Any University/College students here??

And as for exercise...like I said, I'm great when I'm on holidays. I will go to the gym every day. But during semester I'm too tired/too busy/have assessments and exams so usually fall off the wagon and/or stress eat!

I know exactly how you feel, have been back at uni two weeks and have missed out on the gym altogether when i was jogging almost every day over the summer.
Think its just about finding routine and I know that's very hard with assignments creeping up and heavy workload and everything happening in uni but its about making time for yourself, yea we have assignments and all that but we need some "me" time as I call it and going to the gym could be part of that, its an investment in yourself and your health and you deserve to have some of that time.
I've had to stop buying in any sort of sweet stuff cause last week I just vegged out on it instead of finding the time to cook a healthy meal.....so yea planning is a big part of it.
Best of luck...nice to know there is others in the same boat ,

I'm a music major with a full-time class load and two part time jobs (with a private housecleaning gig on the side). I don't have the commuting issue but I do know that every little bit helps. Even if you only have thirty minutes free, you can use a cardio machine and study. I work on memorizing my music and anatomy for pedagogy while I exercise, even if I'm only on the machine for 15 minutes.

Survival and success are important things and you won't feel accomplished if you don't feel well. Make sure you are getting enough resting and vegging time, but you will feel less stressed if you work out. My voice teacher tells us to set a timer if we are having trouble getting stuff done. Here's a two-hour increment:

8:00 - Answer emails
8:15 - Check notes for choir
8:30 - Write in poetic translations to Donaudy set and monologue text
8:45 - Complete reading quiz for Biology
9:00 - Correct Pedagogy test
9:15 - Run up and down the stairs, hold some yoga poses, and stretch
9:30 - Complete 5% math homework
9:45 - Write in poetic translations to Bach aria and monologue text
10:00 - Speak and conduct text to Donaudy and Bach two times

LOOK AT ALL OF THE THINGS WE CAN ACCOMPLISH WHEN WE FOCUS. And I burned 150 calories. It doesn't work for everybody but it definitely helps even if you do that for an hour each night after work. Good luck!

im a working college student, so i know how it can be hard at times! i usually have to work out in the evenings after class/work. feel free to add me!

Oh I hear you girlie. I have three exams next week, and my research supervisor is expecting a bunch of things to be done for my project with him. I literally ate candy all day yesterday. Why? Because it made me feel better, and was easy to eat while studying. I'm in the same boat as you, during summertime I can get my butt to the gym pretty well everyday and make healthy food for myself. But as soon as school rolls around it gets tough.

I know you don't like the idea of bringing food around with you, but health-wise its your best bet. Even if you just pack a couple of pieces of fruit, and a serving or two of veg, then you have snacks and won't end up picking unhealthy ones up. You can grab a healthy sandwich or something to accompany those healthy staples you bring. Another option is to make LARGE batches of things at once (think chili, or curry, or a protein cooked in the slow cooker) and freeze the portions. Then just grab and reheat.

As far as exercise goes, school comes first. Right now all I can commit to is a 1h Zumba class each week. I'm doing it with a friend- so we are both held accountable to go. If I have time, I try to get a few walks in there.

Good Luck!!

I will start my final year of master's degree on Monday.
I am currently working full time also. But I can have my program at work quite flexible so it helps out a lot; also, the company I work it has some common projects with my university so I'm doing my master's research at work and some hours at university count also as work time. Because else I would have to work only part time (6 hours a day) and financially I could not cope (I'm earning a good salary, but I am also helping my mom and sister with money).

I was never on diet while working+studies (started here on MFP only for 6 weeks), althought I have been working out. So I am very nervous on that. From the last years experience I know it will be very hard. I work until 4-5 pm and then I go to university until 8-10 pm. So I get home almost everynight after 9 pm. I don't have to exercise during the week because I also have to do stuff around the house. Maybe I'll do 10 minutes of Pillates or 15 minutes of low intensity aerobic, but I mostly worked out in weekends.

Eating is a problem. Last year for example, because I'm out from home from 7-8 in the morning until 9-11 in the evening (I make 1 hour from home to work, 1 hour from work to university and 40 minutes from university to home) my meals where on the go. Everyday I was carrying 2-3 fruit, 3 sandwiches, one pack of biscuits, some nuts and pretzels... I arrived very tired at home and my only meal at was a generous dinner. I am hopping that this semester I will do better than that. The snacks and big dinner were my problems.

It is definitely hard. My ridiculous school schedule is one of the main reasons I gained all this weight in the first place! I have started actually scheduling my workouts into my day, and treating them like any other appointment. I don't skip a workout just like I wouldn't skip class (most of the time lol), work, or meetings. If I have other things to do, they just have to wait till later.

As for packing food, that is something I reeeeally struggle with. Luckily my schedule actually allows me to have long enough lunch breaks this year that I can go home and eat there most days. However the last couple years I ate absolute crap, or nothing at all a lot of the time because I found it difficult to pack a meal (sometimes 2) every day and never had a lunch break so I couldn't go buy anything either. Try making a big batch of something healthy on the weekend, then divide it up into individual portions for the week. If you make something for dinner, make double or triple the serving so you can bring leftovers to school. I know it's easier said than done - time management is a really tough skill to develop!

Just try to make your health a priority. Ideally it should be our #1 priority because if we don't have our health then nothing else really matters. Unfortunately I lost sight of that for awhile and my health and overall quality of life really suffered because of it. Trust me, it is easier to keep up with school and life when you are healthy, so make sure you stay that way

I cook for myself once a week and eat what I prepared for the rest of the week. I always pack lunch which is something I've cooked and some fruits and nuts.

As for workout, now I started going to the gym 3 times a week.. Hope it lasts.

I'm just starting my second year (I took time off after high-school so I'm starting late) and I became a gym rat during my time off and if I could I would be a professional athlete I just love working out. However, after my first year at school and after cutting my twice daily routines even to once a day, I found my school performance was really suffering. This semester I've really cracked down work wise, but I've basically given up exercising save twice a week weight lifting for maintenance and am focusing on my diet because it's easier to handle. I'm still loosing, just slowly. I'd recommend that if you're really short on time just focus on your diet if you are trying to lose weight, you can always add muscle and stuff over breaks and after you graduate when the schedules are more flexible.

I'm 28, in my third year of college and this is by far my worst semester yet! I'm working back to back with school and have a ridiculous amount of homework every week. I have an amazingly UNsupportive significant other who eats literally junk food all the time and wants me to spend all my time playing video games with him (then makes me feel guilty that I can't due to homework!). I don't have any children but with an SO that is essentially a child, I don't need anymore right now. Needless to say, I haven't exercised regularly in a few months.

What I do that is working though:
1. I have small meals and snacks during the day that I bring from home (saving calories for the inevitable crap dinner).
2. I walk on my breaks at work and eat while I'm walking.
3. I walk to and from the shuttle that is near the parking lot and drops me off at the front of campus. I get in at least 30 minutes of walking on at least two days from this alone.
4. No sodas! I carry an insane amount of water in my backpack so I never have an excuse to buy a soda.
5. I just try to stay within my calorie goals, even if it means I don't get to eat all the things I want. Some times, like today, I give myself a break and have what I want for just ONE time a day. (Today, I had chips and queso. Turns out, it was a bad choice. lol)

I hope some of this is useful to others!