College/University OFFICIAL WEIGHT LOSS HELP THREAD

westcoastSW

Great idea! I'm in as well. I'm entering my second year in an intense 2-year double-Masters program -- social work and gerontology. I lost about 20 pounds throughout my first year in the program, so if I can repeat that this year, I will be on top of the world when I graduate!

szczepj

Double post. Sigh.

szczepj

This is a great thread! I'm starting my sophomore year soon and really hoping to establish a healthy diet/workout schedule before I head back. I have a kitchen this year and cut down on my meal plan. There's also a gym in my dorm and I have to walk 20 mins to campus for class everyday. Hopefully all this helps me keep the pounds off!

Bola
NYU-Communications/Pre-law

I cut my meal plan too. I live on campus (after this summer that is because it's easier and the only person I want to live with can only live on campus) so we're required to have a meal plan. Just a few days ago I cut it from the Gold (which is the highest and one I've always had) to the Bronze (the lowest) and am going to take the extra money to a real store for healthier foods!

musicmanomar

So here's a question for everyone. What makes it hard during college to eat healthy? I know many of you have said finals are challenging and I'm still thinking of tips for that one that'll I'll post later and I'm sure many of you can come up with more, but what else makes it hard?

szczepj

On campus eating for those who live on campus. There is very little healthy foods. The healthiest would be the apples they sell in the 'store type places' at BGSU and the salad bar they have in some areas. Other than that it's subs, pizza, fried food etc.

giaciccone

Alright!
University of North Florida here!

Does anyone else have free fitness classes at their university? That's what I do to help lose my weight.

giaciccone

So here's a question for everyone. What makes it hard during college to eat healthy? I know many of you have said finals are challenging and I'm still thinking of tips for that one that'll I'll post later and I'm sure many of you can come up with more, but what else makes it hard?

The food that's available on campus makes it difficult.
There's not enough healthy options here.

curvygirl512

bump

Articeluvsmemphis

bump for later! Great Idea

Artice; University of Memphis
Nonprofit Development & Administration Major; Junior

I actually lost weight my freshman year, but gained it back b/c I got sick w/ a sinus infection{never had one b4 then} so it took a lot out of me, and the winter break DID not help it at all. So I am here. started at 300pounds.

Feel free to add me if you would like

be_kris

This is great! I'm working full time, and attending college full time currently!! I am done on August 19th 2011, is there anyone else that's currently in school?

I'm in my third and final year of Graphic Design at Fanshawe College in London, ON, CANADA.

szczepj

This is great! I'm working full time, and attending college full time currently!! I am done on August 19th 2011, is there anyone else that's currently in school?

I'm in my third and final year of Graphic Design at Fanshawe College in London, ON, CANADA.

I'm in summer classes right now. Luckily I'm living off campus so I eat a lot better. But that ends in 3 weeks.

Articeluvsmemphis

So here's a question for everyone. What makes it hard during college to eat healthy? I know many of you have said finals are challenging and I'm still thinking of tips for that one that'll I'll post later and I'm sure many of you can come up with more, but what else makes it hard?

The food that's available on campus makes it difficult.
There's not enough healthy options here.

I stayed on campus one semester before moving back home {I lived 15minutes away, lol} So this is what I did:

I made sure to take advantage of the school gym and exercise classes{love those to death.}
I made sure to drink enough water {it's free.}
We have a Subway, so I started eating those {Make good healthy choices seeing as they have "bad" stuff too.

I bought small plastic tupperware to sort out my cereal portions for daily use. I picked up healthy packaged snacks and always kept them on hand in a bin I got from Walmart.

Get a cup and measure things out. Keep some fresh fruit in your fridge if possible. Even if you have to run to the store every couple of days, it's worth it for your health, especially if the store is right up the street. Trust me, every college has some kind of grocery store nearby to I don't believe there's an excuse, lol.

Making this weight-loss a priority means having to change your schedule to do something out of the ordinary to get extraordinary results.

Couple of other things, if your school dorm has a kitchen, learn to cook or become friends w/ someone who does. learn portion control, count those calories. OVERALL make sure you're eating enough in general to fuel yourself from day to day.

I wish I knew about myftinesspal then, I would have done better, but I am thankful to God right now for getting this weight loss business taken care of.

AmberJenay

I love this. I'm Amber going into my junior year at sourthern polytech...right outside of Atlanta, GA. I gained the post freshman year 15 then lost it when I started wrestling then gained it back again when it ended. Now trying to get down to and maintain a healthy weight. Can't wait to give and receive support. I love quick smoothies as a healthy go to snack. 1 low fat yogurt, 1-2 cups of frozen fruit and a cup of natural OJ. So yummy and pretty filling. I even through some spinach and cucumbers in there for some extra veggies!

sweetsapphire85

I lived off campus an hour from my school and commuted to classes everyday, Sometimes I'd end up with 14-18 hour days on the campus and transporting food for that long took to much time for me so i fell into the grab and go mentality at the cafeteria. BIG mistake...
My current college offers gym classes and gym access but i've usually only been there at night time and the gym is closed as I was working.
My big downfall was wanting to munch when I studied, or wrote a paper etc. It creeps up on you, and anytime i had writers block i would steer to the kitchen for a break. I had gained 15 in undergrad and then another 15 in 18 months when i moved out on my own because i would hit the drive through on the way home and grab "dinner" at 10pm at night. Since i've started on this site and logging i've realized how bad I was eating.

be_kris

This is great! I'm working full time, and attending college full time currently!! I am done on August 19th 2011, is there anyone else that's currently in school?

I'm in my third and final year of Graphic Design at Fanshawe College in London, ON, CANADA.

I'm in summer classes right now. Luckily I'm living off campus so I eat a lot better. But that ends in 3 weeks.

Yeah, I don't live on campus, I live in a house I own with my husband. So it's easier to make food. I just find I don't have any time to exercise, with homework and work...

MyouTakara

University of Rochester senior! I'm in!

szczepj

Yeah, I don't live on campus, I live in a house I own with my husband. So it's easier to make food. I just find I don't have any time to exercise, with homework and work...

I don't work so I'm lucky right now. It is harder to exercise with homework, but sometimes I take stuff onto like a bike and try that.

Painten

I'll be at staffs uni in england in september for the first year of my degree.

I did a short course at the uni from jan to may and i did find it tough trying to juggle kids, homework, and healthy eating. I know it's going to be harder in september. I also don't have a car so found it hard lugging my bag of books and lunch around. Also really never found anywhere i could eat a packed lunch. I found a spot at the bottom of a stair case but felt a bit dumb sitting there on my own eating my lunch with people walking past me all the time on the way to class.

icerose137

I am going to a distance education center where all the classes are done via microphones and video. All my classes are in the morning after breakfast but finish before lunch, except one night one on Monday so that's nice. I'll have time to fix the meals for my family. The bad thing by being at a distance education center is I can't take advantage of their gym and fitness classes.

be_kris

Yeah, I don't live on campus, I live in a house I own with my husband. So it's easier to make food. I just find I don't have any time to exercise, with homework and work...

I don't work so I'm lucky right now. It is harder to exercise with homework, but sometimes I take stuff onto like a bike and try that.

Unfortunately, I'm in Graphic Design... it's a little difficult to sketch, or work on the laptop while exercising. That's by problem. I work 40 hours a week, I have 15 hours of class, then about 20 hours of homework a week... I still have to sleep, and spend time with my hubby! And my very large breed dog! Hahaha, I'm going to try doing 30DS this week, it's only 20 mins, so I have no excuse!

whateverfloats

Hi everyone.

I am going back to school in September for my masters and can't wait! I'm determined to use the school gym as much as possible and really take the opportunity to get in shape. I've always been intimidated by weights but my boyfriend has been teaching me some basic routines that I can keep up with next year.

wildestian

So here's a question for everyone. What makes it hard during college to eat healthy? I know many of you have said finals are challenging and I'm still thinking of tips for that one that'll I'll post later and I'm sure many of you can come up with more, but what else makes it hard?

Friends and alcohol are a big problem!

szczepj

So here's a question for everyone. What makes it hard during college to eat healthy? I know many of you have said finals are challenging and I'm still thinking of tips for that one that'll I'll post later and I'm sure many of you can come up with more, but what else makes it hard?

Friends and alcohol are a big problem!

Agreed. Last year my friends and I were going out drinking at least 3 nights a week. I guess I'm just going to have to be the DD often

KayyB13

So here's a question for everyone. What makes it hard during college to eat healthy? I know many of you have said finals are challenging and I'm still thinking of tips for that one that'll I'll post later and I'm sure many of you can come up with more, but what else makes it hard?

Friends and alcohol are a big problem!

Definitely agree too!

Going from weights to class to class to practice to study hall, ect... Trying to fit in healthy meals and getting NO sleep! Not to mention it is so easy to snack and study (without realizing how much you're really eating), especially at night!! Dining halls=battling a buffet day almost everyday, sometimes more than once a day!

I lost 15 lbs last semester though, so I must be doing something right! Haha

musicmanomar

All right, so I've been reading everyone's posts and after reading some of the posts I think I got some pretty good tips to help out everyone during finals week for when you go back to school. Now these are just my suggestions and you don't have to follow any of this advice but I feel that it can be helpful. I've also seen other people put great suggestions too and they sound great. Most of the problems seem to fall into 3 things.
1. Not any healthy options at school
2. There is no time to eat healthy in a fast way because we are so busy
3. Friend and alcohol...

1. Not any healthy options at school- I thought about this one for a pretty long time and looked at the options that my University has. We have a Quizno's, Pizza Hut, Chik-Fil-A, Burger Place, Cafeteria, and C-Store (where you buy drinks, candy, or anything it has to offer). I know at many times we are faced with having to grab something fast so we turn to the places we have. In this case I feel that you can always make a healthier option. For instance instead of having a personal pizza you can have a low fat sandwich from Quizno's for less calories. This way you consume less calories. I know that our University also make salads or whole wheat sandwich's with deli meat. We also have yogurt you can and other a vegetable tray. I know it doesn't sound so appetizing but you have to start somewhere. When you have gotten into the habit of picking carrots instead of cheetos you can have the will power to pick an apple over chips.
SUGGESTIONS: I recommend buying healthy snack just as fruit, rice cake treats, nuts, kashi cereal, and etc. Measure out a serving and put it in a zip lock bag. In fact, have many zip lock snack ready to go just in case you feel like snacking and take them with you in your backpack. This will always allow you to be snacking or chewing on something. Most importantly, carry a water bottle with you. If you drink a lot of water, it'll fill you up so you'll be less hungry!

2. There is no time to eat healthy in a fast way because we are so busy- I agree that when you are SO busy it's just hard to eat healthy because you have no time to fix yourself something and fast food is... well... just fast and easy. I said bologna to myself. I am just making excuses and I bet all of you would feel the same way. Instead of having the time I have to myself to watching TV I would rather take 5 or 10 minutes and fix a snack for the next day. This way I always have something on the go. I know a lot of you are busy with having to study or having to do homework. I see lots of people in the gym working out and reading or studying for class as they jog on the treadmill, elliptical, and etc. So why not do something good for out bodies while we are doing something good for our brain and our careers?

3. Friends and alcohol...- Now this one is tough. First off, I can't stop any of you from living your fun college years but a big way to stop is to just not consume alcohol. You don't need booze to get you high on life. You can run and that can be your adrenaline rush. IF you must drink I would say you always try to become the DD. Have maybe one beer. Treat yourself to one god beer because of all the hard work you did and all the healthy decisions you've been making. Kind of like a cheat day or cheat meal, but make it a cheat drink. If that's not enough I would say only drink once a week. But just because you are going to go drink don't take off the whole day. Still eat healthy and exercise. FRIENDS CAN HELP YOU BE HEALTHY! Tell your friends you are wanting to be healthy and that they should join you on your EPIC adventure. You can workout together and eat together. Hold each other accountable and be there for each other when one of you is about to eat unhealthy. Now you have friends that don't want to be healthy, so what do you do? Ask them to please not tempt you with unhealthy snacks. They will eventually stop offering you snacks or pizza. If you lose a friends because of this, are they really a true friend to begin with? Now say you are out with a bunch of friends and you all go to Chile's... anytime you go to any kind of restaurant you should ask them to go ahead and put half of your order in a TO-GO container. You can always save half of your meal for another day. That's also half the calories! You can always make new friends too! After all, it is college. Go to the gym and become friends with some people you always see working out by themselves or anyone really. Get a person that comes ofter so then you can have a workout buddy.

I hope that this was able to help many of you and hopefully all of you. No one is perfect, especially not me at eating healthy all the time. If I failed or didn't give out good suggestions, I am sorry. If there is anyway I can help let me know. If you have any other kind of complications with being healthy and going to college during the school year post it here and I'm sure someone will respond and I know I'll try. I'm here to add on MFP if anyone needs some support or to view a diary. I'm also doing INSANITY so if you need an INSANITY friend I am here.

11aking

This is great!
Ash
Texas State University
Art Therapy major

szczepj

Great post! I like how you said to always try to go for the healthier option!

carmcd

this is great...i've been looking for a college support thread! all my summer work always backfires once the semester starts up!

Caroline
Junior
St. Joseph's University
International Business

cvstokke

yes please! going to be a senior at the university of virginia

KarmaxKitty

I'm so in! A lot of people assume college kids are either lazy or athletic. It's great to find other people doing the same thing. School weight loss is HARD. XD Sophmore year upcoming at georgia state!