Is Chipotle Healthy?
So I know that most of my followers love Chipotle! Who doesn't? It's delicious and it's super healthy!…Or is it? IS Chipotle healthy when you actually get down to the nitty-gritty of it?
Like, just to list some of the ingredients that are available at Chipotle, such as brown rice, black beans and pinto beans, chicken and steak, salsa and lettuce and guacamole… That all sounds pretty healthy!
But you might also be thinking that there are all kinds of artificial additives and preservatives, and also crazy amounts of sodium etc., that mean eating these foods at Chipotle = less healthy than cooking your own version at home.
Both of these takes are kind of true at the same time! Let me explain…
For one thing, there are of course Foods available at Chipotle that aren't considered very healthy in the first place. Flour tortillas, white rice, the salty corn salsa, and sour cream.
You might be wondering, what's wrong with all of these things? Especially because something like corn is high in fiber. But despite fiber content, flour, white rice, and corn are all starchy, and so they spike your insulin and prevent weight loss.
Also, the tortillas used to have additives and preservatives, but they dropped this in 2017 and made them a lot healthier.
In fact, there are actually no added flavors, colors, or preservatives in anything at Chipotle anymore, making them the first casual fast-food type place to make this decision.
So, if I'm saying it's okay to have some of the starchy stuff in moderation at Chipotle, and I'm also saying that the preservatives we suspected them of having are actually not there…then what am I saying is the actual problem?
100%, the salt content!!
The average American has over 3,000 mg of sodium a day, when it's recommended that we only have 1,500. (You may have heard 2,000 or 2,300 before, but that is the upper LIMIT, not what's actually recommended by doctors.)
And is Chipotle healthy when it comes to this? Definitely not! The amount of sodium in Chipotle ingredients is just staggering, especially in most of the meat. Take the chorizo, for example. Their pork sausage taste so good, but at what cost? The cost is about 800 mg, meaning that if you have a serving of it, and they'll probably give you more than just a serving, that's over half your daily sodium right there!
When it comes to the steak and chicken, they aren't that bad at 330 mg and 310 mg respectively…but it's still twice the amount of sodium you get in a serving of steak or chicken that's unseasoned. So why not make it home instead in season at yourself?
I know, "make it at home instead" is easier said than done. And if you are going to go to any fast food place / casual chain, somewhere like Chipotle, Panera Bread, or even Subway is better and has more flexible healthy options than somewhere like McDonald's or Burger King.