As the summer comes to an end in the Sonoran Desert, we welcome the lower temperatures with open arms and bid a bittersweet adios to the monsoon rains. The coming season is one of connection, peace and balance. Autumn poses a wonderful opportunity to reflect and recommit to your health and wellness.

Here are four simple tips to help optimize health and carry you through the season feeling your best:

1. Stay Hydrated- This may sound like a tip that carried over from the summer. However, the changing temperatures and activities will also shift how we stay hydrated. We may find ourselves not reaching for that tall glass of ice water this season. That’s OK! Try starting the day a warm lemon water and hot cups of herbal tea throughout the day. For those going back to school or work, make sure you’re equipped with a refillable water bottle or cup with a straw to sip on throughout your day.

2. Eat In Season- Focus on adding fruits and veggies that are in season throughout the fall. Nourishing fall foods include: dark leafy greens, beets, garlic, pumpkin, squash, apples, pears, grapes, figs. These foods will be highest in nutrients this season and can help build and maintain healthy immune function.

3. Rest- We place so much value in being productive that at times rest can seem like a waste of time. Challenge yourself to value rest, as it makes everything else you do possible. Consider an early bedtime preceded with a calming routing of a warm bath, reading, light stretching. journaling or meditation. This routine helps to downregulate the nervous system for better sleep, leaving you feeling balanced and recharged the next day.

4. Release- It’s the perfect time of year to take inventory and release what is no longer serving you. What do you need to release to bring things back into balance? Freeing clutter from your home, releasing bad habits, dropping toxic relationships and cleaning the colon will help avoid stagnation and support wellness this season.