Project Reroll: Stir Friday

Hi all!

I must admit, I wasn't sure how to start off here. Do I share my woe-is-me tales of an unathletic childhood? Maybe dive in with a long, long list of goals, hopes, dreams? Talk about how the pursuit of fitness has completely changed my life?

I'm sure I'll get to all of those things, because even though I'm pretty introverted in general, I'm a "talkative" writer, and I like to share things and connect with people. But today, before I launch into some epic tale of slow progress and hesitant adventures, I gotta just say: Wow, is everyone's summer as busy as mine is right now??

I graduated in May and am currently negotiating the uncertain waters of post-grad employment. By year four of my undergraduate studies, I decided I was no longer really interested in my major, but with one year left, I decided not to start from scratch. So, here I am, like many recent graduates: greeting the familiar "What now?" question.

This week, I started an office job that I do really enjoy. It will hopefully turn into a permanent opportunity, but I won't find out for a few months. That uncertainty, combined with a nice long daily battle through traffic and construction and a payroll delay that's making my bank account resemble freshman year, have made this a pretty stressful week. Not to mention the piles of laundry, housework and to-do lists that are multiplying in my house...!

My point is, sometimes it's tough to keep it all together. I try to eat around 80% paleo "ish" (peanut butter with no additives and greek yogurt are both on my "approved" list), but this week has slipped a bit. I also had to work late at my second job on the night I would normally have gone for a run. I caved to cravings and got a pastry from the cafe at work yesterday. Little things add up, but the only thing you can do is move forward and make a better choice next time.

Though the week hasn't been completely in-line with my dietary goals, I did manage to include a few healthy dinners to make up for less-than-satisfactory days. On Tuesday night after our CrossFit workout in the garage, my boyfriend and I made a recipe we found on thefoodee.com (an amazing collection of Paleo and Whole30 recipes, if you're interested!). This one was "Apple Lime Chicken Stir Fry" from a blog called "Delightful Taste Buds," and it's painfully easy and completely delicious! For those of you following any paleo/primal/gluten-free/etc eating, it should be right in there (sorry, vegetarians). No grain, no dairy -- just meat, veggies, apples, and spices! And delicious diced garlic. Lots and lots of garlic. (Sorry, vampires.)

Though I didn't cook growing up, in the past year I've started to experiment, and I've gotten to the point that recipes are much-needed guidelines, but maybe not strict rules. As it was already 7pm and we were tired from the workout, we elected not to do the make-your-own-applesauce portion of the recipe, and instead used all-natural store-bought applesauce (no added sugars or high fructose corn syrup, I checked!). I also winged it on the spices. It came out pretty well!

I am not a foodie or a chef, and I'm certainly not a food blogger, either. I took a few photos to document the process, but go ahead and give the recipe a shot if you like, and let me know what you think!