8 Tips To Stay In Great Shape With Healthy Autumn Food

Sleepy, sluggish, apathetic, slow – is this you in autumn? Easy summer living is gone bye-bye and the life force you soaked up from the Sun is seeping out of your body. For many of us, it’s a time of dreaded seasonal malaise and autumn foreboding. But you don’t have to endure the long stretch before spring arrives in a state of anguish. You can get your mojo back and support your health by adapting to the autumn season and eating the healthy seasonal food.

When you think of ways to get healthier, you probably first think of your diet. This is natural since food is such an integral part of life, not to mention your health. Many conditions can be improved just by switching up what you eat and getting in enough vitamins and minerals.

As summer turns into fall, it’s important to adjust and balance your diet. Your body, in rhythm with nature, changes with seasons too. Salads and juices that sustained you in summer won’t cut it in colder months. But fear not! Autumn food can be equally healthy and delicious.

In autumn, your body needs foods that will nourish and warm you up inside.

Because of the seasonal change, your body naturally craves comfort foods that are high in sugar and refined carbohydrates. This is okay in small amounts. But if you feel like you over-indulge in the fall season, it might be a good time to focus on a balanced diet.

Do you want to stay as healthy as possible in the Fall? Here are some tips to follow on how to change and improve your diet this time of year.

1. Focus on a Healthy Balance, Not Restrictions

When it comes to following a balanced diet, it isn’t all about calories and restrictions. It’s more important to focus on a healthy balance in your meals, even when you are trying to lose weight or just maintain your weight over the holidays.

You can still eat your favorite foods but focus on combining them with healthy options.

If you want bread, eat bread! But eat it with a meal that includes lean protein, vegetables, whole grains, and maybe some fruit.

When you add these healthy foods, you get all those important vitamins and minerals. And you might often feel fuller between meals when you fill up on your veggies and fruits. The more veggies you eat, the less refined carbs you feel you need.

Remember, starting a “diet” is not always about taking something away but adding in something healthy.

2. Choose Seasonal Superfoods

The first thing you can do when you want to eat healthy food in the autumn is to add more fresh seasonal produce. Superfoods include foods with a higher-than-normal nutrient amount, including lots of vitamins and minerals. Of course, fruits and vegetables are essential.

Here is a list of some of the best fall superfoods that will help you to eat healthier this season:

Super Greens – There are many greens superfoods in the fall season, such as kale, spinach, turnip, collard, and Swiss chard. If you haven’t tried them before, now is a great time. They are loaded with antioxidants and nutrients, like vitamin C and vitamin A, as well as a lot of vitamin K. They are perfect for salads and smoothies, if a little bitter, so combine them with a citrus-based dressing.

Veggies – In addition to greens, there are some other veggies that are in season during the fall. While you can find these year-round, getting them while “in season” will mean more affordable produce, and often higher quality.

Cauliflower – The great thing about this vegetable is that it’s low in fat and calories, but also in sugar and carbohydrates. Just about every diet out there allows you to eat cauliflower, including Keto, Paleo, and other low-carb diets. You can use cauliflower when looking to replace starchy carbs like rice or potatoes. Plus you get nutrients like vitamin C, potassium, B6, folate, fiber, and magnesium.

Brussels Sprouts – Don’t count out brussels sprouts before you try them! These can be wonderful and tasty vegetables to enjoy this fall season. You will get nutrients like iron, folate, vitamin K, magnesium, potassium, B6, as well as fiber and antioxidants.

Squash – It should be no surprise that squash is an in-season vegetable for fall, but it also happens to be a superfood. This is largely due to the fact that it has a lot of omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin A. Squash can be enjoyed alone as a side dish, in a soup with pumpkin and spices like ginger and cinnamon, or in a casserole with your favorite fall meats and veggies.

Sweet Potato – This is a wonderful alternative to white potatoes, since not only are they sweet, but they contain more fiber and other vitamins and minerals. These are not as starchy as white potatoes, so they are generally better for you all around. Make a healthier baked potato, slice it up into fries, or enjoy it mashed with some grass-fed butter.

Pumpkin – If any one food comes to mind when fall begins, pumpkin is probably it. That’s why pumpkin is our special guest star in this article, with more coverage than other veggies.

Fall cuisine is all about pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin cheesecake, and pumpkin cookies. While these are delicious treats, it is better to aim for balance with your health.

Instead of sugary pumpkin delicacies, try a pumpkin soup, roasted pumpkin with other fall veggies, or even making your own pumpkin pudding. Pumpkin is not only delicious, but it can help increase your vitamin A and vitamin C, and you will get a lot of B vitamins, potassium, and of course that fiber you need for a healthy digestive system.

So what’s good about pumpkin?

• It adds flavor to any food – Canned or cooked pumpkin goes a long way in desserts, soups, and so many different foods and drinks. You can add it to smoothies or used canned pumpkin in your cake mixes.

• It’s low in calories – One cup of pumpkin is only 30 calories! This means you can have a good amount of this veggie and all its immense flavor with a low amount of calories.

• Helps get your veggies in – Have trouble eating your veggies? Add some pumpkin to the mix and it will be much easier!

• It is loaded with nutrients – You will find out more about the nutrients below, but pumpkin has many with vitamins and minerals, from potassium and antioxidants to vitamin C and fiber.

• They last a long time – Before you cut into a pumpkin, it can last up to 2 months in a cool, dark environment.

Nutrients You Get from Pumpkin, Super Healthy Autumn Food

As you may know already, pumpkin has a lot of amazing vitamins and minerals! Which makes it a great choice when it comes to healthy autumn food. In addition to the lower calories and just the great taste of pumpkin, enjoying it in the fall can increase the nutrients you are consuming. Some of the nutrients also vary based on whether you are eating the meat inside the pumpkin, or the actual pumpkin seeds. Here are some nutrients you will get:

• Potassium – To start with, your pumpkin meat will contain potassium, which is great for helping to lower your blood pressure and boost your heart health.

• Beta carotene – Beta carotene is in fruits and vegetables that are an orange color, and that includes pumpkin.

• Vitamin C – If you need more vitamin C, but aren’t a fan of citrus fruits, you can get a good amount of it in your pumpkin meat. This is not only a beneficial vitamin on its own, but it can help you to absorb iron.

• Nutrients in Seeds – As for the pumpkin seeds, you will get vitamins like zinc, omega 3s, magnesium, and tryptophan.

Healthier Pumpkin Ideas

Looking for some healthier ways to enjoy your pumpkin?

Here are some quick ideas:

• Pumpkin smoothies – You can also add canned pumpkin or fresh pumpkin meat to your smoothie. It will add that pumpkin flavor, and lots of vitamins and minerals without the extra calories. It goes great with pumpkin pie spice, maple syrup, and Greek yogurt.

• Pumpkin Soup – You can make a pumpkin soup with cooked and roasted pumpkin, along with vegetable stock and spices.

• Healthier pumpkin spice latte – If you want a pumpkin spice latte without the added sugar, use your pumpkin and spices, then use a dairy-free option like oat milk or almond milk, and add a lower sugar option for sweetening it, such as Stevia or monkfruit.

3. Opt For Autumn Fruits

Fall is no reason to replace summer fruit with comfort foods. Some of the best fruits you can eat are in season during the fall, including:

Pomegranate – Pomegranates are a source of fiber and antioxidants, plus provide a slightly tart and sweet flavor in the fall season.

Apples – Who doesn’t love to eat apples in the fall? This is definitely one of the most popular foods during this time of year – and it is a superfood! Apples are loaded with nutrients, including antioxidants, vitamin C, and lots of fiber. They are sweet enough for green smoothies so they don’t taste like kale or spinach and can be used to create healthier desserts. For the most nutrients, eat the skins of your apples.
Pears – The next fall superfood fruit is the pear. You can enjoy these along with apples, or on their own as a healthy snack. Pears are also great when combined with more savory dishes. You are also getting a good amount of fiber from pears, along with copper and vitamin C. For something a little different, try making baked pears as a treat.

4. Switch to Warm Drinks in the Morning

With the change in climate in the fall, you can still enjoy your healthy drinks in the morning, but it might be a good time to switch to warmer drinks.

If you aren’t a coffee drinker, try some hot tea or even drink a glass of warm lemon water in the morning. These will hydrate you, give you some natural energy, aid your digestion, and be a great start to your day in the fall.

5. Enjoy Healthy Variants of Comfort Foods

In the colder, darker times, we all crave a little comfort so don’t discard the idea of comfort food. Instead, consider putting a healthy spin on them. Just because your favorite comfort foods contain ingredients like butter, cheese, and meat, doesn’t mean they are necessarily bad for you.

There are many comfort foods you can make a little healthier by using some substitutions, reducing the cheese, and bulking it up with more vegetables.

For example, if you love macaroni and cheese in the fall, why not add broccoli to it? This will not only give you a full serving of vegetables, but you will end up eating a little less of the macaroni and cheese.

Love chicken pot pie? Try a crustless chicken pot pie, which has much less carbs, but still all the flavor, protein, and vegetables you love about this dish.

6. Reduce Refined Sugar

There is nothing wrong with enjoying treats and your favorite comfort foods in the fall, but when you over-indulge, it could mean feeling miserable, having no energy, and putting on unwanted pounds.

If you want to try to avoid this and start a new diet in the fall, start with your sugar content. This doesn’t mean natural sugar like in fruit or raw honey, but the refined sugar found in pastries, donuts, cookies, pie, and other baked treats.

Try to keep these to a minimum, saving them for special occasions; it makes them more special and is a good first step to starting a new diet without feeling like you are completely restricting yourself.

7. Use Alternatives to Sweets

One of the main downfalls of the fall season is that it tends to be when you eat more of all those yummy treats. But just because you are trying to be healthier (And possibly working on losing weight), doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy all your favorite fall flavors.

Consider whether there is an alternative to your favorite fall sweets and treats.

If you are a chocolate person, just switch to darker chocolate, as it has more of the antioxidants from cocoa, but less sugar.

When you have a sweet craving, go for fresh fruit first before having something filled with sugar and refined carbohydrates. It just might be enough to curb that craving.

Here are some ideas for turning your fall favorites into healthier versions:

Apple Chips – These are both good for getting that crunch, as well as having something sweet. Slice up apples into thin slices, sprinkle on some cinnamon, and bake until they reach your desired crispness.

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Bread – You can also find quite a few recipes for pumpkin bread that doesn’t use any gluten or flour. In place of the typical flour in bread, they will use rolled oats or similar ingredients. This makes it healthier and great for your friends who are allergic to gluten.

Apple Butter – Buy or make your own apple butter! This is a healthier alternative to regular butter or even nut kinds of butter that are usually heavy with fat.

8. Try Healthy Home Baking

Shop-bought cakes and treats tend to be loaded with sugar and fattening ingredients, not to mention preservatives.

But you can make your own goodies, just as tasty and delicious, if not better. And healthier, of course. All you need to do is make a few simple substitutions.

Here are some ideas of where to start:

Replace Butter with a Healthier Option – Many baked recipes will call for butter, but that doesn’t mean you have to use your full-fat butter! You can reduce the fat and cholesterol by instead using a heart-healthy oil like coconut or canola oil. Many recipes can also use nut butter or ground flax seeds instead.

Use High-Quality Ingredients – While not necessarily good for cutting back calories and fat, the healthier and cleaner your ingredients, the better your baked goods will be for you. For example, use vanilla beans instead of vanilla extract. When adding honey, go for local, raw honey instead of supermarket honey, which is just filled with sugar. Or use brown demerara sugar which contains nutritious molasses.

And if you can’t bake without sugar, why not try natural sweeteners such as stevia or xylitol? It’s indistinguishable in taste from traditional refined sugar and super low in calories.

Disclaimer:

This article was written by Zuzana Halliwell. I am not a doctor or health professional and cannot be held liable for the information written here. This article is meant to provide information about the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. The content is based on my own personal experience and on information provided by medical professionals that is available to the public. It is not intended to provide medical advice. Do not use it as an alternative to seeking help from a medical professional.