Tracie's World

I believe I've mentioned that last year, I started a strength training exercise regimen. I bought some resistance bands and hand weights, and I started doing exercises with them every other day. Gradually I also incorporated some core exercises as well. The strength training was very effective, helping me to stay toned, and made a great contribution to my weight loss. This year, I've noticed that the workouts haven't been quite as effective as they used to be. And frankly, they've been a bit boring for me. I've stuck to the routine, but not with the same results. I was doing some reading online the other day, and I came upon an article about something called "High Intensity Circuit Training". Also called interval training, it's a series of mostly calisthenic exercises, done in quick succession, in short intense bursts. The idea is that you can get a lot of intense exercise in, in a short amount of time, while getting similar results to longer and slowe...

Last weekend was the annual Wasatch Community Garden Spring Plant Sale, and as is our custom, I met up with my friends Rosann and Richard to look over all the plants and make my selections for this year.   I look forward to the plant sale every year now.  It is such fun - There is always a great turnout, and an awesome feeling of community, as people come from all over town, and everyone is happy and pleasant and helpful. The garden staff are knowledgeable, and there are usually booths of locally made products available for sampling. This year the selection was so amazing, that I went a little crazy and got even more plants than I normally do.  I ended up with: 3 varieties of cherry tomatoes - Chadwick Cherry, Blondkofchen (should be white or yellow), and Isis Candy. 4 varieties of peppers - a poblano (should make a great Chile Relleno), a paprika (spicy and sweet), a yellow pepper (golden marconi), and a chocolate pepper (gets a nice dark chocolate color - does no...

I finally have some fresh veggies in the house again, and despite an extra long day at work, I thought up a quick idea for lettuce wraps.  Sorry I forgot to take a picture, but I thought they turned out really nice, and totally delicious. Veggie Mixture Broccoli Slaw Peas and Carrots Mushrooms Spinach Dehydrated Onion Bulgur Water or broth Peanut Oil I know you're probably thinking "Bulgur"? But yeah, bulgur prepared correctly gave the stir-fry a more meaty texture.  Take 2 parts water or broth and 1 part bulgur.  Add in a little dehydrated onion.  Nuke for 5 minutes or so, one minute at a time, taking time to stir in-between minutes.  The bulgur should be plenty thick by then. In a stir-fry skillet, heat a couple tablespoons peanut oil, then stir-fry some minced ginger and garlic in with it.  Chop up the broccoli slaw, and place in the skillet, followed by the frozen peas and carrots. Stir-fry for a few minutes, then add the bulgur and onion...