The Exchange student gut

MissShivi

Hi there,

My name's Shivi, I'm 18 and From Australia but have spent pretty much all of 2011 in California on a high school exchange program. My dad warned me "Don't come back fat" before I left but I brushed it off as nothing as I always thought I would never be one to get fat. I was about 120 pounds when i came to America and while I've been here I gained up to 141 pounds!

I'm now at 136 pounds since I've started using myfitnesspal and would like to get down to at least 134 pounds before I arrive home in Australia.

I learnt from my Foreign exchange coordinator that almost all exchange students gain weight over the course of their year here due to all the new foods they get accustomed to. My weakness has been tortilla chips. We don't really have them in Australia, we have corn chips which aren't as good hence why I don't eat them as much. Plus I have gone to soooo many more social gatherings here. I don't have a big family back in Australia and we aren't ones to entertain so it's definitely been a change going to parties for the exchange students and get-togethers with friends and relatives of my host family. And basically I just had no self control, at a recent birthday party I ate probably the most amount of food I have ever consumed in one sitting.

Also not having your parents tell you what to eat makes a difference. Host families are too polite to say 'that's enough now' or 'have some more salad with that'. And they don't want to encourage you to eat healthy as they don't want to make you feel like you're fat. Plus in Australia I usually just live with my mum and me so there's less food in the fridge and I'm much more in control of what's bought at the supermarket. I'm definitely looking forward to having that control again once I go back.

Now myfitnesspal has made me realise that if I exercise I can indulge a little more and that portion sizes matter and it's helped me to restrain myself from constant snacking. I've only been using it for a little under a week but it's already helping.

Any other members out their who've suffered from the exchange student gut?