This month I’m starting a new type of post that I’ve always loved when I’ve seen others do them. However, I’ve never done one myself. And that’s the “things I tried” in X month post. I’ve always hesitated to do these types of posts because they are definitely subjective and can feel a little influencer-y. And I certainly wouldn’t consider myself an influencer or anything close to it.
Nevertheless, I’ve found products and experiences I’ve loved by reading these posts. In this post, I go over things I tried in July, including products, experiences, books, podcasts, and movies. I hope that by sharing my experiences I help you find things that you’d love to try!
Before I start, I’ll note that I am not a part of any type of affiliate programs. Consequently, all of these are truly things I love.
Products I’ve Loved in July
I don’t usually buy a lot of things. I’m a very frugal person. Plus, I’ve had to become more frugal since Andrew and I purchased our house, started planning a wedding, and bought a dog. #Adulting, am I right? However, over the past month I’ve had the chance to try out a few products that I have loved and found so worthwhile. In some cases, they’ve actually saved us money!
Things I Loved: Canva’s Printing Services
As I just mentioned, Andrew and I are planning a wedding. One of the sneaky expenses that comes with wedding planning is buying those save the dates and invitations. Even if you’re not wedding planning, you might buy Christmas cards or greeting cards and notice that the expense of buying and mailing those cards is steep.
On average, couples spend $390 purchasing save the dates and invitations. Luckily, I found a way for us to majorly cut those costs for our own cards using Canva. If you’re unfamiliar, Canva is a graphic design site and app. Users can employ pre-made templates or build their own templates to create beautiful cards, presentations, social media posts and more.
For our save the dates and invitations, I studied designs I really liked on Canva, Mint, Etsy, and other places. I then used Canva’s tools to create my own custom designs that integrated my favorite features of other cards. Consequently, I was able to create something unique for free!
Plus, Canva offers printing through their site/app. I was able to print 50 save the dates on high quality matte paper with rounded edges and envelopes for $33, including shipping and tax! They turned out so well. I’ll be using them to print our invitations as well now that I know they turned out so nicely.
Canva offers a free service or you can pay $12 a month for their premium subscription which gives you access to more graphics and functionality. You can easily cancel if you only want to use the pro subscription for a single project. You can check out my guide on making your own holiday cards for more info!
Things I Tried: The Bedjet
I am a very sweaty person and I tend to run hot. In fact, I think there’s a good chance I have hyperhydrosis given how much I sweat. One time I came back from a run and Andrew asked if it was raining… it wasn’t.
Sweating while you workout is obviously a very typical situation. However, sweating can become much more annoying when it happens while you sleep. No one wants to start the morning by doing laundry because you made a sweat angel on your sheets. With the 90+ degree heat lately and no air conditioning, I’ve been struggling to stay dry and comfortably cool all night.
Luckily, my brother gave me their Bedjet to try. A Bedjet is basically a small, unobtrusive fan and air conditioner that goes under your sheets and blows cool air. You can also make it blow warm air on cold nights. It sounds pretty simple. However, it makes a big difference in your body temperature. This, in turn, makes a big difference for your sleep. Our bodies expect a drop in temperature come nighttime. And they respond to that drop by making us tired. Consequently, if your body doesn’t cool down at night, you’re less likely to fall asleep.
Tools like the Bedjet or cooling sheets and mattresses can therefore make a big difference in our quality of life. I’ve certainly enjoyed using the Bedjet and plan on continuing to do so.
Things I Tried (Again): Tula Sunscreen
As a pale redhead, it’s vitally important that I use sunscreen. However, I’ve always hated the gloppy, greasy feel of sunscreen. Consequently, I often avoid using it when I really need to. Enter Tula’s protect and glow sunscreen. It smells great, feels smooth and moisturizing, and leaves your skin with a dewy glow.
Because of that, I love using it and reapplying it. It also doesn’t leave that sticky feeling behind on your hands. I highly recommend you try this sunscreen or their mineral sunscreen if you prefer something a little more matte.
Things I Tried: Heavy Weights
Strength training is an incredible way to maintain a healthy weight and feel strong and empowered. However, it’s easy to strength train ineffectively. Many of us are tempted to keep lifting the same weights we’ve been using for months. Part of this is because free weights and weight machines are expensive. Though part of this also comes from complacency and the fact that no one wants to feel uncomfortable more than they have to.
It’s important to push past those feelings, however. Strength training is one of the best things you can do for your fitness and health. And increasing the weight you lift is far more important for muscle gains than increasing the amount of time you spend lifting lighter weights. Strength is built through heavier weights, while endurance is built through lifting weights for longer.
All of that to say, my muscle tone has improved a lot since Andrew and I purchased a few pairs of free weights. Specifically, we bought 15-, 20-, and 30-pound weights on top of the 5- and 10-pound weights we already had. That combination will keep me challenged (and gaining muscle) for quite awhile.
I love the Neoprene weights from Amazon because the coating feels much more comfortable on my hands than metal options. You can occasionally find well-priced weights on Facebook Marketplace. However, demand seems to be high so I haven’t found a big price difference compared to retailers.
Experiences I’ve Loved in July
Things I Tried: Qi Gong
I’ve talked many times about how much I love acupuncture. You can also see my post on acupuncture for fertility! I have found acupuncture so helpful for injuries, insomnia, and so much more. So I was intrigued when my acupuncture clinic announced that a Qi Gong practitioner was coming to visit.
Like acupuncture, Qi Gong is an ancient medicinal practice that was developed in eastern China thousands of years ago. The idea of Qi Gong is to shift the flow of energy in the body in ways that are healing and grounding. Unlike acupuncture, Qi Gong relies mostly on touch (and not on needles). Qi Gong also doesn’t have the level of scientific research to support its benefits that acupuncture has.
Nevertheless, I love trying new (to me) things in the health and wellness space. And I’ve always believed that cultures across the world have a lot to teach “western” medicine about healing, even if we don’t always understand the mechanisms behind them. I’ve also had so many transformative experiences with acupuncture that I wanted to try a new medium in this area.
I was not disappointed! The practitioner and I discussed my health, background, and activities. She then started at my feet and moved upwards, using gentle touch to guide the energy. I know for many people this sounds woo-woo. However, it was incredibly relaxing and grounding. Whether it was my imagination or not, I could feel the energy in my body shifting. I’d honestly never felt more relaxed than after that session. Plus, she had so many great recommendations I could use in my daily life. I’m so glad I tried it and felt like it made a difference for me.
Things I Tried: Having a Morning Routine
I’ve always wanted a relaxing morning routine. However, being a perfectionist who is always looking to be more productive, I struggled to let myself have a nice morning routine. Taking a few minutes to meditate, do yoga, and sip my coffee felt like the antithesis of productive when I could instead work on my blog and answer emails.
However, during my Qi Gong session, the therapist recommended I start a morning routine to feel more grounded and less stressed. She encouraged me to spend 5-10 minutes doing yoga, relaxing with my coffee outside, and doing a few breathing exercises. It was exactly the push I needed. Plus, the idea of doing a 5-10 minute routine felt much more manageable than the morning routines I generally heard about which took 30 minutes or more.
So I start my routine with a couple minutes of deep breathing and a 5-minute yoga routine. I then eat my breakfast and drink my coffee outside and spend a little time being present rather than scrolling my phone. This routine has felt so enjoyable and helped me to start the day feeling less frazzled.
Books, Shows, and Movies I Loved in July
This was a weird month for books. Our local library system’s website was hacked in May and we haven’t been able to put holds on books or return books since then! Because all of my new books come from holds I put on books at the library, this majorly limited my reading options. The bright side is that because of that, I had the chance to revisit books I love.
I know it’s cheating a little to include books I’ve already read as “things I tried.” However, I’d argue that one of the things I tried that I loved was rereading books! And I highly encourage others do it more often as well too. You always get something new out of a re-read.
My Life in France
One of those books is My Life in France by Julia Child and Alex Prud’homme. Many of us recognize Julia Child as one of the most famous cooks, cookbook authors, and TV personalities of all time, paving the way for people like Ina Garten, Rachel Ray, and really all of the Food Network hosts. She became famous, in part, for her delightfully accessible personality and humor mixed with her true passion and talent for cooking.
All of this comes across in her autobiography about her time in Paris, Marseille, and later Oslo and the U.S. It covers the period during which she learned to cook, attended the Cordon Bleu, authored her famous cookbooks, and eventually became a TV personality.
Reading this book, you feel transported to France in the 40s and 50s. There’s also a very good chance it will inspire you to travel, cook, and eat well. It’s a light read but one where you learn so much and savor every page.
The Book of Delights
The Book of Delights by Ross Gay is both totally different and very similar to My Life in France. In The Book of Delights, Ross Gay writes a daily passage about a delight he observed or experienced.
Similar to My Life in France, it is an uplifting and beautiful read by an intensely likable author. Both books also implicitly or explicitly encourage you to be present and appreciate the daily joys in life. Indianapolis (where Gay lives) is no Paris. Nevertheless, you’ll want to smell the flowers, linger at the coffee shops, and sample the same local produce the author does, just like how you’ll wish you were in Paris with Julia.
Both books are perfect vacation reads. Joyful, restorative, and easy to dip in and out of.
Things I Tried: All the Hacks
Moving to podcasts, I’ve been loving the podcast All the Hacks this month. In this podcast, the host, Chris Hutchins, goes in depth on a topic each week and how to maximize your experience of that topic.
Hutchins got his blogging and podcasting start in credit card points and travel. Consequently, there are quite a few episodes on how to maximize credit card reward points and travel experiences while minimizing costs. However, he’s branched out so much since his start years ago.
My favorite topics I’ve listened to have been on how to have a 10x mindset (which inspired my post on the mindset shift that can help you achieve your dreams), understanding your brain type, and how to master spontaneous conversations. However, I’ve loved every episode I’ve listened to. Almost every episode offers actionable strategies you can use in your everyday life to maximize your wellbeing.
Things I Tried: Togo
In July, I went with my fiancée’s family on a cruise to Alaska! We had such a fun time and Alaska is incredibly beautiful. It was also my first ever cruise! As someone who doesn’t love crowds and who loves hiking and exploring, I’m not much of a cruise person. Nevertheless, it was a great trip.
One other new thing that came out of the trip was a movie that I and my fiancée’s whole family really enjoyed: Togo. Togo is a PG-rated Disney movie. However, don’t mistake it as only for kids. It’s based on the true story of the diphtheria outbreak in Nome, Alaska in the 1920s.
Background on Togo
At the time, dozens of children in Nome were desperately ill and some had already died. An antitoxin was available that cured the illness. However, it was hundreds of miles away and Nome was on the verge of a long and extreme snowstorm. There was no way of getting the medicine to Nome—except by sled dogs. So a relay way organized where teams of sled dogs would pass off the medicine, bringing it from Nenana to Nome over 674 miles. Twenty teams participated, with each team running an average of 31 miles.
However, one team ran 264 miles over the most dangerous terrain. That team was led by the sled dog Togo. Unfortunately, Togo and his human Seppala get almost none of the credit because they were not the last team in the relay and so did not actually hand the medicine off in Nome. Consequently, all the credit is given to that last team that ran a comparatively measly 53 miles, led by the much celebrated dog Balto and the totally ignored dog Fox (ignored because journalists thought it would be confusing for readers to read about a dog named Fox).
The movie is fascinating, adorable, exciting, and largely historically accurate. The acting is also surprisingly good for a Disney movie, with Willem Defoe and Julianne Nicholson leading the cast. Plus, with the weather super hot right now, it might feel refreshing to watch a movie that takes place in arctic conditions!
Final Thoughts on Things I Tried in July
July is one of my favorite months. It feels like the height of summer—the weather is generally good, the work pace slows down for many of us, and many people go on vacation. It’s a great time to try new things. Indeed, I loved many of the things I tried out in July.
I hope you feel inspired to try some of these things as well! If you do, let me know what you think! Were there any new things you tried in July that you loved? If so, let me know what they were in the comments!