What is this freshman 15 everyone talks about..?

virichi08

OKay, i know it is 15 lbs that "every" college freshman gains, but why IS that? Is it due to studying or the partying. Im starting college this year and i dnt party but i do study... so what causes this mysterious 15 and how to i manage to not gain it? What did you all do to avoid the freshman 15?

ChrisRS87

Meal plans and partying. Usually dinner and breakfast are done buffet style, and lunches usually comprise of fast food around the student union. I've seen the freshman 40, and it's not a pretty sight....

pittskaa

i know for me personally it was the fact that during the week i wouldnt eat all day because i was so busy with classes/hw/work, and then i had marching band right after until around 10pm, at that time i would go to the dining hall and stuff my face to try to make up for the whole day.
then on weekends the partying is what got to me i think.

ShannRenae

They say its when a person starts college & their 1st year of college they gain 15 lbs....

basslinewild

I didn't party or have a meal plan. I would go to WalMart and buy a ton of food every week. Then sit around my dorm all day, besides when I went to class. That caused me to gain weight.

DanaDark

1. Less exercise
2. More alcohol
3. Smaller energy needs (Most college age people have stopped growing by now so they need less energy than when they were teens in Highschool)
4. More meal options / high calorie meals

Factually speaking it is not really a Freshman 15, it is closer to 20 and occurs slowly (about 5 a year) over the course of college.

mellyanne612

Its mostly about a change in lifestyle - ordering in when you want, eating whatever you want, not having as structured of a lifestyle - i didn't like dining hall food and actually lost 15 my freshman year - Its just important to take care of yourself and not go crazy

robinhardysmall

It also comes down to a differnt lifestyle- you may be used to living at home with your parents- they fix dinner at night, etc...at school you have to make the best choices for your diet (and I'm not using diet as a term in lowing calories but just overall food intake).

You have to remember to get some exercise in between classes, studying and possibly working. You don't have parents to do a lot of the day to day stuff for you so you have to take care of yourself as well as daily chores.

Just remember- not every freshman will gain- but alot will- make healthy choices, exercise and it will pay off at the end of the semester.

TubbsMcGee

I actually LOST weight when I was in college.
I couldn't afford gas money so I walked everywhere, and the cost of food on campus was stupid so I always carried my home-cooked foods with me...

I assume the GAIN is from the kids that are lucky enough to have their parents support them by buying meal cards, bus passes and chipping in towards their tuition.

gshoemaker06

They say its when a person starts college & their 1st year of college they gain 15 lbs....

Wow... did you even read the post?

I didn't get the freshman 15, I actually lost 20 lbs. But as others have said it's the increase alcohol and buffet style dinners. Also you don't have your parents telling you what to eat or making you food, you're on your own. Most dorms don't have kitchens/ovens so instead of chicken and brocolli you're probably eating pizza or junk food.

Nicole610

I didn't necessarily gain weight my freshman year. It was probably my soph and jr year that the weight crept on. I think it's a mix of partying and the endless food options. The food court was open at all hours so it was convenient. I was a very picky eater so it was chicken fingers, fries, and ben and jerrys ice cream for a late night snack. I never worked out either unless spring break was coming up.

If you are already watching your weight and what you eat you will be fine. Just stay active and if you do start partying watch those liquid calories. They catch up with you quickly!

Have fun!!! I had a blast in college.

rubytOU

For me it was the fact that I was super, duper active in high school with sports and then going from that to having to sit on my keester and study all the time... coupled with parties, a long commute... led to weight gain.

When I transferred from the branch school to the main campus, I started going to the gym for classes every night before or after dinner if my class schedule allowed it. Dropped weight and then I got so busy with engineering courses that I didnt have time to mindlessly eat all day long like before because I was in lab or a study group.

AllonsYtotheTardis

for me it was the lousy food in the residence meal plan. For a lot of my pals it was the beer.

EmilyTwist1

I don't know about men, but for women I think a lot of it has to do with biology. The late teens and early twenties is often a time when women's bodies build up fats stores for bearing children. I'd be curious to see if women in the same age group who don't go to college also experience weight gain.

kristen6022

I'm old (33) but during my first year away at school I lost 20 pounds. I walked everywhere (which was different than home when I drove most places) and I took 2 gym classes. Keep active and the weight won't go on. Most Freshman go into college with a "rebellion" streak. It's the first adult thing you've done away from your family. You start partying, eating LATE and not doing much but sitting around and studying. You are young and your metabolism is still really high, you just need to keep it moving by keeping active!

MsTanya77

Alot of freshman end up staying up late studying and in the process, they are usually snacking or eating really late at night and since their budget is usually limited they end up eating alot of not-so-healthy processed food. The best way to avoid it is to take walks on campus and utilize the campus fitness rooms and gyms, also eat healthier options such as salads vs. high fat fast foods. And drink lots of water instead of sodas and fruit drinks. Let your late night snacks include fresh veggies instead of chips, pizza, etc.

dldnvr

No parents to help you make better choices and have portion control and all you don't even have to cook.

Many Freshman eat in a dining room. All you can eat buffet Breakfast Lunch and Dinner most days.
Ah, those were the days . . . but I regress.
Add in some parties, Food and Beverges. and poof.

wwk10

Beer

rugbygirlca

It is a combination of a lot of things. It is often bad diet (poor choices, plus often way too much food), drinking, lack of sleep and lack of exercise.

My university meal plan was different in that you only paid for what you ate, so I kept healthy breakfast food and healthy snacks in a fridge in my dorm room. This saved me a ton of time, a ton of money and certainly 15 pounds. I joined intramural teams for exercise and tried to get to the gym a couple of days a week. I walked wherever possible.

Make decent food choices, get decent sleep and make time for exercise.

Enjoy yourself, but make sure that the choices you make don't have long term consequences (that pretty much applies to everything though)

LorinaLynn

I lost weight my freshman year, and I was already skinny. Lugging 40# of art supplies and books all over campus will do that.

malinen23

I did the freshman 50. Came mostly from eating all the time. I think I ate cheeseburgers and pizza everyday for the first 2 months of college. I got lazy playing video games and sleeping in. It all contributed to my weight gain. It wasn't until I went back home before I realized I was overweight. In fact, my uncle thought I was sick because I gained so much weight. But one of cousins (in front of everyone) yelled, he's not sick, he's just fat. I eventually lost the weight and go in shape. But yep, the freshman 15 is real. Be careful, it'll sneak up on ya.

WifeNMama

All of the above, and between 18-20, metabolism usually slows down a bit, too.

Loulady

I lost weight my freshman year. Walking around campus, part time job working on my feet, participating in intramural sports...

virichi08

Wheew *wipes sweat off my forehead*
I was beginnig to thnk i walk into college, start going to class and BAM the weight comes on. lol (joking) but i feel better now reading you guy's comments.

beansprouts

OKay, i know it is 15 lbs that "every" college freshman gains, but why IS that? Is it due to studying or the partying. Im starting college this year and i dnt party but i do study... so what causes this mysterious 15 and how to i manage to not gain it? What did you all do to avoid the freshman 15?

I honestly think that it happens because for the first time most of these "young adults" no longer have someone (usually a parent) nagging them 24/7 about "eating properly"....If you can enter college with your own set of self motivating/ good eating habits...you will be waaaaay ahead of the curve!

Carolyn_79

I gained the freshman 22. As others mentioned it was a combination of buffet style meal plans, partying and alcohol, and lack of exercise. We also had a Pizza Pizza that was open until 3am in our building so that was trouble for me. I lost it all that summer. My second year I lived on campus again and I ate healthy and didn't gain any weight.

Wenchilada

Cafeteria food, beer, usually no regular PE classes, new stressors, free pizza somewhere seemingly every night... and if it's a bigger campus, buses or cars are the norm for getting around. I lost 15 pounds by the end of my freshman year, but it was mostly because I came down with mononucleosis right after spring break. Before that, I was maintaining my high school weight and had maybe lost a pound or two. Then came the Sophomore 15, the Junior 20, and the Senior 10... yeah... I gained most of my weight once I got my own car during my junior year. Hello, drive-through.

CannibalisticVegetarian

I gained about 15-20 pounds my freshman year and I can tell you exactly why it happened, I was on campus and while I walked everywhere and then some, I also fell in love with the food in the school cafeteria. It was an all-you-can-eat type of thing and I had a meal plan that gave me access to this almost every singe morning, noon, and night. Our dorm didn't come with a kitchen or stove so there wasn't any cooking..unless you ate only microwavable foods and.. blech.. just no. Also, we had another type of cafeteria that used what was called 'bonus bucks'. With these, I could grab a bite from Taco Bell or Chick Fil A (And I adore both of these places) ... or even have a pizza delivered to my room from Dominos. The pizzas were usually something reserved for the weekends though, seeing as the cafe' closed earlier during those times.

Before coming to college, I was used to eating outrageously because it's something I'd been doing my entire life, but now I had twice as many foods to dig into and still noting to yell, 'Enough is enough!'

AShawneeF

I actually LOST weight when I was in college.
I couldn't afford gas money so I walked everywhere, and the cost of food on campus was stupid so I always carried my home-cooked foods with me...

I assume the GAIN is from the kids that are lucky enough to have their parents support them by buying meal cards, bus passes and chipping in towards their tuition.

i have a meal plan, walk everywhere, live on campus. bus passes are free for students but other than that i am paying everything by myself and with whatever aid i can get my hands on. yet i still gained.
moral of the story: don't assume.

lorierin22

I didn't gain any weight freshman year and I think I lost about 10 lbs sophomore year. Freshman year I lived on campus and even though I had a car, I walked to most of my classes....that probably balanced out the dining hall. Sophomore year I moved off campus but I was broke and no longer had the "free" food at the dining hall (that I just got done paying for last year, gotta love student loans...lol). I also didn't drink alcohol freshman or sophomore year. jr/senior years I had more money, ate more fast food, started drinking and partying more and picked up those 10lbs I lost plus another 5. So college was pretty even overall for me. I started gaining weight after marriage, but that's another story all together...

ahmommy

I lost a few pounds my freshman year, and I was skinny enough that I couldn't really afford to lose them. For me, it was a combination of a nervous stomach, walking EVERYWHERE, and gross food at the dining hall. I did, however, get a couple of cavities that year because my roommate always had candy around and I grew up mostly without candy except on holidays, so my teeth paid the price.