Midlife Summer Rhythms
Early morning fog layer saves my life some days
Summer feels so different in midlife than it did in my twenties.
I remember so many days spent oscillating between excited, social, summer fun in the sun and a deep need for recovery and rest only after my body was screaming at me with inflammation and exhaustion. But wait, it’s sunny and warm and fun is calling! Alas, we do need rest sometimes too.
These days, I notice my body responds better to less intensity and more to grounding rhythms. More to hydration, sleep, nourishing food, movement that regulates instead of depletes, and enough spaciousness to actually enjoy the season I’m living through. I notice my kids thrive similarly, although they certainly have more range than me!
Warm summer nights are my favorite
Summer brings forward themes of EXPANSION, VITALITY, and CONNECTION. Longer days and increased light often invite us outward — toward community, movement, travel, creativity, and fuller expression of the lives we’ve been slowly building through the cooler seasons. But summer also asks us to balance all that outward energy with rest, nourishment, and nervous system support.
Inspired by the seasonal wisdom explored in Do Less by Kate Northrup & Yoga’s Sister Science, Ayurveda, summer can be a beautiful time to focus less on constant striving and more on enjoying, maintaining, and living inside what we’ve already created. This season invites us to move in ways that feel energizing instead of depleting, nourish ourselves with lighter seasonal foods, spend more time outdoors, and create rhythms that help us stay grounded even amidst the fullness of summer life.
I’ve found there are so many little ways to enjoy the spirit of summer without emptying our tanks. The following are some gentle reminders for enjoying summer without the excess burnout.
Summer Movement: Less Burn, More Support
Summer is the opportunity to practice moving slower and with less intensity than you might usually do. Think: more sauntering strolls, less uphill hikes; more restoring yoga postures, less heated vinyasa; more meandering bike rides, less movement in the heat of the day. It’s not that you have to give up the things you love, but perhaps there is room for bringing a calmer, cooler quality to it. I’m beginning to trust the kind of movement that leaves me feeling clearer at dinner instead of flattened on the couch by 4pm.
Summer demands long walks
Some favorite ideas:
walking at sunrise
swimming
slower strength work
restorative or yin yoga
barre with lower intensity
hiking in cooler temps
Some favorite yoga / barre moves for summer:
legs up wall
supine twist
bridge pose
wide-legged folds
slow sun salutations
grounding barre squats
calf raises
balance work
As a movement lover, it’s hard to adjust to a slower pace sometimes but I find it’s a little easier to notice and embrace the summer produce bounty.
Summer Nourishment: Cooling, Simpler, Fresher
Farmer’s market tomatoes are food for your soul
Summer is a lovely time to enjoy more fresh, seasonal produce that nourishes, hydrates, and cools the body. Focus on produce that’s in season like juicy tomatoes, sweet corn, zucchini, fresh herbs, stone fruits, berries, melons, and cooling cucumbers.
These foods are packed with vitamins, naturally refreshing during the hotter months, and can help support energy without feeling overly heavy. Summer often invites us toward simpler meals and lighter rhythms — big salads, grilled vegetables, fresh fruit, smoothies, yogurt bowls, easy protein, outdoor meals, and foods that feel satisfying without requiring a lot from digestion.
In Ayurveda, summer is associated with Pitta — the fire element. When that fire becomes excessive, it can show up as irritability, inflammation, overheating, skin flare-ups, exhaustion, digestive upset, or simply feeling “fried” from too much stimulation, heat, or activity. Summer nourishment can help balance that intensity by emphasizing cooling, hydrating, grounding foods and softer routines around eating.
In general, think about simplifying and freshening your meals in both quantity and quality. Favor foods that feel cooling, colorful, hydrating, and easy to digest rather than overly heavy, greasy, spicy, or intensely processed foods that can add more heat to an already hot season.
Some favorite summer foods and ideas:
Cooling Seasonal Produce
Try freezing and blending the watermelon for a slushie
Focus on sweet, bitter, and astringent foods while minimizing pungent, salty, spicy foods to help balance internal heat, intensity, and a sharp metabolism. Think cooling and grounding foods. Enjoy watermelon, cucumbers, peaches, nectarines, berries, mint, basil, tomatoes, zucchini, leafy greens, avocado, and fresh herbs - they all feel especially supportive this time of year. I can’t wait for the first tomatoes of the season for making caprese salads or topping grilled burgers. There is nothing like watermelon eaten barefoot outside, my kids simply inhale it all summer. Simple salads with fresh herbs such as a greek inspired cucumber tomato feta salad just tastes like summer to me.
Simple Protein & Fresh Meals
Summer nourishment doesn’t have to mean skipping protein or blood sugar support. Try to eat your sweeter foods after vegetables and proteins and walk after meals to help with blood sugar regulation. I love lighter meals like grilled salmon with vegetables, simple chicken or tofu salads, shrimp scampi zoodles, or fresh tacos loaded with crunchy slaw and avocado.
Cooling Herbs & Flavor
Fresh mint, cilantro, basil, dill, and parsley can add brightness and digestive support without feeling overly heating. Citrus, cucumber, yogurt sauces, and lighter dressings can also help meals feel fresher and easier during hot weather.
Hydration & Rhythm
Hydration becomes even more important during summer, especially for active bodies and busy nervous systems. Water, electrolytes, herbal iced teas, coconut water, and slowing down enough to actually sit and eat can all become part of supporting energy and recovery this season.
Summer nourishment doesn’t have to be rigid or “perfect.” Sometimes it’s simply learning to notice what helps the body feel lighter, steadier, and cooler during this fuller, brighter season of life. Movement, nourishment, and nervous system inputs are a powerful trifecta for feeling grounded and vibrant this summer season.
Summer Nervous System Support
Is there anything better than toes in water on a hot summer day? I think not.
Keeping a nervous system support routine is critical during the summer season which can lead to overstimulation, social overload, and disrupted routines. The following are some of my preferred ways to keep my nervous system stable during the long summer days:
Rhythmic cooling movement like morning walks, hikes, and bike rides
Grounding inputs such as slower, more controlled strength training and yoga
Sensory comforts like warm or cool (not overly hot) baths, cozy, light clothes, and (moderate) sunlight on your skin
Calming, cool environments with less clutter, fresh air, and plenty of light
Daily rhythms such as morning sunlight, regular, lighter meals, and consistent evening wind down
Supportive summer nourishment that’s fresh and stabilizes blood sugar
A steady nervous system is less about perfection and more about a lot of little efforts made consistently. No matter where my summer days take me, I can usually get in a long stroll, quiet moment, and a meal outside and that’s often enough to help me feel grounded.
Less Hot Babe, More Regulated Momma Summer
Fireworks view from Mackinaw Island, Michigan
Maybe summer wellness doesn’t need to look like chasing the “best shape of our lives.” My life doesn’t magically get better based on my body weight or belly size. Some of my best memories are from chubby eras of my life. I want to show my kids and the world what a strong, confident, vibrant midlife adult looks like. I am learning.
Maybe summer wellness, hell, anytime wellness, can look more like protecting energy, staying connected to reasonable movement, eating real foods that help us feel alive, getting outside, sleeping deeply, laughing with people we love, and creating enough spaciousness to actually enjoy the gift of being on this little blue marble one more sunny season.