The Life Of Bryony - The Life of You – No Supplements Needed: Josie Porter’s 3 Everyday Essentials

Episode Date: April 3, 2026

In our main conversation, Josie helped us navigate the wild west of supplements and wellness marketing; today, we’re zooming in on the everyday habits she genuinely relies on, none of which involve complicated regimes or expensive powders.​ I ask Josie to share the three things she simply can’t live without when it comes to feeling grounded, energised and sane in modern life. We talk about food rhythms, why your body hates surprises, and how simple movement and ultra‑practical tweaks can change your mood, hormones and sleep far more than a new pill ever could.​If you’ve ever wished someone would just tell you what actually helps in real life, this episode is for you.BOOKS DISCUSSED IN THIS EPISODEJosie’s book, How Not to Take Supplements, is available to pre-order now and will be released on 4th June 2026.WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOUGot something to share? Message us on @lifeofbryonypod on Instagram.If this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone who might need it – it really helps! Bryony xxCREDITS:Host: Bryony GordonGuest: Josie PorterProducer: Laura Elwood-CraigAssistant Producer: Tippi WillardStudio Manager: Mitchell LiasEditor: Luke ShelleyExec Producer: Jamie East  A Daily Mail production. Seriously Popular. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Now, in the main episode, dietitian Josie Porter helped us make sense of the Wild West World of Supplements, what might actually support us and what's just clever marketing. Today, we're zooming in on the three small things she genuinely believes can help your wellness without having to part with any of your hard-earned cash. There's, you know, a lot being said, a lot of scaremongering really when it comes to ultra-processed foods. But, you know, when we look at food, it's not just about the processing. We've got to also think about the nutrients that they contain as well. And some ultra-processed foods really help us meet that nutrient gap.

My chat with Josie coming up right after this. Josie, welcome to the life of you. You have given us so much information in the main episode about what we might want to be taking, what we don't want to be taking. What I want to know from you as a dietitian, What are the three things that you do that are free that don't involve taking anything extra or that you do in your daily routine that help you feel well and healthy? Yeah, I think some of the main things that really, I think, help me stay feeling well. It's definitely a routine.

I think creating a routine that works for you, not necessarily works for everyone else. It's going to be really beneficial. I have some of those anchors throughout the day that you just, try and consistently do, even on like low energy days, for example, have some of those non-negotiables there. So, you know, that might be okay, I'm going to just try and have three meals a day. That will help to keep your energy consistent throughout the day. So your blood sugars feel more stable, less of those staring blank moments in the fridge, better moods, things like that. Yeah. I have to say my energy has absolutely transformed since a few years ago. I realized I needed to have

three meals a day. It stops me binging. It stops me. Yes, staring off into space. And also, crucially, stops me getting really moody and angry. It makes a big difference, doesn't it, as well? And, you know, that's really important. I always say to people try and look to have something every sort of three to five hours, even on a busy day, you know, to try and grab something, even some finger food, anything, whatever it is, it's going to give you some energy and keep you going.

Okay, so routine is crucial. Yeah, routine around food, I think, is really important. And that is because that is actually the simplest way to balance your hormones and things like that. All of these claims that supplements make you can just do by making sure that you eat regularly, go to bed at the same time, get up at the same time, do a bit of movement every now and then. Our body doesn't like surprises. I think especially when it comes to food, you know, if we're skipping breakfast or having a light lunch, it often means that actually later in the evening we get those sort of big rebound cravings where we might eat a lot more food.

and that can, you know, be detrimental in a few different ways. It might mean that maybe we're not eating the really nutritious food that contains all the vitamins and minerals and fiber that support our health in lots of different ways. But also it might mean that we're more likely to binge-e, maybe eat some of the foods that are maybe going to be harder for our body to process and then we might have more things like insulin or cortisol, for example. As a result of that, it might then have a knock-on effect or our sleep.

So I think, yeah, definitely having some rhythm within your day, some routine with food can be really beneficial in lots of different ways. What's number two? Number two. So I guess this one does cost some money, but I think it's maybe a bit of a switch. So what I love to lean on is products like microwave rice.

So I speak a lot in the book around resistant starch. So this is essentially something that when we consume, resist digestion, and it can have a benefit in our gut to support things like our gut microbiome and can release things like metabolites like butyrate, which essentially work all throughout our body to help improve our health. Wow. So ditch the supplements, get the microwave bag of rice. Yeah, a lot cheaper, a lot more convenient. But in essence, what happens is when we cook certain foods.

So microwave rice is always already already pre-cooked. Yeah. And you get that with leftovers as well. So you can definitely love your leftovers. Yeah. And it's not just rice. You can get the same with like pasta, for example, potatoes. Just reheating them once cooked and letting them cool down, that will give you more of that resistant starch. in essence will basically multiply. So when we have that and reheated foods, you know, these specific foods, then actually we get more of that resistance starch and more of that gut health benefit.

I love that. You also say in your book that we obviously, there's a lot of demonising of ultra-processed food. And you're like, actually not all ultra-processed food is created equal. Some are really good. Yeah, absolutely. There's, you know, a lot being said,

a lot of scaremongering really when it comes to ultra-processed. processed foods. But when we look at food, it's not just about the processing. We've got to also think about the nutrients that they contain as well. And some ultra-processed foods really help us meet that nutrient gap. When we think about like fortified plant-based milks, for example, a lot of them contain calcium, B-12, iodine, otherwise a lot of us would struggle to get. You know, iodine is most commonly consumed in cow's milk. We're taking that out and we're not having a fortified ultra-processed plant-based milk with iodine and actually that can really have a knock-on impact to your health.

Similarly, there's been some benefits of plant-based alternatives to meat. Not all of them, but for some of them, they can be a really beneficial addition to your diet and they can improve things like your heart health, for example. So, yeah, especially when you compare them to eating more meat, for example. So people that, vegans, that kind of thing, they really beneficial too. Absolutely. I mean, it doesn't mean just solely eat those foods, but actually if you have a few of them, they can probably be adding to your health, at least these ones that contain more of the nutrition that we want.

Of course, there are ultra-processed foods that contain lots of added sugar, more saturated fat, more sodium, which is not going to be great for our heart health. And we're probably not going to feel that great as a result of eating lots of those either. And they tend to have less fibre and protein, these things that we also want, too, in our diet. So, yeah, it's definitely worth think about the bigger picture with ultra-processed foods. But also, most people know, like, fizzy drinks, chop, you know, all of that, like, sweets, all of those things are not going to be that good for you. Yeah, a fortified plant milk. Yeah, you're probably, you're going to be okay. Yeah, absolutely.

And, you know, even when we look at research on ultra-processed foods, they don't always look at the nutrients that these foods contain. So we don't always know what ultra-processed foods that, you know, they're talking about, is it the ones that are really high and added sugar. And also, they never look at completely removing these from people's diet. They're often comparing low intakes to high intake. So there's no evidence of having none of these foods and eliminating them, you know, from your diet completely is better.

than having slightly less. Okay. What is your final non-negotiable for wellness? I think my final non-negotiable for wellness is definitely getting outside and getting some sort of movement in ideally at the same time. Going for a nice walk, going for a run is my sort of, I guess, movement of choice. Getting some of that time, especially if you're with someone, socialising and connecting, but also even with yourself, I think the most important relationship you can have is the one with yourself.

So getting outside, getting some. getting some movement in. It's so good for helping to regulate your mood and set up yourself for the day as well and give your brain a bit of respite. And light. Yeah, light. Yeah, really important again,

even for things like hormone regulation, you know, our brain, our eyes, we want to see light in the morning, for example. That's a great way to help set up your hormones for the day as well and somewhere or another. Thank you so much, Josie. I am going to go out now for a walk to the supermarket to get myself some microwave.

right. I thought you were going to say crisps. And some crisps. You're a legend. Thank you, Josie. Thank you. Thank you, Josie. If any of her routines resonated with you, message me on Instagram and tell me what keeps you on track. And I want to know which wellness trends you're breaking up with. Go and tell me at at Life of Briny Pod. Or you could just leave us a review and give us a follow. It makes such a difference. But most importantly, look after yourself and go and eat a love. of Easter eggs because that's what I'm going to be doing for the next week. We're going to take a little Easter break. I'll see you again on the 30th of April.