College and eating right???

New to this forum...just wondering if there are any college people out there with any advice on how to keep eating right and exercising while in school. I usually try to exercise as much as possible. Seems like my schedule is so crazy tho between running to school and work etc.  My eating is so weird... and then there's those late nights staying up to write papers...I get SO HUNGRY when I'm studying...does anyone else have this problem? :)  Why do I feel like I need to snack while I study.  I really don't want to pick up weight during my college career!! I am not overweight, but wouldn't mind dropping a couple lbs. though just to be healthier :) I do really well on my eating for a couple days, but seems like I can get so tired  and I just don't care.  Any tips??

I know what you're talking about.  If you eat dorm food, then you know most of it is deep fried grease.  There are usually "healthy" foods offered but they might not taste so good.  At my college they do make good deli food at one caf but the rest is oil.  If you don't stay in the dorms then buy groceries, avoid eating out.  Get healthy stuff from your Jewel.  The fruits they sell are much better than those served in a caf.

I tried excercise for many years but got no results because I didn't watch my diet.  You have to remember it takes an hour of jogging to work off two pizza slices.  So never eat after 7pm, always always ALWAYS eat breakfast (cereal w/ canned fruit is my choice), and get sleep so you have energy and motivation.  Just yesterday I came off 4 hour sleep from staying up writing a paper.  I blew off running because of how tired I was.  So yeah, college is hectic, but it's possible to be healthy.  Stay motivated

I commisserate!!!

i'm not in college anymore but boy do i remember those days.. i actually lost my freshman 15 instead of gained (then i wasn't super over weight) by walking everywhere.. the closest store was like 2 miles away and i didn't have a car.. also it didn't help that i thought dorm food was disgusting so i didn't eat it.  Maybe you can keep carrots around to munch on when you are studying.. :)

electromechaneer... i had to laugh at your post when you said go get healty stuff from your jewel.. i KNEW that you had to be from my area.. only northern illinois people call the supermarket "jewel" no matter where they go... haha.. How long have you lived in illinois? 

Hey, Im in college... and this is what a normal day looks like for me:

B- Special K Cereal (my college offers those pre-packaged cups of a variaty of cereals, and the Special K I get is only 140 cals) and 1/2 a thing of skimmed milk (140 calories)
S- Special K Bar (I buy those myself... but my school also sells the strawberry ones) (90 calories)
L- Soup @ Hand (80 calories) *once again bought myself, but if you keep a can handy, and your school sells tomato soup or something.. I know mine does, and it's campbells.. you can always refill when you want and know the amount of cals ur eating*, small salad *bought in the dining center* w/ fat free dressing (80 calories) South Beach Diet Cookie (50 calories) *bought by myself*
S- Natures Valey Granola Bar (90-140 calories) *some bought by myself, my school sells some though too
D- Subway 7 under 6 sandwich or wrap (140-280 calories) or a smart ones/lean cuisine (130-170 calories) *my school has a subway practically in my basement of my dorm I buy the lean cuisines myself* Sugar Free Pudding (60 calories) *bought myself* baby carrots and lite creame cheese or apple and lite creame cheese (75 calories) Lite Lays Chips (75 calories)
S- 100 calorie goldfish (100 calories) *bought by myself


So see, a lot of it I have to buy for myself... but a lot of it my school offers... also your school might offer a grilled chicken sandwich.. those are always pretty decent. Salads are always a good choice.. and fruit... I have a fitness center in the basement of my dorm as well.. and I try to work out an hour-hour 1/2 a day... but sometimes I hate to slpit it up into 2 or 3 seperate workouts because of my schedule

It is HARD to stay healthy and eat healthy in college.. especially since there are so many temptations, but it's possible. Also see if you can meet with a dietitian or nutritionist.. Most college campuses offer one free of charge. Im actually meeting with mine tomorrow morning @ 9.

Hope this helps!

I'm in college too.  I checked out my school food provider's website (ours is Sodexho) and found nutritional info on the foods they serve up at the dining hall- APPALLING!  The foods were so much worse for me than I had realized! 

I live on yogurt, baby carrots, cereal and apples....  I love to go home to my parents' house where I can actually COOK though!

electromechaneer -
You are exactly nine days older than me.

Sally When I was in my first two yrs I gained 75lbs from eatting while studying and not exercising. Over the past three years I have been trying to get that weight off I'm still in college but at a different school. They have salads and subs that are very figure frendly. If I want a snack while studying I will  snack on a bag of lite popcorn. Nature Valley granola bars are good you can get them in crunchy as well as chewy, and I also eat many lean cuisne meals. If you like raw veggies you should keep some cut up so they are quick to grab while studying. I like celerly with reduced fat peanut butter and raisins. (ants on a log) OR even with light ranch without the PB and raisins of course.  

Happy and Health snacking

Does your library open till late? I find it much easier to control my binge snacking when I'm in the midst of other people (and in theory you shouldn't eat in the library anyway) ...

My eating habits were awful back when I was in high school and college. Milk for breakfast, nothing all day long, eat supper and then junk food until I went to bed. When I think about it, it's not wonder I gained weight most of the time.

Anyway, just try to eat regular meals and keep the junk as far from you as possible. If you must nibble, try healthier alternatives to nibble on. Rice cakes, a little fruit, baked chips. Watch your portions and make sure you stop 3 hours before bed.

Good luck :)

I eat alot of my meals at home, but sometimes my school schedule gets in the way, we have a cafeteria that sells all kinds of 'crap food' but I have gotten in good with the lunch ladies and they raise their eyebrows, but give me whole wheat bread, no condiments, and exactly the amount of meat on my meals.  SO try that if you have to eat cafeteria style.  I usually try not to, and just pack something.  Usually if stuck in late night study sessions, I eat power foods, complex carbs, and drink tons of water. 

FINALLY!! I felt like I was the only one struggling with this issue. I eat so healthy and exercise everyday, but it never seemed enough. And then I figured it out... IT'S COLLEGE! I have sorority meetings and there's food, I have study sessions and there's food, I have honor's society meetings and there's food. It's everywhere! But my college is slowly changing the food that they present us with and it's getting easier and eaiser every day!

Another thing I've found tough about college -- there are TONS of people (somehow lots of my friends) who can eat anything they want and stay super skinny.  My weight seems to fluctuate a lot more, and I just feel sooo much bigger than most of my classmates (which, objectively, I think is probably not true...), but it's hard when I'm over at the sorority house, or hanging out with friends, and there's so much junk food.  But, I don't really want to advertise my eating habits because I feel like there's such a stigman about it...sigh...

College and health are interesting, that's for sure. For me, somehow, I've gone backwards though. It's much easier for me to watch what I'm eating and stay under my calorie alotment when I'm at school than it is when I'm at home. I refuse to take any money with me when I go to class, that way I won't stop at the caf or a vending machine between classes. If I know I'll be gone for hours, I pack a few boiled eggs (and eat the whites only), a rice cake, 100 calorie pack, half a sandwich ... somethin like that, to hold me over til I get back from class. I keep mainly healthy food in the fridge and cupboard, and we have an unspoken rule between my roommates and I that we don't eat each others food. SO the temptation of eating someone else's food is not there at all because I know I can't have it, so it's like it's not there. I find it hard to study if I'm eating ... somethin' about the lack of concentration gets screwy. But if you find it hard to NOT snack and eat ... don't make it available to yourself ... OR get something healthy that won't tack on a ton of calories. Though I haven't been able to do it in WEEKS do to exams and such, I LOVE to swim in the rec center's olympic sized pool. I've gotten up past a mile a day, 4 days a week. I miss it horribly and won't get to go back for another 2 weeks (4 exams in the next 2 weeks). Anyway ... good luck to you, I hope you find a happy medium with your college career and getting healthy.

~Christina

I'm so glad i found this thread. I just posted another in the Weight Loss section. I just joined today. It's good to see other college students who are able to stay healthy while in college. When I started school I weighed 101 ... gained 15, lost 20, then gained 40. So over a period of 4 years my net gain is 35 lbs.

Is everyone as mentally stable about their weight gain though? I'm wondering because half the time I want to hole myself up in my room to avoid going out in public, and when I do, it's in my uniform of sweat pants and sweat shirt.

I too am so glad I've found this board... I live at the college dorms but luckily I'll be moving back home for the summer in just a few weeks. The dorm food they have here is really terrible, but I've generally learned how to navigate my way around the place to find the best stuff for me. The only problem is that they ALWAYS have desserts out-- no matter what time of day... I've only been doing c-c for about two weeks now so it's still kind of difficult for me to stay away from that cookie or that piece of cheesecake that's just sitting there calling my name. What can I do to fight the temptations of these desserts? Somebody please help me!

I just graduated from college last spring, and also had a difficult time with the college food thing.  I lived in a dorm my first 2 years, and ate at the cafeteria (run by Sodexho, also).  The food was good, but somehow never fulfilling.  Therefore, I often went back for more. Or something else.  Something crunchy or something sweet.  I'm not sure what it was - maybe just the taste of mass produced food.  It's just not the same as homemade, so there's still a craving for something you aren't getting.  Maybe :-)  Yeah, there were always salad fixings, but the same salad every day gets just as old as everything else!  Even the sandwiches, supposedly another 'healthy' choice, had more meat on them than I would normally use in a week!

Anyway.  It's tough.  Like everyone else, I suggest going to the grocery store and buying snacks you know you like, and that don't taste mass produced! 

Good luck to everyone!  Enjoy your time in school, for I have discovered working full time is much different!!! :-)

here's my two cents; never eat breakfast. I know it sounds ludicrous, especially as we love to tout how it's "the most important meal of the day." don't let it fool you, it's bullshit. Just think to yourself, how many times do you really get HUNGRY at 7am? I sure as hell don't, so why eat if you're not hungry? If you really want something in the morning, have a little coffee or tea. But wait until after your first class to eat, say, at 11. Your hunger will be kicked in, and not only will the food taste better but you'll enjoy it and appreciate it more. AND, you'll already be 5 hours ahead of yourself in terms of calories.  One other tip--stay away from chips.

Think about the word breakfast. Break it in 2. Break. Fast. It's the first meal after about a 10-hour fast (give or take), it's meant to break that fast, and get your metabolism going for the day. It's not really goin' until you've given it some energy (food) to do so with. You really don't want to skip breakfast.

i also get hungry when i am studying and i think it's for two reasons. firstly, sometimes i am actually hungry because studying does use up energy! but a lot of the time i am just looking for something to distract myself with so i go cook something and eat when i am not really that hungry at all. i'm not sure what your living situation is. but i would suggest trying to cook as much food as you can. what i find really useful is cooking things in big batches, such as vegetable chilli or something, and then freezing it. this means that you always have something healthy that you can just heat up if you're feeling lazy or don't have enough time to cook. another tip would be making something such as brown rice salad that you can keep in the fridge and put in tupperware and take with you to eat on the way to work or lectures. i find that this really helps me because it really saves time if you cook in larger quantities and freeze or refridgerate some for later. as for snacks i would suggest something like carrots or dried apricots to have near you to snack on. also, try to have a big bottle of water next to you while you are studying, and just keep drinking constantly. it's a great way to make sure you are drinking enough! hope this helps and good luck!

Personally, I'm one of those people that breakfast helps. (If I have to eat really early, I'll have an apple or an orange or 1/2 a grapefruit - something around 60-80 calories) which turns on my metabolism and keeps me from binging at lunch. If I don't have breakfast, I find that my blood sugar low kicks in around lunch time, and then I feel I have to gorge myself- not conducive to maintaining a healthy weight.

The dorm/college dining hall problem has plagued me as well - being locked into certain hours doesn't work, because then I can only eat when I'm not hungry at all or when I'm starving. I've maintained a pretty constant weight over the past 2 years of school, gaining only a few (like 3-4) lbs during the semester and then going home for winter or summer and losing that and then some. I've found that for me, its best to keep healthy snacks around so that my blood sugar levels don't vascillate - I'm not diabetic or hypoglycemic, but if I don't eat properly, I end up getting so hungry that I end up binging. I go to a Sodexho school as well.... It's not the worst but it's certainly not the healthiest. I've learned to sneak out an apple or orange from the dining hall for between-meal snacks, since they don't exactly offer the healthiest ones. I relish my summers and winters when I can eat healthy, normally, and not have to worry about hidden calories, salt, and chemicals in grease, sugar, preservatives, and other nasty things that I have no control over. And, I get through the $2000/ semester meal plan requirement by telling myself that I'll only be here for another year and a half, so I have to choose small portions and eat a lot of salads to make up for the richness of the food.