Jill McCauslin, Author at Becoming Elli

Fall: My Favorite Fitness Season

September 14, 2023

I didn’t realize that fall is my favorite fitness season until I sat down to write a blog post. I thought, I’ll write about how the fall season is a great time to change up my fitness plans. When I did a search for other blog posts I might have written, I found these posts: 2018 Ten Tips for Fall Fitness 2019 End of Summer 2020 The Fun of Fall Biking 2021 Running in the Fall with My Dog Apparently last year (2022) I was more focused on food than on fitness because I wrote about roasting pumpkin seeds in the air fryer. This is a good reminder that I should get a pumpkin to carve this year. In 2017, which I believe was the year Chris and I started the...

autumn fall Ohio September

Checking Out New Gyms

July 17, 2023

Fit and Strong, Fitness, Work Outs

I’ve decided to check out new gyms around me and possibly make a change. I’m not sure if this is a good decision or not but wanted to see what’s out there. Maybe this is a “grass is always greener” scenario, I’m not sure. I put my regular membership at my gym on hold for a couple of months to give me time to check out other places. I’ve gone a cost-cutting phase and thought perhaps I could spend less on my gym. Plus, it seemed like a good idea to check out new places. I've belonged to this current gym for a long time so I've become very comfortable there. I’ve been to a couple of gyms so far. Here’s what I’ve discovered. The first gym I...

gym

A Few (More) Ways to Avoid Falling

February 16, 2023

Fit and Strong

I thought I’d add a few more ways to avoid falling after I read the post that Chris recently wrote. It was a great article that listed 10 ways to avoid falling. I read it and was going to comment on the website but then thought I’d share my comments here instead. Stairs Be careful on stairs that aren’t carpeted. I stayed in a house recently that has hard wood floors and stairs. I went down one flight wearing just my socks and thought oh, this is dangerous. The combination of socks and slippery stairs is not a good one. I made sure to wear shoes with a sole after that. Pets Pay attention when walking a dog. I’ve been knocked over a couple of times by...

Instant Pot Lentil Soup with Potatoes and Spinach

February 9, 2023

Food and Drink, Recipes

I thought I'd share my recipe for lentil soup with potatoes and spinach made in the instant pot. Chris shared with you a picture of her soup that she had when we went out for lunch. She always gets the v9 soup. I always get their lentil soup. I rarely make lentil soup but I really enjoy it. So since it's a cold wintry day today and I had the lentils in my pantry, I thought I need to make some soup. This recipe is fast to make and is easy. Ingredients 1 Tbsp olive oil One onion diced Two cloves garlic minced 1 carrot, diced 1 celery stalk diced 2 White potatoes, diced 1 16-oz package of green lentils One bay leaf Four cups of chicken stock Two cups of water 2 to 3 large handfuls of fresh spinach Salt...

#InstantPot #lentils #recipe

Drinking More Water

February 2, 2023

Fit and Strong, Food and Drink

I decided that I should be drinking more water and so I started logging my water consumption on my Fitbit app. Last summer, I posted about hydration guidelines so I went back and reread what I wrote. I really should listen to myself more because I had good advice there. When I first started, I realized that I wasn’t drinking nearly as much water as I thought. Drinking more water was going to take some planning. One thing I realized is that I dislike drinking water in the morning. I don’t know why but I’ve always felt that way. If I don’t start early in the day, though, I end up either being short on my goals or of drinking a lot of water right before bed. You...

#water

Return to Yoga

January 27, 2023

Fit and Strong, Work Outs

FI’ve been talking about my need to return to yoga for quite a while. I practiced yoga off and on for but due to the combination of not really liking the yoga classes offered at my gym and then the whole social distancing thing made it difficult. Finally, I tried a new yoga studio this week. I received a gift certificate for Christmas with five passes for classes at a nearby studio. Figuring it was time, I took my first class this week. I signed up for a gentle yoga because I find starting back into anything is easier if you just take it easy at first. Signing up for the flow class seemed a bit much for starting over. I loved it! The class was enjoyable,...

gentle yoga yoga

What Do You Call an Active Elderly Woman?

January 13, 2023

Fit and Strong

I was talking to a 78 year old woman in the gym the other day about what to call an active elderly woman. She's at the gym almost every weekday for several hours at a time. She works out in the gym and spends time in the pool. She does a lot of treading of water. If there was an Olympic competition in water treading, I think she could win it. She has unbelievable biceps for any woman. I told her that I am taking a class at the local university and called myself old. She said that I was not allowed to call myself old in front of her. I explained that I meant it in reference to the college-aged students in my class. She told...

#elderly #seniorcitizen #masterathlete

Christmas Fitness Gifts

December 29, 2022

Fit and Strong

It’s a few days after Christmas and I’m enjoying my fitness gifts. This year I received personal training sessions and some passes to a new (to me) yoga studio in the area. Isn’t that a great way to go into the new year? Chris and I discussed what we want to accomplish in 2023 in our recent podcast so perhaps these Christmas fitness gifts will help out. Yoga I’m excited about the yoga classes because the studio appears to have a wide range of classes. I used to only want advanced yoga but these days I’m happy to indulge in some gentle yoga or restorative yoga. I can’t wait to sample a bit of both types. A bit more strenuous and a bit less. Sounds ideal. I also...

#PersonalTrainer yoga

Making Hard Boiled Eggs in the Instant Pot

December 1, 2022

Fit and Strong, Recipes

My new favorite thing is making hard boiled eggs in the Instant Pot. I like hard boiled eggs because they're good for a snack and can be added to a salad. I also make deviled eggs once in a while. Why do I keep posting things about using my Instant Pot? I like using it because I can walk away from it and not have to worry about something boiling over on the stove or basically paying attention to what's cooking. If you do a search on this website for Instant Pot, you'll find a number of different recipes. We also discussed this on the Fit Strong Women over 50 Podcast, Episode 112 FAQ – Ask Us Anything with Chris and Jill It's not hard to make...

#eggs #hardboiledeggs #InstantPot

Thanksgiving Thoughts

November 24, 2022

Fit and Strong

It seems to be a tradition that I post my Thanksgiving thoughts here. I don’t think I’ve posted every year but I’ve caught a few. As you know, this time of year is Thanksgiving here in the US. It’s a day we’re supposed to spend with family and friends, enjoy a large meal, and maybe watch football or play board games. This year we are celebrating the holiday at my house. My son and daughter-in-law are spending the day and are bringing a friend who needs a place to go for the holiday. My brother will also be here as will my boyfriend. It has sort of become a tradition now that we all provide the food that reminds us of our family traditions. I’m roasting the turkey...

#turkey Thanksgiving

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Author: Jill McCauslin

Fall: My Favorite Fitness Season

Checking Out New Gyms

A Few (More) Ways to Avoid Falling

Instant Pot Lentil Soup with Potatoes and Spinach

Drinking More Water

Return to Yoga

What Do You Call an Active Elderly Woman?

Christmas Fitness Gifts

Making Hard Boiled Eggs in the Instant Pot

Thanksgiving Thoughts

Beyond the Basic Bowl: Creative Ways to Use Quinoa

Buddha Bowl

Vegetable Soup for a Cold Weekend

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