Every January, people across the globe enter the new year with set goals for themselves. A New Year’s resolution is a great way to start the year on the right path. Whether that includes working out more or kicking a bad habit, there are a plethora of promises that we make in hopes of bettering ourselves. With that in mind, before our 2017 preseason kicks off in February, we asked some of our FC Cincinnati players what their resolutions were for the new year!
ANDREW WIEDEMAN
According to forward Andrew Wiedeman, he has a bad habit. Biting his nails. So, his goal for 2017 is to simply stop. It has been a problem for him as far back as he can remember.
“I’ve been a finger chomper my whole life. I’ve been clean for four days now, this go-around. I mostly do it out of boredom I think. I tend to do it when I’m driving long distances or that sort of thing.”
This is not the first time Andrew has tried to dump his habit. About three years ago, when he was out on a date at the movies with his girlfriend who is now his fiancée, he witnessed another nail biter and it caught his attention.
“The whole reason I stopped years ago was because we watched a movie where the lead actor was a nail biter. He constantly had his hands in his mouth and I had an epiphany. My fiancée told me I looked exactly the same when I bit my nails so I decided to quit cold turkey right then and there. Had a good three-to-four year run before I relapsed a few months back.”
Hopefully Andrew can kick his habit for good this year.
PAUL NICHOLSON
The holidays are a tough time, even for professional athletes, to stay away from the cookies and sweets. For midfielder Paul Nicholson, not only in 2017 does he want to avoid sweets, but he wants to eat healthier overall too!
“I enjoy making my morning smoothies. My favorite one is probably a green smoothie with coconut water, spinach, kale, mango, banana, and pineapple. It’s easy to make and it tastes great!”
When asked what food in particular would be difficult to avoid, he was quick to come up with his answer. While it might be a tough challenge for our Englishman to give up a tradition from home, he is up for it.
“Definitely I’ll not be eating the biscuits I normally have with a cup of tea. This time of year, I try to avoid buying really unhealthy biscuits and limit myself to one cup a day. It's torture!”
However, for 2017, eating healthy is not only about keeping himself in top shape anymore. As Paul’s son, William, continues to grows, he feels teaching him healthy eating habits from a young age is really important. This forces Paul to think about preparing healthy food for himself, as he is conscious about getting William off on the right path.
“When I used to cook for myself I would normally eat healthy, but wouldn’t always stick to that plan. Now with William it really makes me think about what I make for our family. I always try to include some green veggies, lean protein, and whole grains in every meal.”
CORBEN BONE
Many of the FC Cincinnati faithful have been entertained on and off the field by midfielder Corben Bone. Getting into a bit of writing of his own last season for our website in a section called “Corben’s Corner”, it documented the life of a player while on the road. Corben’s 2017 resolution should not be too surprising in that it involves more literature.
“I would like to read one book a week in 2017. I decided on this because of my already huge love for books, but I feel sometimes I get lazy when it comes to reading. Essentially, I’d like to set aside time to read more, therefore making completing a book a week more realistic.”
As Corben would put it, fiction is his favorite genre, but he “dabbles” in a bit of non-fiction. With books, one of Corben’s main interests is whether or not he can take something away at the end.
“Really, anything that catches my attention, or a life interest. These are both books that I can take something away from. At the end of the day, I enjoy being entertained, but I most like when a book brings something out of me… One of my favorite authors is Jack Kerouac. He wrote On The Road, which is a book about finding yourself through travel, and most importantly through people.”
With so many prior books in his library, Corben put together a top 10 list of his favorite books for FC Cincinnati fans to check out!
1. On The Road - Kerouac
2. Art of Racing in the Rain - Garth Stein
3. The Art of Fielding - Chad Harbach
4. Tuesdays with Morrie - Mitch Albom
5. The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho
6. Deep - James Nestor
7. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
8. Pep Confidential - Marti Perarnau
9. Although Of Course you end up becoming yourself - David Foster Wallace
10. Until I find you - John Irving
ERIC STEVENSON
Eric Stevenson’s resolution for 2017 involves picking up a new skill. After trying to learn Spanish the past three years unsuccessfully, mastering a second language is his goal for the new year.
“One of my favorite things to do is travel to new places I haven’t been to before, and Spanish is a very useful language to be able to speak. Also, one of my best friend’s first language is Spanish so I've always wanted to learn.”
Using a computer program to learn Spanish, Eric has found it very useful. It does everything from matching, fill in the blank, pronunciation guides and includes games. Eric can see a use on the field as well.
“Knowing Spanish can help for sure. I’ve played on other teams where some guys’ first language is Spanish. The guys on our team this past year who spoke other languages as a first language all spoke English very well.”
By the end of the season Eric hopes he is up and running as another bilingual player on the FC Cincinnati roster!
MITCH HILDEBRANDT
After a hugely successful 2016 for the USL Goalkeeper of the Year, Mitch’s expectations for 2017 are high. After saying NO to shot-takers across the league, Mitch’s 2017 resolution he is saying YES to.
“In 2017, my resolution is to prepare myself for my Master’s degree at Xavier University in Sport Administration. After the preseason when things get more routine, I will sit down and focus on preparing for the GRE.”
Knowing that after his playing days come to an end he would still like to be involved with the “beautiful game”, choosing Sport Administration was an easy choice.
“I hope to play for many, many years to come, but I hope to stay in the game after I'm done on the pitch. Whether that's as a coach or as a GM or technical director I’m not sure. Getting this type of an education gives me the opportunity to link what I see and know about the playing side to the other aspects of the game. Either route that happens for me after my playing career I will be well educated and giving myself and my club the best opportunity to succeed.”
