Get Your Body Autumn-Ready: Tips for a Healthy Transition to the New Season

As autumn approaches, a transition starts to occur from bright, sunny days to a general sense of winding down. The leaves fall off the trees, the days become shorter, the weather becomes cooler, and it feels like life slows down a little, doesn’t it?

Yet for many of us, this season signals a return to school or work and that brings with it an increase in the speed and pace of life. There are deadlines to be met and schedules to be followed. If you have children, then there will be extracurricular activities to attend. That puts modern life at odds with the natural flow of seasonal living. If you feel like you would be better off back in control and sync with the season of autumn, then following these tips will go some way to helping you get there: 

#1 Eat with the season

As the season reflects not only a change to our schedules but also a change to what is available. Things are in season at a particular time of the year for a reason.

Now is the time to: 

• Use root vegetables like sweet potato, butternut squash, beetroot, carrots, parsnips and Swede in your cooking
• Re-introduce dark green leafy vegetables like kale, cabbage, and Brussels sprouts
• Enjoy autumnal fruits such as apples and pears

#2 Check in with your skincare routine

A change in season changes the way your skin feels and reacts to the external environment. Dryer skin at his time of year may need more moisture and you may need to address some of the sun damage done to your skin due to UV exposure in the summer months.

Now is the time to:

• Ensure you are still drinking enough water despite the change in weather
• Incorporate essential fats into your diet or supplement plan
• Ensure you are consuming or supplementing enough vitamin C, vitamin E and vitamin D in particular

#3 Reconnect with friends

A lack of social connection can be worse for your health than a poor diet or a lack of exercise even. Strong social connections can improve your immune system, and your mental well-being and even increase your lifespan.

Now is the time to:

• Book regular meetups with friends – coffee, autumnal walks or perhaps a trip to the theatre or cinema
• Think about an activity that you can do regularly with friends
• Arrange some social activities around food and gathering to eat and perhaps even cook together

#4 Review your bedtime routine

Our bodies follow a natural rhythm, known as the circadian rhythm and this relies on consistency. We must allow the body to predict what we are going to do about sleep by creating habits that are consistently the same each night. This can lead to a better overall quality of sleep, better mental performance, improved mood and a decrease in the incidence of diabetes and heart disease as well as positively influencing our immune systems

Now is the time to:

• Set a regular and realistic bedtime and wake-up time. Stick to these times throughout the week but also at the weekend.
• Limit exposure to light at night before bedtime and use a SAD lamp to help wake you up in the mornings as the mornings become darker.
• Consume food sources or supplement magnesium, calcium, Vitamin B6, folic acid, iron, vitamin C, Zinc and Vitamin D which are all linked to improved levels of melatonin – our sleep hormone.

 By Jenny Tschiesche, Nutriburst's Nutritionist