A waist is a terrible thing to mind. We at HC know you’re bent on keeping an amicable relationship with your bathroom scale and flaunting your best self whether it’s at the gym or at the next campus barbecue. Instead of napping after classes, you’ve thrown on the sneaks and jogged a few laps around the neighborhood. You’ve sweated your way through more than your fair share of kickboxing and Bikram yoga classes (flexing your body in 120 degree room temperature is definitely NOT for the faint of heart!). And you’ve read up on every diet in the book and maybe even tried a few.
But we also know you’re a busy body, and it’s hard to take the high road on wellness every day – especially when you’re crunched on time with that pesky chemistry midterm to study for tomorrow and a Tennyson ten-pager due in the next 48 hours. That’s why we’re dedicated to helping you reign in your little indulgences to fight putting on that midriff bulge. Here are seven small steps that could lead to a big change in your diet, your health, and your happiness:
Woke up, it was a healthy morning!
1. Watch that morning brew
Put on the day with a smooth start. While it may be tempting to reach for two packets of cane sugar and your everyday cream to go with that cup of coffee, consider the facts. Two tablespoons of Hood’s half-and-half contains approximately 40 calories and comprises 10% of your daily-suggested saturated fat intake. If that doesn’t sound like a deal breaker, this might. Depending on your caffeine addiction and stress levels, chances are you’ll be downing two, three and even four cups of coffee throughout the day and before you know it you might well be packing in over 80, 120, or even 160 of empty calories without thinking twice. But even worse, as dietician Sue Kaminer notes, are lattes and cappuccinos, with one Starbucks Caffe Vanilla Frappuccino adding 310 calories to your daily diet.
So next time you’ve paid for your coffee, skip the creamer and sweets and instead reach for some skim milk. Your bones (and waistline) will be thanking you down the road!
2. One bagel equals how many slices of bread?
Five. Don’t blink – you read that right. An average slice of bread contains roughly 70 calories while the average bagel ups the ante with 360. This is not to mention the butter, cream cheese, bacon, and extra goodies any average college kid usually orders with a toasted bagel. Think about it. You’d never in your right mind chew through five slices of bread in one sitting, so why down an entire bagel in the same sitting? Opt for a sandwich instead.
3. Hold those Fruit Loops!
We know you’ve seen plenty of commercials featuring kids smiling and gobbling down ENORMOUS bowls of Cheerios. But the reality is, depending on how large your hand is, you should be able to hold one serving of cereal in two fistfuls. And if you’re a fan of granola either in the a.m. or as a midday snack, be sure to read the nutrition label once more. One cup of homemade granola can pack almost 600 calories. Shocked? Don’t be – most guys and gals never really bother to measure out how much “one cup” of morning carbs really means, and it’s hard to kick the routine of overeating your cereal when you’ve been following the same breakfast routine since you were a child. But old habits don’t have to die hard – it takes a heartbeat to check the side of the box for serving portions and soon you’ll be able to guesstimate it yourself.
Midday tips and tricks
4. Leave the ranch!
For those of you opting for a healthy salad at the campus café, don’t forget to consider your dressing options! You may have taken special care to get the grilled chicken instead of the nuggets and you might have avoided the shredded Parmesan, but once you douse those greens with ranch dressing at the end of the salad bar, you might as well have grabbed a large packet of fries instead. Two tablespoons of regular ranch dressing packs almost 500 calories and contains 79 percent of your recommended daily fat intake. And while ranch dressing may be first on the Hall of Shame list, its Italian, Caesar and Thousand Island cousins aren’t lagging far behind.
So do yourself a favor and consider sprinkling some olive oil or balsamic vinaigrette on your lettuce instead, or substitute mustard for mayo.
5. Going nuts for nuts
So it’s three in the afternoon and lunch seemed oh-so-long ago as you sit in the library and attempt to read your way through 200 pages of Voltaire for tomorrow’s 9 a.m. lecture. You’ve brought along your favorite trail mix, though, packed full of delectable almonds bits. An hour and thirty pages later, you realize the bag’s almost empty and you’ve just nibbled your way through hundreds of calories.
Nuts, peanut butter, and everyone’s favorite Nutella are healthy and delicious snacks – in the right serving portions. Fifteen almonds will keep you around the 100-calorie mark and one tablespoon of peanut butter to go with some fruit slices will more than suffice that mid-afternoon craving of yours. It’s easy to scoop spoonfuls of buttery nuttiness and chocolate when you’ve had a bad day. But don’t go nuts – moderation is key.
6. Scream for ice cream !
But not for extra toppings. Sure, frozen yogurt may be a fantastic option if you want a sweet but health-minded option to end your meal (although it shouldn’t replace that meal!). But slap on those chocolate chips and a scoop of hot caramel and you might as well be eating Edy’s Grand instead. Instead, drizzle your dessert with some banana slices or a dollop of 15-calories-per-serving Reddi Whip!
When the sun goes down
7. Bottle down on that soda craze!
You’ve had a relationship with the Coke can since you’ve been old enough to walk. You’ve tried dying your hair with Kool-Aid in the sixth grade and decided the results weren’t really up your alley. We’re a generation that’s lived, breathed, and loved the sugar and fizz in our liquids for quite awhile now, and it only gets worse once we leave mom and pops.
While you may sip a few Dr. Peppers during the day, arguably the real culprit comes out when the sun goes down. Rum and coke. Redbull and vodka. Doesn’t really matter what floats your boat when you’re at a tailgate party and chatting up a Campus Cutie with a cup in your hand. We know it’s hard to keep track of how much soda and other sugary mixers we add into our drinks, especially as the night goes on. But if you want some fizz, why not reach for some Perrier in place of that Pepsi? And if you want some Four Loco to go with that Tequila, check yourself before you’ve had half the bottle.
Keeping your health and schedule on the sane side will be a snap with these seven simple steps. With a few easy substitutes to your diet and moderation in mind, it’s easy to indulge – without the bulge.
Sources
Sue Kaminer, Dietician
HerCampus.com Contributing Writers: Windsor Hanger, Carlene Helble, Kathleen Corlett, Aylin Erman, Mariel Loveland, Scott Rosenfeld, Rachel Cieri, Alyssa Grossman, Caitlin Hardgrove
The lovely ladies of Dartmouth Alpha Xi Delta
www.caloriecounter.com
www.starbucks.com/
www.quotegarden.com/dieting