Fall Wellness Tips

A new season has arrived and it’s my favorite!!! I love Fall holidays, food, and all the things that happen in our American culture during the Fall. So, with this season in mind, I’m giving you some great Fall wellness tips to start your season off right. These tips are in the realm of self care and are good for body, mind and spirit!!!

1. Go for a fall foliage walk. Georgia is an amazing place for this! I really enjoy all the color we have. I’m wanting to get over to Gibbs Gardens in Ball Ground this year!!! I’ve heard that it is spectacular!!! Walking is good for your physical health and breathing in the cool crisp air brings an added benefit to the lungs!!! As well, stimulating your site senses gets the dopamine going in your brain and lifts the mood.
2. Enjoy a tasty, healthy, hearty vegetable beef stew for dinner. I’ve listed one of my favorite fall stew recipes here:
   Cook 1 lb. of ground beef, drain and add in 1 package of organic cubed frozen mixed veggies, 1 carton of Imagine tomato soup, and 1 can of organic stewed tomatoes. Add in garlic, Mrs. Dash, and some pepper. Cook until veggies are tender. Serve in a mug or a deep bowl. Cornbread goes great with this stew!!! For added flavor and nutrition, add some nutritional yeast to your stew. It’s full of B vitamins and it thickens your stew and gives is a heartier flavor. As well, you can use cultured butter to put on your cornbread for more enzymes, which helps you to digest your food. Contact me here for more Fall soup and stew recipes.
3. Cuddle up by a fire – If you don’t have a fire pit, or access to a fire place, check out the a Solo Stove, which is a convenient portable fire pit. It’s instant and it’s anywhere you want your fire to be. It’s all contained and better yet, it’s smokeless!! Fires are amazing because just sitting around them reduces blood pressure! Also, it’s a social thing that lift the spirits because you are in relationship to other people while doing so.
4. Read a good book while sipping a cup of your favorite hot tea. One of my favorite books right now is Addison D. Bevere’s new book called, “Words with God”. It’s all about Prayer. My favorite tea for Fall is Tumeric Amber Sun by Numi. It is rooibos tea mixed with cinnamon and cardamom. I add a touch of vanilla and some Stevia to make it complete! The health benefits of Tumeric is that it reduces inflammation. Cinnamon reduces blood pressure and cardamom does all that and more. Look at this great article to learn more about this wonderful tasting and smelling herb.
5. Diffuse your home with cinnamon and cloves – I love to heat up cinnamon and cloves in a pot of boiling water on the stove top. Your whole home has an amazing aroma that fills the senses with calm and peace!! It’s like the old timey potpourri that we used to boil on the stove back in the 80’s!!
6. Host a football game night in your home. We love the Dallas Cowboys and love to share them with other people in our home during game nights. It’s really okay!!! You don’t have to be a Cowboy fan to come!!! Having friends over, some snacks and good conversation is all I need to perk me up and relieve my need for relationships in my life. We all need connection with others for good mental health and something as simple as watching a game together, brings commonality and togetherness to a new level. If you don’t have room in your home to host an event, you might enjoy watching the game with friends at a local restaurant. Not as cozy, but still brings the benefit of relationship and connection that we all need and desire deep down!!
7. Practice breathing techniques for stress relief. One of my favorites is belly breathing. When I am stressed, I simply take a deep breath in through my nose and fill up my belly until I’m looking a little pregnant. Then, I release it slowly through pursed lips, while keeping my hand on my belly to feel the air releasing and my stomach going back to normal. While doing this, I make sure that I am sitting up straight in my chair to protect my back, or I stand up straight and tall while doing this. It works to stop panic attacks, cramps while running, as well as a host of other things. It really helps me to stop and focus, so that I can let the negative stimulation or thought pass.
8. Prepare early for the holidays so they don’t sneak up on you. For me this means making a list of what I need to do, such as getting invites out, setting my meal planning, and doing my shopping, etc. If I write it down and put the dates on my calendar then I won’t be trying to cram these things in when time starts ticking. Click here to watch one of my videos on meal planning.
9. Sign up for a hot Yoga class to get the muscles loosened up. When the weather is cold, that’s when I really enjoy hot yoga! Otherwise, it’s not for me!!! My muscles do better when they are warm. So, coming into a warm room on a cool day feels great for the mind and the body!!!
10. Journal or draw your favorite Fall memory. This is a great exercise in mindful living! One of my favorite Fall memories is the year that my husband and my kids decided they would make Thanksgiving dinner for me!!! This was really the beginning of both of my kids enjoying cooking and helping me in the kitchen. So…I remember it fondly!! Also, I remember when the kids were little, we used to make Fall collages from leaves, sticks, acorns and pinecones! We had lots of art around to remind us of the seasons spent together!!!