Well with Arielle Lorre - 315: Solo Q&A: Dating and Life Updates, Botox Alternatives I’m Trying, Current Wellness and Beauty Obsessions & More

Episode Date: May 15, 2024

In this episode, I’m taking listener questions about my new relationship, how to find the courage to leave a relationship and when it’s OK to date after a breakup. I also give other life updates including the house I recently purchased, what I’m doing instead of Botox, current wellness obsessions and more.Subscribe to Patreon for exclusive weekly content: patreon.com/ArielleLorreThis episode may contain paid endorsements and advertisements for products and services. Individuals on the show may have a direct, or indirect financial interest in products, or services referred to in this episode.Go to tryarmra.com/BLONDE or enter BLONDE to get 15% off your first order.Visit Cora.Life/BLONDE and enter BLONDE for 20% off all products.Go to DrinkLMNT.com/BLONDE for a free sample pack with any drink mix purchase!Get 20% off your first order at vegamour.com/BLONDE with code BLONDE. Go to revolve.com/BLONDE today to shop my top picks for the season.AG1 is giving you a FREE 1 year supply of Vitamin D and 5 FREE travel packs with your purchase. Head to drinkAG1.com/blondefiles to redeem.Produced by Dear MediaSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Sonderger Go to your Reisadviseur Orsoniccars. The following podcast is A Dear Media Production Welcome to the Blonde Files I'm your host, Ariel Lori, and I'm here to talk all things wellness. From how to achieve optimal

health and well-being to the best beauty tips and everything in between, no topic is off limits. I know there's so much information out there, so I'm bringing on expert guests and sharing my own experiences to help you sift through all the wellness stuff without the BS. Enjoy the show. Hi, everybody. Welcome to the show. I feel like I haven't done a solo episode on the regular show in a long time. I have been doing solos on Patreon. So I think I've done four episodes there. That's every Saturday. And that is where like I deep dive a little more into just like the personal things going on in my life, the weekly recaps, deep dives on specific topics like last week I did Hollywood tea. I've done some on dating and relationships. So it's really fun because

it's like totally uninhibited and just me kind of rambling. It's like kind of a voice note vibe. I don't know about you guys, but I communicate to my friends via voice notes, and we call it the Friendship Podcast because they always end up being like 10 minutes long back and forth to one another. So anyway, if you have not gone there, then there's so much good stuff there. But of course, I want to fill you guys in on what's going on and just keep everybody posted who listens to the regular show as well. I know not everybody wants to be on Patreon. So this is coming out Wednesday. So this week officially, my show is moving to two episodes a week, which is very exciting, very daunting. You guys know I am a total introvert. So it's so funny that

somehow I like landed myself in a career where like all I do is talk all day. I talk all week. Just talking, talking, talking. It's hilarious. But I'm very excited. So we're doing episodes on Mondays and Wednesdays on the regular show and then a Saturday kind of bonus content episode on Patreon. And I'm really excited, especially because I really want to kind of include the community more in the podcast. So we're going to be doing things like advice episodes, more solo episodes on the regular show too. We're going to be doing anonymous Q&A kind of episodes. And we're probably going to experiment with some different formats, maybe voicemails, things like that. So get excited. And I'm so grateful for you guys for supporting the show and making

this growth possible. So that was just a little bit of house cleaning that I wanted to get out there in the top here. But I am going to, I guess, recap you guys a little bit because I did a Q&A on Instagram for this episode as usual. And so many questions about just what's going on in my life lately. And of course, about dating and my house and everything. So right now, let's see, I'm recording this on Monday morning and I am like completely dragging. I'm not sure why I was just talking to my producer today about why we're just so like groggy. I don't know. I didn't really do much this weekend. I spent Mother's Day yesterday with the boyfriend and his family. Yes, it's a full blown boyfriend now. I'll get into that in a second. But it was.

so nice, so relaxing. I went for a walk last night in my new neighborhood. As you guys probably know, I closed on my house a few weeks ago. And it's just been so much newness. And it's all really, really good. But for whatever reason, I'm just like tired, groggy dragging this morning. But let's see, house updates. That's another thing that a lot of people asked about. So I closed, I guess, two or three weeks ago and like three days after I closed, we started knocking shit down. So the house is pretty perfect as it is, but I'm redoing all of the bathrooms and the kitchen. I'm so excited because I hired Eric Garcia. So I talked about this on Patreon as well a little bit. Mason Truevale. I don't know if I'm pronouncing it right, but this is kind of like a manifestation

moment for me because I have followed him for so many years. And when I was separated in 2000, 22, I was living in a temporary place that I was renting. And I went to his storefront downtown. I'm not sure if he still has it just to get a few pieces from my place. And I remember thinking at that time, if I ever get a house of my own and like do the house myself, I want to hire him. It was like a dream. So it's so crazy how exactly two years later, now I have a house of my own. And he is going to be designing it with me, obviously. Like, I didn't plan on the divorce and the circumstances are not ideal, but I'm really, really excited. And it was kind of perfect because I reached out to him on a Friday, the Friday that I went to Austin. And he got back to me. And then that Monday,

there was an article in Vogue that he did Haley Bieber's office in Beverly Hills. It was like all over the internet. So I'm sure so many people reached out to him. I was so glad that I got him when I did. So that's very exciting. So we have a meeting this week to go over design stuff. And that is pretty much what's going on with my life. It's just so much work because of the increase in episodes, house and boyfriend. Okay. So I will get into the dating life stuff because so many people are asking. And I've kind of very gently soft launched on my Instagram that I'm seeing somebody. And I have some pictures where you can like see his arm and stuff like that. But I am keeping it private for now. So yes, I am dating. It is a boyfriend relationship situation now. I was not planning on this. We were actually talking about it last night laughing because my best friend and I have never been single at the same time. And when I was going through my divorce, again, not ideal, but trying to look for the silver lining, my friend and I were like, we are finally going to be single at the same time. This is what we're going to do. We're going to go here on this night and there on this night. We're going to have a Euro summer. Like, can you even imagine it's going to be so amazing. And then that didn't happen because Harley, so if you are on Patreon, then you already know this whole story. Harley set me up with one of his good friends. And I really didn't expect anything to come of it. Neither did he. And it just has been, like,

like the best thing from the start, just such an amazing relationship. I don't want to be that girl who like goes from one relationship to the next and like makes that my whole personality. But yeah, it was just so unexpected and it's been so good. People asked me what I'm looking for this time around dating. And I think I've alluded to this in previous episodes. I feel like I'm not really looking for anything. So in the past, I felt like I always needed something to be fulfilled by my partner. And it's okay to have needs, emotional needs, all of that. Like, that is part of a relationship. But I'm in a place right now in my life where I don't need anything from anybody. I don't need, like, security of any kind. I don't need, like, a house.

I don't need a lifestyle, whatever it is. Like, everybody kind of looks for different things in people. I feel like I don't need anything. Like I'm so good as I am on my own. And it's kind of cliche and you hear that so often. But I feel like when you're in that place, then you attract that kind of energy. And it's just so refreshing to be in such a pure relationship. Like, he's the same way. He said that he had to go through some things that he went through in the past few years to get to the place where he is too. And like he's so fulfilled. He's so social. It's crazy. And he, you know, has a career and he has a really good life and everything. And so he just like didn't feel like he needed a relationship. And that's how I felt too. And then we found each other.

And it's just been amazing because I feel like we just enhance one another's lives. We're not like satisfying a need or something that we feel like we are lacking that we need to find in another person. I don't know if that's making sense. We put so much thought into the products that we use for our skin, our hair, et cetera, but when it comes to what we use down there for our periods, a lot of people, myself included, don't give it that much thought. And it's so important to use products that are good for us and good for the planet as well. So this is why I'm so happy that I found Cora. They are the period care brand that you can feel good about using. So if you haven't tried Cora yet, now is definitely the time. So they make comfortable and effective period care

products with clean ingredients. Their pads and liners are made with a super soft and breathable, 100% organic cotton top sheet. So they're whisper thin yet super absorbent. You don't have to worry about leaks. Plus, they are gentle on sensitive skin. They're made without chlorine, fragrances, or dyes. So I really appreciate that they're so light and airy yet extremely absorbent. So you are comfortable and covered. So it's a total win-win. And also so important when it comes to tampons because you are literally putting something inside your body and into your bloodstream. And we are learning more and more about how harmful the ingredients in other period. and tampons are to our health. So I feel great about choosing Cora, and I know that you will too. You can

pick up Cora pads and tampons at your local target or CVS, or you can have them delivered directly to your door by visiting my special URL. It's cora.com.combe slash blonde. And right now, when you order online with my special promo code, you'll get 20% off all Cora products. So go to cora. dot life slash blonde and use my promo code blonde. That's 20% off at c-o-r-a. dot life slash blonde with the promo code blonde. Let's talk about hydration. I think that there is a big misconception that healthy hydration is just about drinking water. We have been taught to drink eight glasses a day, whether we are thirsty or not. And when it comes to hydration, most people only replace the water. But it is so important.

to replace electrolytes as well because we lose both water and sodium when we sweat and both need to be replaced to prevent muscle cramps, headaches, and energy dips and other symptoms that result from dehydration, which is actually less common than low electrolytes, which is more common. So drinking beyond thirst is not a good idea. Thirst is the way that our bodies regulate blood volume and fluid balance and when you need more fluids, you get thirsty. And when you drink plain water beyond thirst, it just dilutes blood electrolyte levels, especially sodium levels, and leads to symptoms like headaches, low energy, cramps, confusion, and worse. And unfortunately, since low sodium symptoms mimic dehydration symptoms, people often get

confused and drink more water, which exacerbates the problem. So when blood sodium levels are diluted like this, it's called hyponetremia, which is common in endurance athletes. And sometimes it can be fatal, which is not to fearmonger, but we have a hydration problem on our hands, and the solution isn't just to stop drinking water, obviously. It's to drink water with electrolytes. This is something that my nutritionist, Rob Yang, had me start doing years and years ago before this was even a conversation because he pointed out that I was drinking so much water, but I was diluting my electrolyte levels, and this was resulting in fluid imbalance and a lot of fluid retention in my body. So this is all to say. This is why I've been drinking element for

years. It has 1,000 milligrams of sodium, 200 milligrams of potassium, and 60 milligrams of magnesium. It contains enough electrolytes to move the needle towards each of these electrolyte goals. And you are guaranteed to find a flavor that you love. You can try citrus salt, which is my favorite raspberry salt. You can get spicy with mango chili. You can mix chocolate salt into your morning coffee. If you want like a mocha kind of vibe, I also love orange salt. They're all really good. And now they have elements sparkling, which delivers the same zero sugar electrolyte formulation you already know and trust now in a bold 16 ounce can of sparkling water. So element sparkling offers health seekers an all new option to support their health

across a broad spectrum of occasions. So with each can, you're taking a sip against sugar and stimulant loaded drinks turning the tide towards health. So right now you can get a free sample pack with any drink mix purchase at drink element.com slash blonde. And if you're an element insider, you have first access to element sparkling, a bold 16 ounce can of sparkling electrolyte water. This is great news for me because I love sparkling water and I love element. So it is the perfect marriage of the two. So again, you can go to drinkelement.com slash blonde for a free sample pack with any drink mix. And if you're an insider, you get first access to element sparkling. Someone asked how quickly can you date after being in a relationship.

She was in a relationship for two and a half years. I mean, I don't think that there are, should be any rules. I think that naming a number is pretty arbitrary, not really based on anything. I think it's totally going to vary. And I may have talked about this in my last solo episode. I feel like you can be in a really short relationship where it's very intense and you might need a lot of time to heal. And you can be in very long relationships where perhaps the relationship was over long before it actually ended. And in my own case, I felt like I went through a lot of the processing and a lot of the emotions prior to getting divorced. The divorce was kind of just the last final action, whereas things had been unraveling

for a long time, obviously. I mean, we got separated in 2022 and then got back together. Like, that's, you know, pretty indicative of issues in the relationship. And we really tried to work through them, but the writing was kind of on the wall. And I felt like when we finally, we finally, got divorced and I did move out that I was in a pretty good place emotionally. Like I had really processed so much of what had happened in that relationship. I'd really looked at myself a lot, my own actions, my own shortcomings in my work in recovery. I would talk to people and be like, well, he this, he that, he's not this. And they were like, yeah, it doesn't really matter. Like, what are you doing and what are you not doing? So I had done a lot of that work already.

And all of that is to say that I think that it just totally depends on how you feel. You either feel ready or you don't, I think. And I think that if you're not sure and you try dating and you just feel like it's too much or that you're not in a place where you want to do that, then that is pretty telling in and of itself. But I don't think that there should be any rule. I mean, I definitely judged my own situation with, we call him Mr. X. on Patreon. So the guy that I'm seeing. In the beginning, I was like, I can't get into a serious relationship. I was kind of keeping walls up and trying to set some really arbitrary parameters around

the relationship. I don't know if it was a relationship at that time, but I just was not allowing myself to fully be present and enjoy what was happening because I felt like, well, it's wrong. I just got divorced. Like, maybe I should be a little. alone. And I remember I may have even said something to him. And he's like, look, if you need to like go to Bali for six months and find yourself, go for it. I'll be here when you get back. And I was like, wow, that's very like secure of him. Green flag. But then I just kind of realized, like, here is somebody, whether this works out or not, I just want to say this before I say what I'm about to say. I felt like I had found somebody who embodied so many of the qualities,

had so many of the values that I would want in a future partner. So I was like, well, why would I not pursue this and just see where this goes based on my own rules that I'm making up in my head? So anyway, let's see. New man aside, did I ever consider dating a woman? I've actually gotten this question a lot. I don't know if I give off vibes. I don't think I do. But no, never considered women. I know that like that's the thing now. Everybody's fluid. I'm, I'm not fluid in that way. Tips for working up the courage to leave a relationship. So I would encourage you to go back and listen to my divorce episode. I believe it came out in the beginning of February. It was a solo episode that I did then where I got into this. It is the hardest thing.

Oh, also go back and listen to my episode with Matthew Hussey because he is the expert. in this area and I felt like he articulated a lot of the feelings that I had that I couldn't really articulate, but it's really, really hard. I mean, I think that for me, I can only speak to my experience. I couldn't find the courage for so long and we all have those fears. I think that we need the courage because we have the fear of being alone, the fear of not finding. somebody again, everybody has that, whether you're 20, whether you are 50, whether you're 80. We were talking about this yesterday at Mother's Day, actually. So just know that that's an inherent fear that everybody has for whatever reason, but it's not always a rational fear because, like, how many

people are in the world? Seven billion. I only know that because that Justin Bieber song. that's how I always think of it. 300 million-ish in the United States. That song is pretty old, so that could be outdated. We may be way more than that now. But my point is like there's somebody for everybody. So try to set that fear aside and just really tune in to what you're feeling. I knew that it was time when I got to the point where the thought of staying was scarier than the thought of leaving.

and, you know, I can relate it back to my alcoholism because I felt like my rock bottom with drinking was like when I couldn't picture my life with or without alcohol, but the thought of things staying the same was so terrifying to me. So I think if you're at that point in your relationship, if you're thinking about leaving, finding the courage to leave. If that is outweighing the good thoughts, then I think that it might be time to seriously evaluate that. I think therapy is extremely helpful because it's so important to have a support system

and a therapist can help work through that negative self-talk and those fears that I was talking about before around like, where am I going to go? What am I going to do? What if I'm alone for the rest of my life? who's going to love me, this, that, and the other. And in my recovery, when I was going through my divorce, I did something called a fear inventory. And all of my fears were that. Where am I going to go? What am I going to do? What if this? What if that? What if I'm alone forever? Blah, blah, blah, blah. Like self-centered fear. It all came down to me not wanting to feel uncomfortable and

somebody that I work with who gives it to me straight all the time, cuts right through the bullshit, said, you know, Ariel, part of being a big girl is learning how to deal with discomfort. And I was like, excuse me, but I really appreciated that because I was like, wow, she's right. You know, I can stay comfortable or stay uncomfortable because of the fear of experiencing a different kind of discomfort or I can have the courage. And the courage is found in the moment that you make that decision, you know? It's like, I don't feel like the courage precedes the action. I feel like the action precedes the courage and you find this courage that you didn't know that you had. So that was my experience.

Yeah, I remember also when I was like towards the end of that relationship and I saw something, I think on maybe Rainbow Salt, such a good Instagram account. She's a writer and she just has these like beautiful things that she shares on Instagram. Anyway, it said something along the lines of you can either. choose the prolonged discomfort of living a life where you're always wondering what if and wishing that you had the courage to do something different. So it's kind of like a dull ache. It's like this undercurrent that just runs through your life all the time. Or you can deal with the acute pain of making a change, having that discomfort, having the uncertainty, facing the fear

for the possibility of something like so beautiful on the other side. And that really stayed with me too. I was like, whoa. I choose acute pain. That's just life, you know, like life is uncomfortable, life is uncertain. Yeah, that's all I have to say about that. Okay, a few more relationship questions that I got that I will address because I just get them every single Q&A that I do. One is when I date somebody who has kids knowing that I'm child free, et cetera. This whole topic of child free is wild to me. It really brings out the very opinionated people on social media, put it that way. I truly don't understand why anybody cares whether a woman has kids or not, but such is the climate and the time that we are living in right now. So it's not a deal breaker for me.

I think if somebody had kids, obviously my preference would be that they don't have kids. I just don't have that desire like at all whatsoever. And every year that I get older, I'm more and more sure of the fact that I don't want kids. That said, I'm 38 years old, soon to be 39, fucking crazy. And I know that the dating pool might be a little bit saturated with men who are like divorced dads, guys that have kids, you know, especially in the age that I would want to date, which is like my age-ish. I'm really not into guys my age, but maybe like 40 to like, I don't know, 55, say. A lot of guys have kids. I found one that didn't. Thank God. So not something that I have to worry about right now, but I probably would date somebody if they had kids if I felt like they were

everything else that I was looking for. But luckily, don't have to worry about that right now. Somebody said, if I met the one and he wanted kids, would I? I actually answered this on Instagram, I think, a few weeks ago. And I said he wouldn't be the one if he didn't respect the fact that I don't want kids. This idea that like you're going to meet somebody and they're going to completely change your mind. I'm sure that happens for some people. And I've heard from people who follow me who have had that experience. But for me, I know, like, so deep in my bones that it's just not something that I want for myself. So if I met a guy and he was, like, amazing and wonderful in every way, but he was, like, determined to have kids with me, I'd be like, sorry, bro,

not happening. And he wouldn't be the one. I mean, it's like, at the end of the day, that would mean that we had different values. And I think that the most important thing in a relationship, aside from like respect is having shared values. I just think that like you can't overcome having different fundamental values like that. And I kind of think about it like, okay, take cats, for example, like for anybody listening, if you didn't want or if you don't like cats and somebody was like, yeah, but you're going to want a cat someday and you just don't care or like you just don't care about or like cats, like you're probably not going to change your mind and magically one day want a cat. I know it's a little different than that. There's biology,

blah, blah. I get the argument. But yeah, just not for me. And then people always say, like, well, what if you change your mind? Well, what if you have kids and you don't really want kids and you have them? Then you can't change your mind. So yeah, he wouldn't be the one if he wanted kids with me. True story. I was laying in bed last night. at like 11 o'clock at night and realized that my Europe trip is in two and a half weeks. I'm going in the very beginning of June. And for whatever reason, I felt like that was still a month away. No, we're halfway through May. And so I started panicking because I have not shopped for anything yet. And I'm going to be gone for a few weeks. So immediately I knew what I had to do.

And that was I need to go to Revolve and go to Forward. So my plan tonight is to do just that. And it really takes the stress out of preparing for a vacation or if you have an event or a party or anything coming up because they not only have new arrivals daily, you guys know that they have probably the most comprehensive curation of amazing fashion on the internet. But they also have personalized product recommendations. And they have curated edits and collections that help you find the styles that suit your specific preferences and needs. So you can search by things like the vacation edit and resort and whatever it is that you're looking for. So it narrows it down and makes it so easy. So thank God we have this at our fingertips.

I truly cannot imagine the days when we didn't have places like Revolve and Forward. I don't know how I used to shop for anything. I just barely ever shop in person anymore because everything that I need is online. Revolve has over 500 brands spanning high-end emerging and exclusive labels in fashion, beauty, and home goods, and they consistently offer the latest and most sought-after trends in fashion. Also, they make ordering and returning so easy, which is so nice. And that is like my first place that I go. And then when I want really luxury, higher-end brands, designer stuff, I go to Forward.

So Forward is the destination for all things Luxure. They have some of the world's best designers like Boutega Veneta, San Laurent, The Row, Farragamo, Miomu, and more. And on top of that, Revolve also has the best in beauty. So they have your favorite brands like Charlotte Tilbury, Summer Fridays, Kosis, Elamus, and more. So you can discover the viral beauty products that will have you glowing all spring long. So everything that you need is at Revolve and Forward. You really don't have to go anywhere else. And for me, it's like taking the stress out of preparing for vacation. So from last minute trips to event dressing and seasonal refreshes, Revolve has you covered

with fast two-day shipping, hassle-free returns, all on them. So go to revolve.com slash blonde today to shop my top picks for the season. And don't forget to check out their latest arrivals while you're there. They have new arrivals daily, so there's always something new to shop. That's R-E-O-L-V-E.com slash B-L-O-N-D-E. Again, revolve.com slash blonde. We are all probably thinking about habits and routines, but it can get a little bit overwhelming knowing where to start.

And this is why I like to focus on foundational habits. And one of those foundational habits that I have been doing for years is starting my day with AG1. So I started taking AG1, I believe back in 2018, sometime around then, when I was having gut issues, I actually had a call with the company and I learned that AG1 came to fruition because the founder was having really bad gut issues and was taking hundreds of supplements and nothing was really working. So the first iteration of AG1 was really for gut health. And then since then they've continuously refined their formula. to create a smarter, better way to elevate your baseline health. So not only does AG1 help with gut optimization, but it really supports your body's universal needs like stress management. It helps with immune support. And I know that you guys appreciate the science. So AG1 has a team of doctors and scientists. It is formulated based on the latest science and research and maintains high

quality standards. In fact, it is tested for 950 contaminants. So you can feel good drinking AG1. And AG1 makes you feel good. I drink it first thing in the morning. I truly have come to crave it. Not only do I love the flavor and the taste, but I love how it makes me feel. I really get just this kind of zip of energy, even though there's no caffeine in it. And this feeling of clarity, you can know. that you are giving your body everything that it needs first thing or whenever you choose to drink it so if you want to take ownership of your health it starts with ag1 try ag1 and get a free one-year supply of vitamin d3k2 and five free ag1 travel packs with your first purchase go to drink ag1.com slash blonde files that's drinkag1.com slash blonde files check it out would i get married again

don't know. It's like the last thing on my mind right now. How to attract a healthy relationship. So I'll give you guys this exercise that I did in recovery. And that is to write down your ideal. So what is your ideal partner? What are their qualities? What do they bring to the world? What are their values? Again, things like that. Not necessarily things like tall, rich and hot. And you write down your ideal. And then you go out there and you try to be that person. So you try to embody that. And I think that that comes back to like you attract what you are. Like water seeks its own level.

I think that that's true to a degree. And I just think that it's a really good exercise because not only do you get really clear on what you are looking for, but then I think that you kind of change your energy. And when you write it, you put it away and then you go out and you try to be that. You stop thinking about it, and I feel like that is often when it happens. Okay. Now I'm going to switch to some wellness and beauty things. Let's start with current wellness obsessions.

So my wellness routines have been pretty non-existent. I feel like I've talked about this ad nauseum. Ever since I moved out and got divorced, my life has been so different. I'm out almost every single night, not like, out out, but like going to dinner or doing something social. I am not cooking very much. I cooked the last two nights, which was the most that I've cooked in like two months probably. I am not necessarily waking up and doing all of my morning routine. I'm doing my macha. I always do a little bit of a meditation. But for the most part, I'm kind of jumping into work because my schedule has been so

crazy that oftentimes the morning is the only time that I can get certain things done. I haven't been consistently working out. Like, I am just not on my A game right now, but that's totally fine with me because I think that such an important aspect of wellness is flexibility. I know that rigidity works for some people, but for me, it does not because when I start to get rigid, I talked about this at Dear Media, IRL, I get the fuckets. And if I have all these things that I'm trying to do and then I don't do one or two of them, then I just go, fuck it. Like, and I give up on everything. So for me, flexibility is really important not to talk about my recovery again, but we have a saying that we wear our recovery like a loose garment. It's not restrictive. It's not

constraining. And that's how I am with my wellness. And I know that phases change so quickly. Like I have the tools and I know what to do to get back to a place where I want. And I know, to be with my wellness. And I'm using the things that I absolutely really need right now. They're kind of micro habits. So it's like I don't have to do my whole routine that I used to do when I was married, which was like my whole morning routine, like walking 10,000 steps on the treadmill before 8 a.m. meditating, doing breath work, getting my morning sunlight, walking outside, journaling, gratitude, blah, bitty blah, the whole thing. and so on and so forth throughout the day. So now I really am into micro habits that I can just kind of

squeeze in. So I do do some kind of meditation in the morning just because I need to, even if it's only 10 minutes. I try to do TM, which is 20 minutes. That is like, I would have to say, my one non-negotiable if I had to pick something for the morning. And I pair it with my PEMF mat. So I'm going to just go off on a little bit of a tangent aside here. A lot of people have asked me about like what wellness things I actually use versus my sponsored products. Everything that I use is pretty much from a sponsor. That's how I find things and that's how I find things that I can recommend to you guys. So if I am promoting something on my stories or on my podcast, nine times out of 10, I actually use it.

And if it's that one out of 10 thing that I don't use, I am promoting it because I think that you guys will love it or benefit from it. But so many of my favorite tools are from brands that support the podcast or that I work with on social media because I don't have like the time or the bandwidth to go out and find things and experiment with things. And I feel like I'm so lucky that I have these brands that I work with and they send me their products and they're amazing. So back to the meditation. I'll meditate on my bond charge P-E-M-F mat. I don't really understand how this thing works. Okay. It's pulsed electromagnetic field. So it has some kind of like frequency that you lay on the mat. It has infrared light. It has like crystals. I don't know. It's supposed to be really good for chronic pain,

which is not why I use it for inflammation, but also to ground you. And I'm telling you, like, I've been sitting on it, sitting up and fallen asleep before while I'm meditating, which like never happens. I am not that girl. I can't take naps. I can't sleep during the day. I don't just fall asleep randomly. And I do sometimes when I use this, it's so calming and relaxing and I feel like it just grounds me. So that's a good micro habit. You can do it anytime during the day. Okay. So PEMF Matt Wellness Obsession. My infrared sauna blanket, I would say if you could only do one product, that would be the one. It is my favorite thing in the world. It's such a great habit because I can do it while I multitask. You guys have heard me talk about it so often. I'm not

going to bore you with the details here, but I feel like it helps my muscles, like recovery if I'm working out, helps with inflammation, helps with detox, sweating. You do burn calories while you do it. So I'm sure everybody loves that. My skin gets really glowy. I just feel like it has so, so, so many benefits. So I love doing that as well. And I think that's kind of it for wellness obsessions because like I said, I'm not really on my wellness A game right now. How many steps do I aim for in a day? I don't. I haven't tracked in such a long time, but I do try to be cognizant of how much I am moving. And there are definitely days where I go out. I get a long walk and I get over 10,000 steps. And there are days where I get like 2,000 steps. And it's just not something

that I am necessarily aiming for right now. I just, again, like, I can't be too rigid with it. I just try to be conscientious. And if I'm sitting around all day, whether I'm recording, doing work on my computer, editing, shooting, whatever it is, I'll try to get outside and go for a walk, even if it's just for a few minutes, because I feel like that combined with sunlight. I mean, it's just so, like, it can change your state of being so quickly. What is my current, diet? Current diet, I would say, is kind of all over the place because again, like, I've been eating out so much and I feel it. I mean, it's crazy. Even if I go to restaurants and I order quote-unquote clean or healthy things, like I just notice that my eyes are puffy, my face is puffy.

I have like random rashes that I break out in. I don't even know. But for the most part, I do my breakfast still, which is usually like coconut yogurt with protein powder, some granola berries. That's been my staple for a long time. Sometimes I'll do eggs or something like that. But for the most part, I really crave that yogurt bowl. I always have like a chomps at some point during the day. I'll have a smoothie and or a perfect bar after a workout. Sometimes lunch is usually like, this is really bad. I've been skipping lunch a lot lately. I was going to. lie, but I can be honest with you guys. Haven't been really good about lunch and I definitely feel it because then I'm like crashing

later in the day. But I try to do some kind of protein, vegetables, rice, whatever it is so that I can at least get something in. And then dinner has been, like I said, all over the place because I've been going out so much. But if I'm cooking, last night I did scallops and salad and brown rice. The night before I cooked. I did these Greek chicken bowls that were so good.

I'm going to post on Instagram. I do a lot of Branzino, basically fish or chicken, vegetables, rice or sweet potatoes, like pretty simple, straightforward. And that's pretty much it, but it's not like not consistent. And it is not a lot of cooking, not a lot of meal prep. That's actually a goal that I have just because I do feel so, so much better when I'm cooking at home all of the time. And I've said to boyfriend slash Mr. X, I need like two to three nights at home to cook and just stay in because I consider even just going out to dinner going out. And like I said, he is so social.

I've never ever seen anything like it. I've never met anybody who's as social as him. Like, everywhere we go, everybody knows him. Even when we're not in the state of California, it's bananas. So we're trying to kind of meet in the middle, which we have been doing, where I go out a lot more than I normally do. I am usually up later than I used to be up. And then he's like staying in with me so that I can cook and we can have quiet nights at home. And it's actually nice, I have to say, and I did talk about this on my Patreon. Like, When I was married, I was so in my bubble and I was very much on my wellness routine, we'll say. But, you know, I was kind of empty in some ways because I didn't have like this really vibrant, fulfilling social life that I have now. I wasn't like getting out there because, again, I was so comfortable like at my big house in the palisades with everything that I needed and like everything taken care of for me. It's so funny. I didn't see it when I was in it and now I look back and I'm like, God, totally different life. But even though I was like so comfortable and doing all my wellness things, it was kind of devoid of a lot of fulfillment and just like joy and fun and things that I have now.

And that's not a knock on him by the way. None of this is. It's just a result of the life and the lifestyle that I had then. after all of my health issues last year, I'm really trying to do right by my body. And when it comes to my hair and scalp health, I really needed to find a product that actually works and is made with clean ingredients, which always seems like a tradeoff. But with Vagamore, I get products that are made with clean ingredients and give me visibly healthy hair and scalp. So I use the Vagamore Grow serum. I have been using it almost daily for probably at least.

six months, maybe more, I would have to go back and look. But I absolutely love it. I feel like my hair and my scalp health are flourishing. And I also love the revitalizing shampoo and conditioner. They smell so good and they don't weigh my hair down. I feel like a lot of other clean hair products that I've tried have just made my hair kind of limp and greasy. Not the case with Vagamore. They also have great value kits like the Grow Essentials kit where you get to Try more than one amazing product at a great savings. So if you sign up for a monthly subscription, you save more and you never run low on the products that you need to take care of your hair. Fun fact, Vagmore sells one bottle of grow serum every 15 seconds on their website. That's how good

this stuff is. You have to try it for yourself to believe it. So give your hair the power of the little pink bottle with Vagmore. For a limited time, Blonde Files listeners get 20% off their first order by going to vagamore.com slash blonde and use the code blonde at checkout. That's V-E-G-A-M-O-U-R dot com slash blonde code blonde to save 20% on your first order. V-E-G-A-M-O-U-R dot com slash blonde code as I am talking about in this episode, I am all about the wellness micro-habits. I love implementing things into my lifestyle that are really simple to do and have a lot of benefits. So I'm always looking out for ways to strengthen my immunity, my gut health, improve my fitness, my metabolism, of course help my skin and my hair radiance. So what I have been

taking since last year to help with all of this is Armara Colostrum. I'm sure that you guys have seen Armra all over Instagram. People always ask me about it almost daily. I feel like people ask me about colostrum. And I think that it probably seems almost too good to be true. It has thousands upon thousands of five-star reviews and life-changing testimonials from users. So I'll tell you basically what it is. Colostrum is the first nutrition that we receive in life. It contains all of the essential nutrients our bodies need in order to thrive. And Armara Colostrum is a proprietary concentrate of bovine colostrum that harnesses over 400 living biobes. bioactive nutrients that rebuild the barriers of your body to fuel cellular health for a host of

research-backed health benefits. So like I mentioned before, strengthens immunity. It can ignite your metabolism. It's very anti-inflammatory. It fortifies your gut health. It helps to activate hair growth, skin radiance. It helps with fitness performance and recovery. It has amazing, powerful anti-aging benefits. And Armra is the absolute highest quality colostrum out there. It is sustainably sourced from grass-fed cows in their co-op dairy farms in the USA. They strictly source only from the surplus supply of colostrum after calves are fully fed. And unlike most colostrums, which use heat pasteurization that depletes nutrient potency, Armra uses their proprietary cold chain biopotent technology. So it's an innovative process that purifies and preserves the integrity of hundreds of nutrients while

removing casein and fat to guarantee the highest potency and bioavailability of any colostrum available on the market. And a lot of people ask me if you can take this. If you have a dairy sensitivity or intolerance, I would say check with a doctor if you have one. But I am pretty sensitive to dairy and I have no issues with armrest. So we have worked out a special offer for my audience. you can get 15% off your first order when you go to tryarmor.com slash blonde or enter blonde to get 15% off your first order. Again, that's tryarmor.com. T-R-R-M-R-M-R-A dot com slash blonde. Okay. What will my alternative to Botox be? I am trying all the things. My face is falling. My forehead is falling. I don't fucking know what I I'm going to do, to be totally honest. It is like, it is such a predicament. And I know that I should

keep things in perspective. And so many people have been like, at least you don't have a brain tumor or terminal illness. And I'm like, of course, I get that. But also, it's really hard and it's really hard when you've been doing something like Botox for so long. And suddenly that's not an option anymore. And you have to find alternatives. If anybody listening does Botox, they get it. If you have haven't done Botox, then you probably don't get it. But I do love a challenge and I am determined to find effective alternatives. I have hinted a little bit on Patreon that I might be working on something myself. But things were pretty good for a while. I think that we're lied to when it comes to Botox, this idea that we have to get it every three months. I know that some people metabolize it more

quickly than others. I remember when I was getting it, I was like, I'm immune to Botox. I'm resistant because like I would get a little bit of like a line next to my eye after two months when I smiled. And so I would run back and get more Botox. I haven't really gotten it since August. I tested a few units in my forehead in November. And that kept my forehead like pretty frozen until I would say the last month or so. So I think that this idea that we need to be getting it all the time is not necessarily true. If you want to be like frozen and you want your face to look like a skating rink, which I totally get, then maybe you do need to go more often. But anyway, I've definitely noticed in the last month that the wheels are falling off.

So what I've been trying besides all of the hydrating skin care are frownies. I'm trying to think if I want to give an honest review here. Frownies, which I will say are not perfect. This is my issue with frownies. So for those who fortunately don't have to know what this is, frownies are like these pieces of paper that you stick onto your forehead. You can do between your eyebrows. You can do the corners of your eyes.

I think that you can do smile lines, wherever you feel like you have movement or wrinkles. So it's like this paper. And when you get it wet, it turns into an adhesive. And it gets super hard. And you're supposed to wear them for a few hours or sleep in them. And it essentially makes like a cast on your, your skin. Like you can't move. But it's so stuck to your skin that like when I woke up this morning,

I was trying to get it off and I could not get it off. And there's a whole method where you're supposed to like get it completely wet. And they say that the best way to remove them is in the shower. But I just don't really understand. I feel like you're sacrificing your skincare for wearing this thing on your face. And I guess that you can do your daytime skincare and then just like sacrifice the nighttime skincare. But I don't know. There has to be something better. So been trying that. I talk to somebody today in the industry who is like, no, I know so many people who don't do Botox and they use brownies and they love them. So I'm going to keep trying today, Monday. This comes out on Wednesday. I'm trying cosmetic acupuncture. So I will report back on that. I'm doing microneedling when this comes out

today, Wednesday. And what else am I doing? Guasha, face massage, all of the things. I think, honestly, all of these things help, but skincare is number one. My issue is that I feel like because of my years and years of like hard living when I was in my addiction and just baking myself and tanning beds and the sun and everything, I'm noticing that I have some lines from them that are kind of coming back. So I don't know, maybe some lasers or something are in my future. Not sure, but as far as skincare goes, I'm doing my regular Jan Marini. And then two products that I love that I've noticed have made such a big difference in like plumping my skin as long as I'm staying hydrated internally too are the Shawnee Darden moisture boosting plumping serum, something like that.

that one is amazing the claren's double serum which is like an oil and it's supposed to mimic your skin's water and oil that has been total game changer for me as well but i will report back on anything if anything works as a botox alternative i do know that like so many people are starting to try to transition away from botox for whatever the reason is so Yeah, keep you guys posted. I totally forgot about my LED mask too. Red light therapy. That's another amazing one.

Okay, if I could only do one thing for skin, what would it be? I don't know if this counts as one thing, but skincare. I mean, I feel like you can do all the things, including Botox. You can do all the Botox. You can do surgery. You can get fillers. You can do sculptra. You can do whatever.

But if you're not taking care of your skin, your skin is your canvas. and everything else is a cherry on top. And it's so important, especially as you get older, to take care of your skin because you see women who get like baselifts, even if they're kind of young and they haven't taken care of their skin. And you can only get so good of a result if you're not taking care of your skin. So I would say just finding a skincare routine that works for you, it doesn't have to be like mine where it's a gazillion steps.

But I would say that is first and foremost the most important. and obviously so many things go into that too, like what you're eating. I mean, I can tell on my face that I have not been eating the best. I've been eating so much dairy. I have like pimples everywhere if you're watching on YouTube here, here, here. And it's so interesting because I feel like my digestion has been so much better since I've been eating dairy. But my skin has been so much worse. But skincare, internally and externally, so you can do the topical things. Stay hydrated, eat well, all of that. All right. I'm going to stop there for today. But like I said, so many more solo episodes on the way, you guys can actually DM me or leave comments when I post this

video on social media about what you want to hear. If you want to hear advice episodes, if you want to hear just more Q&As like this. If you want to hear topic-specific solo episodes, if you want to do voicemails, anonymous questions, if you want to do all of it, let me know with two episodes a week now. We've got plenty of things to talk about, plenty of time to fill. So let me know what you want to hear because that's what I want to prioritize first and foremost. And I appreciate you guys. I'll talk to you soon. Love you. I hope you enjoyed that episode. And if you liked it, and if you liked the show in general, please take a second to rate, review, and subscribe. It goes a long way. And it's actually the best way to support the show. Also, if you want to see more about each episode, you can head over to the Blond Files podcast on Instagram. You can go to areaallori.com. And I'm always posting about each episode over on my personal page at Ariel Laurie. Please note that this episode may contain paid endorsements and advertisements for products and services.

Individuals on the show may have a direct or indirect financial interest in products or services referred to in this episode.