I’m so excited for this new series on the blog! 4 Things Friday will be a weekly recap of my favorite podcast, “4 Things with Amy Brown,” followed by four of my favorite things from the week.
If you don’t know who Amy Brown is, you should! She is one of the co-hosts on “The Bobby Bones Show,” which is a nationally syndicated country music morning radio show. Bobby’s show is SO good, and that’s partly because Amy is on the show. Amy just started her podcast in November, and each episode is only about 30 minutes long, so go listen to this week’s and any previous ones you might have missed here. Now, let’s get started with Amy’s 4 things from this week!
- Crying is good. Amy talks about how crying can actually relieve stress, release toxins, lower blood pressure almost immediately and connect us to our emotions. If you have to, set aside a time to cry and just let it all out! I know I’ve had to do that before, and it really does make me feel better. Amy even gives a tip on how to hold back crying if you’re in a place where you can’t shed some tears (like at work). She says to drink water because you can’t cry and drink at the same time. Who knew?!
- Weights make pretty muscles. Amy had celebrity fitness trainer Erin Oprea on to discuss how important weight training is. Did you know the more muscle you have, the more calories you burn at rest? It’s important to use proper form when working out with weights, and Erin recommends starting low and building your way up to heavier weights. You can even use your own body weight to do things like lunges and push-ups. I know I’m definitely guilty of not using weights enough, but Erin gave some really great tips on how to make it easier and fun!
- Homemade deodorant. Amy went into why we should be using a natural deodorant, and she shared the recipe she uses to make her own. I’ve recently made the switch to natural deodorant because I just didn’t like what I was finding out about the ingredients in the traditional ones. I figured winter would be a good time to test some out since sweating isn’t quite as much of an issue this time of year. So far, I’ve had pretty good results, but will likely try a few different kinds and see what works best for me.
- Protein bars. When we want a quick, healthy snack, we often think protein bars, but so many of them are loaded with sugar and weird ingredients. Amy recommended her favorites that are good for you, and they’ll fill you up! I haven’t tried any of them yet, but I definitely want to get some of the Primal Kitchen bars.
Now that you know about Amy’s 4 Things, here are my favorites from the week.
- Chickpea curry. I often crave Asian food, but I don’t have a lot of options near me, and I also try to avoid getting a lot of takeout. Sometimes Indian food can have tons of ingredients and be really complicated, but this recipe is so easy and doesn’t require a lot. I’ve made this several times and it never disappoints. Plus, the leftovers are great, too!
- Purely Elizabeth granola. Just about every morning for breakfast, I have plain Greek yogurt with some granola sprinkled on top. I’ve been eating Purely Elizabeth for a while now because it’s one of the healthiest I’ve found, it’s free of refined sugars and it tastes so good! I usually buy the chocolate sea salt & peanut butter, but I recently found the banana nut butter and love that it’s grain free and so low in carbs and sugar! That’s hard to find in a granola.
- Dr. Teal’s lavender and epsom salt bubble bath. I love using this right before bed. The lavender scent is so relaxing and calms me so I can easily get to sleep. The epsom salt in this is really good for sore, tired muscles, too. This bubble bath is inexpensive, and a bottle seems to last for a really long time.
- Vital Proteins collagen peptides. As a vegetarian, protein is really important for me, but I’ve never really loved a lot of the protein powders I tried. This one is the exception! I’ve been using this for a few months now and it’s the best! Because it’s a collagen protein, it isn’t considered vegan/vegetarian-friendly, but I’m okay with it because of all the benefits found in collagen. It’s great for skin, nails, hair, digestion… the list goes on! What I like best about this protein is that it’s colorless, odorless and tasteless, so it can be mixed into literally anything! I tend to put it in my coffee each morning.
That’s all for this week! Have a great weekend, and don’t forget to check out “4 Things with Amy Brown.”
Some great ideas to try👌Very interesting read. Will be looking forward to 4 Things Friday!!
Thank you so much! 🙂