Tag: 3 words

Look Back. Leap Forward!

December 23, 2025 / Chris Brown / 0 Comments

#193 – Look Back & Leap Forward with Chris and Jill

As 2025 comes to a close, Chris and Jill slow things down for a thoughtful end-of-year conversation. Instead of a highlight reel or checklist of accomplishments, this episode focuses on reflection, intention, and what it really means to age strong — physically, mentally, and emotionally.

They also share an important announcement: for the first time in eight years, the podcast will be taking a January hiatus, returning refreshed in February 2026.

We discuss:

Reflection Over Perfection

Why Chris and Jill chose reflection instead of a traditional year-end recap
Aging with intention rather than chasing perfection
Why rest and reflection are essential parts of strength — especially after 50

What actually mattered to you this year — not what you planned to do, but what you really did?

Goals, Drift, and Letting Go of Perfection

Jill reflects on what happens when you don’t set a clear goal — and how drift shows up differently after 50
Why intention becomes more important as time and energy feel more precious
Jill’s strength goal of bench pressing 100 pounds — and what stalling at 95 taught her
Reframing success and recognizing progress even when goals aren’t fully met
Progress doesn’t have to be perfect to count

Is there a goal you didn’t fully reach this year, but still moved closer to? What would change if that was enough?

Chris’s Three Words — Stand, Sleep, Strength

Why Chris chooses three words each year instead of resolutions
The danger of borrowing goals — and words — that don’t fit your life
Strength as a return, not a restart: kettlebell swings, functional training, and building back gradually
Why patience matters more than intensity after 50
Sleep as a major win — and the impact of consistent rest
“Standing” both literally and metaphorically — and noticing what’s still unresolved
Mindful aging doesn’t mean clarity — it means awareness

If you had to choose just one word for the coming year, what would it be — and why does it fit your life right now?

Creativity, Walking, and Seasonal Adaptation

Jill’s exploration of creative strength through writing, crocheting, and her “emotional support chicken”
Creativity as a grounding and often overlooked form of strength
Chris’s daily walking routine — and how winter weather forced a shift
Why adapting to seasons isn’t failure, it’s wisdom
Noticing nature, weather, and rhythm as part of staying well
Letting go of a routine doesn’t mean giving up — it means adjusting to reality

What routine might you need to adapt — or release — without telling yourself a negative story about it?

January Hiatus & What’s Next

Why Chris and Jill are taking January off for the first time in eight years
Using the break to rethink the podcast, website, and Becoming Elli community
Staying true to the heart of the show while allowing it to evolve
Inviting listener input for 2026 topics and direction, please contact us via
e-mail: chris @becomingelli.com or jill @becomingelli.com (no space between the name and @ symbol) or leave a comment at our website: becomingelli.com
Some of our favorite episodes from 2025:
- Bone Health with Dr. Lisa Moore (Episode 187 Brick House Bones)
- Metabolic health and CGMs with Dr. Paul Kolodzik (Episode 178 continuous glucose monitors)
- Wellness Wednesdays with Sally Duplantier (Episode 175 healthspan vs lifespan)
Why episodes featuring everyday women doing extraordinary things remain the most inspiring
Gratitude for eight years of listeners, community, and shared stories
Why rest is part of strength
Choosing what matters now — and letting go of perfection
The podcast returns in February 2026

Our podcast continues to be among the top podcasts for women over 50, especially in the health and fitness categories. See our ranking in the top 2% of all podcasts here.

Partner Podcast Recommendation
Wellness Wednesdays with Sally Duplantier

If you enjoy listening to our podcast, you’re sure to enjoy Wellness Wednesdays, a free monthly online program focused on healthy aging hosted by Sally DuPlantier, an award-winning gerontologist, health educator and researcher. You may remember Sally from podcast episode 175 Better Choices for Better Healthspan.

Guest speakers on Wellness Wednesdays include healthcare professionals, researchers, thought leaders and authors on topics related livestyle choices, mental well-being; pain management, and reframing aging.

The programs are an hour in length and include about 15 minutes of live Q&A. They are free and recorded. Visit Sally’s website at MyZingLife.com for more information.

Chris’ Three Focus Words for 2024 – Connection, Declutter, Yoga

January 27, 2024 / Chris Brown / 0 Comments

For many years, Jill and I have selected 3 words to focus on for the year. We talked a bit about setting a focus for 2024 during our the end of the year podcast episode that was launched Dec 26, 2023 called Lessons Learned for Healthy Living with Chris and Jill.

My three focus words for 2024 are:

1) Connection
2) Declutter
3) Yoga

Connection
When I think of connection, it’s primarily connecting with friends but also a connection with what you call “loose acquaintances.” I consider loose acquaintances the people you see in everyday life at the store, the gym, in line at the bank, and around town. Some people call these “weak ties.” As more and more of my work becomes digital, it’s the loose acquaintances that seem to disappear.

I realized that’s many of the connections that I’ve really lost following all of the quarantine during the pandemic. During that time I really picked up some new habits of not leaving the house a lot, picking up my groceries ordered online, and just staying closer to my bubble of close relatives. That resulted in loosing some of my natural acquaintances with people. So much so, now when I do see someone, they go on and on about how long it’s been since they saw me. Maybe that doesn’t seem like a big deal,but I feel that I’m missing something.

The other part of connection is connecting my cue’s to my routines and strengthening the habits with rewards. I find habits very strong in my brain, so I’m intentionally trying to connect into good habits.

Declutter
This is an extension of what I’ve been doing for the last six months or so, especially throwing away broken items and giving away things I haven’t worn in a few years or used in a long while. Every day I try to throw away 7 items that have just been sitting around, in boxes, in the back of closets, stuck in the basement or other storage bins.

Funny thing I’ve noticed is that I fill up the space right away with something else. I guess because I’m so used to having the space filled. Now the items are more intentional. Or if they are not more intentional, I throw those away/give away or get rid of them more quickly.

Since my husband and I have lived in this house for more than three decades, it’s too easy to keep too much stuff that I don’t really like or need.

I find it very freeing to declutter. When I open up new areas of my life, it makes room, like a vacuum for new things, new experiences and hopefully, fun new adventures.

Yoga
I selected this word because I’m finding that I’m losing flexibility and balance as I age. My shoulders, back and hip joints feel a bit tighter and less mobile. That is not what I want.

Now that it’s the third week of January, my yoga practice has continued along very well (with the support of good habits!!) and I’m already noticing that my joints tendons and ligaments are moving smoother and getting stronger.

Arthritis is something that runs in my family, and although you can’t totally avoid it, doing movement, especially like a regular yoga practice, provides resistant to trouble.

Did you selected three words to focus on this year? Leave a message below or tag us on social media (@becomingelli).

My 3 Focus Words for 2022

January 15, 2022 / Chris Brown / 0 Comments

Each year when I pick 3 focus words to focus my efforts, I look for words that I believe with inspire me and improve my life. Jill and I discussed our three words recently in podcast episode 98. You can click here to listen to the Fit Strong Women Over 50 podcast episode.

This year my 3 focus words are:

1) Cue – As in the beginning step of a habit. When I read “The Power of Habit” I learned that everything starts with the cue.

The book explains the 3 parts of the habit. Each habit has a cue, a routine and a reward. The key is understanding the pattern before trying to adjust the outcomes. It starts with the cue. The cue might be the time of day or a situation. The phone rings. Stuck in a traffic jam. An argument with a family member. The 3 pm slump.

2) Prep – Prep is short for preparation. As in figure out a menu, and do the “ugh” part of the tasks first. I don’t mind chopping veggies – in fact I enjoy it – and I have learned about myself it is best for me to do the prep tasks when I am full. Not hungry! Prep tasks like grocery shopping. Preparing quinoa for the week. Cooking several batches of chicken breast for salad or popping into other recipes. Making a lengthy recipe for a full meal and then freezing most of it into single serving portions for the freezer. (I love easy, healthy defrost-in-the-microwave meals!) Save a aisle-by-aisle grocery list of the par-stock for my pantry that I can use to make sure I always have what I need.

3) Track – Tracking food, exercise and mindfulness is a way to keep the focus on the very things that help keep me fit and strong. I use My Fitness Pal to track meals and my weight; FitBit to track exercise; and the Insight Timer for mindfulness and meditation. I guess that track could me the track near the High School, but that wasn’t the track that I had in mind when I picked this word.

These 3 focus words are what I’ll concentrate on for 2022, as opposed to creating a new years resolution.

Do you use three words? Let me know in the comments below:

Making 2020 Commitments

January 4, 2020 / Chris Brown / 5 Comments

I’m starting this year by making 2020 commitments. I guess it is kinda like resolutions, but I’m following Jill’s lead of selecting 3 words for the new year.

Before I jump into 2020, a quick summary of 2019. Last year was okay when it comes to work outs, but not great. The hardest part was no running, but I had made that commitment to myself. Honestly I really miss it and may do a bit of it in 2020, but it won’t be a major focus.

My daily calorie burn in 2019 was an average of 25 calories less than in 2018 (according to my FitBit.) It’s not that I didn’t get enough exercise, I actually spent more active time, it’s just I didn’t run and I did a lot more yoga:

Outside bike-riding: 523 miles (down from usual of over 700 a year)
Walking the dog: 55 miles
Spinning classes: 41
Yoga classes: 38
Strength circuit classes: 21
Kayaking: 3

Moving into Next Year by Making 2020 Commitments

2019 was a very good year but I’m ready to look forward. Here are my 3 focus words for 2020:

Grateful – Focus on gratitude. Count my blessings, hug my loved ones and try to look at the good side of situations. It’s too easy for me to get fixated on what is not going well and ignore the 99% of how lucky I am. While I don’t want to be overly pollyanna-ish (I’m naturally opimistic), I do want to be sure not to miss the good things that come from difficult situations. (A good friend calls them growth opportunities.)

Cue – After re-reading the book on building habits, I’m going to focus on the cue to the habits, more than the actual routine or reward. Set a reminder on my phone to take my vitamins. Put out exercise clothes the night before for the next morning. Make my to-do list at the end of the workday.

Declutter – Let go of the things that are too worn, outdated, I don’t need or don’t bring me joy. Finish the projects I start. Discard or donate the things that I’m no longer interested in. In my mind, this word somehow ties in with letting go of procrastination.

For instance, years ago in my 30’s and 40’s I thought for sure I’d want to be working on quilts. Ha! Funny. Although I did more than 11 or 12 quilts before my kids were born, instead of wanting to curl up on the couch and quilt when I got older – instead I now want to be outside, riding my bike, walking the dog and enjoying the weather. Anyone interested in taking over my quilting stash?

I’m also looking at slight changes in my eating. I started some of this before the new year, but have been watching to see the effects.

Are you making any changes for 2020? Have a 3 word focus? Slight changes or a big move? Let me know how you’re doing by sending an email (chris@becomingelli.com) or leave a voice mail (330-970-6662) or leave a comment below.

Look Back. Leap Forward!

Partner Podcast Recommendation Wellness Wednesdays with Sally Duplantier

Chris’ Three Focus Words for 2024 – Connection, Declutter, Yoga

My 3 Focus Words for 2022

Making 2020 Commitments

Partner Podcast Recommendation
Wellness Wednesdays with Sally Duplantier