Hey there collegiettes! As we approach the completion of the third week of this amazing Lose the Freshman 15 program, I have been finding it harder and harder to resist temptations. At college, I feel like there isn’t a day where I am not put to the test of having to abstain from some sort of junk food. Here are some of the scenarios I have encountered:
- Problem: FREE FOOD IS EVERYWHERE! Literally every club serves food at its meetings, every events serves pizza or some kind of food, the Resident Counselor buys food for my floor every week– free food is everywhere, but it’s never healthy!
Solution: The answer to this dilemma is not to stop joining clubs or being an active, involved student at your college. But rather, try to avoid going to meetings/events on a hungry stomach. Maybe even try bringing your own healthy snack, that way you can still eat something. Remember that resisting the temptation is not only good for diet but beneficial for your overall health too.
- Problem: Ordering food. As many of you know, it is very common for college students to order late night snacks when they have the munchies. Whether it be Domino’s pizza or DP Dough’s calzones, these delivery options are extremely high in calories. Though they might taste extremely satisfying at the time, you are sure to regret it in the morning.
Solution: If you’re ordering food instead of going to eat in the dining hall, try to make healthy choices when you pick your poison. See if any nutritional info is available for the food that way you can make more of an informed decision. If you’re ordering food late at night, your best bet is to just avoid it completely. Not only will you be consuming an excessive amount of calories, but it also is not advisable to eat heavy amounts of food right before you are about to go bed.
- Problem: All-you-can-eat dining hall. Everyday, Val serves a dessert option at both lunch and dinner in addition to having soft-serve ice cream and frozen yogurt at every meal. It is extremely challenging to resist these sweets since they are right in the cafeteria where I eat all my meals.
Solution: Come up with your own dessert plan. Because my school has a website with the nutritional info of the food it serves, I can check to see how many calories are in each dessert. Allow yourself to eat dessert once a week but make sure it’s under 200 calories. Many students may allow themselves to eat dessert once a week, but then they choose to eat it on a day where the dessert is 500+ calories.
- Problem: Friends who can eat whatever they want. We all have that friend (or friends) who can basically eat pounds upon pounds of candies and sweets without gaining a single one on the scale. It’s tough to not overeat and splurge when around them and you’re on a diet.
Solution: Tell your friends that you’re trying to lose weight. I know you may think it’s kind of embarassing, but there really is nothing to be ashamed of trying to achieve a healthier lifestyle through becoming fit and making good eating choices. Your friends will definitely understand and can help you along the way.
Sometimes it seems so easy to simply give in to temptation and just have that one cookie or that one piece of pizza. While I know it’ll taste great in the moment, I just have to remind myself of what I am working towards and tell myself that it’s not worth sacrificing all that I’ve worked for so far. We all make mistakes, so there’s nothing wrong with a few slip-ups here and there as they cannot signficantly impact my progress if I get back on track. It’s also important to remember not to deprive yourself from treats either! Allow yourself to indulge, otherwise you will be more likely to go on a binge or eating spree of junk food later. One of the healthy sweets I like is meringues from Trader Joe’s– four cookies are only 110 calories! The SELF Drop 10 diet has some great snacks as well!
My friend’s birthday was this past Wednesday, so she ordered cookies from Sugar Jones, which is a cookie delivery service– so heavenly but very high in sugar and calories. Such a tough decision, but I was able to resist.