College is all about freedom. Freedom to pig out at Joe’s until 2 am, stay out all night, and sleep through class. Freedom to live in fear of the freshman fifteen. Or freedom overcome it.
The dining hall can be scary. It’s buffet style and heavy with “splurge” items. Our fear of overindulging can causes us to overcompensate. We eat a small salad and call it quits. But then we binge. Fatty foods in large portions are part of the late night associated with going out.
This vicious cycle creates tons of stress in our lives, and messes with our metabolism. The answer to maintaining a healthy figure is not starvation. It’s eating. Consistent, mindful eating. Check out some easy ways to eat your way out of the freshman fifteen.
Eat Breakfast
Photo by Megan Ratcliffe
You probably didn’t think twice about skipping breakfast the other day. You wanted to sleep in. Or cut calories. Or rebel against the nagging mom who never let you leave the table without finishing a tall glass of milk.
Well, nagging mom was right. Breakfast jumpstarts your metabolism and gets your systems moving early in the day. It’s the meal that prevents you from overeating later. And it isn’t hard.
Oatmeal topped with gooey peanut butter and thinly sliced bananas from the Ratty, cheesy eggs served up hot from the V-Dub, or yogurt smoothies complete with berries from the Blue Room work wonders.
Hydrate
Photo by Diane Na
It’s so easy to forget to drink fluids. With classes and clubs and sports, you barely remember to breathe. But it’s time to become best friends with your water bottle.
Water keeps you hydrated and flushes out any toxins that might be in your body. It’s the secret to good skin and a good body. It helps satiate you after meals. And it’s zero calories.
The academic buildings at Brown have water fountains, there are sinks in all of the dorms, and plenty of replenishing drinks are available at the eateries like coconut water or Smart Water. Bottoms up.
Snack Healthy
Photo by Shivam Agarwal
Snacking throughout the day can be tricky. There is no designated “snack-time” in college like there was in our kiddy days (just after nap-time). But eating 5-6 smaller meals throughout the day, rather 3 large ones prevents binge eating at meals or late at night.
Pack snacks ahead of time. Fruit is a great, cheap option (snag as many apples or bananas as you can hide on your way out of the dining hall). I keep myself stocked up on nuts and Lara bars, which are vegan and gluten free, and all-natural.
Poppy’s has a delicious trail-mix bar for some post workout sustenance, and the Blue Room has all-natural Kind bars and vegetable hummus packs for on-the-go. Let’s bring snack-time back.
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