Any Teachers? Need some tips!

danibee41989

Hello! I will be student teaching this fall. I was wondering if there are any teachers who can give me some tips on maintaining or even losing weight during my student teaching semester. I feel I'm going to be super stressed and won't have time to exercise, let alone, eat right. Does anyone have any tips for staying healthy and fit? Thanks!!

Also, any tips for teaching 1st grade?! I'm very nervous & excited! Can't wait!

kimi131

Take snacks with you (that's part of my plan), drink lots of water, and exercise... well you'll be chasing 1st graders so plenty of exercise there. Maybe you'll be able to squeeze in some exercise on weekends. Make it fun stuff. Have fun and good luck!

Dootzy1

Yes, plan to bring your own lunch/healthy treats as a routine. Avoid making careful observations of "treats" in the lounge. Just keep walking. (Depending on the time of the year, sometimes there are many caloric things in the teacher's lounge.) Keep hydrated. When the nights get long in doing prep work, make sure you save calories for snacking, because you may need something. Plenty of people will be interested in healthy choices around you, but some "just don't care" or have given up on themselves. If you're an emotional eater, like me, the time after school and before supper can catch me off guard. So, find some way to "decompress" without eating your way around the kitchen after school----this is a huge deal for me. Especially if it has been an extra challenging day. If I make a snack of a small protein/small carbohydrate around 3:30, it helps a lot! You will bring so much more to your students if you can take care of your health! Best of luck to you!

journey2size10

It's gonna be stressful, my key is working out BEFORE work. You get so caught up and tired sometimes that at the end of a long day, you make a million and one excuses to not get your workout in. You are teaching elementary so a later start time which is great! I teach high school and have to wake up at 4ish in the morning, if I can do it, I know you can. good luck!!

ndswimchick22

So reading this, I can totally relate.

Last semester while I was losing weight, I was student teaching, and in first grade too!

I would say, have all your meals already planned out, so you know what you're eating through out the day.

Also, make a workout plan and stick to it. I made sure that I hit the gym every night after I ate dinner, no matter what else that I had to do.

When it comes to first grade, they love attention! Be creative, be yourself, and don't stress! You'll have a ball!

Good luck!!!!!!!

fridayjustleft04

I student taught 1st grade, too. Those kids were my babies..I love them. As far as tips go, pack your own lunch and stay away from the teachers' lounge! Take a big, insulated jug with you (have you seen the Bubba jug at Walmart?) for water. Try to get all of your lesson plans written out in advance (hard, I know), so that you have time to workout. It's definitely hard and you have to really force yourself to make time or you won't workout. I was student teaching and working at the same time, and didn't have a single day off for over 100 days (I counted..haha), and I was exhausted everyday, but I made exercise a priority and I lost about 20 pounds while student teaching. Best of luck!

bioteacher01

I teach middle school I put on a lot of weight during student teaching, so I applaud your proactive effort to make a plan! Use exercise time to do all of the "reflection" you will no doubt have to do for your supervisors. That way you can multi-task. You need the exercise to de-stress. Best of luck to you!!

karlajohnson123

I teach first grade and can't wait to get back to work! I crave being on a schedule. That way, I am not home all day tempted to eat something I shouldn't.
Plan out your days the night before. Drink all day long and hopefully, you will have a planning period mid morning for a snack that you can bring from home too. There is nothing nutritious in the teacher' s lounge ever!
One thing you can do is exercise with the kids outside. My kids love me because I am always active with them. Get moving. ON rainy days, I have been known to put in Mousercize with Mickey Mouse. They eat that up.
And dont' forget, log in everything you put in your mouth right here on MFP.
Good luck! I hope you get a great class!!

c2jvintage

I am student teaching in third grade and also in 8th grade science this fall so I am in the same boat as you. I liked reading all the tips from current teachers...very helpful! Good luck to you Keep me posted!

MzPix

I teach college. I eat breakfast as soon as I wake up (instant oats and egg beaters are my best friend breakfast).
Instead of packing a lunch, I try to pack 2-3 snacks. I'm trying to learn to eat smaller meals more often. I also keep a few healthy snacks in my office; things that won't go bad, such as granola bars.

As I leave for the day, I try to take a route past a road-side veggie stand or farmer's market so I can stop and get a piece of fresh fruit. It helps boost my energy and it makes me feel like I went through a drive-through I guess.

I take my gym bag with me and go straight from work to the gym (except the fruit stop). If I immediately went home, I'd start grading papers and never re-motivate myself to get back out to the gym.
With my gym bag in the front seat of the car looking at me after work, I don't have an excuse to not go.

It also gives my brain a break from work. Teaching is one of those jobs that will consume as much time as you give it. If I'm at the gym, I'm very focused on my routine and can put all those lesson plans and "stuff that needs graded" to a back burner without feeling guilty.

danibee41989

Thank you all!!! soo sweet!!!!

lustyrusty

I always wear a paedometer and check it at break times to make sure I'm moving about a lot. It helps you interact more with the kids too! Good luck!

ShampooIsBetter

I taught kindergarten for my student teaching credit. I knew I was never going to be a teacher, but I had to complete it to graduate. It ended up being one of the best experiences of my life, although the teacher of the class (a friend of mine) said she got a lot of calls at home asking her why there was a man in the classroom with her and making sure she didnt leave me alone with the kids.

Not sure what that has to do with the question, but oh well.

Anyway, I would say this to anyone who has a stressful job (I believe my current position is as stressful as anything anyone does): you gotta have two lives. When you leave work for the day, you cant take those kids and your problems in the class home with you. You have to have positive things in your life around you to balance out the chaos of a stressful career. I am the kind of person who does better on my diet/exercise when I am under stress. But if you are the opposite, you must do what you can (hobbies, activities, etc) to turn off your teacher life and turn on the normal one.

garysgirl719

You've gotten some great advice here. I just have to chime in and say, I disagree with the advice to "avoid the teacher's lounge". If that is where your team eats, I really believe it's important to join them for lunch. This is your support system in your future career. You want to work to build that relationship.

Going to the gym straight from work has been the key for me. Once I let myself come home, I am so caught up in things that I never make it back out. The time in the gym helps me make the switch from teacher to wife mentally and work off some of the days stress.

Also, find out what the snack policy is at your school. Our students are allowed to bring snacks to class. Being around this made it vital for me to bring mine as well.

reviens

Hello, I just finished student teaching half a semester in 3rd grade half teaching middle school math. I agree with the post above me-- eat in the lounge if you don't you miss out on a lot of helpful advice! (or you could be viewed as rude if everyone eats there except you; basically do whatever your cooperating teacher does) I packed a lunch everyday while I was in 3rd grade but bought everyday in middle school. I would strongly suggest to PACK your lunch. I would eat a protein granola bar (the South Beach Peanut butter or Chocolate ones are yummy and are low calorie/high protein.) That way I would stay full until lunch and then I would eat a dry turkey sandwich on rye, a piece of fruit and a 100 calorie pack of pretzels with a bottle of water. I will admit sometimes when I would get home I would want to eat everything in my kitchen, since I was doing so much for student teaching and working 30 hours a week (not recommended!!!!) I would make sure I ONLY had veggies and fruit to snack on and then ate lean cusines for dinner, I cant lie, I actually love them!! Trust me student teaching is much more enjoyable than you would think- kids are painfully adorable. Biggest piece of advice I can give you-- write a FULL WEEKS lesson plan each weekend, then on Monday make all photocopies/packets and you will not be as stressed. I spent about 8 hours every Sunday planning but then was able to have my nights to work during the week, and its MUCH easier to tweak a lesson plan then to write as you go. Hope this helps!!

jmruef

You've gotten some great advice here. I just have to chime in and say, I disagree with the advice to "avoid the teacher's lounge". If that is where your team eats, I really believe it's important to join them for lunch. This is your support system in your future career. You want to work to build that relationship.

Going to the gym straight from work has been the key for me. Once I let myself come home, I am so caught up in things that I never make it back out. The time in the gym helps me make the switch from teacher to wife mentally and work off some of the days stress.

Also, find out what the snack policy is at your school. Our students are allowed to bring snacks to class. Being around this made it vital for me to bring mine as well.

The point about eating w/ your team is a GREAT one. You don't have to eat *what* they eat, but eat *where* they eat. Experienced teachers are not only your best source of advice and support, but they are also references for you when you're job seeking. Plus, they are your adult companionship during the day!

sshintaku

To all the wonderful advice, I would add: buy yourself a crock pot.

You will be working loooongg hours, so having something at home, all ready to eat will save you LOADS of temptation from "just grabbing something on your way home."