Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Positive Thoughts To Start Your Healthy Day

Positive thoughts like “you got this” can make a positive impact in your day.

And starting your day with a heart healthy recipe (🍓 below) like this delicious quinoa bowl breakfast idea to get excited about.

strawberry quinoa cereal. — Easy strawberry quinoa cereal recipe below. 🍓

If you’re wanting a better day, you recognize the difference between positive thoughts and negative ones.

Thoughts all start in the divided minds we’re given, that’s either hurting or helping us. And if this is new territory for you, start there.

Maybe you recognize which bucket your negative or positive thoughts belongs in, but you don’t know how to toss out the draining ones.

They can show up anytime: when you wake up on the wrong side of the bed or when triggered by a memory, situation, or person.

And then the subconscious mind (ego) feeds off the nourishment of holding onto negative feelings or pain as a form of protection and masks its agenda from you. But now you know better.

Bypass the unnecessary time wasted in dramatic sorrow. Be proactive with positive affirmations, meditation, yoga, or healthy distractions that are great ideas to reset and get rid of thoughts that have no good business being with you in the first place.

Sounds like a plan, right?

But then going about your day or even seconds later, new thoughts occur from news headlines you read, someone offends or irritates you, a situation stirs an emotional chord, and then you’re right back to negative thoughts and moods. It’s daily and non-stop.

Your mind and the negative thoughts grow even if you think you’re living in a safe bubble.

The unhelpful thoughts never have a chance to go away until you decide the one thing you can change and have in common in every thought is YOU.

And so, I share in this detailed blog article what needs to change to get the happy and helpful thought life you want.

This is the second part of the article from last week on relaxing your mind for the best ideas.

Managing thoughts is essential for lifelong learners, and as a prerequisite to being your most productive self, unleashing your creative self, attracting people to your energy, and living your optimal life.

Years ago, I thought traveling to exciting, new places and feeling in woo would conquer negative thoughts, as they temporarily disappeared when senses were heightened (like when you’re newly in love or starting passion work). But those fickle feelings don’t last and things always change after the newness wears off.

So then I dipped my toe in collaborating and aligning myself with the Universe and how to manifest the best life (that’s woo woo to some).

For me, I was on the right path and things were looking up, but I still had to do the inner core work in my mind.

When all that eventually clicked together, then I could feel the woo hoo! And that’s what we all can celebrate in our lives if and when we get there.

It takes all the pieces–knowledge, process, and application. And if you’re feeling lost, it helps to have a guide.

These are a few guiding and starter points that helped me and hopefully can help you or anyone else who’s trying to figure out a better (thought) life.

The first part can be the hardest–knowing that it all starts in your mind and not someone or somewhere else.

This seems elementary after you learn this, but the ego wants to steer you in another direction like something else is the cause or problem.

So if you’re busy or not paying attention, that can happen and go on until you’ve had enough.

Another point is, don’t let nagging thoughts (or drama in your mind) that won’t leave you alone play out for longer than needed which is no more than a minute.

And in relationships, especially. It takes just one step to cross the invisible boundaries of another person with your words that originated from thoughts.

Walk away from your thoughts to give yourself more peace. Below I have some suggestions on what to do.

So, How to Change From Negative to Positive Thoughts…

Our thoughts are natural to us, and they cause us to take action that can appear inconsistent or as disconnects to others.

To change this, operating from awareness is imperative. Initially, this may feel like work and working harder (like walking uphill with heavy boots instead of sliding downhill). But it’s totally worth it.

You learn a life skill to purge those unwanted thoughts that pop up impromptu and when triggered.

I think there should be a required course on this that you learn early on (and would solve some of the world’s problems as people are the problem or solution).

But anyway… changing thoughts gets easier when you’ve learned the skill and it becomes more automatic.

The negative thoughts won’t disappear immediately, but much quicker than before in your thought choice, and you’ll be wise enough to know you don’t have to act out or say aloud negative thoughts.

Which btw, doesn’t change your personality. It makes you more attractive to the right people.

And that’s part of what separates our discerning brains from animals, young children, or when we were younger…

We all started out immature compared to who we’ve become today.

So here’s how you can reset and get your loving daily juice. To promote loving thoughts, witness your thoughts (I’m sure you’ve heard of this).

Practice being aware of what’s coming in. If it’s garbage, then reject or walk away.

If it’s something that you have feelings about and need to process or work through, then allow yourself that grace.

Again, you don’t have to air your thoughts to anyone, and not putting energy into negative thoughts is going to help you avoid wasted time.

Let them pass through and find the loving side of those thoughts (i.e. how can these thoughts help me?).

In the beginning, as you’re learning or practicing, you want to draw a line in the sand and separate thoughts as helpful or hurtful, good, or bad.

Make it easy on yourself and not leave thoughts in the confusing gray zone that’s part of the baggage carried around.

And let’s be clear, these are thoughts and not the actions that could follow. We want to nip them in the bud.

The good thoughts you accept and the bad ones you reject for your own good. If it hurts others, then you toss in the reject pile and you figure out a win-win or kinder way to confront if that’s needed.

Ask yourself daily and often: What just came out of my mouth and what’s going on in my head? Hit the archive button if it’s a worry thought until you can find answers, and hit the delete button if it’s a harmful thought to you or anyone else.

Know those thoughts will still be there if you need them, which you won’t, but your brain tries to convince you that they’re important to protect you when they’re not needed (for survival). You can blame the ego (yet again) on that.

So, after you start to live life this deliberate-thinking way and focus on positive thoughts, you can see the difference in the quality of your life and the better air that’s there.

You’ll feel more peace, and that helps your stress level and health.

You allow room for ideas to come in, and you become more useful to the world with your abilities. You become part of the solution.

Find A Mantra for Positive Thoughts

Pre-social media days, we were not part of an aware culture like we are in today.

In those days along my journey, I came across these words: “Whatever the question, love is the answer.”

I don’t know who the author is that wrote that, but I knew back then that I wanted that. So I printed out and framed those wise words that are now ingrained in memory.

With intention, I used that as my mantra. And even though I didn’t know how to apply it in every difficult situation.

I knew that if I aspired to the meaning behind the words, it would one day catch up with me and my self-actualized desires.

So, if you have similar aspirations of a learner mindset, find a mantra or intention (or use the one I used) to go to if you’re trying to change to more positive thoughts and aspirations.

It can be used as a distraction from negative thoughts. And you eventually become your words and what you think of.

Use Your Internal Guide

As mentioned, it can be helpful to have a guide and for those ahead of us in certain areas and times in our lives.

But the best overall guide is your internal compass.

Sometimes our moods are body-mind imbalanced or off track for a season and we can restore them much quicker if we know what to do.

Our daily and busy lives can do this to us.

But we want to change them because sour moods can crowd out positive thoughts and exacerbate our need to judge, be critical of others or ourselves, and get easily irritated, which can cause our negative words or actions.

Being in healthy alignment with yourself is better because, in the end, you and your caretakers are the only ones that will be with you.

You’re the only one that’s with you (and your thoughts) always, wherever you move or travel to.

Sometimes, listening to your internal guide can be countercultural and a bit uncomfortable when you make decisions that aren’t popular or go with the flow.

And especially if you’re a harmonious or extroverted person who just wants to get along or people please.

That can make it difficult to live in integrity (doing, saying, and thinking the same thing).

Robots will have it easier than us in this way, but sadly the tin man is missing a heart. 🤖

As humans, when our thoughts don’t align that’s when we have a new chance to re-adjust.

Years ago, no one talked about mental health or wellness as part of the daily talk. Now we embrace “knowing better” in our lives.

We don’t have to just take our thoughts (or others at face value) that turn into actions that don’t always get good results and can even get us in trouble in a hyper-sensitive society.

Plus, we have more options to change the channels in every sense. And we’re more accountable.

We need this accountability. It makes us better as individual people and all together in our complex world.

So these are some accountable thoughts and maybe some personal growth homework (should you choose to accept the mission?) for turning sour cherry thoughts into sweet ones.

As a bonus, you’ll become a better person as a byproduct. I know because this is all stuff I went through. It takes one to know one, and we’re all here to figure out our best life and selves.

So, no judgment here (and actually that’s one of the assignments) 🧡 That’s a balanced Pitta way.

Pause on the gossiping:

Here’s the better way: if you wouldn’t share the news with others and the person you’re gossiping about in the room, then find a way to filter and say less.

If you’re not sure, ask.

More likely you’ll just zip your lip and that’s fine too. It’s really that simple. But even simpler is just not gossiping at all.

That becomes an automatic, better way.

When you find you can’t sit and talk in the same conversations with those who gossip, then you know you’ve changed that about yourself.

You end up productively filling your time with better ways that lead to better things.

Learn to not judge:

We never know the full picture of what’s going on with anyone else no matter how much we think we do.

Take the objective and loving-kind stance.

If you want to have an optimal life, the sooner you learn to let go (of judgment) and to stop controlling so much, the sooner that will start.

A prerequisite for this type of freedom (that it is), is to stop judging others at the first judgmental thought that enters and let the negative thoughts pass through.

Quit complaints:

If you say negative things, then you become a negative person when what you really want is happiness.

So if the first thought that enters your mind is to emphasize complaining, that hurts you.

Maybe you’re used to complaining to get your way (and learned the squeaky wheel gets the grease).

But also what’s happening in the process is you’ll be seen as a complainer.

People who don’t complain will stay away from you, so you’re in company with complainers or those who want you to complain for them or their causes, bringing more negativity in your life and less in theirs.

…If you can make these 3 life changes, you’ll be well on your way to a more peaceful life. It’s simple, but not always easy in the beginning.

It takes desire, self-control, and holding yourself accountable. Be patient and easy on yourself. The good news is these traits are changeable with practice.

And if you find people to support your efforts (and let go of the ones who aren’t), it’s easier.

Your supporters are your best allies.

Ultimately you decide what type of life you want to live. You get to decide what thoughts you keep. Copy that. 😉

Heart Healthy Strawberry Quinoa Cereal

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

Red quinoa
Organic fresh strawberries
Almond milk

Instructions

Cook quinoa to soft. You can use red or traditional quinoa.
Chop strawberries. Use organic and fresh strawberries. You can freeze what you don't use in a few days.
Add milk.

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Getting Best Ideas: When You’re Relaxed (Part 1 of 2)

Himalayan pink salt relaxes the body and is soothing for feet and toes

Are you feeling as productive as you had been? If not as much, maybe this short article will help you to find more peace this season, do the things in your life that matter (and feel more relaxed!).

It’s okay to be uncertain, as we’re all pivoting in some ways. Embracing pivots is helpful for understanding a life of purpose and meaning.

And hopefully you’re still chasing dreams and desiring a better-than-you-started-future outcome, as your optimistic beliefs will carry you far. Believing today accelerates your getting to the other side.

These days you may have to work a little harder to break through the clouds for victories, but they’re there.😊

What could be helpful for you?

First, focus on the right things.

The better idea is to be daily productive and continually develop better ways than from your past. You’re a day wiser than you were yesterday and year wiser than last year.

Spend your time wisely, being conscious to not just take on anything or task put in front of you. We can change and design our paths.

We can remove old ways that don’t serve us anymore or we don’t want again. Evolving helps you grow. It’s a strength.

Sure, life can be easier in a routine and automatic existence, but trying to live in a predictable bubble is not the whole life.

It’s also unrealistic in our unpredictable world and can set up for disappointment.

…When you’re open, loosening the reigns allows you to explore and discover more about yourself and the world around you.

Letting go of the past makes life easier and makes you more nimble to be able to roll with the punches. Then the things that cause unrest can more easily roll off your back.

It’s also much healthier to not live with negative emotions, ongoing stress, anxiety, or irritation from situations or people.

Kind confrontation is better than showing anger, seething, or holding onto stress that no one else knows about.

I used to not like change because I’m a planner. That was the type of work I did too in food menu planning for events. But then I experienced situations where change turned out good so my “all change is bad” theory was busted.

And I realized holding onto the past was fearful thinking. When I let go of what I couldn’t change, life got better. And life is good. And that could be for you too.

And you probably know what that feels like.

Secondly, begin with the end.

From the time we were young kids, we were taught to think in a linear way and to look ahead at tomorrow (or at adult profession dreams when we were way too young to know the realities or what we really wanted).

Today as an adult, a better call is to look at the happiest outcome of your entire life… through the end.

Of course, your perspective will change over the years, but for now, you can consider the question: what legacy do you want to leave?

In other words, what do you want to be remembered for? When you look at it that way, you cut through the stuff you’re preoccupied with today that won’t matter or be as important in the end.

Here’s something you can do today if that’s something you’re trying to answer (or want to discover better ideas about your best life):

Be more relaxed.

You get your best ideas when you and your mind are relaxed and receptive to thoughts from your loving-productive channel.

You’re most relaxed when you’re sleeping, but you’re not able to process your thoughts then and there. Asleep, you can’t really work with those ideas that come in dreams even if they seem productive.

…Btw, I wanted to mention, this is a two-part post. The second part will be about changing, unproductive non-loving thoughts. I think it’s important because that’s where the daily brain can live a good chunk of the day and block out your good ideas if you’re not managing thoughts optimally.

So, getting back to productivity and being relaxed…

When you’re awake you can do two activities at once. Multi-tasking can be productive or counterproductive.

Maybe you’re a natural multi-tasker. That’s me too, my female-Vata side is wired that way, and to like variety.

But there are times when multi-tasking is counterproductive like when you’re trying to read and write at the same time, watch television or listen to a podcast.

Those competing activities create noise in your mind as you have to work twice as hard to drown out one to focus on another.

But when you pair a relaxing activity that you can put on auto-pilot, like thinking through an idea while taking a shower or making your daily tea, new ideas mysteriously and creatively emerge that weren’t there before.

That’s why it’s good too to take mindful breaks, switching up activities to recharge and let new ideas enter. One idea can set you off on a whole new path.

Recently over the past few years, people have changed their thoughts and perspectives on this life: seeing it more precious, valuing time more, and seeing how quickly it goes by.

In our western go-go-go society, it’s common to be unhappy in the corporate world. That’s where I came from.

The more you did and proved your value, the more you could be indispensable (although nobody really is).

The pressure was always there running as an undercurrent. Potentially losing a job for whatever reason was always a looming threat to job security.

And vacations were almost always too short and few. Relax was a bad word in those environments. Taking on stress was not described as life-shortening as it is these days.

Relaxing was associated with being lazy and there was no spinning the idea of laziness as productive.

Laziness was associated with old age, not working, and 4-legged furry pets. Today laziness is normal.

Unhealthy burning the midnight oil, drinking multiple espressos, sugary canned drinks, cramming food down, skipping meals to get more done, and eating junk to get us through, was a growing epidemic.

So hopefully those were our past ways. One good outcome from being more awake and slowing down (and maybe that’s how you are now) is people are taking the burden off their bodies.

We were never meant to have a 24-7-on all the time work-focused mind.

If the body doesn’t want to naturally do this, that’s a sure health warning. Now we’re reconsidering our lives and what we want now and in the future.

And you can leverage these evolving societal changes and reconsider time for your best use.

Finding time throughout the day to do nothing that needs broadcasting (like relaxed yoga poses, napping, meditation, or watching shows) is a good use of time that can lead you to new ideas. And then you can get back to being busily productive as part of the balance.

And if you’re a recovering 24-7 workaholic, you may never want to go back to a rat-race existence if that’s what you had.

You’ve learned some lessons and now know a better way. And you’re smart not to want to go back. You don’t get to redo any age.

Going back would be like wearing a worn-out and familiar old shoe that no longer looks right on you.

Today, you can retire those shoes, and run with a new pair to get to a better place. And don’t be too surprised when new ideas meet you there on your next move. 🎉

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Luck Inspiration Happy Thoughts For The Life You Want

Luck is part of our happy lives. You run into it more when you try more things and is more visible to you when you’re working toward finding your purpose.

I believe the way to happiness is in finding a daily purpose. Eventually, you’ll run into examples of happy luck on your journey even if you’ve never considered yourself lucky.

That’s what this blog post today is about. So if you’ve been feeling unlucky, stuck, or wondering about how to get more good luck, grab a drink and keep reading.

One immediate additon you can make is to add a new joyful daily practice that’s different than the previous ones that aren’t “the ONE.”

Finding that can create the outlet or space you need to drift into your best season.

Staying open to new possibilities is gonna help lead you there and out of disappointment from unmet expectations.

If you’re super busy, even finding 10 minutes a day will move you in a healthy way. You don’t have to produce anything yet.

You just want to get the energy juices flowing inside you, and develop an interest in the process.

It matters to YOU what that is and what you do, but it doesn’t matter what it is to get that energy.

It’s your thoughts and feelings at the end of the day that carries you through.

You can start by simply pulling out a few (or all the) supplies needed.

Say, your practice is something simple like yoga, then you’d roll out your yoga mat and pull out your stretchy clothes. And here are 100 yoga poses you can start with.

Or if it’s as complex as lace making, you’d bring out your threads and materials.

My recommend is to start spending a ‘lil time (gathering supplies or working on your practice) in your spare time while you’re watching television. It doesn’t have to be either/or… when you get moving, juices flow easier.

When you can visually see what you need to work on as a practice or hobby, that can become top-of-mind consciousness instead of: “out of sight, out of mind.”

You put your mind towards a purpose. It can feel like an anxious distraction or passion freedom.

You were born naturally to be active, just like horses and greyhounds are born to run.

As kids, we knew we wanted to play. Go back to your natural instinct roots and wonder and play in the adult way. You may even find yourself in your calm Alpha waves state of mind.

That’s what I thought about scrapbooking years ago, but then I lost interest. So don’t be surprised if you go through different activities to find “the one.”

Our world today is like a lotus flower opening and evolving. We didn’t know the internet would turn out the way it is today, when it first came out, but we got involved. And look at it now!

I’ve never been able to watch the Australian Open live stream until this year—and with open access, I was more aware, interested, and curious in another part of the world than where I live.

And used some of that time to bake. See how we can use the world around us to be more open (even if we can’t do it exactly the way we want)?

Your practice can become a daily passion or create new passion project ideas. You can be multi-passionate, but you’ll find one passion or interest eventually dominates and becomes more your purpose.

It’s the one giving life to others too that you can share or do life with.

In the beginning, the satisfied feeling for doing your passion can be there just to make you feel better about yourself (a good way to get self-care and not overspend!).

Your day will feel more joyful. You don’t need a deep reason as to why you’re doing it. When you feel happier, however that shows up for you, then you can show up more giving and creative.

Our ego sourly wants us to believe that everything has to turn into some kind of accomplishment that others praise and has to turn into a high achievement (or else why do it?).

Don’t fall for those lies. Tell your ego who’s boss at the moment.

The real gift or takeaway is in the process of showing up (you’ve probably heard a zillion times), improving your practice regularly, and loving what you’re doing more than the praise or the idea that you can succeed or fail.

Do it to be productive, and make it a natural desire to your life, like as the hunting dog wants to chase.

When you’ve worked on your practice long enough (often years), that can form into your purpose and lead you to additional productive purposes from what you’ve already learned.

You pay your dues with low paid or free work and time, and once you’ve proven to yourself that you’ll do this practice even if you’re not paid, then you’re unstoppable in your niche.

And you’ll be rewarded for taking a risk in being productive.

What you know is, you’re on the right track even if you see no immediate fruit.

One sign is you would’ve given up on it for something else a long time ago. Sometimes people quit, get busy or distracted, and then come back, that’s almost a sure sign you’re on the right track no matter how it looks to others.

That’s why I believe you should go for what you really want to do with your life (and forget about what looks good on paper) because you only get this one life to do (and there’s not a do-over for anyone).

And so, the importance of time can catch up with you where you crave a high quality of life, balance, health, and relationships… and possibly over money.

Maybe that’s where you are (or are headed in that direction)?

Figuring out what makes you needed to the world sooner will give you more time to do more of that.

In growth, we try not to go backward and when we stumble on luck, we know it’s our time to run and build on that momentum.

So then, what is luck?

It’s a simple four-letter word, but leaning into luck is going to propel you to better things.

If you haven’t already, it may be useful to write out all the places where you felt you got lucky.

Nothing is too small. Scoring a parking spot is luck. And the more you can find these examples in your life, the more luck takes healthy root in your life as you look for more.

It’s often understated and why one person works super hard and the door never opens, and one person who barely tried falls into luck. It isn’t earned. It’s you walking into and towards your destiny.

It’s what we sometimes refer to as “beginner’s luck.” When you pair that with persistence (never giving up) plus hard work, you’re virtually unstoppable.

Luck is invisible but always involved. It’s our ego that says, “it was our doing,” when it was a collaboration with those involved and the Universe all along.

Luck really is your alignment with your assignments and purpose. It’s lining you up for the right next opportunity at the perfect time. Luck isn’t random luck.

And if you choose to believe that, then you can wonder how to use your luck in your favor.

You can use it to find your purpose and the reason why you’re here.

Nothing goes wasted. Remember, it’s our (ego) minds that mess with us and want us to believe we’re our ego. Outsmarting your ego is good advice.

And what you are productively doing now (even if it’s not exciting) will move you to the next thing.

You will end up using all of your experiences, on this seemingly chaotic planet. But when you dig deeper, you can see how organized it is, in every blade of grass and life’s full circle moments.

If you had a season you didn’t like, those lessons you learned can help make you aware to not do the same mistakes again.

That can sometimes take two steps forward and one step backward. Staying patient with yourself but keep trying… and laughing at life once in a while helps!

And if this all seems new or foreign to you, don’t worry, that’s part of why you’re here, and when you’re ready, you’ll figure out what you need.

The sooner you do, the more you get to do what you want to do and get all the great gifts associated as long as you don’t quit working, dreaming, and wanting.

Gifts can be new relationships, opportunities, money, praise, promotion, etc.

If you don’t like your grueling day job or are dissatisfied with corporate life, then maybe you want to look at other avenues. Sure, some of your old communities and friends will drift away, but you’ll develop new ones just like when you finished school or when you moved to a new town.

One day, John Lennon just walked out of the room and that was the end of The Beatles band. In the peaceful flow, he didn’t cut off ties. He just pivoted. One day.

Suddenly. It doesn’t have to be dramatic or have an announcement made (others can do that without you).

In my life, I took a sabbatical when it wasn’t the norm and I had to explain what that was as it sounds like a religious or college-related quest.

Now people are rethinking and opting to do the same. Maybe that’s your next pivot move? Or trying something completely new. Just starting is the best advice I’ve ever heard.

Whatever that productive next step is for you, stay the course until something else takes over, and then you can expectantly watch as a new kind of luck emerges that you would’ve never seen had you not taken the first step.

It’s as simple and complicated as that. 😊

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Healthy Chipotle Menu and Fast Food

Healthy Chipotle menu, healthy fast food, and healthy eating are all related. Chipotle makes healthy chips and chic beans in a pot. And they make it all so tasty good.

These are the same type of ingredients used and eaten that the longest living people on the planet today enjoy. These folks are also some of the poorest which debunks the myth that you have to be wealthy to be healthy.

And one of the plant-based healthiest meals that’s full of protein amino acids is the 3 Sisters dish traditionally with corn, tortilla, and beans. Learn how to make your own easy lime treated corn tortilla below to go with. 🌽

lime treated tortilla

When you’re not at home and making eating out food choices, eating whole grains and more plant-based is part of healthy eats, and the Chipotle menu is one menu to consider for a fast lunch.

I wish they were around when I was younger. For elementary school field trips, we were asked to bring a bag lunch to school (…you may have done the same).

Most schoolmates had white bread sandwiches (the magical Wonder Bread enriched white bread) and were less likely to stand out and be judged. For lunch hour, your pride and identity were wrapped up in 2 slices of bread, lol.

Today, bread shaming doesn’t cut it …but I know the feeling as my sandwiches were made of whole wheat. Back then, I guess that was better than the occasional super healthy alfalfa-stuffed and sprouting kind where apparently the parents were on a healthy agenda (and didn’t get the memo).

And once in a while we had Taco Tuesday lunches where they offered hard tacos. Some preferred soft tacos. It was kinda like white vs. other breads.

These days we’re open to anti-inflammatory variety, and being more planet and health-conscious. And that’s reflected in our visible fast-food options.

Besides just breakfast, lunch, and dinner, sugary dessert yogurts have been replaced by fruit smoothie energy-vit-enriched powders, as nice in-between options.

Growing up in the DC suburbs, we didn’t have healthy build-it-meal places like Cava, SweetGreen, or Chipotle, or fast food places that offer plant-based meals.

No fast food place offered salads or greens, or at least fresh ones you wanted to try. And that’s coming from an area considered a cultural mecca (and foodie hub). Many field trips were to the DC national museums where we only had time to eat what we brought.

And health-conscious calories and nutritional meal information weren’t anywhere to be found (heck, we didn’t have internet). We’ve made leaps and bounds to become a more health-conscious society.

Living past 90 and 100 is a higher probability than it once was. And from all the living longer information available to us, we know life expectancy and maintaining ideal body weight is mostly determined by personal lifestyle choices.

So thankfully our society and the food community are rallying to help this cause. Aligned to this, the Chipotle menu offers a line called Lifestyle Bowls for healthier eating habits (that end up as regular eating behaviors).

Our bodies are resilient, and we know we know we have some control and can restore our imbalances through the mind-body (or body-mind connection). We also know our thoughts turn to feelings and our feelings to thoughts that can help us most if we’re aware.

These concepts I’ve grown intimate with because I’ve learned they are keys to helping unlock happiness… why live a day here dissatisfied if you don’t have to? And what you store inside impacts your health, in the one body you’re given.

And today and every day is a new day that can be a fresh start in a healthy new year or new season. It can be a good time to welcome changes. Food is a great place to start. And I think we can learn a tip or two from the Chipotle menu whether we eat out or cook in…

At Chipotle, like most fast-food chains, you get consistency and know what to expect. Here are some Chipotle menu healthy ingredient inspirations (from building a lunch meal bottom-up):

You could start with a tortilla or with a bowl of rice, where you get to choose white or brown (kinda like the white or whole wheat bread kinds we’ve known since we were kids)… And in adult wisdom and healthy gratitude, we know choosing brown rice goes much further in the healthy zone! 🦷

Chipotle also offers beans (that are often found in Mexican dishes). They offer two types (black or pinto) for simplicity, but did you know there are over 16,000 types of beans (and 40,000 varieties if you Google it)? In a Western diet, you and I have probably only encountered or eaten closer to 16 kinds. 😊

And just looking around, our American diet isn’t a bean-focused society like other countries. Chili is the glorified bean meal we tie to social occasions and sporting events. But, on the Chipotle menu, you also get the choice to add beans as a rice topping, plus another protein choice that’s considered the actual meat or star protein.

The added beans on the Chipotle menu are subtle but may be your only bean source for the week or month if you don’t get them anywhere else. Just sayin’.

And if keep going down the build-it meal line, you can add guacamole that has tasty value. You don’t necessarily think of the Hass avocado source that’s the add-on’s main health benefit. From there, you can build in green lettuce, a corn mix, and other daily made healthy toppings with herbs like cumin, oregano, and thyme. And all kinds of mild to hot peppers.

That’s as close as it gets to healthy fast-food eating out. I compare that way to my restaurant event planning days where I was around exotically delicious food all day (Spanish, Lebanese, Italian, and North African cuisine), but not all of it was healthy. It was a mixed bag mostly from the fried methods or rich sauces.

In the Chipotle recipes, they make a point to use health-conscious sauces. Soffrito is a Spanish sauce and Chipotle has sofritas as a plant-based protein option.

And now they have a second-plant based protein: chorizo (plant-based inspired sausage). Seeing a trend emerging?

In my area, you don’t have to go far to go to places like Cava, where you’re getting fast-food metro- suburban Middle Eastern chickpea falafel. You can also go from bean to chickpea legumes on fluffy basmati rice that you can learn to make at home in a double boiler method.

Or choose Sweet Greens, a salad, and green-grain bowl place that loves heirloom veggies (like in their Harvest Bowl). Ordering can feel like you’re picking from a California leafy green and veggie garden (and even close to the ground with their Shroomami or Curry Cauliflower bowls).

Then when you’re ready for something sweet, you can find smoothie places with tropical fruits and powder infusions. In city-metro areas, there are many to choose from, and you can add your chia, flax, and sunflower seeds. These are all mainstream now, but once upon a time they were exceptions.

Maybe reflecting on your food journeys and looking around your neighborhood food options, you’re a bit more inspired to eat a little more healthy Chipotle menu-inspired.

That could be a healthy step forward in your home tortilla meal and bowls.

You can get inspired by the healthy Chipotle menu when you're at home with your own bean, veggie, and plant-based ingredients. — You can eat more beans, tortilla, and plant-based goodness that good for you and the planet.

Easy Lime Treated Tortilla (Inspired by Longevity Zones)

Course: Breakfast, lunch

Cuisine: American, Mexican

Author: Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Materials

fresh lime
package of soft yellow tortilla (healthier than white tortilla since yellow has beta carotene)

Instructions

Squeeze fresh lime generously all over tortilla. Let soak into tortilla and flip to the other side and do the same. Enjoy soft or bake hard.
For hard tortilla bowls, bake inside a heatable bowl. For taco shell shapes, use a upside down muffin tin, fold tortilla and lay "V" shape tortilla side by side in between muffin tin shapes to create the shape desired.
Bake flat or in taco shape at 250°F until toasted for about one hour.

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Kitchen Food Pantry + Healthy Cinnamon Roll Recipe

Kitchen food pantry is a must whether it’s shelves or bins if you want to maintain a healthy eating lifestyle and not have to run out to the grocery store every time you need an ingredient 🤔

And if you want to make a recipe like cinnamon rolls below, your ingredients are cupboard and pantry ready or can be subsituted.

my kitchen food pantry in 2020. — The 2020 Pantry that started it all. It wasn’t all healthy, but then gradually as the world became more social healthy so did my kitchen.

It’s smart these days to have a running house kitchen food pantry, especially with all the grocery store shortages and shipping dilemmas.

What you store in your kitchen food pantry ends up being part of your diet (the same concept as: what you bring home from the grocery store or delivered ends up on your plate).

So, I started a household kitchen food pantry at the start of 2020 because I’m a planner and that makes food conveniently available in real-time.

Real food is a basic need, and no metaverse can change that (zero taste would never last on our planet 😊).

Plus, having a personal kitchen food pantry lets you bypass the panic buy waves that seem to run rampant.

And you can find yourself cooking and baking more, just in case you’re looking for homemade-cooking inspiration.

But even if you’re not a planner, the checklist below can help remind you of healthy pantry food items to stock up on when you’re running low.

kitchen food pantry cinnamon bun ingredients. — Cinnamon bun recipe below 🍥 👇

One recent item I found interesting that made the trending grocery shortage list along with chicken is cinnamon buns.

They are easy to bake (I think) and I have a delicious and fast recipe bake below

🥮 that’s gonna keep you smiling and healthy. It all starts with having cinnamon spice on hand (and one of my #1 go-to sources for adding a little sweet to bakes, foods, and drinks). Cinnamon I think I sweet, and no heat, but if you’re not used to it, can kinda feel that way.

Ceylon cinnamon is the kind you want to add to your healthy beverages. The regular or traditional cinnamon is Cassia cinnamon that’s often used in baking.

So, anyway… Here’s a kitchen food pantry idea list that can come in handy (from my pantry to yours maybe?):

✔️ Nuts, Seeds, and Dried Fruits (ex: raisins, craisins, dates, papaya, almonds, walnuts, sunflower seeds, flax seeds) come in handy as snack fillers between meals. You can make a trail mix or use them to bake with.

They’re dry ingredients so they water down baking, that’s working to dry what’s baking in the oven. If you have temperature-sensitive nuts like macadamia or Brazil nuts, you can keep them in the fridge to give them a longer life.

✔️ Canned Beans and Other Legumes (ex: white beans, black beans, peas, edamame, chickpea-garbanzo beans) you can use for every meal or straight out of the can.

You can run water inside the open cans to rinse out some of the preserving salts/sodium, or you can use the can liquid for soups and dips. You can even use the chickpea aquafaba liquid as an egg white substitute. There are no rules. But once cans are opened, it’s smart to refrigerate and use ’em within a few days.

✔️ Packaged Fruit (or what I call pantry shelf fruit, ex: unsweetened applesauce, cherries, pineapple) come in handy for baking.

Btw, I try to buy the unsweetened (or unsalted) versions if there’s a choice for all food goods ready-to-eat or for baking. ‘Cause then you can choose what sweets or salts to add back in, and control how much. And that’s part of the benefits making your own bakes and dishes.

✔️ Canned Proteins (ex: tuna, sardines, clams) make great snacks and lunch meat. You can add to almost any carb meal.

✔️ Shelf-ready Non-dairy milks (ex: almond milk) are good to keep around, plus a can of coconut milk and evaporated milk for easy baking or soups. Best expiration dates are usually over a year out.

✔️ Comfort Food Boxed Pasta make a pantry shelf look organized (that probably wasn’t your first thought, lol). There seems to be a new pasta shape out every year and in panic-buy shortages, the whole aisle empties fast (and ends up in pantries!).

So it’s good to have a couple of uniform boxes with different pasta shapes on hand. Larger pasta surfaces like shells will hold onto sauces better when you’re deciding what shapes and types to go with (ex: traditional spaghetti, macaroni, whole wheat).

Veggie pasta doesn’t need a fancy sauce and can taste light and elegant with the right EVOO.

✔️ Canned Tomatoes or Tomato Sauce go hand and hand in your pantry for a weekly Italian meal. But the cheese doesn’t belong there and I agree with the Italians that parmesan (America’s cheese) is not high quality once you get a taste of the better stuff.

You can opt to store nutritional yeast as a dry, cheesy alternative. It’s called “nutritional” because it’s full of nutrition (vitamins and minerals).

✔️ Slow Cooking or Old-Fashioned Oats and Grits. Good for breakfast but they can be substituted instead of flour for some bakes, and if you want to do gluten-free.

✔️ Other Whole Grains: (ex: brown rice, quinoa, barley, farro). Just look for “whole” in front of grains.

✔️ Drinks: (ex: unsweetened cocoa for baking and hot cocoa and ground coffee.) Even if you don’t drink these often they come in handy for occasions. You can always make healthy cold brew coffee if you don’t have a coffee machine.

The best drink for your body (water) isn’t in the pantry.

✔️ High Bran/Whole Grain Cereal: Processed cereals (including fortified ones) have gotten a bad rap. Some you may have heard we grew up with are even linked to having traces of weedkiller.

But if you find the right fortified cereal, that can be a good daily fiber source and a possible better sweet substitute.

✔️ Chocolate chip morsels: You can always find some chocolaty-way to bake them in or enjoy in a no-bake trail mix.

I learned in my Doubletree catering experience that chocolate chips will get you far! You can see my easy one bowl chocolate chip oatmeal cookie and cool-star design chocolate oatmeal soft recipe

✔️ Salts: (ex: kosher, coarser sea salt, regular sea salt). Kosher is good for some bakes while coarser salts are a great finishing touch for veggies (almost like a salt garnish).

They allow you to appreciate your foods better at the moment when they activate on your tongue ...remember the different taste regions on the tongue?

Coarse salt on Brussels sprouts can change your opinion of the healthy veg.

✔️ Vinegars/Condiments: (ex: apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, white wine vinegar, Worcestershire, and soy sauces).

These are versatile ingredients you can use to dress up your dishes, dressings, and sauces.

✔️ EVOO: keep a medium and a lighter version for cooking vs. baking (if you like the scent and taste, chances are you’ll love it in your dishes).

✔️ Flours: all-purpose, whole wheat, bread, corn, gluten-free (ex: almond, coconut, and buckwheat can be used in baking). Gluten-free flours are better preserved in the fridge than in a pantry.

✔️ Baking agents: cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda-the orange box in your fridge not to be confused with slightly different baking powder in baking, yeast packets for breads, sugars sparingly used for baking (ex: powdered sugar, monkfruit sugar, and brown sugar). You can learn to add less sugar and crave less.

✔️ Soup: before 2020, I used to buy canned low-sodium soups, and learned to cut down the sodium even more by making soups from fresh and my kitchen food pantry ingredients.

With fresh and root veggies, you can almost make any kind of warm soup you want. Same concept with fresh fruits where you can make any no-added low-sugar cool juice you want.

✔️ Variety of anti-inflammatory herbs and spices: for every day you want to have a variety of spice such as: oregano, turmeric, cayenne, cumin, black pepper, cinnamon.

For Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, you want to take a look at your spice options, and add spices such as thyme, rosemary, nutmeg, anise, allspice, cardamom, cinnamon, ginger if those aren’t fresh.

✔️ Loose leaf and tea bags: from an herbal list, peppermint is always good to have on hand for aches.

Floral and fruity tea is also favorable. Black (ex: cinnamon, Earl Grey, chai), green, and red/rooibos are antioxidant wonders.

✔️ Breads: Where is the best place to preserve bread longer… pantry, fridge, or freezer?

It’s the freezer. The fridge hardens and dries out your bread, but a freezer will keep it from undesirable changing properties after 2-3 days at room temperature.

You’ll know when freezer bread has eventually turned stale as it has a freezer-burn, cardboard-like but that doesn’t usually happen for months or longer.

If you’re wanting to freeze bread, slice it up at room temperature first before freezing, so you can pull out the slices you need without de-thawing the entire loaf. Pop frozen toast in your toaster, and it’s just as fresh.

And here is the no-refined sugar but refined cinnamon buns 😊bread recipe:

Jump to Recipe

Low-Sugar Delicious Cinnamon Rolls

For sweetness, I recommend adding honey in the dough and as a final glaze. Also, add a load of Ceylon cinnamon spice in-between for the sweet. Of course.

You can add sugar or monk fruit sugar if you wish and if you have a younger eating audience that’ll appreciate the sugar. Your older guests (and maybe you) can appreciate your sugar in moderation healthy baking gestures.

Healthy fat is used in this recipe. Keep in mind: if you use a healthy fat like light EVOO, it won’t be like the bakery and store-bought cinnamon buns you’re used to.

These cinnamon buns’ bite will be moist, and a little different than a flaky butter finish, but still uber-delicious.

Flour: Bread flour (or a mix with whole wheat flour) does the best for cinnamon buns in my opinion, but you can definitely substitute with crumbly gluten-free “healthy” flours and add natural xantham gum or other binders.

But I like no-fuss or muss, so this bread prep can be done in 5 minutes by hand mixing 5 ingredients: warm water, flour, yeast, plain yogurt (or condensed milk if you want to use kitchen food pantry only ingredeints), and salt. Plus, honey for sweetness. And no proof waiting time.

The enriched dough rests for a few minutes, and then you can roll the buns and watch the magical oven work while pursuing other hobbies 😊 …that’s how I Cinna-roll in this delicious-on recipe.

Print Recipe

Healthy Cinnamon Rolls

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American, swedish

Servings 8 rolls

Author Brandy @ Healthy Happy Life Secrets

Ingredients

2-1/2 cups total flour (you can mix bread flour, whole wheat, gluten-free bread)
1/2 tsp instant yeast (if you use active yeast add to warm water to activate first)
1/2 tbsp sea salt
1/2 tbsp raw honey
1/2 cup plain yogurt (Greek yogurt recommended) or a can of evaporated or condensed milk, or coconut cream
3/4 cup warm water (+ more)
cinnamon spice (to taste)

Instructions

Make bread by mixing flour, water, salt, yeast.
Let proof for at least 1-2 hours.
Roll into a log.
Cut into even slices with cooking thread.
Set on baking tray and bake on 350°F until golden brown. Optional shine: Add egg wash when almost done baking (or glaze after baking and cooling).

Cinna(MON)-Roll Bread Buns

Ingredients (for 8 rolls):

8”x 4” (or 9”x5”) pan

2-1/2 cups total flour (you can mix bread flour, whole wheat, gluten-free bread)

1/2 tsp yeast (if active yeast add to warm water to activate first)

1/2 Tbsp sea salt

1/2 Tbsp raw honey

1/2 cup plain yogurt (Greek yogurt recommended)

¾ cup warm water + more

Directions:

Mix ingredients in a bowl adding just enough warm water until all the flour is incorporated. Some of the dough will be stringy dough pieces or crumbs, and not a smooth dough (not like a baby’s bottom 👶).

Let rest for a few minutes (or leave overnight covered in the fridge).

Bring the dough out and lay it on top of bench flour (any baking flour will work. I like to stick with the same ones I’m using in the buns or whole wheat flour). Roll out dough (not too thin to about 1/4-1/2″ thick) into a rectangle shape and then cut strips with a pizza wheel cutter (or knife), saving the dough scrap ends.

Roll out the remaining dough and combine with the dough scraps, to make 8 total long pieces about the same size. These will be your buns.

Healthy Version:

Then brush light EVOO (good for sweet baking) or ghee (clarified butter) on each strip. And then layer and fully cover a generous dusting of cinnamon spice (Ceylon cinnamon suggested and the amount based on your preference).

Bake time will vary depending on flour choices, dough thickness, baking pan, and oven. As a guideline, bake until a little darker than golden brown as the outside is browner then the inside that can still be a little moist/unbaked.

Suggested time and temperature: Bake at 350 °F for about 45 minutes. Pull out halfway and brush more EVOO. Then reduce oven heat to 200 F for another 10 minutes. That’s what these in the photos were baked in.

If you find the outside looks too dry, you may want to brush with EVOO again. You could also substitute with an egg wash (about half way through) for a ‘lil moist shine, but I prefer another way after cooled…

Cinna-roll looks pretty cool with the tea bath, huh?

Because the bread dough is pretty dense after cooled, I then add sweet orange zest, and raisins ontop, so it looks a little like a pain aux raisins. Then I pour brewed warm (but not hot) tea over the cinnamon bun, that softens and plumps up the raisins (like you may have heard to add to your Earl Grey tea and that mellows out the brisk taste). Well… the raisins and zest here add sweetness and the tea bath adds the mellow. The fruit-forwardness comes through.🧡

For the pouring tea, I suggest using a black tea: like cinnamon, chai, or Earl Grey. Then when you wanna enjoy it, you’ll have a sweet, warm, and lightly moist bread experience. Yes, please! 😋

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