Chris Brown

Looking Forward to Spring Bike Riding

March 30, 2019

When spring rolls around I start thinking about riding my bike outside. For me, happiness is bike riding. It reminds me of when I was 10, 11 and 12 years old. Lots of good memories of riding bikes as transportation to go visit friends, using the construction site around the corner as my personal BMX course, and having freedom to go where I where ever my bike could take me. Just seeing the weather get a little more sunny and a little less cold has me thinking about bike riding. Doing something you love, that just happens to help you get fit, is a real lucky thing, I think! This time of year is full of anticipation for me. I'm going to do a big ride in August as...

#bikeriding bike riding

Heart Rate Training for Endurance

March 23, 2019

Fit and Strong, Fitness

Since the beginning of the year, I've been experimenting with a lower heart rate training than I usually do in my workouts. I'm trying to improve endurance and stamina. Some people call it exercising in the "Fat Burn Zone." I'm not convinced that it is burning my fat, but I do know this: it has improved my endurance. It is much easy to keep going and I don't feel tired or worn out from exercising. The idea is to work out at the level of exertion where your heart rate stays at the aerobic level. On my FitBit, it is called the fat burning level. If you exercise just a little harder, you begin to breathe harder, your heart pumps harder and you'll enter the cardio level. Really...

heart rate training for endurance heart rate training for women over 50

Collard Greens Rainbow Wrap – New Veggie Challenge

March 19, 2019

Recipes, Veggie Challenge

Last week I took a grocery store tour with Revitalize, a functional group that focuses on women's health. Today's recipe is from Beth Kaczmar who told me it was okay to "cheat" and use her photo of her Collard Greens Rainbow Wrap. It looks delicious, doesn't it? This is a photo of the photo on her phone! I think it's a great way to swap out the 200 calorie spinach herb wrap that has 34 grams of carbohydrates for something REAL that has more like 11 calories, only 2 carbs and less than 10% of the sugar! Here's what Beth says about rainbow collard greens wrap veggie sandwich: "My Collard Green Rainbow Wrap is something different from your ordinary wrap. It’s low in carbs, packed with vitamins A,C,K,...

healthy veggie swap

Free Range Eggs – What Does That Actually Mean?

March 16, 2019

Food and Drink

Some of you may know that my husband and I keep chickens. They've been known to make a vocal appearance from time to time in the Fit Strong Women Over 50 podcast. They like to announce when they have just laid an egg - at least that is what I think they are saying! I love the idea of farm fresh free range eggs. What does that mean exactly? At our house, free range eggs means that the chicken run free, at least some of the time. I will say, it is safer for chickens to stay in a pen. Ours are always penned in at night! When they are locked inside the pen, no hawks, owls, possums, raccoons, dogs and other predators are going to get them. There...

free range eggs

Hormone Health for Women Over 50 with Jeannie Beaudin

March 12, 2019

Fit and Strong, Fitness, Mental Health, Podcast

Fit Strong Women Over 50 Podcast Episode #29 Download | Play in New Window Please Subscribe: Apple Podcasts (iTunes) | Google Podcasts | Android-Google Play | Stitcher | Player FM | Castbox | Tunein | Spotify | RSS In Episode #29 of Fit Strong Women Over 50, Jill and Chris interview Jeannie Beaudin, a recently retired pharmacist who specialized in balancing women's hormones for over 10 years, while she owned her own pharmacy. Her clients appreciated her broad knowledge of non-drug, natural and standard treatment options. As a compounding pharmacist specializing in balancing women's hormones, Jeannie would take time to thoroughly review the hormone-related symptoms, explain available choices and discuss the woman's preferences for treatment. In today's podcast, Jeannie explains how she became known as "The Hormone Lady". The podcast explains how women can work together with a compounding pharmacist and the doctor to improve hormone health. Four levels of treatment...

hormone health hormones

Eggplant Veggie Challenge with Baked Rounds

March 11, 2019

Fit and Strong, Veggie Challenge

Today's eggplant veggie challenge uses purple eggplants but they do come in other colors too. Eggplant is considered a nightshade vegetable, similar to peppers, tomatoes and tomatillos. You can tell it is a nightshade because it has an elf cap on it's stem. Buying eggplant was intentional for me. It is not the type of vegetable that I routinely pop into my cart during the weekly grocery shopping (unlike carrots, celery, peppers and cauliflower.) I was surprised to find out that botanically speaking, eggplant is actually a fruit. I guess that makes sense because although I'm calling them a vegetable for the Veggie Challenge, they have seeds on the inside and are the "fruit" of the plant. As a fruit, they are the part of the...

#veggiechallenge eggplant veggie challenge

A Walk in the Woods Around the Lake on a Wintery Day

March 9, 2019

Fit and Strong

I love the outdoors and a winter walk in the woods, but it's difficult to get out and walk during bad weather. I've managed to find a window of opportunity just a few times this winter. Last weekend was one of those. While snow was in the forecast, the sun had peeked out for a few minutes and I just couldn't help myself. Gathering the dog leash and my 8 year old dog, Lady, off we went to walk the loop around the lake. Checklist: Dog leash Dog Gentle leader (this is a special collar so she doesn't pull) Dog poop bags Fanny Pack Bee sting kit (not likely, but I don't leave home without it!) Phone Spread the tarp-like cover over the back seat to protect...

Shredded Zucchini – Veggie Recipe of the Week

March 4, 2019

Food and Drink, Recipes, Veggie Challenge

I love zucchini and usually slice it into rounds. Today I used a grater and shredded it into bits. I added it into my salad to bulk it up with more vegetables. Besides adding it to a salad, zucchini is also good to add to a stew or a soup. Other people like make it into a side dish. It is easy, just saute the shredded zucchini in olive oil, scramble an egg into it and stir in some freshly ground Parmesan cheese. I may try shredding some apples and combining the shredded zucchini with a tart dressing for an apple-zucchini slaw. This week's veggie challenge brings ways to use the zucchini with several ideas for shredded zucchinis including salads, stews, soups and with eggs....

#veggiechallenge

Improving Flexibility in Tendons and Ligaments with Yin Yoga

March 2, 2019

Fit and Strong, Fitness, Motivation

I used to only focus on muscles and strength, but as I get older I am finding that being strong and improving flexible in tendons and ligaments has become more important to me. One way I am working on improving my tendons and ligaments with through yoga. I am very much a beginner and am still have so much to learn. Perhaps you've been in a yoga practice for a long time. If so, please let me know what works best for you. I used to really enjoy the constant moving workout type of yoga that burns a lot of calories and works the muscles, but as I have gotten older, I'm finding that flexibility and releasing tension to be more of my goal with my yoga...

tendons and ligaments yin yoga

Fried Riced Cauliflower – Veggie of the Week

February 25, 2019

Fit and Strong, Veggie Challenge

I prepared my cauliflower in a way I never tried before. I know I tried riced cauliflower last week, but I it was from a package rice and I tried it with a warm riced cauliflower salad. Pretty good! However this week is special because I riced it myself to make "fried rice" which is actually "fried riced cauliflower." All I can say is WOW, this is a WINNER! Start with a beautiful head of cauliflower. It's still messy to rice cauliflower using a grater, but that's okay, it's easy enough to clean up and worth it for the delicious taste. I even grate the core of the cauliflower to use the whole thing. Usually I throw that part away, but since it is riced so small, it...

#veggiechallenge cauliflower riced cauliflower

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Author: Chris Brown