| Your weekly wellness check-in. |
Mark my words, 2026 is the year of sourdough-infused foods. —Alyssa Bereznak, wellness and grooming director |
| |
|
12 Products That Changed My Life This January |
January has always been a month of possibility for me. It’s the moment when you get to daydream about all the great things you’ll accomplish in the coming year, often from the warmth of your home on a subzero day. The many lotions, recovery tools, books, and foodstuffs that have made their way into my recent daily rotation all support those ambitions in one way or another, whether it’s something as small as smelling really good underneath my chunky sweater, or as major as cutting down my evening screen time. However you’re planning to live a better life this year, I hope my discoveries help—or at the very least give you some good Valentine’s Day gift ideas.
|
|
|
I’ve been hearing murmurs about the life-changing powers of The Brick since the fall. The small plastic square works in tandem with an app to block off your access to certain apps and websites on your phone. You can create a customized spread of what’s accessible and what’s not in anticipation of different life moments. So your “productivity” setting might keep you from tapping on eBay or Threads while you’re supposed to be responding to email. Or your “hiking” selection could block TikTok, but not AllTrails (so you don’t get lost). At any rate, once you’ve tailored and selected a mode, you ritualistically tap your phone to the square brick like you’re making some terrifying pact with a witch, and let the attention span gods take the wheel. I specifically wanted to try out the device to see if it would help me follow the 3, 2,1 sleep rule (3 hours before bed, no more food or drink, 2 hours before bed no more work, 1 hour before bed, no more screens.) The first day I tried it I found myself mindlessly tapping the greyed-out Instagram icon, and realized just how Paplovian some of my pre-bedtime digital habits were. Nearly a week later, the once-fierce subconscious pull to be with my phone had dulled—my brain seemed to have learned that it was no longer the fount of dopamine it once was.
2. Church Natural Deodorant |
We are currently in a deodorant renaissance. Gone are the days of three meh choices at your local walgreens. Here are the days of products infused with intoxicating combinations of saffron, basil, hinoki, and vetiver. The latest in my collection is Church Natural Deodorant, a plant-based stick from a Northern California-based brand that smells like the forest when you step outside your campsite in the morning, thanks to cedar, eucalyptus, and clary sage essential oils. Though there’s not much evidence that shows natural deodorants are better (or safer) for you, I do nevertheless love that this product, down to its packaging, is entirely compostable.
3. Philosopher Foods Gut Nuts |
I’ve seen early signs that sourdough is the hot new ingredient for companies and restaurants to put in their food. Beyond a string of sourdough pizza places popping up in my neighborhood, I also recently spotted a box of “sourdough pasta” at Sprouts. The logic behind this is that sourdough goes through a fermentation process, and therefore contains more nutrients and probiotics than your average loaf. Those things can, in turn, aid with digestion, which is good for your gut. My favorite entrée in this category, beyond the pies at Wild Crust, are Gut Nuts. I first spied a bag of them in the Esalen book store this summer, but was too caught up in my own spiritual journey to do any further investigating. When I finally got my hands on a bag of their almonds, I was immediately hooked. These dehydrated (a.k.a. raw) nuts taste like a pungent loaf of sourdough and have more nutritional value than their roasted, non-fermented counterparts. I’m still trying to decide which is my favorite between the almonds, cashews, and peanuts.
Click here to see 9 more life-changing products from our Wellness & Grooming Director. |
|
|
More great GQ Newsletters |
-
GQ Recommends Our editors hand-pick their favorite products and can't-miss sales
-
The Must Read We select one great GQ story you need to read each day
- Box + Papers Cam Wolf takes you inside the world of watches
-
Show Notes Samuel Hine reports from the front row of the fashion world
-
Pulling Weeds Chris Black weighs in on hot topics in culture
- Tap In Frazier Tharpe offers the final word on all things music, movies, and TV.
|
|
|
|
