Jill McCauslin, Author at Becoming Elli

Review of Brute Women Showdown

March 11, 2021

Here's my review of Brute Women Showdown. I know we've talked about listening to podcasts and watching TV while on the treadmill. Cardio activities, especially indoor cardio activities, can be pretty boring. It helps to find things to occupy your mind. Last year I was doing a challenge at my gym. We had to do swimming, biking, and running at the same distance as an Ironman race. Fortunately, we had four to six weeks to accomplish this goal and didn't have to do an actual Ironman event. I was looking around for ways to occupy myself while riding the stationary bike and came across Brute Women Showdown, a competition hosted by Brute Strength Training.. I'm not sure about that name but I loved watching the program. It...

#CrossFit #thebruteshowdown #YouTube

A Variation on the Frittata

March 4, 2021

Fit and Strong, Food and Drink, Recipes, Veggie Challenge

I decided to provide you with a variation on the frittata. Chris posted her pepper frittata recipe the other day and she motivated me to cook one for my lunch. I took the opportunity to capture my version of the frittata and thought I'd share it here. Because I used a pan that could go into the oven, I decided to go ahead and throw the frittata under the broiler. I didn't have to do that but it gave everything a nicely browned topping. One of the things I love about making a frittata is that you can save the leftovers and enjoy them the next day. It keeps and reheats well. Another great thing about frittatas is that you can use whatever vegetables you have on hand....

#frittata

Quick and Easy Vegetable Ramen Soup

February 25, 2021

Fit and Strong, Food and Drink, Recipes, Veggie Challenge

When I'm talking about quick and easy vegetable ramen soup, I don't mean the cheap packets of ramen I used to buy for a very cheap meal. Though I suppose you could certainly use those noodles to make this soup and they would work just as well. I don't know about those packets of seasonings though. They may be a bit suspect. I bought a large package of gluten-free organic millet and brown rice ramen noodles at Costco. They're quick and easy to make and here's my take on a quick and easy soup. In one of our recent podcast episodes, Chris and I discussed this year's veggie challenge. Chris said she was cheating because she was using large bags of frozen vegetables to get in those...

Five Things I Wish I Knew About Fitness Ten Years Ago

February 18, 2021

Fit and Strong, Fitness

Here are five things I wish I knew about fitness ten years ago or whenever it was that I really started focusing on being fit. If you want to know more about how I decided to focus on fitness, check out this very early podcast episode. Chris and I talked about how and why we began to focus on fitness. Since that time, I've learned some things. These five things that I wish I knew about fitness aren't in any order of importance and certainly is not the only things I've learned. Things change and that's ok. Working out and trying to live a healthy life is not the only thing going on in our lives. I mean, that's the way it's supposed to be....

Falling on the Ice

February 11, 2021

Fit and Strong

Yes, I'm going to talk about falling on the ice. Ouch. Here in Ohio, we've been hit with winter weather for the past couple of weeks. I mean serious winter weather with snow and cold. The snow plows came through and cleared the roads but they didn't put any ice prevention down so the streets ended up being sheets of ice. Very slippery. As you know, I have a puppy, Penny, who is now almost nine months old. She loves her walks so I take her even though it's cold and snowy. The day the snow came and the roads were icy was a tough one because down I went. Penny was puzzled. Why was I lying on the ground? Fortunately, she didn't get loose and I...

2021 Veggie Challenge

February 4, 2021

Fit and Strong, Food and Drink, Veggie Challenge

Time for the 2021 Veggie Challenge! If you listened to Chris and I talk about our goals for this year in episode 74 of the Fit, Strong Women Over 50 Podcast (Tracking and Motivation – Three Year Anniversary Podcast, you may remember that we discussed reviving our veggie challenge. I believe I said that we’d get something organized to start in February. We last did a Veggie Challenge in 2019. If you're trying to find ideas for this challenge, just search on this site for veggie challenge and you'll see lots of recipes and ideas 2021 Veggie Challenge We’re going to make this simple this year. We all know that we’re supposed to be eating more vegetables, well, unless you’re following the carnivore diet. Obviously, do what feels...

#2021VeggieChallenge

Everyone Knows Women Can’t Do Dips or Pull-ups

January 28, 2021

Fit and Strong, Fitness

Yes, "everyone knows women can't do dips or pull-ups" is what I recently heard a young woman say. Young as in 28 years old. And who apparently goes to a bootcamp class somewhere. She complained that she can't do dips and said that of course she can't do pullups. Because, yes, you got it, "everyone knows women can't do dips or pulls." The only good thing I can say is that at least she didn't add any age to it. Her belief is for ALL women. Women Can't Do Dips or Pull-ups. Or, Can They? Sheesh. Several women in the Becoming Elli Facebook group are working towards doing a pull up. I was able to do a pull up a few years ago. I can do a dip...

#dip #pull-up

Winter Running Requires Some Planning

January 21, 2021

Fit and Strong, Fitness

I've tried to do my running outdoors this winter as much as possible. I've been lucky that the weather has not been too bad here this winter because I'm not really prepared for running in snow. My shoes are not winter running shoes, really. What to Wear Check out the photo of me. I'm wearing layers to stay warm while running. I have on my winter running tights from Under Armour. They do a great job of keeping my legs warm. I do have on my knee high compression socks just as an added layer for my calves. I have about three layers of clothes on top. It seems like it's necessary to keep my core warm. I also have gloves, a hat, and a scarf thing...

running

My Three Words for 2021: Create, Lift, and Rally

January 14, 2021

Fit and Strong, Motivation

It's time for my three words for 2021. Choosing three words to reflect my goals for the year has become an annual tradition. I actually think it might have been Chris who started me on doing this. I dug out last year's words. As you can see, I wrote a post about them but then the year got so crazy that I forgot all about it. You're supposed to review your words every day to keep them in your mind but I obviously didn't do that. My words for last year were Abstain, Routine, and Family. I spent a lot of time dealing with family issues so I guess that was accurate without even trying. I don't think I abstained from much and my routine fell...

#mythreewords

Creamy Vegetable Soup in the Instant Pot

January 7, 2021

Fit and Strong, Food and Drink, Recipes, Veggie Challenge

I came up with my version of creamy vegetable soup in the Instant Pot. I was out of town unexpectedly recently and left with a refrigerator full of vegetables. When I got back, I realized that I needed to use some of the produce quickly or I was going to have to throw it out. It was more than I could eat in one sitting so I tried to come up with a creative solution. We've shared a variety of vegetable recipes on this site. Chris shared a recipe for vegetable soup. I didn't have enough variety of veggies to make her recipe so had to come up with something different. Creamy Vegetable Soup in the Instant Pot Here’s the recipe I created. I used the Instant Pot for...

#InstantPot #soup #veggiechallenge

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Author: Jill McCauslin

Review of Brute Women Showdown

A Variation on the Frittata

Quick and Easy Vegetable Ramen Soup

Five Things I Wish I Knew About Fitness Ten Years Ago

Falling on the Ice

2021 Veggie Challenge

Everyone Knows Women Can’t Do Dips or Pull-ups

Winter Running Requires Some Planning

My Three Words for 2021: Create, Lift, and Rally

Creamy Vegetable Soup in the Instant Pot

Beyond the Basic Bowl: Creative Ways to Use Quinoa

Buddha Bowl

Vegetable Soup for a Cold Weekend

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