Stressed and Poor :)

Alright, I'm posting here just to get some opinions. So I'm 20 yrs old, 5'9 170 lbs (down from 190 wooh!) a junior in college taking 24 credits and I work 15-20 hours a week. My classes this semester are ridiculous (organic chemistry, physics, some 400 level classes, etc) so I am incredibly stressed out with school. All of my time is spent either studying or working, except friday and saturday nights around 11 I hang out with some friends for a bit.

I am supporting myself completely, like most people I know. So of course I am a poor college student. I'm also vegetarian trying to be as vegan as possible.

So what I'm getting at here is that I have an extremely hard time either a: eating enough food throughout the day or b: even having enough money to buy food in the first place.

I generally eat toast and peanut butter a lot, and potatoes and pasta and salads. And veggie sandwiches.

My main concern here is that I like to go to this mexican stand near my house (I live in AZ) and buy either a veggie burrito no ch.no sour cream (so it has beans, guac, salsa, rice) or a bean and potato burrito.

Is it OK if I am getting most of my calories from one meal in the day, or is this going to be detrimental to my weight loss? I know I'm supposed to eat meals throughout the day but sometimes it is just impossible.

Let me know!!! 

I don't know anything from a medical or weight-loss aspect, but I know eating only one meal a day made me extremely grumpy and terrible to get along with.

What I find helps in a grocery budget. My boyfriend and I live together, but we don't split everything half and half - he makes the car payment and a portion of the rent, I get some of the smaller bills -- including groceries (and I make considerably more than he does now).

 I make a list of everything I need, and buy only what's on the list. I get paid bi-monthly, so I make sure grocery shop only on payday and buy enough for the two weeks. Sometimes I run out of milk or something like that, but for the most part I've gotten it down to an art. If there's food in the house, I'm less likely to go out and spend money on fast food or restaurants.

My boyfriend makes fun of me for the lists, but we always have food to eat -- if we shopped spontaneously, I'd probably spend 3 times as much and not have enough food to last.

Now, if only I could budget the rest of my life like this. :(

Original Post by endnevercomes:

So what I'm getting at here is that I have an extremely hard time either a: eating enough food throughout the day or b: even having enough money to buy food in the first place.

I generally eat toast and peanut butter a lot, and potatoes and pasta and salads. And veggie sandwiches.

My main concern here is that I like to go to this mexican stand near my house (I live in AZ) and buy either a veggie burrito no ch.no sour cream (so it has beans, guac, salsa, rice) or a bean and potato burrito.

I second the poster who would be miserable (and snack-prone) if I only ate one meal a day. Also, if you like these burritos so much, why not make them yourself? It'll save you money. Beans and rice are dirt cheap (and since you're trying to be vegan, beans are a good protein source for you to eat), and veggie burritos freeze and reheat pretty well (not so much the guac and sour cream - add those when you eat them). You can make a bunch at once, freeze them, then take them on the go. This idea works just as well for other foods, too. Take-out is a huge money pit.

yeah i usually do make my meals at home, but i havent had any time to go to the grocery store lately so that's the only reason i've been eating out.

but i don't eat just one meal a day. I eat breakfast, lunch (which is usually a big meal) and then hopefully a small dinner.

It's just I'm more concerned with the uneven distribution of calories.

For example, breakfast is usually 300 cal, then lunch is like 700, and then dinner is like 400 or something. Is this ok?

wow. that's a lot of work! i'm a junior too (have org chem 2 and physics also) but i'm only taking 16 hours. what's your major?

anyway, i think it should be fine. i think it works out better for you that lunch is your biggest meal. that way you have more energy for the busiest parts of your day. 

good luck this semester!

Holy Crap!  That is a TON of credits, in fact I'm pretty sure that's the max allowed even with override at my school..... which is... also in Az.....  Hey we totally are going to the same school :)

If you are doing okay in all your classes, that's the most important thing.  I don't think that where I was getting my calories would even register with me if I had that much work.  Orgo!? Seriously!? (do you have a good teacher?  Tell me!  I have it next year)

On the other hand, if you have 20 bucks (or 10 bucks and a ride to a thrift store) I'd invest in a slow cooker.  Dump veggies in with curry, or with a cream-of soup, or with V8.   (Cabbage + V8 + tomato sauce (optional) + any veggies = great soup)

Wow working plus orgo/physics? I am taking orgo chem and physics along with molecular and cellular bio (plus all the labs) But I couldn't imagine working too! Props to you!

I go to U of A....where do you go? haha

yeah 19 credits is the maximum you can take but I'm taking 5 through the community college here so it all works out.

it SOUNDS like a lot of work, and it definitely is, it's doable.

and for the person who asked about ochem, it's going well. I like it a lot actually. Just had my first exam yesterday and I think I did pretty well on it but I can never really tell. hahaha.

just plan to spend a lot of time memorizing things and once you get the hang of it, it really isn't terrible :)

Hi Endnevercomes!

Well you do work quite a lot and your brain needs food too! :o)

Looking at the food you ate I would say you are eating a little bit too much fruit and not enough veggies (that's what my nutritionist would tell you).

The daily intake should be

500 cal from grains (cereal, bread, rice, pasta)

150 cal from veggies

180 cal from fruit (that's only 3 pieces usually)

200 cal from protein (beans, legumes in your case)

300 cal from milk products (yoghurt, cheese, cream)

250 cal from good fat (nuts, avocado, olive oil)

100 cal from extras like sweets, jams or whatever you like

Regarding the costs - yes... that's a problem! Especially since you are living a very busy lifestyle! But preparing meals is really something that safes time and money!

I usually have a hard time getting my veggie calories and also the good fats... so I cook once every two weeks a HUGE!!! pot of the french veggie dish "Ratatouille" with chopped peppers, carrots, zucchini and maybe one eggplant, onions, garlic and some italian/french herbs. I add 2 large cans of chopped tomatoes and some oliveoil.

Once it cooled down I pack it in ziploc bags and freeze them in portions of 125 cal. Same thing with rice (1 cup - 200 cal). So in the morning I take out 1 bag of rice, 1 bag of rataouille, pack it in my lunchbag and at lunchtime it's fast, easy and yummy after 2 min in the microwave!

Question is: do you have a microwave on campus when you have lunch?

+++

Another thing on the side: try to enjoy your student life a little more! I worked too much and studied so hard that the time at university flew by .... afterwards it has been the best time of my life and I didnt realize it!  

Aw dang, I'm at ASU.

Original Post by endnevercomes:

I go to U of A....where do you go? haha