As vacation season is coming to a close there’s almost no chance escaping autumn blues. It all makes sense: the days start getting noticeably shorter, colder and darker, and you can almost feel the winter on its way. You have an urge to put on warm socks, spend more time indoors with a cup of hot cocoa. But even if you are disappointed to see summer go and fall take the charge, there are still ways to make this transition easier.
Take good care of your immune system
This should be the top priority. A strong immune system is the key to good health and happiness. And the stress caused by changing seasons doubles our need for certain nutrients, especially B-group vitamins. That is why don’t forget to add whole-grain foods, like crispbread and porridge, to your diet.
Keeping your immune system protected also means drinking enough fluids and eating enough fruits and veggies. Luckily, vitamins and nutrients are not hard to come by during fall.
Get into cooking
Fall is the harvest season which provides us with high-vitamin foods you’ll be able to enjoy throughout the winter. And it’s the perfect time to regularly swap take-aways for homemade meals.
It is also the time to discover that you can admire rich and vibrant autumnal colors not only in the street but also right on your plate. All because seasonal autumn foods are so multicolored and cheery: pumpkin, beets, squash, potatoes, cranberries, cabbage, carrots, persimmons, apples, corn.
Recall your favorite soup, stew and pie recipes that make you think of fall. Maybe you recognize some of these all-time favorites: sweet potato mash, apple or pear pie, roasted squash, crispy pork chops. Or maybe you have your own cookbook filled with old family recipes. By experimenting with autumn meals you will see how many nourishing foods fall has to offer.
Take better care of your sleep cycle
We need sleep to recharge our batteries and enhance healing processes inside the body. This way we make midseason transition less noticeable. If you tended to miss out on sleep because of long summer days and short summer nights, it’s time to change your schedule and start getting some rest. If you don’t, you might feel exhausted and easily irritated during the day.
So, by restoring proper biorhythms, we effectively start preparing our body for winter. It’s not hard to figure out how much sleep you actually need – just go to bed at around 10 PM on a weekend and wake up without an alarm clock the next day. If you feel most refreshed when you awake, it means you’ve slept just enough.
Turn staying indoors into an opportunity
It’s important to keep your spirits high because the shift to a colder season may be a downer. And with the nasty weather outside you may feel like you’re trapped inside. Don’t let it get to you.
Think about your favorite indoor activities. What made fall so great when you were a kid? - Board games? Creating things with your own hands? Inviting friends over? There's so much to choose from.
And don’t forget about the holiday cheer! Fall is the season of Halloween decorations, Thanksgiving, pumpking flavoured lattes, hearty meals with your loved ones. What else could one ask for?
Freshen up your home
Align with fall and make your home warmer and more inviting. You probably had better things to do during summer but now you can use spending more time indoors to your benefit.
You don’t need to change too much. Just adding some bright and happy colors to your place, buying new pillow cases, bringing home plants is good enough. Or you can give your end table a new chic look. By redecorating your place you will get yourself pleasantly busy.
Exercise your body
Colder seasons don’t mean a break from exercise but quite the opposite. Think about it: during hot summer days we spend a lot of time outdoors and move around a lot. In autumn we get significantly less active. Our physical activity is often limited to indoor workouts.
If we stop exercising, apart from weight gain, we can have an even bigger problem on our hands. The circulation of lymph through the body slows down when we move less. When it happens, the lymph system can no longer filter toxins and gets clogged which weakens your immune system. That’s why doing at least short morning exercises will help a lot.
Cozy up to autumn
With colder and shorter days we get more easily caught up in mood swings. So, perhaps, it’s time to bring in more positive emotions and remember that autumn is, in fact, the coziest season of all. We wrap ourselves in our favorite scarves, sweaters, put on warm boots and coats. It’s almost like autumn has a purpose to create a sense of comfort.
It’s the time we get cozy in tiny coffeeshops sipping hot beverages or cuddle up under a warm blanket at home reading or having a movie night. It’s not a lively season so there’s nothing wrong about getting a little melancholic and wistful over autumn either. Since gentle melancholy can be a vast source of creativity and inspiration.
Ultimately, fall teaches us to move to the beat of every season, learn more about accepting the change in our lives and find beauty in the familiar. This is a perfect time to enjoy a more slow-paced life, indulge in tasty autumnal foods and raise positive vibrations.
