Physical Health and Body Archives - Page 21 of 24

Barre Class Gives You Nice Legs and Teaches You Personal-Growth

Barre class can be a metaphor for what we need to grow ourselves. When you think of a row of ballerinas with their arabesques, port de bras, and extended swan necks, you can be reminded of control and grace–what we all need in life for better performance and balance.

You can also grow strong. When you have control over your body in a certain position, your muscles are flexing to build strength.

Don’t be fooled with thin and dainty ballerinas as they have very strong legs (and toes)! They’re usually slender, have Vata-like bodies where they are aware of every body position from the waist down to the crown of their heads and through their fingertips.

To get in perfect positions, they have concentrated mind-body awareness. If they lose focus then they could soon fall or be out of alignment.

If you aspire to have ballerina moves, that usually requires hours of imperfect practice. A Nutcracker play ballerina has paid their dues.

To start, you can make your life easy and see how the barre concept feels especially if you’re new, by trying a mild, less-strenuous workout in a barre class.

You usually start off standing along a bar as your equipment. And if you’re doing this from home, you can use a chair. It’s that simple!

One of the first things you want to think of is extended height. That requires stamina and strong legs and specifically upper leg strength in your quadricep muscles (quads) that could give you the endurance you need.

That’s not something you develop overnight, but you may be naturally more built out in that area. That’s the opposite of someone who wants to try-out for America’s Ninja Warrior show. There you see athletic men and women alike on the show who have demonstrated strong upper body strength. We’re all given different strengths in comparison.

And ballerinas are athletes, with strong quads. Like everyone else, you can develop your legs in other ways every day. Like, climbing stairs or doing squats in place. And say you want to take an outdoor 20 plus mile bike ride, having strong upper leg muscles will help give you the extra strength and extra oomph to push you over the hills.

A great way to develop your quads is by following a barre class.

If you take a class, that can be just as effective through video, you can lose your inhibition. You’re focused on your screen and mimicking the instructor and not thinking how silly you look with self-consciousness and awkward body movements (that we all have).

Your body doesn’t care how ridiculous you can look to move its joints, muscles, and all the parts gluing your butterfly parts together. It’s just happy you’re moving and that’s what you can positively focus on.

Similar to learning foundational yoga poses for a yoga class, you can learn and focus your attention on ballet positions for a barre class.

You can even find that you’ve known or been doing some of the French named barre positions for years without knowing how that they would be practical in your barre class now.

What I love most about barre class:

I do think barre is a Vata-designed workout. ♥ ♥

A Vata person’s middle name is Variety.

Choosing to take a barre class is a variety from the norm while the type of exercise is growing in popularity. The crux of the class can be ballet moves, but most barre classes incorporate moving to the floor for pilates and yoga poses.

You just never know what kind of journey your barre instructor can take you on and how intense the workout is until you get a sense of the instructor’s style.

If that unknown element of what-happens-next appeals to you, then you may have a ‘lil more Vata in you than you think (we all have some trace).

If in your recreational time, you still like to know every move you’ll be taking and that’s expected, then you could be more Pitta/Kapha dominant or falling into those stronger imbalances.

In any case, life is full of surprises so taking a barre class can help you become flexible.

By the way, do you know what your main dosha is?

If you want to know the reverse, what is not happening the way you want, then you can take the balance restoration, Body Balance Quiz, to find out what you can do to get back to yourself.

If you pay attention and learn to get in awareness of your natural body tendencies, then you can lean into your ways and not be so hard on yourself. We can wonder why we’re different in some ways from our friends and people we admire.

Doshas may be one insightful clue and a more fun way (leaning into your natural strengths) to follow in life.

Be encouraged, many others share your mind-body type. You just have to find your peeps. They’re out there!

barre

But back to barre… whether you’re a natural Vata body-mind type or not, you get a mix of a heart-pumping workout with very few breaks to catch your breath, unlike these peeps just standing around. …sorry, Easter is in a couple weeks, so I couldn’t resist the reference!

One class I went to regularly for a season had exercises where you moved from one end of the room to the other, mimicking a Nutcracker Toy Solder.

Repeating the movement takes body coordination and also self-discipline, as you’re trying to look cookie-cutter mechanical. Concentration is good mind-body health (and can help a Vata-sporadic brain get back in line).

Making even-movements is a talent that I don’t have today (maybe you do and could consider trying-out for the Rockettes!), but whatever the case you still can have your best-attempt version.

In that one class, we learned how to march across a room with our stiff arm and leg movements, and afterward we each picked up a stability ball for an even more energizing workout.

We transformed from gliding Ballerinas to marching Toy Soldiers to Downward-Facing Dogs. …Phew! I was tired.

So next time you’re wondering if you should give barre a try, here are few surprise benefits that can help sway you:

-Increasing mind-body awareness

-Developing grace and better performance

-Building strength and resilience

-Finding self-discipline and self-control (that leads to bigger and better things!)

And if you can’t dance, barre is a good alternative to say Zumba, as you’ll still be on your toes and you may just become a ‘lil more aware which is the right, left foot 😊

Happiness Book Announcement

Happiness book announcement! 📣.

Happiness Book Launched 2021 — Happiness Book Launched March 20, 2021

Today is the first day of spring and the a hashtag event calendar day for #InternationalDayofHappiness.

It’s also coincidentally the weekend of my happiness book release. And I have a spring roll (swiss cake roll recipe to share below 🍥) to celebrate the occasion.

Up to now, most of us have learned to be more patient with the world, and uniquely in our individual lives. For better health and to enjoy your day, it’s better to celebrate what you have. Time today is a gift.

In the wait, focus on the positive things. You are a day closer to your destiny and joy if you decide to focus on love, beauty, and growth that you can find evidence all around in spring and nature.

In my muse and self-reflection today, I’m tickled (and a bit relieved) that my happiness book, Empowered Happiness, that I started editing last summer is completed and available now. I had intended for the book to be published last year.

I started writing in 2019, but for all kinds of start and stop reasons, I didn’t make the deadline. …and now I understand why it takes most authors more than a year to publish a book that has nothing to do with procrastination or writer’s block 😊

You know how things always take longer than you expect… my happiness book project was no different.

On the other side now, I see how slow cooking a book takes patience but produces a better, heart-filled, and soulful meal (end-product) than microwaving can ever produce. (…and as a writer, we prefer “simmering” over “nuking” and also the rhyming words associated).

When asked yesterday in a phone interview why I wrote the happiness book, I was stunned by what came out of my calm thoughts, mind, and mouth.

Like you, if you choose, I’m here to impact others’ lives with the gifts and opportunities I’ve been given. With the book, I aspire to impact readers in their own lives, no matter what stage they’re in as I know others have gone through similar experiences as I have. The mentors that I’ve turned to, time and time again, have been self-help books. And this is my way of giving it back as a writer and mentor advocate.

Everything else is gravy.

We all need each other for validation and can learn from one another about authentic living in this beautifully organized, delicate, and sometimes complicated Cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs place we share called Life on Earth.

With what you can do, you just never know how you can positively impact someone else with similar or different backgrounds.

While piecing together my happiness book, I decided to include a childhood story about an older neighborhood kid who put on an Easter egg hunt. What suddenly happened that day, impacted my life and helped put a memorable smile on my face, like colorful confetti or rainbow sprinkles can.

You never know what an ordinary day can bring. Maybe I’ll get a chance to put on a surprising egg hunt someday and you’ll get a chance to plan or suddenly impact your local community in a way you never imagined.

Make it a great first day of spring… and if you think about it, reach out to someone you haven’t talked to for months. They may just be waiting for your text, call, or a nudge of encouragement that only you can give ♥

Spaghetti Squash – Anti-Inflammatory Food Dish

Spaghetti squash is an anti-inflammatory food. And if you’re trying to stay away from gluten or inflammatory foods for healthy eating, then squashes fit the bill. Spaghetti squash can even take the place of spaghetti carbs.

Spaghetti squash is a good gluten-free and allergy bowl substitute. — Make this spaghetti squash bowl easy from the recipe steps below 🍝

It also has more fiber. And you can count on A, B, and C vitamins.

Both vitamins A and C are antioxidants that help to protect against chronic diseases that can develop from chronic inflammation.

And your allergies and eczema skin symptoms can be telltale. It doesn’t always have to be an internal diagnosis as inflammatory warning signs.

I learned this firsthand when I experienced adult eczema in a nightmarish way during the world pandemic. It was a 3 month saga I’d love to forget. But then ended up in the hospital emergency room a year later for a related episode that had to do with food eating habits.

Before then, I knew common allergy foods from the outside as I planned parties and food menus working with thousands of groups with known food allergies and gluten sensitivities.

Gluten flour was a red flag for the chef foods prepared and I’d add a special label to food items on food tables that were gluten-free

For my preventing eczema better food habits, white flour and white table sugar are ingredients I try to use less of in my recipes and low-sugar desserts. That seems to do the trick (along with skin moisturizing often)!

Gluten free flours is more healthy. — Choosing gluten free flours for pasta is more healthy for most people and those with allergies.

Because white table sugar is a primary inflammatory food source. It raises blood sugar.

That’s probably no surprise as too much sugar can make your skin crawl (itch) and no research (other than asking your sweet taste buds 😋) has sanely suggested that sugar is good for you.

But that’s hard news to swallow when you’re a sweet tooth (and a Vata body like me).

But I’m happy to say that even though I love baking (and do it weekly), I’ve learned how to bake healthy and keep eczema at bay. And yes make bakes that are sweet tooth satisfying (otherwise why bother?).

…Boring rice crackers are not my cup of tea. I’m looking for the sweet childhood desserts I remember that leave no inflammatory memory.

Because I’m a foodie…

And when I started in catering management for upscale hotel chains, there was only a vegetarian menu option outside of what others ate.

Then common requests grew like “hold the onions” and “hold the garlic.”

And peanut and nut allergies cropped up.

When I dug deeper into creating menus for food allergy group requests, we found that guests who had some peanut allergies could sometimes eat tree nuts like pine nuts.

They even reported back they liked certain dishes with them.

And shellfish can be another tricky allergy area, but gratefully I didn’t work much with those foods.

An affected person who has even a trace of the shellfish can experience a life threatening allergic reaction called anaphylaxis shock. Like gluten to Celiac disease people, it can be a real issue.

Your body gives different health conditions signs as warning. But a warning is a warning..

And in my trial-and-error food tasting experiences, I learned eczema was dramatically reduced with low daily refined sugar intake and reducing processed white flours.

Honey and gluten-free flours seem fine.

So substituting food ingredients became my way. And I remembered spaghetti squash from my catering days.

Plus, adding more anti-inflammatory eat-from-the-rainbow foods including vegetables, whole fruits, lean healthy proteins, healthy fats and whole grains.

All grains like flours are not created equal. How they are prepared and the details of their ingredient profiles change their effect.

A frequently asked question is: what foods are high in gluten?

The answer: whole grains are healthy. They’re also guilty.

Wheat, barley, and rye are the sources.

Being smart about healthier low-glycemic index starchy carbs and nutrient-dense foods pays off.

Also corn, oats, and quinoa (pseudo-grain) meals are good ideas since they are naturally gluten-free.

Corn is actually the largest agricultural crop produced in the United States.

But what spikes the blood sugar of one person is different for another person in our biodiversity.

Testing food and exposing yourself to a variety of healthy foods helps the body function as you get more vitamins, minerals, and anti-inflammatory nutrition.

Adding more organic plant-based 🌱 in nature when possible, and less plant based (factory) foods 🏭 help your entire body system run better.

Every little bit of our effort counts…

And adding more healthy food variety, and nutrient-dense plant-forward foods is a double-win, scoring points for our bodies and our earth. 🌍

Small switches can be as easy as exchanging pasta made from flour for a spaghetti squash bowl (steps below).

Also, focus on anti-inflammatory foods and include a Mediterranean Diet or Mediterranean-style diet. Many of the foods are found in both diets. Like spaghetti squash would be acceptable on both diets.

Changing your habits like a regular sweet one for a plant-based breakfast is doable. I’m living proof. 😊

And I take another page from my catering days where Crudite was a platter offered at almost every event.

That’s basically raw veggies like cauliflower, carrots, broccoli, and asparagus.

Those are good sources of fiber that your body needs to better absorb foods.

We often forget about the fiber as we’ve been primed to think of the macros (protein, carbs, and fat).

Instead of sodas, I opt for a healthy beverage or smoothie that is made from foods with high fiber.

That could be your start. And you can look forward to your baked in gourd spaghetti squash.

Spaghetti Squash (Gluten-Free) and Roasted Seeds

I discovered spaghetti squash as a meal substitute when vegetarians requested special meals when I was working in hotel catering planning. It's an easy anti-inflammatory food bowl or dish to prepare.

Course dinner, lunch

Cuisine American

Total Time 1 10

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Equipment

Bread knife or safer sawing knife.
Spoon

Ingredients

spaghetti squash gourd
extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

Instructions

Score the gourd lengthwise. do not try to cut the hard gourd raw
Bake your spaghetti squash for about 20 minutes at 350°F or so. Then softened, you can cut where you scored. Tip: for the ends (like on pumpkins, take the firmly planted inside squash knife and twist to the right at the top and then at the bottom of the squash and that should do the trick break it open fully into two halves)
Face the two halves down on a baking sheet. You can add a ‘lil EVOO if you like.
Bake for 50 minutes or until you can scoop out strands easily with a spoon. You can test with a fork if you like. About half way through, when you see browning, flip the halves so they're facing up, and add a 'lil more EVOO drizzle.
Optional: keep the healthy seeds and enjoy them as snacks! Roast them along when you're baking the squash.

From Burnout to Sabbatical: Recharge and Change Your Life

Retirement financial guru David Bach is known for “The Latte Factor” on how to save money. Maybe you saw him on Oprah as I did back in the day?

Fast forward years later, he went from burnout to sabbatical living. In hindsight, he now calls a sabbatical “the magic pill” to happiness.

He mentioned in interviews that it all began when his wife asked him what he wanted for one of his birthdays, and he expressed a desire for full-time off from work.

And so that’s just what he did, although he still had to convince himself to get off his busy work train.

Taking time off in a restful sabbatical isn’t a common practice for Americans. There aren’t too many role models to follow. Retirement after 60 and beyond is still the American norm.

Like David Bach, more go-getters in the prime of their career are opening up to this approach to a healthier lifestyle to recharge somewhere in the middle, make life impact changes, and gain clarity about their remaining life’s path.

We all want to live our Best Life, but not all of us do what we need to fully live because we’re not given a road map so we end up playing it safe… staying in the same career or corporate work path with golden handcuffs and benefits, despite being miserable.

Future uncertainty can be uncomfortable to those who want their lives fully planned out, but as I (and you too probably at least in this past year) experienced, life throws monkey wrenches in the mix if you’ve been around long enough, and you can question what this life is really all about.

…and maybe you’ve had those types of questions swirling in your mind lately that you’ve been wrestling with?

If so, you should consider taking a sabbatical if you’re in a place where you can or you all of a sudden, find that you deeply need one to restore your mind-body. It’s not a cop-out, it’s a smart move in case you need to wrestle the idea with the logical side of your mind.

The trend is moving this way. Kids who are just becoming adults are acceptably taking gap years from college. And if you worked in corporate in 2008 with the economy dip, you most likely made a work change, maybe entered a different industry as in 2020 and the aftermath, where we all had our work changed and life turned upside down.

Someone wise ahead of me ingrained this idea that never left me: “Your entire life is a transition.”

So then with that lens, I’m happily entering my fourth act. And depending on your age, you’re probably at least entering or considering your second one (along with almost half the women in the workforce according to survey data).

When I was in college, and it took me 5 years to graduate, that was a big deal in my mind. I questioned why I took a year off after a few semesters of working and attending business school full-time.

During my gap year that wasn’t the usual way, I stopped and learned how to create a business (the reason that you would think you go to business school but most like I did, graduated and entered the corporate workforce).

What I wanted most that I didn’t want to admit to anyone including myself was I wanted deep rest. And that semester off test-taking I got off sleeping aid pills. I got off the hamster wheel and avoided burning out.

Back then, I was already creating a different way of life of taking breaks because my body was calling for it. And now in more aware times, my mind was too.

Similarly, a mid-life sabbatical idea is a pretty darn good idea for recuperating. It can be a lifeline even though it still has a bad wrap. If you’re a well-known author and speaker like David Bach, you can do it because you’ve earned it. But if you’re like most of us or the person trying to make ends meet, then you’re still justifying, like I had to.

I had to lean in and switch into abundant thinking and what I would gain over what I would lose.

And when the call inside you grows louder, the idea can grow more intriguing, and that’s when you know you have to seriously investigate!

You may just need some little sign or nudge to get you to take the step. Or you may just need the right timing or feeling to show up again. In my case, I knew I had more to lose if I didn’t.

You are where you are because of your choices made.

And because of my sabbatical choice, I wouldn’t have traveled to so many great places and countries before 2020. And I wouldn’t have discovered my real passions and purposeful direction in this life that isn’t the corporate path I started on.

I’m not suggesting that’s what you have to do or to be irresponsible. I would never say that as I believe in accountability and personal responsibility. I’m super practical. I’m also led by what I feel is happening in my mind-body-spirit. You get to discern and decide if that’s what is right for you.

From my sabbatical journey, I can tell you, if you follow your internal loving (and not fearful) guides, you won’t be led wrong. Any short-term losses you think you may take, you will gain so much more for your life. Because you’ll pivot into something greater that you would not have uncovered without taking the time off. Your perspective will change and you’ll want to re-strategize your life.

Plus you’ll have all the great memories that you can relive for more years than starting in retirement. (I love looking at sabbatical photos and reminiscing about my vacation and time-off).

But besides good memories, you will gain productivity from resting. You won’t know the individual rewards you’ll gain until you take the bold leap.

When should you do it?

I think I described it above, but the short answer I would give is: when you can. You’ll know when you can’t!

Especially if you’re burned out from your job, have life overwhelm, life underwhelm, considering a career switch, or get laid off, now may be a great time (to eliminate life in burnout to sabbatical living that you didn’t choose on purpose… that can leave you de-motivated instead of feeling excited and energized).

Or maybe you have a deepening desire to explore something new in life and that is winning over any fears you have for taking a risky and unknown bold step towards your future, despite questions from loved ones you may receive.

One other word of nudging encouragement to take the proactive bold step… free yourself from feeling like you have to please others (or be a martyr to do it for others). Your life and mental health are at risk, and if you lose yourself in the process, then you have nothing to give.

A mid-life crisis is a real phenomenon that still exists and can come falling like a ton of bricks. It often sadly ends with regrets and not the way it started.

I didn’t experience that (and maybe that’s because I took a sabbatical) but I’ve seen it in others’ lives and maybe you have or will too.

Sometimes it’s just easier when things happen to you that are out of your control, so you can more easily explain your decisions. You lose a job. You get a divorce or another loss happens.

You can find your lost soul, your higher spirit, or a new mission on a sabbatical.

Personally, I love that the sabbatical idea is catching on in our work-addicted society, especially after a shocking 2020 year where we all had to rethink and redo old ways.

Maybe now is a good time for you and you’re looking for encouraging supporters to take a sabbatical. And maybe I’ve piqued your interest, then you’ll want to keep reading as I share more from my memoir and ideas that can help you… Continue reading “From Burnout to Sabbatical: Recharge and Change Your Life”

Yoga Poses to Restore Aches and Creativity

Yoga poses are the breath of life.

And, yoga poses are gradually are becoming creative yoga poses to help restore specific muscles, joints, and get balance in our day.

Evolving into creative yoga poses can be a powerful way to discover how to cure your own body aches and pains.

I didn’t particularly like yoga when I first started. It was intimidating and there was a learning curve to keep looking at specific body parts, making sure that it matched with what the yoga instructor was saying and doing.

Somehow I got myself to go back to class. And I started to learn and get into certain poses that became familiar. Child’s pose and other resting yoga poses were my respite in the beginning.

Gradually with added stamina and skill, I added new poses as my body helped to intuitively remember. The body cells have distinct memory.

Being at home means you still can do yoga poses at home or anywhere, even if you usually relied on attending in-person classes for form and instruction. If you didn’t learn yoga foundations, you can take the extra step and watch YouTube videos or take virtual classes.

Date Muffins. — Date muffins recipe below that would be good for your yoga days!

Here’s a good way to begin:

Sit on your yoga mat or on a brick with your sit bones (the yoga language for your bottom), and stretch your legs out into a “V.” Reach down on each side of your legs to your feet, or as far down on your legs as you can.

We sit down, lay down, and stand too much in our daily lives. Just by sitting in this unique pose and doing seat yoga poses, allows your legs, back and arms to stretch in a different position than it normally is in.

That’s the name of the game. Our bodies want us to stay limber and stretch other muscles and parts of our body.

I have a kneeling pose that I particularly like that feels good, where I crouch down almost to the floor. I prefer this over bending down. If you like roller skating as I did back in the day, then you know this pose from the game called “shoot the duck” where you crouched down with bent knees as far as you could and extended one leg straight out.

That takes some balancing and flexibility. Usually, one leg was better or stronger than the other on any day. Then you rolled yourself forward using the law of motion and force and tried to make it under the limbo bar without knocking it over.

This can be a metaphor for life in finding balance, as on your yoga mat or floor, you can go from balancing your body from feet on the ground to your tippy toes in this similar duck pose.

In this yoga duck pose (I made up the name so won’t find it researching!), I like to flip through books and recipes, look inside the oven when a bake is completing, or clean floor spots in this familiar pose.

I don’t know why, but it’s a comfortable position for me. It’s a balancing pose that stretches the back, and rounds out the spine. Similarly, you can find the comfortable positions that give yoga a new name (and some of these poses can even cure you of aches and pains).

You may like this crouch (not couch) pose, or make up your own. The point is to try new bends as often as you can remember.

Without weight and while standing, you can observe when you touch your toes, and then try to reach your ankles. You can prefer to bend down with your knees bent or bend at your torso (not everyone can do this). Try attempting both and seeing how that feels.

This torso stretching is particularly good for your back and hamstrings that can get really tight if not used often. Remember in school gym class, how they started out with stretches so you wouldn’t hurt yourself?

Besides our backs and back of legs, another area that often gets ignored is the arms. As much as you can throughout the day, move them back behind you. That also stretches your shoulder muscles that can get sore. If you work on a computer all day, you can find ways to counteract hunching forward with your typing keyboard hands, and arms.

One season I went to physical therapy because I had a daily right arm and shoulder pain that wouldn’t go away. It was nagging for relief from daily right-handed motion overuse, and typing contracts all day.

That’s how voice technology can help our future aging and aching bodies.

Anyway, from my own testing, I figured out which arm stretch would make a difference and correct the pain problem after months and years. That was by self-discovery because no one can pinpoint where your pain actually is, but You, and you alone.

Especially if you didn’t get in an accident or the pain point doesn’t show up as an injury on a scan. Having had multiple x-ray scans reviewed by an orthopedic physician and chiropractor, I felt I went round and round with the same issue and was left to come up with my own solutions.

In hindsight, that’s where I should have started… but when you don’t know, you don’t know.

I found that if I took my right arm out and raised it to shoulder level like an airplane wing, and then I bent my wrist straight down, then that caused tightness and sometimes slight pain that went up to my entire arm through the main radial nerve, and that corrected the problem. ...So simple! All I needed to do was stretch in the right way. I call this Airplane Wing Pose… just kidding!

And then when I took the airplane arm wing back about 45 degrees and bent my wrist straight down, that gave another tight stretch that is what I needed to provide pain relief. Hallelujah!

So my suggestion is if you have any slight aches or pains and there’s no known injury, start with questioning how that could have come about.

If nothing concrete emerges searching your thoughts, then try light and gentle stretches. Moving your body is healing for daily wear and tear symptoms and maybe just what the doctor ordered!

Not moving your body can be just as hurtful to your body, as moving is to an injury.

If you did possibly hurt yourself, that can come from something as simple as bumping a table corner or carrying a bag of groceries too heavy without bending your knees, then that can be a deeper injury like a sprain to the body. Your resilient body will heal over time, but needs rest instead of movement.

An example of this is when you have a swelling inflammation. You could apply ice in a ziplock plastic bag (not a bag of frozen vegetables that isn’t cold enough).

If a body area is sore or has tired muscles, then a heating pad and stretching can help, but that’s if you have determined there’s no inflammation. If you’re not sure, you’re better off trying ice and seeing if it improves over a few days.

Then when you’re getting better, start gradual, light yoga poses and stretching again.

Sensitively figuring out in discernment what your body needs is the healing balance. When or if you should explore medical help over self-diagnosis is an individual question.

Implementing yoga, stretching, and movement is almost always beneficial, as that’s what they have you do in rehabilitation.

With the comfortable yoga poses and stretches you come up with, you can use those as starting points to create other poses that your body will be thankful you did to take care of yourself.

As you become aware, you get to know other parts of your body and that helps you to become more flexible.

If you’re someone who believes you’re not flexible, change that to you are getting flexible every time you stretch. Your body and mind (and mind-body balance) are your most powerful tools and assets to invest in, so you can keep doing all that you do daily.

Date Muffins

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

1 cup dates, pitted and chopped
3/4 cup flor + 2 Tbsp flour
2 eggs
1/3 cup brown sugar (optional for low sugar)
3 Tbsp butter, cold (or substitute with applesauce for healthy)
1 cup boiling water
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Boil dates in a pot of water for at least 5 minutes.
Combine butter, baking soda, salt, eggs, flour, and sugar.
Pulse in blender until combined.
Add dates and water as needed for smooth batter consistency.
Bake in 350°F for 30 minutes in muffin or cupcake tins.