A Sneaky Reason Eating Well Feels So Hard

If I'm honest, I mourn the end of summer every single year. Longer days, looser schedule, and spending time at my happy place with my toes in the sand. September shows up and there's a big part of me that isn’t ready to let summer go.

But fall has its own perks…soup and chili season, the crunch of leaves beneath my feet when I’m out on the trails, that unmistakable fresh scent in the air, my favorite jeans and cozy sweater back in rotation, and pumpkin spice everything. And another thing I love about fall is the predictable rhythm to the day.

One thing that helps me through the transition period, which can sometimes feel overwhelming, is simplifying my routine. And a big part of that is reducing the number of daily decisions I have to make. Decision fatigue is no joke.

The reality is we make thousands of decisions every day…when to wake up, when to wake the kids up, what to wear, the best route to work, which tasks to tackle today versus which ones can wait, who's driving to practice, what time you need to leave work to make it home in time to get there, the list goes on and on.

And the more choices piled in front of us, the harder it is to make a decision. Psychologists call it "choice overload," a term originally coined in the 70’s by Alvin Toffler. Food is a prime example, we're making decisions about it constantly (when to eat, what to eat, what to buy, how to make it) multiple times a day, every day, whether we have the bandwidth for it or not.

The trick is to establish some default food options ahead of time that can fit seamlessly into your routine. Here are a few examples:

• Breakfast, have two options on standby: for example, Greek yogurt parfait with berries and a sprinkle of slivered almonds or scrambled (or hard-boiled) eggs with whole wheat toast and a piece of fruit. Rotate between them, don't reinvent it daily.

• Fiber, keep it handy: Berries pack a real fiber punch, 3-4 grams per cup for strawberries and blueberries and up to 8 grams for raspberries and blackberries. Keep a container in the fridge alongside some precut veggies at eye level, some pears or apples on the counter (4-5 grams each), frozen "steam-in-the-bag" veggies for the nights you've got 15 minutes and a half-formed dinner plan, and popcorn instead of chips in the pantry. Fiber keeps you fuller longer and your digestive system humming, but it's easy to skip when it's not at your fingertips.

• A big batch of “go-to” protein for the week: Rotisserie chicken, shredded crockpot taco-seasoned chicken, turkey meatballs…something you can add to a salad, veggies, or other sides to make a quick meal when you don't have a plan.

None of this requires a new app, a Pinterest worthy meal plan, or a Sunday spent in the kitchen. Just a few food options at the ready, so you can fuel your body in a way that serves you.

If you want help figuring out your own specific defaults, ones that actually fit your fall schedule and help you feel better in your body, I have single session openings this month. Grab your session here.