In college and could use some advice

Hi! This is my first post here on the forums, and I was just wondering if anyone had any advice for me. I'm 20 years old, currently a junior at college, 5'2" and anywhere between 168-175lbs. Not great, but better than where I started. My problem is with living on campus and trying to figure out how to eat healthy.

I know HOW to eat healthy (fruits, veggies, small portions, etc) but I'm finding it really difficult to keep up with at school. For one thing, our cafeteria is terrible. They post nutritional facts, which is good, but their serving sizes are impossible to determine. If the sign says "230 calories per 6oz" or something, I have no idea if what they scoop into my plate is more or less than 6 oz, you know? And they rarely ever serve healthy options (for example, lunch today was Chilli-Cheese Macaroni and Cheese ). We do have a salad bar, but that doesn't stay very consistent, and I also find that just a salad for lunch isn't enough to keep me going the rest of the day. We have a deli bar as well, which is what I've been using lately, but there's not a lot of variety there.

I also have a kitchen, but can only go grocery shopping once a month. I cook when I can, but my refridgerator isn't large enough to hold a lot, so I can't cook meals that last longer than a few days.

Another problem, aside from not knowing how much I've eaten and how many calories, etc, is that I have no idea how to log some of these things on the site.

So, how can I keep up with Calorie Count and weight loss, if I have no idea what calories I am eating or how to log them? I don't expect to lose a lot, since my exercise routine is not exactly an option now that I'm back to school, but I'd like to keep losing a pound or so a week, or at least maintain where I am. Any advice? Or should I just suck it up and stick to salad?

Here's some tips from a busy student.

McDonalds Grill Chicken wrap with no cheese or sauce is 190 calories. It's like $1.50 and sometimes I'm so broke I only have 2 bucks on me so this is a win.They serve side salads and yogurt that makes a good snack or mini-meal paired with the Wrap.

Canned stuff might help with the space problem. Low calorie soup, unsweetened corn, green beans, and whatnot.

I prepare sandwiches too when I know I wont be able to get a ride to Mickey D's for my quick fix. Whole wheat bread, tomatoes, lettuce, mustard (no calories!) and chicken slices. Cut up a green apple into slices, mix it with grapes and cut up bananas for a snack.

I hate my school's cafe too, for a tiny pint of milk they charge $1.50. It's cheaper to buy stuff in bulk and bringing it in.

That's all I got for now, maybe I'll remeber more later.

Thanks for the feedback! I'm never sure what to eat when friends want to go for late-night fixes, so I usually just miss out. I'll be sure to try the Wrap+salad next time

Hi there!  While I have graduated and am not currently in college, I hope I can share some advice that I learned along the way!  I was in school for five years - undergraduate for four (2000-2004) and a grad program for one more (finally finished it all in September 2005).  I have since been in the "real world" working full-time.

I see that you mention that your exercise routine is not exactly an option -- I have to warn you that by committing to NOT working out, you are setting yourself up for failure.  You need to develop those habits now, because TRUST ME, it will be a lot harder after you graduate.

When I was in school, I made a promise to myself to work out on a semi-regular basis, but my eating habits were not always 100% on par (that pizza and beer every weekend can really do a lot of harm!) ... looking back, I realize that I could have reached my weight loss goals if I had focused on BOTH working out and eating healthy.  It is not a "one or the other" option; I am now realizing that.

As far as healthy eating options ... my general rule of thumb is to eat "basic" food.  Calorie Count will be able to accurately tell you how many calories are in an apple, a slice of cheese, a piece of bread, etc., but you are correct in that you run into difficulties when you order the "main dish" offering in the cafeteria.  So I'd say your best bet is to avoid it!

I know it can be extremely difficult to focus on weight loss in college, and I wish you the best of luck.  Hang in there, and always keep your goals in mind!

If your college has a "free" cafeteria, included in the dorm fees (mine did, but that was 10+ years ago so I don't know if that's standard now or if it even was then), use the cafeteria salad bar to get your vegetables and fruit and you can get dairy there too. The eggs served with breakfast are nutritionally safe, and they'll usually serve some kind of vegetable. Stick with foods that are mainly one ingredient - this will generally be the side dishes - and avoid the casseroles, bakes, and other thrown-together things with multiple unknown ingredients.

Keep non-perishable items on hand in your room. Canned goods, tofu in shelf-safe packs, tuna fish, etc. If you eat grain-based food, buy 100% whole-grain bread, not white or "wheat" not labeled 100% because it's usually just white bread with a little extra stuff added. You can freeze bread to keep it edible for a month.

Thanks guys! I'll try all of these tips and see if they help at all.

@kb206000

Would you have any tips on how to mesh excersize with school? The only reason I say my workout routine isn't an option is because of time. I know, I know...lame excuse. But I am a studio art major, taking 3 studio classes at once. At any given time, any one of those three classes can consume 8-12 hours of my time, and that's not even including the actual attending of class. I'm not sedentary while at school. I try to walk 30 minutes a day, and no less than 15 minutes per day. I have a bike on campus that I ride when I can; we were just hit hard with an ice storm, though, so that hasn't really been an option lately. The only time I can make it to the gym is about 10 minutes before they close for the evening; I can do about a mile on the treadmill before they close, but that's it. I bought a Tae bo Boot Camp dvd at a garage sale, and I'm going to start it soon, but I just have a real hard time trying to balance everything out.

there is a tool on here where you can type in your goal weight and it will tell you the number of calories you need a day. The more protein you eat the more full you will feel and you will have the energy to work out. your campus should have a free gym for students. Switch to fat free milk, mayo. Write down everything you put into your body and log it in here. Diet sodas won't help you lose weight. try crystal light or ocean spray packs to go. You pour these in bottled water and they have 5 calories no sugar. The more water you drink, the more full you feel and the more weight you will lose. snack on healthy low calorie things throughout the day to keep your metabolism up. Cardio is what burns fat.

Exercise doesn't have to involve the gym.  If you're walking and biking a lot, you're getting good exercise.  If you can find the time to do that DVD, even better!

I'm not in school anymore, but I remember exactly what it was like.  I was a chem major, so every semester I had four or five hardcore science courses (after first year, that meant three chem, one bio, and either another chem/bio or an elective), at least three of which had labs as well as the regular lecture work.  My best friend was a fine arts major, so I understand that your schedule is just as crazed as mine was (lots of labs/studios). 

One thing I will remind you of (that many students forget) is that, as crazy busy as you are, you do need to take time for yourself.  That doesn't have to be exercise (though it could be); it could be time to read a book, do volunteer work, go to the mall, go hiking, play an intramural sport - anything you consider fun that isn't related to school.  It'll keep you sane, and you'll actually do better for taking that time and keeping your sanity.  I used to have one evening a week that was for my volunteer work, and I also reserved Saturday afternoons as "me time".  It meant I spent almost all of Sunday studying/writing up labs/etc. but I still pulled off straight As and was a much happier person for doing it.

Wow, sounds like you are super busy ... I didn't have any studio art classes, but I knew some people who did so I have an idea of how time-consuming they can be.  Sounds like you have been trying to work exercise in, so kudos for that!  It is great that you walk/bike whenever possible.  That was the biggest change for me after I graduated ... I was used to that "accidental" exercise every day.

I actually did a TON of Tae Bo for my workouts - you will love Billy Blanks!!!  They are great because you can do them whenever you have time, and Billy Blanks will kick your butt!!! :)

Are you a morning person at all?  Because I wasn't, but I will be the first to tell you that there was nothing better than getting up early and hitting the gym.  It wasn't always easy, but I felt so much better throughout the day after a morning work-out.  Just a suggestion - get to your gym before your insanely busy day gets going!  Waking up early will be so worth it ... it not only will help you stay healthy, but it will also focus your mind for the rest of the day.

Again, I know how hard it can be to lose weight in college, so I wish you the best of luck.  It sounds like you are on the right path ... keep it up!  :-D

Running a mile in 10 minutes is good.

And I'm an Art Student too! Woot!

Someone mentioned tofu.... Ah, tofu is amazing! Find an Asian market, they usually sell a block of tofu for 50 cents. It's very filling and cheap!

Hi there! I'm in college too, and while I now have an apartment with a full kitchen, I have lived in the dorms with nothing but a microwave and a mini fridge, and I know what a nightmare the cafeterias can be! I was so frustrated that the sandwich bar section at lunch advertised a healthful veggie sandwich but they never actually had any of the veggies in the kitchen. I'm serious, they never ONCE had eggplant, even though it was on the menu!

My cafeteria regularly served fried or scrambled eggs at breakfast, but I found out that if I asked the staff nicely they would boil eggs for me. I would usually ask for several and smuggle the extras away in my pocket. (Yes, I know, this was not terribly moral of me, but I could only afford the smallest meal plan and it did not feed me all semester, so I tried to make the most of it. :P ) The salads usually were pretty inadequate and most of the entrees were pretty bad, though. If there was something like baked chicken patties out, I would take a few back to my room as well. The staff actually allowed us to take away a little extra fruit as a snack, which was helpful! The fruit was never fantastic, usually just red delicious apples and such, but hey, it's fruit.

So, actual suggestions: Fruit is okay at room temperature for a while, so that's something you can keep for a little bit without a fridge. Buy some of your fruit fairly unripe to give yourself more time. Shelf stable boxes and bottles of drinks help. If you're like me and feel guilty about using so much extra packaging by having single-serving boxes, you can also buy larger packages of fruit or vegetable juice or soy/almond/oat/hemp milk that can keep on a shelf until opened, and just have enough fridge space for that one open container. Another thing I liked to make was tortilla wraps. Keep whole-wheat tortillas in the fridge (they don't take up much room), and cans or packets of tuna, salmon, or even kippers or sardines in a cabinet. Dress it up with whatever you like: veggies, pickles, low-cal cheeses, whatever. A little olive oil and lemon juice makes a nice dressing, and the oil can stay out of the fridge too. Canned fruit is also a nice choice, especially if it's packed in juice rather than syrup. Then it's a snack and a drink! I second that canned soups are a good idea. You can also make a cheap knock-off french onion soup with dehydrated onion bits, whatever seasonings you want, a piece of toast, and a slice of cheese. You may also want to get oatmeal, dried fruit, and nuts on your monthly shopping trip, since they are all shelf stable as well. Try buying longer-lived vegetables if you find they wilt in the fridge before you can eat them, or drink vegetable juice. Brown rice is another idea: shelf stable until you cook it, and you can just make small portions when you want to eat it. If you make too much, just stow the extra in a small container in the fridge until your next meal, then throw it in a nonstick pan with an egg and whatever scraps of vegetables you can scrounge up to make fried rice. A nonstick pan means you don't need oil, so this can still be a pretty healthful dish.

Good luck!

Wow...thanks for all the support guys! I really appreciate the tips and now I can't wait to go shopping again! If there are any other tips you can think of, keep 'em coming; I'm open to any suggestions

hey, i understand how hard it can be to acutally eat right annnd find time to work out!  i'm a nursing major, and my life pretty much revolves around school.

for breakfast i either drink a slimfast and eat a banana or have a bowl of cereral, you know, somthing quick! although they're kind of expensive lean pockets are also good for breakfast because i don't get hungry as fast!

lunch is usually as quick as possible!  in my pathetic cafeteria i get a salad and load it up with carrots, broccoli, olives, cucumbers, and tomoatoes!  instead of ranch or other thick dressings i like a little honey mustard.  and since a salad would never be enough to last until dinner, i make a sandwich at the little deli station.  wheat bread, turkey, tomatoe, lettuce.  and sometimes if i'm lucky the cafetria will have baked potatoes!  just a little cheese and sour cream and i'm set!

for dinner i usually have another salad and try to find some meat if possible.  in my opinion dinner is the hardest meal to have on campus, because it's all pizza, french fries, and hamburgers!

however, on the exercise side of things....  if you don't have time to make it to the gym, i started the couch to 5K program.  all i need is a track!  however, if it's too cold where you live, that might be a problem! 

Original Post by galax:

Hi there! I'm in college too, and while I now have an apartment with a full kitchen, I have lived in the dorms with nothing but a microwave and a mini fridge, and I know what a nightmare the cafeterias can be! I was so frustrated that the sandwich bar section at lunch advertised a healthful veggie sandwich but they never actually had any of the veggies in the kitchen. I'm serious, they never ONCE had eggplant, even though it was on the menu!

Even the Chain Food (McDonalds, Jamba Juice, Pita Express) at my uni is subpar!  On the Pita express website I picked out a pita with good nutritional value and all that, then ordered it without cheese and with a low-cal dressing.  The person behind the counter proceeds to cram as much meat into the pita as he can and far from getting sauteed peppers, onions, etc. and sandwich lettuce/tomato, he just puts in the lettuce/tomato and hands the grease-dripping meat-pita to me.  I was so affronted I didn't know what to do.

Oh and to the original poster, your situation sounds a lot like mine!  I use my closet space as a pantry lol!!  Dry goods / packaged stuff goes there and the fridge is a veggie/fruit/100percentjuice ONLY area!  I try not to keep anything unhealthy in the room.

Staples in my room: brown rice (i have a rice cooker-dont tell res life!), canned tuna, wheat bread, pam spray, a huge frying pan, frozen veggies!!!!

Staples on campus: Stir fry from Jump Asian, and I ask for no sauce.  Starbucks perfect oatmeal.  Jamba juice!  Side salads which I bring home and mix with stuff in my room or stir fry stuff.  Chic fil A chargrilled stuff.

See if your campus does meal exchange- that's where you can buy stuff from campus stores for your meals, like equivalent cost.  And at the caf I always fill 1 plate with salad, 1/2 of one with veggies, and the 2nd half of the second plate gets "real food" and I eat that last, when I'm already full.