Filling in for Ray D'Arcy on RTÉ Radio 1, Ciara King sat down with Fitness Expert Karl Henry to get some tips for getting yourself sorted as the seasons change. Listen back above.
As we enter the final weeks of August, many of us are preparing to get 'back to normal' whether that means wrapping up any summer holidays or festival plans or getting the kids organised to get back to school.
September can be a prime month for setting a reset on our lives as we scramble out of our relaxed summer routines.
"It's a great time to reset and get well and to get healthy," says Karl. "Using maybe Christmas, dare I mention it, as a goal is a really tangible 12-week timeframe that you can make really good realistic changes. September is a lovely time to do it."
To get started, Karl recommends breaking things down into four sections: sleep, food, movement and stress responses.
"Each element of that little jigsaw is what you need to focus on when it comes to your overall wellness," he explains, noting that all these things will contribute to long-term health.
"Quick fixes are never a good thing," he notes, adding that we should all look at the areas where we need to change and make manageable and realistic changes rather than "big scary ones".
"Small changes over the course of time are much more beneficial and they're much easier to do for people too."
Small changes could be anything as simple as parking further away in the carpark so that you get a few extra steps on your way to work or coming to work with a packed lunch or scheduling 20-minutes of movement in the evening.
And while it's tempting to leave all these healthy changes to Monday, Karl insists that Sunday is a better time to get your preparation and planning started.
When you're organising the week ahead, always come back to the 'why' of it all. Why do you want to make these changes? How will they benefit you? Are those reasons enough of a motivation?
"That 'why' has to be greater than all the challenges that come your way, so it needs to be very deep-rooted, sincere, genuine reason that you want to make the changes that you want to make."
"Life is too short to do exercise that you hate," Karl adds. "So don't go to that early morning spin class if you hate spinning and you hate early mornings because guess what? It's not going to work."
Post-COVID, there are a huge amount of at-home workouts available online as well as in person so be sure to shop around and find a class that will challenge and entertain you.
If you hate the gym, why put on your dancing shoes and try a salsa class? If you're not feeling motivated, give a hiking group a go and make some friends while you get your steps in. The possibilities are endless.
For more tips on getting ready for a September reset, listen back above.
