Fall reset (in a non-diet-y way)

Thanks for sticking around during my hiatus, friends.

Aside from the New Year, the few weeks after Labor Day and beginning of fall are one of the more popular times to set new health goals. Aside from restrictive diets, I think this is a GREAT thing. We all fall into ruts every now and again, myself included, and a change in season can be good motivation to switch things up health-wise and make sure you’re taking good care of yourself.

Photo by arty on Unsplash

(here is where I make a You’ve Got Mail, “don’t you just love fall in New York” reference. It really is the best)

Anyways, here are some suggestions for some useful nutrition/health/wellness goals for fall.

Get your labs checked
If you haven’t had routine labs checked in a while, now is a great time to make an appointment with your PCP to make sure everything is A-OK. Here I’m talking cholesterol, triglycerides, vitamin D, ferritin (especially for my runner friends!), thyroid panel, vitamin B12, liver enzymes and anything else your MD or dietitian would find helpful. This way, you can be on top of any supplementation needs, abnormal trends, or necessary dietary modifications.

Try a new workout class
This is always a great way to mix up your movement, especially if you’re getting sick of your normal routine. Personally, I’ve had pretty low running motivation with the extreme hot weather we’ve been having in NYC this summer, and I’ve gone from running a solid 6 days per week in the spring to 4-5 days per week. That might not seem like a big difference, but to me it leaves a good amount of time for other forms of movement and it has been really nice to mix things up. Usually I’m an at-home Peloton strength or yoga class fan, but I went to my first in-person yoga class in many months the other day and it was great. It’s fun to get out and into a different environment sometimes. I sort of want to try Barry’s sometime soon but am also a bit terrified.

Do *some* meal planning
A lot of my clients have been on vacations or away for at least part of the summer, and getting back into the swing of cooking and meal prepping has been a challenge after a lot less “structured” eating. I find that starting slow, by prepping one meal or even making a detailed grocery list, is a good way to ease back in to organization and that it does feel good to be more organized and eat foods you’ve prepped yourself. My forever favorite lunch salad meal prep is this one (and I add more protein with hard boiled eggs or rotisserie chicken), and here is my tried and true overnight oats recipe.

Hydrate!
SO many of us are living in a chronically dehydrated state, friends! Even as the weather gets cooler (lol when will this happen), most healthy people need AT LEAST 2 liters of fluids every day. Sometimes it helps to get a fancy water bottle, or use an app to track your fluid intake. Trust me, you will feel the difference (and see the difference on your skin) when you drink enough water.

Take a protein inventory
I’ve written about the importance of consuming enough protein, for athletes and really for anyone who wants to maintain muscle mass (we start losing muscle mass as we age beginning in our early 30s!). As your meals change with the season a bit (e.g., less grilling out), now is a good time to make sure you’re eating enough quality protein with meals and snacks. Doing some calculations or tracking over the course of a couple of days is a good way to get an idea of how much you’re eating now and if you may need to “beef” up a bit. Working with a dietitian for individualized recommendations can help too.

I should probably do a part two because I’ve got more thoughts, so stay tuned for that. Thanks for reading!

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