As we head swiftly into the cooler weather and shorter days, food becomes more of a focus as we often start to crave warming sustenance. So, what are the top 5 energy boosting foods to eat for Autumn?
Eating in season as you may have heard in Episode 2 of season 1 of the Nourishing Lives Podcast is really important (think fresh figs, beetroot and kale as examples for Autumn). Equally, ensuring we are getting as much as we possibly can from our foods and then supplementing as needed is really important to ensure we stay well and full of energy in this gorgeous season. Below are five top foods to include in your ‘day of eating’
- Cruciferous Vegetables – Excellent as a source of fibre, minerals and vitamins. Broccoli, Cauliflower, Sprouts, Kale etc. are really important. INSPIRATION - steam as a side dish and drizzle with tahini and a pinch of salt and ground cumin, or toss broccoli into a stir-fry with some organic chicken, peppers and serve over cauliflower rice topped with toasted cashew nuts. Or make a soup, you can find an excellent recipe HERE.
- Herbal Teas – As it gets cooler we can forget to hydrate. Our skin dries out as a result and our digestive system suffers. Staying hydrated is really important, so increasing herbal tea intake, or even drinking large mugs of warm water can help with this. Avoid drinking ice-cold water where possible.
- Omega’s! Taking a cold pressed linseed oil, or fish oil is key as well as including fresh ground linseed, whole chia seeds, sesame seeds (or tahini), sunflower seeds and nuts into your diet. Oily small fish are also a great way to include essential fatty acids into your diet (try this lovely meal from Craving & Cauliflowers). This one is important year-round, but in cooler weather our body requires insulation to stay warm, as well as keeping our skin from drying out. Omega 3 & 6 are critical for this. Important to note here that these should be sourced from cold-pressed sources and have at least double the Omega 3 content to Omega 6 content. Avoid any treated seed oils as these are toxic for the body. INSPIRATION - I love tahini as a rich source of good fats, protein and calcium. Drizzled on top of salads, cooked vegetables or as a dip. A quick dip is tahini mixed with squeeze lemon juice or apple cider vinegar, pinch of salt and cumin, and thinned down with some water (you can even add in some nutritional yeast to make it ‘cheesy’.
- Good Fats. Including good sources of healthy fats helps to keep us full. Avocados are a rich source of fibre and anti-inflammatory compounds. Macadamia, walnuts and almonds are also excellent to include as a snack or an extra to your meals (instead of loading up on beige carbs). Tahini (see the tips above) and Almond Butter! And finally MCT oil, this can be added to breakfast or into energy balls to help boost energy and move your body into burning fat for fuel rather than sugar (carbs).
- Spices with your Autumn Vegetables. A lot of autumn veggie’s are slightly more carb heavy. They are made to increase fat on animals/humans before the winter where food abundance is less (or prepare for hibernation in the case of animals). Cinnamon (try our Keto Cinnamon Nut Butter Cup recipe!) is an excellent spice to add to these ‘root veges’ as it helps to balance blood sugars/insulin levels. Additionally, adding in turmeric daily can help support our immune system, why not get some super sleep with our Turmeric Mylk recipe? So, when cooking those more ‘hearty’ dishes, be mindful to add in a good amount of spices to add these benefits and assist your digestive system in ensuring excellent gut health (the key to exceptional health and mind!)