Hello friends!
You know what being back to full time interning again means… packed lunches!
Yesterday while I was eating breakfast and getting ready, I cooked a big batch of quinoa to eat throughout the week. For lunch, I threw 1/2 cup of the cooked quinoa and 1/2 cup of cannellini beans (canned – drained/rinsed) on top of some raw spinach. Then, I added some chopped tomato, red pepper, and avocado.
To top it all off – some pesto! I used about a tablespoon. Plus some cracked black pepper. Easy and delicious!
I packed it with an orange and a homemade granola bar to enjoy later (I’ll share the recipe soon).
The return of commuting also means the return of audio books! Matt introduced me to the audible.com app on my Samsung Galaxy s3 phone and it’s awesome. Goodbye, books on CD from the library! Audible is way easier. I’m using Matt’s account and listening to some of the books he downloaded – right now, I’ve been enjoying “Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption” by Laura Hillenbrand. It’s an amazing and very powerful true story – highly recommended if you’re looking for something to read.
It’s pretty nice because I can have the audiobook playing while the Google Maps app is open on the main screen giving me driving directions! Perfect. I love this phone. 
In other news, I’ve had some fabulous workouts this week! Last night, I returned to Crossfit Dupont – I hadn’t been since right before the wedding since we were gone last week on the mini-moon. It was great to be back, and I was sporting a new t-shirt gifted to me from Reebok, which I loved. It’s the CrossFit Tri Blend Short Sleeve Top (say that three times fast) and they also sent me a long sleeved version in gray. Excited to try that soon, too! The short sleeved version was really comfortable and fit nicely – big fan.
Matt’s been traveling for work this week so I headed to Crossfit solo and went straight there on my way home from work so that I wouldn’t be tempted to hit the couch instead. 
I’m so glad I went – it was a really fun workout! We started with deadlift practice, pictured above. I made it to 87 pounds for my 5 rep max. Good times!
Then the real fun started:
- 30 Wall Walks
- 50 Side Pillar Starfish
- 100 Banded Good Mornings
Don’t worry, I had no idea what any of those things meant before they explained them to us, either.
This is a wall walk – basically, you start lying face down on the ground with your feet against a wall, then push yourself up into a plank/pushup and walk your hands back towards the wall, walking your feet up the wall behind you until you reach as close to a handstand as you can get!
Then you slowly walk it back out and down to the ground and repeat. Those were really fun but hard.
Here’s a side pillar starfish – basically you make a side plank and lift your arm and leg, then relax to the floor, and repeat. Great oblique ab workout and lateral leg action!
And lastly, here is the banded good morning – you step on a band with your feet, wrap it around your upper body, then bend down and stand up – it will work your core. You might want to YouTube video this one to get a better idea of the movement – it’s hard to tell in the picture!
We had 15 minutes to do everything — I ended up finishing all 30 wall walks and all 50 starfishes, but only made it to 75 good mornings. So close!
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Earlier this week, on Tuesday night, I also returned to my Lululemon Georgetown 6:30 p.m. run club! I hadn’t been in AGES (it hasn’t been convenient to get to from my most recent internships) but it finally worked this week and I was excited to go again. The weather was gorgeous, too! Unseasonably warm.
We had a great run – ran down by the monuments and back, covering about 4.5 miles. My college friend Kathleen came as well so we chatted away the whole time. It’s weird that it’s dark out for the run now, but it was really cool to see the monuments in all their evening lit up glory!
Blurry action shot of running down by the reflecting pool:
Good times. Kathleen and I hit up Sweetgreen after for dinner, so I was able to get their October salad before they took it away! It’s kale and mixed greens topped with apple, candied pecans, white cheddar, chopped basil, and a balsamic vinaigrette. I also added chicken to the mix. So good! Must recreate this at home. I really love apple on salads.
Stay tuned: tomorrow I’ll be back with another wedding day recap! This one will share pictures from getting ready with my bridesmaids and more details about my dress!
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*Disclosure: As part of the Verizon Wireless Ambassador program I have been provided with a wireless device (the Samsung Galaxy S3) and three months of service in exchange for my honest opinions about the product.
The post Back to the Grind: Packed Lunches & Evening Workouts! appeared first on fANNEtastic food.