Fall Equinox & Eating with the Season

🍂 Eating with the Season

Last night we officially entered the fall equinox.

Fall has always been my favorite season—and the kids’ too. They’re both fall babies, so maybe that’s part of the reason this season has always felt extra special in our family.

I love the cooler mornings, changing leaves, football, cozy evenings, birthdays, and just the feeling that comes with this time of year.

And this year, I’m really looking forward to letting the season influence what we’re eating.

We’ve been designed for rhythm.

I’ve been thinking a lot about how naturally we move through the seasons of the year, while our food can stay pretty much the same all year long. There’s something about the equinox that reminds me to pause and pay attention to what is changing around us.

The days are getting shorter.
The air is changing.
And here in Georgia, our local produce is changing, too.

There’s something beautiful about remembering that we were created within these rhythms. Our bodies are part of this same creation—designed with incredible systems of repair, adaptation, and renewal, and constantly responding to the world around us.

Maybe part of caring well for the bodies God gave us is simply learning to pay attention to those rhythms and work with them rather than against them.

Seasonal eating is a fun way to hit 30 plants.

In my last post, I shared my goal of getting 30 different plants in 7 days. I think seasonal eating is such a fun way to make that happen.

Instead of buying the same fruits and vegetables week after week, we can let the season introduce us to something new.

If you haven’t printed the 30 Plants in 7 Days challenge sheet, print it out and put it somewhere you’ll see it. Use it as inspiration to add something different to your plate—a new green, a different squash, a seasonal fruit, fresh herbs, or something you’ve never tried before.

I’m ready to play in the kitchen again.

And honestly, I’m hoping fall helps me get out of a little cooking rut. 😂

I think the kids are getting a little burnt out on some of our usual meals too, so I’m taking that as my cue to shake things up.

I’m not looking to completely change how we eat. Our meals will still be protein-forward, but I want to change up what I’m putting around that protein.

Think:

• roasted sweet potatoes

• winter squash

• hearty greens

• apples & pears

• pecans

• fresh herbs

• warming spices

Foods that feel like fall—and make me actually want to cook again.

I’m looking forward to trying new recipes, playing around with different combinations, and hopefully finding a few new family favorites along the way.

And when we find something that’s a hit around our table, I’ll be sure to share it!

This is another piece of ROOTED.

This idea of eating with the seasons is another piece of what I’m exploring as I continue to build out the ROOTED approach.

The more I work on it, the more I’m drawn back to the foundations of health—nourishing our bodies well, paying attention to our environment, and recognizing that our bodies were created with the ability to adapt, repair, and continually move toward balance.

It doesn’t have to be complicated.

Sometimes it might simply mean noticing what’s growing around us, bringing something seasonal home from the market, or putting a new vegetable on the dinner table.

So here’s to fall. 🍂

To our two fall babies.
To trying something new.
To gathering around the table.
To adding a few more plants to our 30.
And to getting excited about cooking again!

What If You Ate 30 Different Plants Every Week?

What if your goal this week wasn’t to eat less—but to eat more variety?

One of the simplest changes you can make for your health is also one of the easiest to overlook:

Eat 30 different plants each week.

Not 30 servings.
Not 30 new recipes.
30 different plants.

An apple counts once. Blueberries count once. Broccoli counts once. So do spinach, avocado, carrots, walnuts, chia seeds, garlic, cinnamon, and lentils.

Why 30?

Research from the American Gut Project found that people who reported eating 30 or more different plant foods each week tended to have a more diverse gut microbiome than those eating fewer than 10. And newer research continues to support the idea that both the amount and diversity of fruits and vegetables influence the gut microbiome.

But I don't think the story stops at your gut.

Your cells need variety, too.

I’ve been reading Heal Your Cells by Dr. Will Cole and Dr. Josh Axe, and one of the ideas that keeps coming back to me is this:

Health begins at the cellular level.

Their new book focuses on cellular function, inflammation, mitochondrial health, nutrition, and the idea that we need to move upstream and support the body at its foundation—not simply chase symptoms.

And one of the most practical ways we can do that is through the food we eat.

Every plant comes with its own unique combination of vitamins, minerals, fiber, polyphenols, antioxidants, and other phytonutrients.

Blueberries aren't broccoli.
Broccoli isn't garlic.
Garlic isn't an avocado.
And spinach isn't a pomegranate.

They each bring something different to the table.

So instead of obsessing over whether one particular food is the ultimate "superfood," what if we simply started eating a greater variety of whole foods?

This is where Jordan Rubin's message fits beautifully.

Jordan Rubin has spent decades talking about food as part of God's design for health—returning to nutrient-dense, whole foods and nourishing the body rather than simply trying to suppress symptoms.

His current work emphasizes the connection between healthy soil, nutrient-dense plants, the gut, and the body's ability to thrive. He also frequently emphasizes colorful plants, cruciferous vegetables, berries, herbs, spices, and other plant foods as sources of compounds that support the body's natural repair and defense systems.

That idea resonates deeply with me:

We weren't designed to eat the same five foods over and over again.

We were designed to eat from a garden.

So let's make this ridiculously practical.

You don't need to completely overhaul your diet.

Just start keeping a little tally.

For example:

Monday

• Eggs + spinach

• Blueberries

• Avocado

• Broccoli

• Sweet potato

• Garlic

• Apple

That's already 7 different plants.

Add walnuts and chia seeds to your breakfast.

Add carrots and arugula to lunch.

Have roasted Brussels sprouts and a few raspberries with dinner.

Suddenly you're at 12–15 without doing anything complicated.

By the end of the week, you may be surprised how quickly you get to 30.

And here's the part I really want you to remember:

You don't have to eat perfectly to eat well.

Frozen vegetables count.

Fresh vegetables count.

Herbs and spices count.

Different colors count.

A handful of berries counts.

A few tablespoons of seeds count.

You don't need an exotic superfood from another country.

Start with what you already love—and then add a little more variety.

Think color. Think diversity. Think whole foods.

Your ROOTED Challenge

This is one of the practices I'm beginning to incorporate into what I'm working toward as my ROOTED approach to health.

I'm still developing the framework, and I'll be sharing more about it with you in the months ahead.

But at its heart, ROOTED is about getting back to the foundations of health:

real food, nourishment, movement, connection, and living in alignment with the way our bodies were designed.

And this is a simple place to start:

Can you eat 30 different plant foods this week?

To make it easy, I've created a printable 30 Plants a Week chart you can put right on your refrigerator. Keep a pen nearby and add each new plant as you eat it throughout the week. There's something surprisingly motivating about watching that list grow!

And don't worry if you don't hit 30 the first week.

If you normally eat 10 different plants and you get to 18, that's progress.

If you get to 25, celebrate it.

The goal isn't perfection.

The goal is to give your gut, your cells, and your body more of the raw materials they need to thrive.

And if you're thinking, "Okay, Amber, I love this idea, but I have no idea how to actually get 30 plants into my week,"that's exactly the kind of thing I want to help you with.

Sometimes we don't need more information.

We just need a little handholding and a simple plan.

So print the chart, stick it on your fridge, and start keeping track.

One simple practice. One week at a time.

And stay tuned—I'll be sharing more about what I'm building with ROOTED soon.