Gimme a "D," gimme an "I," gimme an "E," gimme a "T!" What's that spell?

Alas, the summer is over.  This morning, I thought I hard the faint cry of joy from parents around the state as their children boarded big yellow buses and trudged into red brick school buildings, adorned in their thoughtfully chosen "first day" outfits, faces scrubbed shiny, hair combed to perfection--full of high hopes and optimism, nervous excitement, dread, and maybe just a dash of fear.  Ah, the first day...

Well my first day was last week, so I'm already over it.  But my friend Laurie had a mournful Facebook post the other night, that caused me to reflect on the meaning of "autumn"--the resounding start of Fall.  

Laurie's post read as follows, "Goodbye thick, wonderful shakes from the Sinclair Grill. Goodbye turtle sundae's from the Whippy Dip. Goodbye Dove bars and Hagen Daze caramel pretzel bars. It was a salacious relationship. Goodbye Doritoes, Cheetos, and all manner of cookies from the training sessions. Goodbye pasta in so many forms. It was a delicious summer, but now to the wonderful veggies and fruits of the season, unadorned and healthy. Sounds like a plan..."

She's right.  Summer is filled with a certain carelessness for nutrition, a high probability of "ice cream for dinner"-type nights, and the ability to put things off until tomorrow.  However, with Fall comes a renewed attentiveness to schedules, duty, and the restricting clothes of careerism.  Along with which comes the often unfortunate reminder of summer gluttony, in the form of a little extra jiggle in your wiggle and a perhaps uncomfortable snugness to your favorite pair of Levis.  

In honor of full disclosure, I will fully admit to falling off (way off) the nutrition bandwagon over the last few weeks.  As summer came crashing to an end, work loads increased, and classes wreaked havoc on the carefree schedule (or lack thereof) of summer, I have found myself eating a whole lot of whatever too, without too much thought as to what, when, or how much.  And while I've felt the repercussions of my actions, not so much in the fit of my clothing, but rather in my insides, I felt "too busy" to get back to the healthy lifestyle I strive to live.

Laurie's post made me think of two important things in relation to the summer nutritional holocaust that is the life of Average America. Foremost, one should enjoy the last hurrahs of summer--one last lick of the delicious soft serve at the Merrill Dairy Bar...One last dip in the pool, despite the chill in the air, and the suspicious crunch of leaves underfoot...One final summer bbq, fresh corn on the cob drenched in butter and salt.  After all, summer is meant to be relished.  

Secondarily, one should never fall back on the "too busy" excuse to live a healthy life.  It was that very excuse that led me to steadily gain weight over the last ten years until I finally came to the realization that, at 30, I was far too young with far too much life left to live to be that out of shape and unhealthy.  Without a doubt, everyone has a half hour a day to dedicate to some form of exercise--people waste that much time and more on Facebook every day.  Life does get in the way of healthy routines--and the best of us fall back to our old ways--I'm not different from anyone else.  Living this life isn't easy, but it's worth it.

So now that the kids are back in school, schedules will start falling into place,

and healthy routines will adjust.  Dust yourself off, get back on the wagon, and start again.  The sooner the better--but enjoy those last few tastes of summer freedom before they give way to Fall's Friday night football games and work weeks filled with meetings.  The Merrill Dairy Bar closes after next weekend--for months and months!--Get a cone and savor the late afternoon warmth of the autumn sun on your shoulders.  The thought may just help get you through a few cold December mornings--as you pull on your compression pants and lace up your running shoes.