{Ready to Work}: Driving Manual + The “Itch”

by Katelyn Block on September 2, 2012 · 14 comments

Hi everyone! Happy Sunday! I can’t believe it’s already Sunday, and yet the weekend isn’t even over yet. Talk about a seriously awesome way to start off the semester.

Selfies all day every day.

Some of you have been wondering about my training, which has been going really well. I’ve been hitting PR’s on a consistent basis and listening to my body in regards to rest days. I went really hard Monday through Thursday, realizing at the beginning of Thursday’s workout that I should have taken a rest day. Insert: Friday becomes “active recovery” aka sit on the floor of my box and “stretching” while I watch other people struggle and sweat out their own body weight. Not a bad way to spend my Friday morning.

Saturday I worked out and prrrrobably could have done more, but my knee has been feeling really weird lately and I didn’t want to push it too much. Usually after my WOD I do some more strength, which always involves some form of squatting because that’s what I love to do, and I made the conscious decision that maaaaaybe going for a new PR wasn’t the best idea when it felt like my knee was going to pop out. Just saying.

So today, I woke up, ate breakfast, and got right to being productive. Read: Do laundry (yawn, but it has to be done), sell last year’s textbooks, pick up this semester’s textbooks, and buy new goodies that make carrying around syllabuses (not grammatically correct, try saying that ten times fast. Syllabi?) and papers a little bit more exciting.

How chic?! Everything is made of recycled materials and were pretty inexpensive. Good use of my bookstore money, check and check. I also have a Quo Vadis day planner on its way, thanks to an awesome recommendation from Sarah. Never would have found out about these gems were it not for the beauty of Twitter and blog friends!

My family recently decided to let me use one of their cars from home here at school, which is both an SUV and a manual shift. I learned on this car, but despite the fact that it should be “like riding a bike”, I’ve spent a few too many hours cursing at the car and stalling an uncountable amount of times in a row. Crossing my fingers and saying a prayer for the people that ever get rides from me. Or end up behind me. Sorry if I stall, it’s the car’s fault, not mine.

In all of this business, I’ve had just enough time to get schoolwork done, stay updated with Twitter and email happenings, eat and sleep. Let’s talk about the “eat” part of that sentence.

See that up there? Yeah, vegetables? I need more of those in my life.

I’ve been making a really conscious effort to have fresh vegetables on hand 24/7 to throw together a salad or stir-fry. The fact is, is that I can’t live on just meat, fruit, avocadoes and nuts. I wouldn’t mind it, but it’s definitely not good for my bod or my energy levels. So, I’m starting to chop up all of my fresh vegetables at the beginning of the week (aka the weekend, when I have more time) and keeping them in Pyrex containers, ready to use in a pinch.

One thing I’ve noticed is that if I start to feel fatigued and itch for a cup of coffee, the best thing to do is eat some fresh vegetables and my energy levels get back to normal. I love coffee, don’t get me wrong, but I’ve learned over time that my daily cap is 3-4 cups of the good stuff before it starts to affect me adversely. I try to have most of my caffeine in the morning and before workouts.

Another solution to “the itch” is….

Homemade iced tea! I found Lipton Cold Brew iced tea bags at Wegman’s and haven’t looked back since. It’s so disgustingly simple I can’t even explain to you how happy it makes me. I have a glass container with a tap on it, and simply fill it to the top with water and put in two tea bags; let it steep for 3-5 minutes (depending on desired strength) and then you have a permanent tap of refreshment.

Perfect for this heat wave. AKA, 85 degrees and sunny. I promise it feels hotter than it sounds.

Favorite office supplies?
What do you look for in a day/week/monthly planner?
How do you get your veggies in? 

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{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }

Stephanie @ Steph's Miles September 2, 2012 at 9:44 PM

I didn’t know Lipton made cold brew iced tea packets! How simple is that!

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Miranda @ Biting Life September 2, 2012 at 9:55 PM

Those folders are so cute! I really need to pick up a folder for this semester, but I’ve looked multiple times at multiple different stores and EVERYBODY is out of folders!! Guess I’ll just have to wait until the start of the school year rush is over.

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Melissa @ Naturally Balanced September 2, 2012 at 10:10 PM

Mmmm veggies :) , I just bought a new juicer and love getting a big zing of nutrients through my veggies that way, or through green smoothies, steaming and baking :) .

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jenna September 2, 2012 at 10:21 PM

i love notebooks and cool pens and highlighters. those types of things were always so fun to pick out when i was still in school!! i get in veggies any way possible. i love them! i make sure to have them as a side at lunch and dinner everyday, and i sneak them in at breakfast through putting spinach in my smoothies and sometimes making carrot oatmeal pancakes! spa love!

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Mindy Artze September 2, 2012 at 10:31 PM

I love school supply shopping :) Guess that is why I became a teacher!!! And I need to eat more veggies too! Interesting that you reach for veggies when you need coffee! I need to do that!

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Becca September 3, 2012 at 3:09 AM

Where is your shirt from!! Adorable

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Danielle @ Clean Food Creative Fitness September 3, 2012 at 7:53 AM

I am such a sucker for a great daily planner! I’m such a planner and organized so I am kind of sad I no longer need school supplies but still use my planner 24/7! I’m not the biggest veggie fan so I have to really work to make sure I get them in all day! I love mixing them into my eggs, roasting veggies to have on hand for the week, and keeping some frozen and fresh veggies in my kitchen always! Good for you for listening to your body in CrossFit! Rest days definitely are necessary! I like to follow the 2 on 1 off, 3 on 1 off format but definitely feel like I’m missing out on my rest days!!! It’s hard to take a day off!

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wymberley September 3, 2012 at 10:47 AM

Yes, Syllabi.
I miss buying school supplies! I have to buy for my daughters but it’s just not as exciting…

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Dawn September 3, 2012 at 11:22 AM

LOVE your top!!! Where is it from!?

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Katelyn Block September 3, 2012 at 2:07 PM

Forever21 I think?! I honestly can’t remember!

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Meg September 3, 2012 at 9:57 PM

I always have fresh veggies on hand too :) I’m travelling right now and I have a cooler RIGHT beside me packed with the fresh stuff.

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Hillary {Nutrition Nut on the Run} September 3, 2012 at 10:18 PM

love the orange notebook. hope sophomore year is crazy fun!

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Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy September 4, 2012 at 6:08 AM

I’m jealous! I wish I was back at university!!

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Sky September 7, 2012 at 12:02 PM

Favorite office supplies?
What do you look for in a day/week/monthly planner?
How do you get your veggies in?

There is nothing that excites me more than a new notebook!! I have wayyy too many notebooks, but I just love them! I have to write everything down! For a planner it must have the monthly view along with the week view and enough space to write down assignments, to dos, appointments on each day! I am very particular about my planner! Getting one for the start of a new semester is something I always enjoy hunting for!

For me I’ve never been the best veggie eater. I’ll eat most veggie side dishes, but being a college student it really is hard to get them in. I found the best way for me is to make a green monster smoothie with spinach leaves. Also, carrots are really portable and easy to take along, so I usually pack some of those for long class days.

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