’t think I ever realized that people wore makeup for races until I was getting ready for last year’s Color Me Rad with my friend Heather and she was doing her eyes. And honestly, I was shocked. It had never occurred to me to put makeup on for a race. Even once I knew that this was a thing people do, I didn’t. Most of the time, I’m all ‘I’m a girl! I like pink! I like sparkle! I like pretty!’. But on race day, in addition to being a nervous wreck, I’m all ‘I’m about to go get truly gross and stinky and sweaty. You can keep your eyeshadow, thanks.’ The most you’ll see me rocking on race day is tinted moisturizer. And I promise you, that’s pushing it.

CAM:

I wear waterproof mascara occasionally. But usually I’m just al natural.

JESS:

I rarely go out into the world without makeup. The first 8 weeks of Bug’s life were an exception, mainly because I barely knew my own name! I don’t always view makeup as a necessity, but I love how it makes me feel (yes, and look) and I really try to wear makeup with good-for-me ingredients so I’m not gunking up my skin.

$A small fraction of Jess's make-up stash.$

A small fraction of Jess’s make-up stash.

At any rate, I do almost always wear makeup on race day. I have to be camera-ready, even if I end up sweating the majority of it off! Typically, I wear a lightweight powder foundation with SPF to get my sun protection on, a coat of waterproof mascara, and a little bit of blush or bronzer to keep me from looking too pale. Finally, I swipe on some lip balm and I’m good to go!

MERI:

Nope. None, except for Chapstick. I used to skip it occasionally until my lip started to crack and bleed during the AC April Fool’s Half Marathon. Otherwise, au naturale for this gal. Though I will do my hair sometimes, only to have it immediately frizz up once I start running. Good times, good times.

Fresh-faced Brooke and Meri before the Rothman Institute 8k.

VIC:

If I remember to apply eyeliner before I grab my homebrewed coffee and leave for work, I consider my morning routine a success. I am a eyeliner and chapstick girl. I wear little and figure that my glasses hide most of what I don’t want people to see. (Please don’t tell me if I am wrong here, I really don’t want to know if the glasses are actually high-lighting wrinkles and dark circles.)

I’m sure it’s no surprise to hear I run without any makeup on. And races? Forgetaboutit. I’m lucky if I can get out the door with everything I need. I have a few friends who style their hair and apply makeup before sporting competitions. Hair? Hell yes, I am guilty as I love sporting pigtails.

A few years back, when I rowed in an 8-woman boat at the Head of the Charles regatta in Boston, I came across some other masters’ women wearing makeup. The killer? The group applied next to the portajohns, which no longer housed any toilet paper. (Free tip for HOTC-goers – bring LOTS tissue packs. It will save you.)

But those ladies? They were far more concerned about looking great and putting their faces on pre-race and taking some pictures. Me – I’ll stretch, check my footstretchers and use those tissues for a last-minute toilet stop.

Do you wear make-up for a race? Let us know in the comments!  

Road Tested: Sweaty Bands

August 15, 2013 by Meridith

Folks, I have a problem. For the life of me, I’m not able to keep a headband on my head.

I know, I know. This is what we classify as a “first world problem”. Alert the media! Sound the alarm! Ring the bell!

This is a dramatic reenactment of what usually occurs when I wear a headband while working out. Notice the large and in charge beehive-like bun on my head that catches the headband as it slowly works its way off my head. Most of the time I’m so caught up in whatever I’m doing (usually running or strength training) that I don’t realize the band has slid off until it’s too late. I’ve lost more than one headband in this manner.

If I don’t lose them, they still don’t last very long into a run. When I actually feel slippage occurring, rather than losing the pretty band, I just rip it from my head and put it away in my trusty SPIbelt. Such was the case at runDisney’s Princess Half Marathon in 2012 – if you look at the pictures you’ll see that both Brooke and Vic are wearing their awesomely sparkly headbands. My SPIbelt was wearing mine.

So, when I had the opportunity to check out Sweaty Bands, let’s just say that I was a bit nervous. Because, really, who wants to admit defeat and publicly say “my head just doesn’t want a headband on it!” However, the Sweaty Bands tagline is “OMG… they don’t slip!” And guess what…

OMG… they really don’t!

Sweaty Bands has a plethora of designs, colors, sports teams and even Greek letters, ripe for the picking. They graciously provided a Sweaty Band for me to check out and review.

There were two in the package; the black and chartreuse matched the dress I planned to wear for a cousin’s baby shower so naturally I imprinted on it (the other one? Well, stay tuned for its fate). If the Sweaty Band could stay on my head for a four hour shower, it might have success during a crazy intense work out.

Road Test #1 – Cousin’s baby shower

Hair was down for this one (top picture). I considered this a warm up for the actual Road Test. Because, really, how sweaty do you really get playing Baby Shower Bingo and Guess the Number of Chocolate Kisses in the Bottle? Not very. However, I did get many compliments on the band and it stayed put the entire time. The material on the inside of the band is velvety and once I pushed it back a bit, it stayed right where it was placed.

Sweaty Bands recommends that you wear it closer to the hairline when working out so that was the plan for the work out.

Road Test #2 – Tuesdays with Ron

Tuesday morning I woke up at my regular 5:10am. Got dressed in the clothes I’d laid out the previous night and threw my hair into a ponytail before placing my Sweaty Band at the hairline. Snapped the selfie (bottom picture) and off I went.

Two mile warm up on the bike, two mile run and then an hour of deadlifts, cleans, push press, bench press, walking lunges, situps, repeaters on a tire, and tricep dips, just to name a few. I kept patting my head, checking on the Sweaty Band and sure enough, it was still there. Sitting pretty! Naturally, I was a hot mess and the Sweaty Band was… sweaty. But absolutely awesome!

Washing the Sweaty Band is easy peasy lemon squeezy – hand wash (I used a bit of Woolite) and drip dry. I’m definitely bringing this bad boy along with me to Florida where I’m assured I’ll sweat even more than I do here. I’m not sure that’s physically possible, but at least I’ll look cute!

Click the pic to enter!

Sweaty Bands was awesome enough to provide one for me to test out and one for Scoot a Doot to give away! If you’d like a chance, check out our Rafflecopter giveaway by clicking on the picture or swinging by our Facebook page. This contest runs from 8/15/13 – 8/22/13.

Disclaimer: I received one Sweaty Bands headband for review. All words and opinions are my own. Giveaway prize donated by Sweaty Bands.

A little ‘chick on chick’ action – Part 1

August 2, 2013 by bec2point0

The chicks here at Scoot A Doot all know each other pretty well. There are a lot of emails, texts, phone calls and Heytells that go back and forth about everything from blog business to what we ate for lunch. (Admittedly, there are a lot about lunch.)

But, we wanted to let you guys get to know us better! And who better to interview us than… well… US!

So, for the next six Fridays, we’ll be posting some Chick-on-Chick interviews. You’ll definitely hear some stuff about health and fitness and what motivates us. But you’ll also get to find out more fun stuff about us! And heck, if there is anything we don’t cover, any burning questions you’re just dying for us to answer, just ask.

We’ll pretty much talk to anyone. About anything. We’re a chatty lot.

So, here is our first installment!

Bec on Meri

Meri representing Bec’s hometown in her City Sports Boston shirt.

Since all this sillyness was my idea, I took on matching up our interviewer to our interviewees. It was completely random, I swear. I have little slips of paper in my work wastepaper basket to prove it. But truth be told, I was pretty excited when I got matched up to interview Meri.

Mer and Bec snuggling in an Irish Pub.

Meri and I have known each other for just over three years, and in that time, she has become one of my dearest friends. She never fails to lift my spirits, and she’s been known to ‘full name’ me on occasions when I really need it. Being that I’m in Massachusetts and Meri is in New Jersey, we don’t get in person visits nearly often enough, but we’ve both hung out with each other’s families and I can’t wait to see her and her’s again next Spring (if not before…universe, be kind).

Bec and Mer (with fellow Scooter Cam and honorary Chick Jenn) on the Boston Chocolate Tour.

Prior to this interview, I would have told you that there wasn’t much I don’t know about Meri. But I would have been wrong! So, without further ado (a.k.a. babbling by me)…

Bec: When was the first moment you really felt like an athlete?

Meri: Well, there’s been many moments when I really DIDN’T feel like an athlete, despite taking part in athletic events. 😉 However, with running, I think one of the coolest moments for me was when I did the Run the Bridge 10k and I was able to call my time, to the minute before we ran the race.

It was my first 10k ever and hillier than any run I’d ever done (the Ben Franklin bridge from Camden into Philadelphia is essentially one giant hill, btw – I don’t think I was really cognizant of that fact when I signed up). Vic, Brandi, Sean and Kate were all running too and as we split up at the start line, I said, “Okay, I’ll see you at a 1:10/1:11 – cheer for me!” And sure enough, that’s exactly when I ran across the finish line (and they were all cheering for me).

To know my capabilities and push myself through those hills was a really fantastic experience. That’s definitely as real as it gets.

Bec: If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Meri: Ice cream.

Bec: I didn’t know this. I mean, Meri and I share a love of ice cream, but I think I would have said oatmeal. Meaning I thought Meri would say oatmeal. I would definitely not say oatmeal. I would say ice cream.

Bec: Do you have an ultimate health/fitness goal, be it a specific weight or something you want to be able to do? What is it?

Meri: You know, it’s funny because when I started running in 2011, I was 30 pounds heavier than I am now and I was very number focused. As I’ve lost weight and became more fit, it’s become less and less about the number and more about how I feel.

I’m 10 pounds heavier than I was last summer but I’m okay with that. My goal is to be healthy and fit, but I also have an obsessive personality so finding the balance of all of these things is numero uno important. My self confidence has never been higher and I know that when I put the work in and focus on my goals, good things will happen.

Bec: Tell me about your dream ‘girl’s weekend’.

Meri: Mount Airy Lodge. Where all you have to bring is your love of everything. I still have dreams of the champagne shaped hot tub. And all my best girls, of course.

All kidding aside, I want to do Campowerment! 2014?

Bec: I don’t even know what Campowerment is but I already kind of want to do it!

Bec and Mer and one of our best girls, Jenn, exploring Salem, MA. It’s no Mount Airy lodge, but we had a great weekend!

Bec: What is your biggest challenge in being a healthy mom to two (adorable) boys?

Meri: My boys are adorable, aren’t they? Biggest challenge would be getting everything done. And having time enough at last (aka to read).

And laundry. Always laundry.

Bec: Laundry is my world. *eyeroll*

Bec: Best Boy Band of all time? And favorite member of said Boy Band?

Meri: Of ALL time? The Beatles. Don’t tell me they’re not a boy band – they were THE boy band.

But if we’re talking more recently, the N’SYNC. And JC. I still love him on ABDC. He’s blowin’ me up with his love. Yep.

Bec: I love this answer. So much.

So, that’s Meri in a nutshell. (Let her out! A nutshell is very cramped!) Next week, we’ll have another chick-on-chick interview. You’ll just have to tune in to see who!

And if you have questions for Mer… or me… or any of the chicks… pop them in the comments. We love hearing from you guys!

Scootadoot

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