At the beginning of my freshman year, I was embarrassingly intimidated by the dining hall. There were so many food options that I found myself completely lost—frantically glancing between the Mongolian grill, the gluten free food options, the sandwich station, and back again.
Naturally, I wanted to gravitate toward the more unhealthy options (hello french fries) and as a result I wasn't receiving the vitamins and nutrients that I needed in each meal.
After surviving my first semester of college, I've learned a few tricks to ensure that I eat a balanced, nourishing meal without too much unnecessary stress and overthinking. These following simple tips have helped me navigate the dining hall to create a healthy yet still ultimately delicious plate:
1) Make your plate as colorful as possible
My mom taught me this trick when I was younger. Not only is it fun, but it's helpful in encouraging more variation of nutrients in your food choices. Naturally colorful foods tend to have more phytochemicals and phytonutrients which are beneficial to your health.
If you look at your meal in terms of colors of the rainbow and attempt to include as many of them as possible, you will most likely be eating a better variety of nutrients and vitamins and ultimately eating a healthier meal. I often bounce between stations and visit the salad bar to add color to my plate. If you notice your plate looks especially bland, grab a piece of bright-colored fruit or add a couple slices of a veggie to add not only some extra color, but some extra nutrients and flavor.
If you look at your meal in terms of colors of the rainbow and attempt to include as many of them as possible, you will most likely be eating a better variety of nutrients and vitamins and ultimately eating a healthier meal.
I often bounce between stations and visit the salad bar to add color to my plate. If you notice your plate looks especially bland, grab a piece of bright-colored fruit or add a couple slices of a veggie to add not only some extra color, but some extra nutrients and flavor.
2) Think about the food on your plate in terms of letters
This is another strategy my mom taught me, and like the "colors of the rainbow" trick, this helps add more variation to your plate to ensure you eat a variety of vitamins and nutrients. For example, if I'm eating a salad, I'll think to myself: "Okay, 'L' for lettuce, 'C' for cucumber, 'T' for tomato, and 'B' for balsamic."
This trick adds a bit of mindfulness into my eating and encourages me to add more to plate if I notice I don't have many letters (and hence variance of nutrients) on it.
3) Opt for healthier alternatives to foods you're craving
First of all, I am fully against ignoring food cravings; if you're hankering for something, I think it's better to eat and satisfy your craving because if you don't, you'll probably end up eating a bunch of other foods that are unhealthier for you in the long run.
However, I have found there are certain alternatives I can find in the dining hall that satisfy my cravings (notably, my incessant sweet tooth) but that still provide a lot of nutrients.
For example, if I'm craving ice cream but I've already eaten ice cream that week, I'll scoop some greek yogurt into a bowl and drizzle some honey on top of it.
I am a firm believer in the idea of "everything in moderation," so don't restrict yourself from eating those unhealthier foods you're craving. That being said, if you've exceeded your portion of moderation then I recommend seeking out those healthier alternatives that will not only satisfy your craving, but will also add some extra health benefits to your meal.
While it may not always be easy to ignore the siren's call of french fries or the ice cream machine, hopefully these three tips will help make eating mindfully in the dining hall a little easier.