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Confidence Building For A New Year

Confidence building is underrated if you don’t want a repeat of last year in certain aspects of your life. We’re meant to grow and get better.

And this could be a good blog article for you to read to bring out your confidence building skills this year…

my confidence building Empowered Happiness book.
My personal growth book helps those who want to transform their internal ways and insecurities, and turn them to external confidence building and lasting happiness.

Let’s start from the beginning…

If you were born into a home where love was expressed daily, then you felt a sense of security and confidence that others did not (but could develop).

Whether that was your luck in life or not, you grew up and don’t know any different life outside your body. It’s all relative to you.

And if you didn’t grow up with developed inner confidence building (how my life story began), you can give that to yourself in empowered confidence (and self-love) that maybe through my ethos, transparency, and sharing in this article can help to encourage you along your journey.

And a little sweet treat never hurt either. I grew up with blueberry muffins (and graduated to a blueberry muffin healthy recipe below that can be made into snack energy balls 🫐)

Btw, as a grown adult looking back, neither upbringing situation is better or worse, it’s what you do with your life situations that makes the difference in your outcomes and happiness.

So, that’s the first conscious belief you can be reminded of to help you.

“What you think, so you will become.”

-Napoleon Hill

But, if you didn’t grow up with an assured sense of familial belonging or love, then you probably started out not expecting as much from others and had the desired sense for comfort and belonging because that was missing early on in your life.

But that’s different than insecurity which is an area that manifests and shows up in many different ways for anyone and isn’t always as easy to detect.

Insecurity can run along the crevices and cracks in a person, showing up at any given moment or when triggered. Just like emotions can.

In an interview with Oprah, Priyanka Chopra Jonas acknowledged that her parents never fought in front of her when she was young, and that gave her a sense of balance and confidence (but she also faced insecurities from the external world because she lived in two different cultures). I stay attuned on the yoga mat!

Balance Is Life’s Answer

And Priyanka got the concept right. Balance is a healthy recipe for children growing up. But not everyone has that story theme running as a backdrop.

And in that case, you can be more hungry for what you didn’t have if and when you get a taste of it and want more… and then the balance can swing the other way (off-balance) on the pendulum until there is a counterbalance back to balance.

…So early on, I was far from knowing how to restore my imbalances (or counterbalance), so in hunger, I’m making up for in lost time 😉

These days, I choose to live calm and happy with optimal living and work towards longevity goals, over instant gratification and unsustainable desires.

I believe it all works out in the end in your confidence of knowing what you want that’s healthy. And I believe your beliefs carry you.

But that didn’t take effect until years after tasting work-life balance for the first time in my late 20s. Everything before that felt like a hard test I couldn’t pass on my own, I think.

In those days, I came to the realization that work-life balance was more important than grinding myself to the bone to meet life goals which was the opposite belief I held before then.

I had the opportunity to drop more things I had been dragging around as baggage crumbs, previously hidden under the rug.

And as years passed and experiences were gained, I realized Life can evolve into something different anyway. That can help us grow and change.

The one constant I have held onto is: time is more valuable than money. Paper is manmade and can be regenerated (and time cannot).

When I freed up mind time (letting go and surrendering old beliefs) and I started to work on myself, who I was becoming that would determine outcomes, and I noticed insecurities showed up.

Before then, insecurity was like an invisible blanket where there was a transparent veil covering.

Then unmasked, those feelings were mostly made aware to me in triggered relationship-related thoughts I had, and in those magnified situations, then I could take the opportunity to make a thought change at that moment and tell my mind who’s boss. 😊

Oh – joy… and how satisfying!

If you’re in an awareness zone or reflective season in life, then you know what I’m talking about as you evaluate your life.

And you know your thought life is changeable! You may not be good at it yet, but you know it’s possible. Yay! 🎉

Being aware is easier if you’re not so busy (and finding a few moments to reflect even if that means waking up a few minutes early but then feeling much better in your day).

With an aspired balanced lifestyle and evolved mind these days, I can work on myself, and confidence from the gains of this year and past year’s experiences. And finding Life happiness isn’t based on situations.

If balance or happiness are not natural or strong suits for you, then using a journal can be a good first step to purge thoughts and feelings.

As you reflect on this year’s end, you could make a list of all that you have accomplished including mindset shifts, attitudes, and beliefs. For starters, you probably are more patient, resilient, thankful, kind, valuing people, and less selfish (or maybe even a bit selfless).

Those traits will help you do and get more in your life!

Plus, add any tangible accomplishments. I’m sure there were A LOT more than you think in your mind at the (or this) moment.

After you’ve got them written and meditated on them, then let them go so your ego doesn’t get the better of you.

And those helpful actions will help bring healthy outcomes and changes in your life (that’ll pay dividends for the rest of your life).

And if you want to feel even better about yourself today, you could bring out your writing pad and pen or writing instrument and jot down a few extra thoughts about how you can use the changes you’ve made in the past year — for next year.

A little year-end goal-setting never hurts and can help because we know action provides clarity. You put one step in front and that provides a new experience and perspective.

And then openly see what comes up in new doors.

A good place to start is to think of an area you would like to grow in and expand by teaching or sharing with others what you know.

Whether you end up teaching or not is not the only endpoint.

It’s really just to get the action ball rolling and juices flowing. Because when you think of what you can teach, that requires you to have learned and processed what it is you want to teach.

And not knowing everything on that subject makes you better because you’re determined to learn and stay relevant.

And when you can teach others in a way they understand, then you know you’ve passed the test. You can also fine-tune and discover a deeper niche, or discover an area that you had previously dismissed (where the timing wasn’t right).

You keep pivoting and trying new things. No harm, no foul.  It’s all good. And keeps your fountain of youth. And as you persevere, you become more resilient.

And if you have moments where your feel down on yourself or your accomplishments, refer to your positive pep-self-talks (the ones in front of a mirror) and your past-year accomplishment written notes you hopefully made (or will make) from the above suggestion.

It’s easy to forget what you did this year and a few years ago as current and year-end thoughts and feelings can crowd in, so just a nudge to take those few extra minutes to take a pause.

And another note is to focus more on who you became (who you are today) and are becoming more of, and not so much on what the accomplishment means.

An example in my life is I wrote about lessons learned and ended up publishing a book that is easier to refer to than a bunch of micro-lessons. I didn’t set out to write a book but it made sense at the time.

Since then I’ve grown in other areas (that’s what growth mindset means) and I can’t go back and replace those exact thoughts in the same way, so the timing was (and is) everything.

I got the ball rolling, evolved, and am evolving…  and that’s my encouragement to you.

You did great things this year and in 2020 (a year none of us will forget) and the time leading up to then. And some are gained life skills. That can help in confidence building toward your future.

You can diversify where you use your transferrable skills in different multi-passionate areas.

…And since I’m on a multi-area roll here, another area I like to be reminded of is about making new friends online which we all can do.

We find our people out there that we wouldn’t be able to without the internet (and with or without a pandemic).

While socially distanced, it’s a healthy comforting bright spot to be in a like-minded community, and we help one another be better versions of ourselves in some ways.

It’s not the vanity photos and words that we want to show off, but the inspirations, and ideas that we want to pass on.

The contagious energy brings more love, encouragement, and support to your life and others.

…And couldn’t we all use some of that in our lives to keep us lifted up and to further optimize our aspired highest quality of living?

You matter. And in your empowerment, it’s really about you participating and sharing some bit of brightness in the world in your unique way. Your brightness shines.

And then you gain more confidence building to move forward as you’re showered back with love.

That’s one of the best gifts that you can give a stranger and they can give back as you meet more people and get to know them.

…And finally… Yes, I’m getting down to the wire…  it doesn’t hurt to take a few risks, and would probably serve you well.

When you learn something new and put a stake in the game, then you reap rewards. Part of that is in your belief about risk-reward.

This past year, I joined 4 courses and memberships. Two I’m still processing and for the other two I’m seeing the fruit and more clarity already by taking action.

That’s a 50-50 reward.

But had I not joined any of them, I’d still be in a similar “stuck” place. We just never know what will stick and what will go by the wayside.

That’s this life.

I recently learned that the business fraternity chapter I belonged to in college which was a big part of my life at the time and a “lifelong membership,” is ending this year.

I thought the Greek Alphabet classes of new members would keep extending. I had attended school with the Founding class, as I was in the Delta class (the 4th letter in the Greek Alphabet) and now it’s almost over.

And while that’s news in my life from my younger self-life… in my more recent life where I’ve been mentoring in a professional group, I know that will end one day and will be replaced by another group.

That’s a great place for me now, but like most things, that will end in the perfect time.

And, that’s why it’s best to be proactive in seeking what you want your life to be about rather than just wait and see.

Look for the good things and mask out the ones you don’t want to repeat or that can weigh you down.

Better replaces good.

We know good will happen and better can happen with us. Or another unique or great opportunity replaces that lost good happening, and that can be a lucky surprise.

However, those good happenings land in your lap, and you can focus on more evidence in your life that goodness is out there for you.

And that bit of assured confidence building (rest assured) is helping to build confidence within you, little by little.

And little by little, you can gain confidence building in small things like these healthy blueberry muffins you can make.
blueberry muffin bites.
Print

Healthy Blueberry Breakfast Muffins (Or Blueberry Energy Balls Pictured)

Course Breakfast
Cuisine American
Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

  • 2-1/2 cups grits or bran flour
  • 1 cup whole wheat or AP flour
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)
  • 1/4 cup honey or monkfruit sugar
  • 1 cup Greek yogurt (or 7/8 cup or 7 oz)
  • 1-1/2 cup frozen blueberries, drained
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 1/2 cup oil
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder (for muffins)
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda (for muffins)

Instructions

  • Combine ingredients. Bake on 350°F for 25-30 minutes for muffins (less minutes for energy balls).
  • For energy balls, you can eliminate yogurt, eggs, baking powder, and baking soda ingredients and can use less sugar/honey for a healthy version. Cinnamon can be the primary sweetness. Naturally, when you reduce sugar, you crave less sugar as your body tastes adjust when running optimally.
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Holiday Entertainment Shows + Gluten-Free Carrot Cake Recipe

Holiday entertainment is not a mere plus during the holidays. It’s a must to get through the holidays… full of bittersweet happy and sad moments… filled with illuminating reflections on the past year… finding your way through stressful calendar-marked deadlines ticking like a time bomb.

And before holiday has come and gone, you can enjoy this one-bowl comfort dessert with no guilt as it’s healthy and wildly tasty! It could be your new year dessert. 🎉

It’s gluten-free, carrot vitamin-rich and orange calming for nerves… and great for entertaining mixed emotions.

Healthy Carrot Cake great for holiday entertainment and life.
Gluten-free healthy orange carrot cake (recipe below)

Ahhh.. but light-hearted holiday entertainment shows (like GBBO for this modified healthy baker) and sappy rom-com tearjerker movies can help us lighten our load if we feel stressed.

On that note, I have 3-holiday entertainment mentions below worth checking out

That can be exciting and worth sticking around until the end of the blog article and staying up past midnight on Dec. 31. 😊

…And somewhere in between is December 25 where we can easily forget when we started our holiday. In America, that’s usually Thanksgiving in November where we celebrate gratitude for the things we have in our lives.

In the happy holiday spirit, December and Christmas are opportunities for each of us to grow, dig deep in our shadow, be reflective about our past, and find more appreciation for our joy and happiness’ sake as better humans than before.

Christmas is always an invitation to find hope and peace now. And welcome in happy and healthy intentions for the future. And that can include skipping, baking, and inspiring yoga moves!  Why not?

I plan to be in the kitchen (…and maybe you too with your planned festivities whether quiet or action-filled?).

Here’s my illustrative yoga guide for those who will be busy holiday joy baking and wanting to unwind like a pretzel in front of the tube or streaming media 😊:

5 baking yoga stretches: tree pose, pigeon pose, bow pose, bridge pose, and happy baby.

There’s a big buildup to Christmas celebrations that probably started way earlier in the year …like Christmas in July promotions?

This year is probably no different where you’re not hit by deer lights… that’s a certain predictable point to be grateful for. We know it’s coming!

And we can lean into holiday entertainment, decorations, and warm & fuzzy feelings to get us in the mood.

We don’t have to lean into the bitter self-pity. We can feel contentment for what we have in our accumulated wisdom.

Some things we can think of is:

We’re grateful we’re not who we once were. We’re a better version, and getting better every day. It may be two steps forward and one step back, but we’re still improving. 

And some places we’re completely transformed and others we completely forgot where we were once hurting in another way.

We’re happy as is because we know it won’t stay this way. We’re wired to have the best life.

Besides things could be worse, but thankfully they’re not. Those (and your) beliefs can help shape your optimistic outlook.

Getting rid of the moods that can hang over like heavy, gray clouds (that can lead to Kapha depression) is freeing. And also changing the anxious-worried symptoms common in active Vata minds.

You could be fighting ego or affected without awareness.

Letting go isn’t always so easy

In awareness, it can feel like an uphill battle to try and win over an internal fight.

I find that when I have a moment where I feel a little emotional turmoil, laughter never grows old as one of the best medicines.

Healthy cleansing tears from humorous holiday entertainment or heart-felt movies, series, or shows can be just what the doctor ordered.

After from watching, you can feel good again. 📺

What we feel from recently watched holiday entertainment shows can show up in our refreshed thought life.

These are 3 of my holiday entertainment picks (and maybe they’re good for you also)… which btw, I’ve yet to meet a close friend who likes the same quirky shows I do.

I’m not talkin’ about Friends and the popular America’s Got Talent shows that everyone has glimpsed.

So I’m goin’ out on a limb here…

The first one I wanted to mention is actually not a show, but an old classic movie, The Sound of Music. And if that’s not your bread and jam, then think of a show or movie you watched as a kid that you enjoyed and impacted you.

And you can take my Cliff Notes version:

If you’ve never seen or forgotten what this classic movie is about, it starts out with actress Julie Andrews as a young lady in an abbey prepping to be a nun. She soon discovers she’s too independent thinking and not cut out for the job.

Sound a ‘lil familiar? I know it does for me having taken a hairpin turn or two early on. None of the nunnery kind though. 😊

The movie plot is a metaphor for our lives that can change in an instant, a.k.a. a life pivot.

A better plan is out there for us if we’re willing to stay open and hang in there.

Those thoughts can help us get through any bitter holiday moments.

Julie Andrews’ character is sent as a governess to 7 children for a former widowed Captain and Austrian naval officer.

Fr. Maria, she’s called, brings singing and love into the family and the odd-pairing couple ends up marrying (aww… a love story and musical). I hope I didn’t ruin the happy ending.

So now you’re either caught up or possibly curious to watch the movie (again).

Fun fact: the movie is filmed in Austria and Los Angeles of all places, so maybe that’s one of the reasons why it’s still a Hollywood boom.

In our lives, the parallel is that there’s a lot to look forward to getting to the other side, crossing the hills, and any mountains along our path. We can stop to appreciate the flowers like Edelweiss or roses that remind us of our resilience from our life situations.

Then after you get your fill of that movie, whether you fast-forward to the part where your heart is filled or watch the full movie, afterward you can pause to fill your warm drinking mug, and get ready to laugh (…maybe even belly laugh some) with this next recommend…

Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee

This modern American Netflix show of several seasons is a good metaphor for not taking life too seriously. Stand-up comedians don’t.

And Actor and Comedian Jerry Seinfeld makes that clear as he takes his guests out for coffee in coffee venues (think Diners, Drive Ins, and Dive places, plus some hole in the walls).

He chauffeurs his guests around with different classic cars to match the comedic intent and their barrel of laughs to come in coffee conversation 🐒.

Once in a while, they’re driving in lemons like an Oh sorry, Ferrari that dies on the road. That’s comical drama we call comedy.

The show is peppered with what you’d expect from comedians… impromptu funny lines about their lives and the world we live in.

Having worked in restaurants, I can find a chuckle or two with the (literally) off-the-wall menu special posters or off-color restaurant jokes…

Like when Jerry orders and asks for 2 eggs and nothing else on a plate, and the server quickly asks if he wants it on the side? The server (or waitress) made an inside funny without knowing it. Good stuff there. 😅

You’ll have to find your own humor points if you end up watching some of the episodes. …and so that brings me to a recent holiday entertainment show…

The Great British Baking Show

Biscuits week was in the Great British Baking Show holiday entertainment show.
The show is “The Great British Bake Off” in U.K. where cookies are biscuits. The Jammie Dodgers are a British classic that was one of the technical challenges. Btw, these are not here for temptation reasons. I have a healthy carrot cake or squares recipe below for your baking holiday entertainment should you accept the baking challenge. 🥕

The Great British Baking Show has got to be the funniest baking show out there. It’s also interesting to watch the baker techniques and their foibles.

By now in the show’s (just-finishing up their 9th season), as you’d expect the contestants know what to expect.

If they didn’t, that would be like going under the pressure cooker show as a contestant without baking practice.

.. And that would be like going on the Shark Tank show and not rehearsing… where they’d get eaten alive!

The GBBO contestants (more fitting than calling them competitors because they help each other out in the tent)… want to be sure to make the show fun and take time out to make good bakes while playing along with the tent show elves and laughing at their side jokes.

Tent Sidekick Noel announcing the challenge 😄

As part of the audience, you can feel the contestants are more mellow, less tense, and less serious about winning… and more motivated with staying in the baking tent (sometimes baking hot tent 🎪) for as long as they can.

In case you missed season 9 which is one of my faves (I say that for all of the newest ones), the cherry-on-top Star Baker title went to Giuseppe for his traditional Italian bakes passed down from his family’s baking lineage.

So now you’re all caught up!

The Great British Baking Show also has holiday versions. You can especially enjoy it if you like holiday baking inspiration and while eating sweets…

Healthy Carrot Cake
Gluten-free healthy carrot cake (recipe below)

And on that final note, I have a deliciously, seriously healthy, SWEET gluten-free carrot cake recipe below (that I’ve played around with the ingredients, whipped up, and tested all the crumbs!)… And you can just as easily prepare and enjoy in a square, round or any shape pan you like that you can bring to your screen with whatever holiday entertainment shows you end up watching. 🧡

Healthy (Easy-No Mixer Needed) Gluten-Free Carrot Cake (Bread or Squares) in One Bowl

gluten-free carrot cake

Ingredients:

1 cup grated carrots

2 eggs (room temperature)

1 Tbsp coconut oil (or light EVOO or baking oil)

1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

2 tsp lemon juice

1/2 cup (120 grams) almond flour (or other gluten-free flour)

1/4 cup (60 grams)  oats

1/2 cup (120 grams) chopped walnuts and raisins combined

Orange zest from a medium-size orange (or add maple syrup to taste, 1-2 tsp suggested for low sugar)

1/2 tsp ginger

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp baking soda

pinch of salt

You can mix all the ingredients in one bowl. Add dry ingredients first, then add the liquids (that way you can use some of the same measuring spoons and cups without the dry sticking to the wet in my planner-at-heart mind 😉).

Pour into an 8″ round pan or 4″ x 8″ baking pan.

Bake at 325°F/165°C for 35-40 minutes.

After cooled, “frost” with Greek Yogurt (2% fat or reduced fat suggested) and healthily enjoy. Or you can blend with a low-fat cheese (like neufchatel cream cheese or ricotta cheese) if you prefer or will be serving to others who don’t prefer full-on healthy … but would love to try what you happily sweetly baked.

To Your Merry Happy Holidays! 🎄

 

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Journal Ideas For Personal Growth

Journal ideas are a great way to grow in personal development.

And personalized gifts like journals with specific themes or words inside are unforgettable gifts.

I have a friend who has the gift of giving memorable personalized gifts (where she would write something nice or attach a thoughtful card).

I knew she had the gifting gift from the first gift she gave me which was a blank hard-bound Hallmark journal with heavy ivory parchment pages (that’s thicker than resume paper).

It had this popular in the day vintage book pattern, but with a mint green color. I don’t think Martha Stewart would mind me showing off one of her cookbooks I’ve held onto.

Journal Pattern Personalized Gifts

I remember my friend even said she didn’t think I would like a diary with a locket.

Looking back, journal ideas would have been different when you know it wasn’t read by someone else.

Those were the old-fashioned letter and journal writing days for memories.

Today, journal ideas on paper are good for purging emotions and a form of meditation. They are productive way to release thoughts and feelings, gain revelations, and a quiet practice to slow down.

Journal Ideas for Personal Growth

If you’re feeling stuck in life, writing in a journal or composition book… or typing thoughtful words on a computer is a great exercise to help you gain clarity.

It’s an easy action step that can give you the next breakthrough.

And you feel accomplished and calmer when you address areas of your life you may not have if left in your brain.

Journaling can be a good means to an end and help process what you haven’t figured out just yet.

Written details bring out solutions.

Gratitude Journal Ideas (#1): So one area you can start with is appreciation.

You can write a gratitude journal that lists out what you’re grateful, small and big.

So if someone showed kindness, you could write that down. And your mind will blow that up.

After then after you process or noodle through your journal ideas, thoughts, and feelings, you don’t need those in-between or bridging memories anymore.

So you could toss them out in our growing paperless world, and that can be freeing like burning a piece of clothing that you no longer wear or an old identity you were holding onto.

You can use prompts like:

I am grateful for ___________ today.

I appreciate _____________ in my life.

Revelation Journal Ideas (#2):

Reviewing your old journal writing you wrote can be eye-opening and fun.

You can laugh at life and discover who you’re becoming.

We are meant to grow and change.

You’re no longer in the process of where you were when you wrote the journal entry.

Your habits have changed and you’re in a different season.

the sadness stings or hardships have changed and hopefully lifted.

Some things you wrote could even put a smile on your face. Some are worth repeating (like re-reading) for the laughs.

And some journal ideas could be reminders for a future dream you can pickup today.

Prayer, Quotes, and Hope Journal Ideas (#3):

Using Scripture, quotes, and heartfelt mantras can be super helpful for uplifting, encouragement, and reminders that we all need.

They can get us to our next moment when situations are tough.

We can lean on others’ ideas that helped them through similar troubles that got them through.

That adds a ray of hope. 🌅

And you can use your journaling for shadow work. Sometimes we didn’t get what we needed in our past.

So we can add reminders like:

I am loved. 

I am never alone.

S.W.O.T. Journal Ideas (#4): Using the SWOT Method In Your Journaling

S.W.O.T. stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

SWOT is a tool for strategic decision-making that I learned in my later college years.

We drew a lot of grids in business school and this one I’ve used for many areas of life to slow down and make decisions without regret.

I’m more practical than impulsive, but this is also great for those who are.

When applied to a writing tool, like in journaling, it can help you to process thoughts and evaluate from a more objective (higher) point of view.

You can count the pros and cons (and probably save time and money from hiring help) to make better decisions.

It can help you slow down (to ultimately speed up) and help you avoid making a wrong choice.

You can start by thinking of what your current strengths and focuses are today.

And then, what could hold you back (weaknesses and threats) from going all in?

Sometimes you discover it’s nothing or it something you can grow and change in you… that’s the best kind of SWOT journal ideas…

Then write what opportunities you have to move forward on.

Look for answers to know where you’re headed in your destiny and next steps.

If you want to transform your life, and you don’t have a chance or want to take a radical sabbatical now, you could meditate and journal for a few minutes a day in this season that can help propel you into the next one.

Happy journaling!

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Bird Yoga Pose For Balance, Strength, and Flexibility.

Bird yoga pose is one metaphor in life that can help you soar and help with your body balance, strength, and flexibility. Learn what these poses are below.

Eagle pose is one bird yoga pose you can do anywhere.
More about this “crouching tiger” looking photo below 🐯

Today I’m gonna share how bird yoga pose (and actually 4 bird yoga poses) can help you get some of the tight kinks out. Below I spend time on Pigeon Pose because I think it’s underrated for all the benefits (especially if your joints need some flexing).

And I believe everyone can use yoga no matter what profession we have or how active we are (as we tend to do repetitive actions that the body can get irritated with).

At some point, some part needs a stretch, and if you keep up with stretching, then the body cells remember the stretched feeling, and you don’t have to grease up the joints as much to get there.

I remember I took a season away from yoga at the beginning of my yoga journey and I thought I would have to start all over again.

I was surprised and happy to find that was not the case. I did lose muscle, but the time off actually restored certain smaller worn muscles. They appreciated the time off 😊

It’s like getting rest on the weekends. You probably need more self-care time than you initially think.

Like if you take a few days off, your body kinda can unwind but isn’t totally relaxed. It’s ready to jump back into busyness, but that’s not good for your body.

And if you take a purposeful year off like I did to discover, travel, and recoup, you may sleep like a hibernating bear (and bypass a mid-life crises later on if that still exists).

You could call it a gap year or sabbatical.

Then once restored and feeling like a million bucks, your body wants to get back in action.

Ignoring the body can catch up with all of us at some point, but the good news is we have a chance to make healthy changes along the way.

When we’re in a busy season, carving out time to work out is hard work, and so many of us don’t get to do it, or we prefer to spend our time with other fun or catch-up activities.

Plus, how exciting is it to talk to others about your workout instead of a fun outing event you had?

But like many good things for you, they are not exciting.

Like habits. But little by little (and in micro-habits) they make a difference and the sooner you do them, the sooner they stick.

Yoga fitness is one (less intense) way you can do and stay consistent with fitness habits.

And if it’s important for you to check off working out for your week, consistent yoga could be your savior… and you never know, could pivot you into other fitness areas as you discover more about your body.

You can do yoga anytime and anywhere without a change of clothing (or babysitter).

If I told you some of the places I did yoga, you’d probably laugh… like on a cold, swept restaurant floor and on a busy, warm sanded beach…

I found that adding fun challenges with step and move goals kept me motivated. And keeping the eyes on the prize helps… like staying energetically healthy as life progresses.

I think we all want that in our lives so we can have a high-quality life.

That’s where the bird yoga pose and poses I mention below can help. The poses can relax and stretch you (both body and mind). And since none of us can fly on our own (at least not today), this is the closest we can get to being a bird. 😁

An inspirational bird yoga pose (that can be goals) could help encourage you to work on all or one of these core yoga areas: strength, flexibility, balance (holistic fitness), and body alignment because one side is usually tighter than another.

Or, one slight tweak move in a muscle can be all you need for that nagging pain you or others have been complaining about in conversation.

Yoga isn’t a rigid practice (it’s individualistic), so you can call it stretching if it’s less intimidating and can stretch your imagination to wanting to give a GO.

The name of poses are really just to help you know which poses to get into, but your body and its needs are unique, so tweak the poses in a way that makes you feel good (and doesn’t hurt).

In case you’re new, yoga stretches should not give you a wincing pain or any agony where you’re biting your lip.

And if you’re not in alignment for certain poses (likes ones bearing the weight of certain body parts), you won’t necessarily feel the misalignment at the moment.

It could show up in a day or two, like when you work out with weights. So use good form in the pose moment.

Stretches should feel like you needed the stretch, and the longer you hold the stretch the less tight it becomes, wearing off the tight kinks.

Of course, if you have any injuries, avoid those areas until they fully heal.

But other than those caveats, yoga can solve most daily and accumulated nagging sore muscle issues! I’m living proof 😊

So here are 4 inspirational bird yoga poses to work on and towards (and btw, you won’t end up on all 4’s even if you start out that way, so you can test out your flying ability just a little).

Crane Pose – is a good mat pose for building strength in arms

In this one, you’re supporting your body with your arms. Your feet start off on the floor and then lift off.

You want to be careful not to twist your wrists (the good form is keeping them straight on your mat and perpendicular to your matching left and right shoulders).

When I went through a short season where I stopped doing my arm exercises like push-ups, getting in a Crane pose was like starting over.

I had to build back the arm strength that this pose requires. Your body may feel that way or may not have those issues, but instead other ones in other areas.

Yoga is a journey and that’s what I think keeps it interesting. You’re always working on something.

For you, it could also be strength and/or a combination of flexibility and balance (or all of the above).  We all start somewhere with our one and only body, so keep trying.

Pigeon Pose – is a floor or mat pose good for developing flexibility in the hip, legs, knees, and butt(ocks)

When you have tight quads or hips, this pose can help get you outta that quandary.

As with most yoga poses, there are many variations and if you want to keep your arms and legs on the mat the whole time, that’s an option.

You want to find the body spots that are tight and sore and work on those. You can do this by moving around your pointed straight back leg after you get in the Pigeon Pose (that btw, your leg isn’t supporting the weight of other parts of your body so it’s OK to move it around in this pose if that doesn’t offer your body any pain).

Pigeon Pose can help with your largest muscle groups like your quads, your glutes (butt), plus the tight muscles surrounding your knees that you wouldn’t easily be able to get to in everyday positions.

We underestimate how much we need our knees to easily work to be mobile.

In Pigeon Pose, each side won’t necessarily be equal in terms of tightness and you’ll realize that quickly. So give more attention to the side that needs the longer stretch.

The easiest way to get in this pose is to start in Downward Dog (your “V” with all 4’s planted) and then hinge your body and arms forward with one leg you want to have in front.

Do this like a flow motion (also called Vinyasa).

Then sit down on the mat focusing on squaring (aligned) hips to your shoulders.

The opposite leg will rest straight (not bent) back behind you with the top of your foot on the mat. You should feel long and that can feel good in itself!

With this bird yoga pose, you can also work on opening your shoulders if you can reach back and grab your bent leg and foot. This is a chance to look up to the ceiling or sky.

It’s a nice break for your neck.

If you regularly cook, clean floors, or work on a laptop on your lap, you may not realize how many hours you’re looking down all the time, and that hurts your neck that supports your head, brain, and reminder… your mind control center.

Well, when it’s put that way!…

But anyway

In this active Pigeon Pose, there’s a good opportunity to look up (and restore your neck).

OK, this reminds me of movie theaters… have you ever sat in the front row of a movie theater? I haven’t been to one in ages. But when I was a teen, movie theaters were often packed and we’d arrive later and not having a choice, had to sit in the front row just a few feet away from the big screen.

That felt like the worst movie scenario at the time. We had to crank our necks and gaze up for the entire movie.

Looking back now, we didn’t know the yoga neck-posture benefits we were deploying back then. You may remember me next time you’re at the movie theater 😉

So deploy that head up move in your active Pigeon Pose… or you can gracefully go into a more passive Swan Pose (like in the theater production Swan Lake).

This is almost like a resting child’s pose, but a great stretch all around as your arms are stretched long on the mat and your one leg behind you.

I love this bird yoga pose as you feel graceful as your body is stretched from one end of the mat to the other (maybe why ballerinas love it too).🩰

If you have tight quads or muscles you can’t seem to get to in your regular stretch routines, this pose can do the trick over time or days.

The longer you can hold the pose (like minutes at a time), the better the benefit. You feel the healing working when you ever so slightly move and the tightness eases up.

It feels good just talkin’ about it 😉

Here’s a Good Reminder!

Eagle pose – is a good standing balance bird yoga pose

On earth, eagles are harder to come by in the world. They were an endangered species and can fly higher than their prey and vultures.

That’s the meaning behind: “I can fly higher than an eagle” song verse in Bette Midler’s “Wind Beneath My Wings” song.

This one takes a little body coordination memory. Just remember, the same side where one leg is lifted off the ground is the same side where the arm/elbow will wrap underneath the other.

Then in union (the definition of yoga), the hands will meet.

When you’re in this pose, you feel good for being able to stand on one leg in balance… and you can do this anytime and during commercial breaks.

Or even in regular clothes, like this photo of me below where I’m in a dress wearing big costume jewelry ready to go to a holiday event, but still getting the benefits of my eagle here 🦅…

Eagle bird yoga pose.
Eagle Pose

Bird of Paradise – is a pose that challenges flexibility, balance, and leg strength (…and isn’t a bird at all. It’s a tropical orange flower that could be found in this type of paradise environment at the Miami Botanical Center).

When you can do this Bird of Paradise pose, then you can be thinking you reached yoga paradise

The Bird of Paradise pose is a complete mind-body pose (and not one in awareness where I want to be wearing a dress without showing too much of my flower if ya know what I mean!). So you’ll just have to trust me here and give it a try yourself.😉

And if you want to know the mind-body mechanics of the bird yoga pose, I wrote a past blog post on this great pose.

If you can do this pose, then you have a good shoulder opener, leg strength builder, and torso flexor, all-in-one. Plus your mind will be stretched in a good way (focused and in the moment).

Just something to consider especially if you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed and stuck in life… Bird of Paradise yoga pose can be a nice little goal to take your mind off for a brief moment.

You can change your outlook one bird yoga pose (and day) at a time.

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3 Easy Healthy Soup Recipes With Low Sodium

Healthy comfort bisque soup

I have 3 easy healthy soup recipes below that you can make (with  low sodium and sea salt if you like). Before 2020, I never made my own soups. And today, I only keep a backup can in my pantry.

And you can too!… if that’s what you aspire to even if you don’t know how JUST YET.

But with delicious plant-based ingredients, you can make soup broths that you easily turn into clam chowder with a potato soup base. You impress yourself and everyone you make the soup for!

After you learn to make homemade soups in simple steps, you’ll probably not go back to store soup cans as these have delicious natural flavors without all the sodium!

And you’re doing your body healthy good. And probably saving a few dollars if that matters.

And these are the 3 easy healthy soup recipes I’m sharing below:

1. Mushroom soup (with old-fashioned but not-out-of-style oats)

2. Carrot soup (with digestive-wonder root, ginger) 

3. Clam chowder (New England style that’s my personal favorite made from potato soup)

If you want to skip my introduction here (even though there’s good, healthy information that I’ve wittled down and most recipe sites are longwinded ,but this recipe article is not), you won’t hurt my feelings… and you can head straight down to the easy recipes at the end.

And if you want to learn a few healthy moves, such as Ayurvedic healthy balance acts, then here we go:

Let’s start with some soup ingredients that I’ve incorporated below, were not my faves as a child. And as I grew up, I decided I like ginger when that was not my way. I gave it another try and it stuck.

Like many kids, I like processed, sugary, and salty foods and that didn’t change as I grew into my adult Vata self.

And for any of us, we can modify our choices and influence our healthy change.

You can impact and change your health one flavor (and easy healthy soup) at a time.

Vatas especially (and some Kaphas) cuddle up to comfort food in the cooler months and the soups below will be warming and great for the transition seasons.

When we have a Vata imbalance that any of us can have, we love and crave our sweet and salty balance. One minute you want a sugar fix and the next a crisp snack with salt.

If you want to learn more about what’s going on with your body now (and tips to restore), take the body balance quiz.

Most recipes you see, say “salt to taste” or a pinch of salt. In baking, there’s always a pinch of salt and it really adds to the flavor. A ¼ teaspoon is about 5-6 pinches of salt.

If a recipe calls for 1 teaspoon, I usually use A LOT less. Why? Because health is in moderation.

And as a home baker… I rarely use butter unless it’s for celebrational traditional holiday bakes or Christmas cookies and special cakes that wouldn’t be the same without… but for everyday anti-inflammatory baking, I tweak a lot. I use healthy oils and natural sweet ingredients.

Like these ball of energy bites are homemade of grits where I added oatmeal, chocolate chip, Greek yogurt, whole wheat flour, applesauce, and honey.

And they’re complete yum, and NO-GUILT enjoyment, hitting the spot if you have a sweet tooth (that I’m an expert about). 😋energy bites

In creating bakes, I dream up healthy recipes from the baking basics 😉 (…btw, lemme know if you would like to know what baking subs I use, and when in general, as I’d be happy to share those if you’re interested).

I’m involved in a beta chef’s cooking healthy eating group collaboration with RDs that provides culinary teaching and recipe input to a healthy strategy program.

I love food, and my background includes working with thousands of party planning events (and started my career in hotel catering that you already know if you’ve been reading some of my previous blog posts).

I’d hardly consider myself a chef-ette, but I have always had an adult culinary arts interest

…after hotels, I left the hospitality industry and went into more traditional Corporate America work, and then came back to the hospitality working world doing  Mediterranean-cuisine (Lebanese, Spanish, and Italian) event planning for about a dozen foodie restaurants.

That’s really when my good food (gastronomy) tastes and senses were re-ignited and I had a chance to re-marry with my “food is medicine” approach to life.

…And if you come to my blog every week, you can plan on a lot of healthy inspiration in my upcoming blog posts (and get past those nasty winter blues).

And that’s especially good if you want to stay balanced from comfort stress eating that can get the best of us as we enter cooler months and warm holidays … and as we try to finish up stressful deadlines for the year!.

To bypass any winter mood funks and balance us, start the year with a healthy amount of a prime soup ingredient… salt.

Salt Talk For Your Soups

For soups, I avoid iodized salt. I don’t usually add table salt (like the ones in the packets) unless that’s all that’s available and the food isn’t already salted.

I alway buy “unsalted” ingredients when given an option.

If you eat out or eat prepared foods from groceries and restaurants, then you probably get enough salt. And probably more than enough salt in our highly processed foods.

When I’m cooking, I use sea salt (non-iodized) for everything and everyday use.

And then I use coarser natural sea salts like Celtic sea salt (or Himalayan or fleur de sel) for preparing meats to be baked in the oven, and for certain cooked vegetables.

Celtic sea salt is great for your rubs and on top as a garnish (not so much in mixing). The crystals are larger so they don’t blend as great as smaller salt granules. And I also Himalayan sea salt for additional healthy minerals.

And the gastronomic person in me, says coarser salt is absolutely necessary for the right flavor and texture on veggies like Brussel sprouts and edamame if you want a culinary meal experience (and not a bland one). Salt is as important as the veggie itself.

stuffed pepper
Turkey and rice stuffed bell pepper idea for soups or holiday meals

You can get away without using salt on certain veggies like broccoli or okra that hold their own tastes. If you add them to soups, the salt is usually already added.

So here are the 3 easy healthy soups that’ll help you with your salt cravings…

Easy Healthy Soup Recipes

Easy Healthy Soup #1: Mushroom Oat Soup

Cook mushrooms in a pot until soft, and add slow-cook oats. Mushrooms are immune-boosting and are alkaline. If you want, add a little cooking sherry, truffle oil, and saffron to get culinary fancy.

mushroom soup

Easy Healthy Soup #2: Carrot Ginger Soup

Print Recipe
carrot ginger soup recipe.
Print

Carrot Ginger Soup

Course Soup
Cuisine American
Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

  • cooked carrots
  • ginger juice
  • ginger spice
  • ginger, chopped
  • sunflower seeds (optional)
  • dried parsley (optional)
  • cumin and Old Bay (optional)

Instructions

  • Cook carrots on medium heat. When soft, mash carrots.
  • Add ginger spiced and chopped ginger bits (if you prefer for a more pungent bite good for Kapha). You can also use ginger juice for less chunks, and spices.
  • Zhugh with sunflower seeds and dried parsley if desired.

Cook carrots in water until soft, then mash and grate or squeeze ginger juices in the soup. You can finish off with alt-milk for a creamy-effect or  just leave as is. That’s probably the way a.k.a. without ginger I would’ve preferred as a child 🧒🏻).

healthy soup recipes

Easy Potato Soup or New England Clam Chowder

This is easier to make than you may think! You can make delicious chowder from a simple potato soup base.

Peel and cook common Russet potatoes in a pot with water. You would do the same step if you were making mashed potatoes.

Then decide if you want a creamy soup. And if you do, pour out some of the water and then mash potatoes in the same stovetop pot.  Still with the stove heat on, add in your ready-to-eat clams (3 large potatoes to about 5 ounces of clams you can cook or use a can).

I like to zhugh up with aromatic herbs, either fresh or with ground herb spices like cilantro, parsley, oregano, and/or basil.

If you’re not sure if you should add any herbs into your soup (if you’re feeding others), then parsley and thyme spices are less strong (more universally likable) and can be added in of left to individual tastes.

potato healthy soup recipes
Potato base soup

If you’re looking for a few easy-to-make snack ideas to go along with your healthy soup recipes or just to eat on their own, you can try…

Baked kale chips…

Or, homemade baked crackers – zesty za’atar crackers…

Or, popcorn…

Another different twist and take on changing up tastes, is this idea… instead of adding salt, you could add a ‘lil vinegar to your potato snacks and soup.

I like to add ACV vinegar but you could also try malt, red, or white vinegar…  they’re healthier and also give the food a bit of a tangy bite.

I like to also add my daily spices (turmeric, black or white pepper once in awhile). I skip needing any salt after all those changes 😉.

So hopefully you are soup-er excited to make your comfort homemade and easy healthy soup recipes, and maybe you even choose to change up a way that you snack.

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