A little while back, BC’s Office of Health Promotion hosted Terri Trespicio, a media personality and lifestyle expert (who is also a BC alum) to talk to students about health. However, it wasn’t the usual “eat vegetables, sleep a lot, and exercise a few times a week” lecture. On the contrary, she offered an inspired discussion of what it really means to be healthy.
Terri’s talk pointed out that being healthy absolutely is NOT about trying to be the most stressed, going on fad diets, or Plexing yourself to death, three things that are very prevalent in BC’s culture. BEING HEALTHY IS ULTIMATELY ABOUT FEELING GOOD. Terri gave advice about two central parts of a college student’s life that need to be managed in order for one to feel like his or her best self: stress and diet. Below are some highlights that every BC student should take to heart:
Stress
-First of all, recognize that stress is all in your head- YOU cause stress on yourself
-Time is the same for everyone, don’t stress about deadlines or lack of time
-Don’t park yourself in the library all day, but rather work for 1.5 hours at a time (tops) then take a break and re-energize
-Stress is not a competition
-Know yourself and set do-able goals for each day
-Take a few minutes each day to meditate
Diet
-Food IS your energy, therefore it plays a vital role in how you feel and succeed
-Don’t go on fad diets
-Consider cutting out one or all of the following: soy, dairy, gluten (experiment: everybody is different!)
-Added sugar messes up the natural processes in your body because it is artificial and your body wants real sugar, therefore try to avoid as much as possible
-Don’t regulate your food with the goal of being skinny; goal is to feel good
These are just a few things that Terri recommended to get started with, if you would like to know more visit her website at http://territrespicio.com/ or follow her on twitter @TerriT.