College life! Need advice!

I made it through college with an alcohol intolerance and I magically can actually remember all of my memories. Get a mini-fridge, go to the grocery store, stop drinking so much, and don't treat your body like a garbage can just because you have some pre-programmed idea that the risk of alcohol poisoning is necessary just because you aren't living at home anymore.

I'm a senior at college and the calories in alcohol are pretty bad especially in things like long islands. Usually I drink vodka water with lime, so the only calories I'm getting is the alcohol, but that can be pretty strong. As for other parts, use the college gym since it's already free although they can get very crowded sometimes. One of the things I find with college like is that I eat out all the time. So to counter this I try to steer my friends to pick chain restaurants where I can look up the nutritional info before I go and find something on the menu that doesn't wreak my day completely. I don't know if your on campus and have a meal plan or not but I find it a lot healthier to be off the meal plan than to be on it. Feel free to add me if you would like friends or want to check out my food diary, I'm totally not perfect at this but it might help.

Walk, walk, and walk! Take a longer route to a class than you might normally, you can plan this ahead of time so you aren't late. That honestly helped me the most in college. I also recommend taking advantage of your school's gym. Drinking and eating can be the most difficult part, but sometimes throwing in extra exercise can combat the extra drink you have or the irresistible bad-for-you food at the dining courts. Try to balance your physical activity with what you're eating! :drinker:

There are always low calorie options. Plus you have great opportunities for exercise - WALKING.

Try to eat breakfast and get enough sleep. Both help weight loss (especially sleep).

Have lunch. There are salads, soups. I bet they serve cold cuts and tortillas (200 calories). Drink water, not soda. If you drink milk, go skim.

My big thing in college was sitting with my friends over dinner and having second helpings - especially of desert. Start with a salad and bowl of soup. Then have a main course heavy on veggies and protein with few carbs or cheese. Have a small helping of ice cream for desert (75-150 calories) not cake (300).

If you eat chips, put them in a bowl, don't eat out of the bag.

If you're drinking (I don't need to tell you it's illegal, right?), stick with the one drink/hour guidelines for staying buzzed not getting drunk. You'll have more fun anyway. Drink one night, not two. Find something else fun to do the other night.

Well....this may seem like a novel idea, but how about not drinking much? Drinking is NOT a requirement for higher education, LOL!!. Drinking until you are blotto is also unattractive, fattening, and as a nurse, I can tell you it is VERY dangerous. I see young people with pancreatitis and liver disease all of the time from drinking too much alcohol and too many "Big Gulp" pops. Especially Mt. Dew. These are very dangerous diseases, and if you ever saw someone die from one of them, you probably would not drink again.

Sorry.....I'm stepping off my soapbox now. Anyway, I'm sure you are not a heavy drinker. How about just having a glass of wine, or light beer or wine spritzer or skinnygirl Margarita once a week, assuming of course, that you are over 21. You could work that into your diet. You can also be the designated driver too, and be the one to have fun, but sip on a diet drink or ice tea or water with lemon.

My son had his own little fridge in his dorm. You can get one for about $100. He kept apples, oranges, lunchmeat, yogurt, milk, jelly and frozen meals in it. He also kept nonperishables like soups, fruits canned in their own juice bread, peanut butter, bananas and cereal. He had a small microwave to cook frozen meals and heat up low fat soups. He also found healthy options at school. You just have to pick the right things. If salads or veggies are offered on the menu, make sure to pick those. Same with fruit. Stick to grilled chicken sandwiches, hold the mayo and add the tomatoes and lettuce when you go for a sandwich, and stay away from chips, fries, and high calorie coffee drinks.

One nice thing about living on campus is that you can walk, walk, walk. That will be a big help. I was in great shape when I was in school. I know you will be too!

I hit my goal weight while in college through the everything in moderation approach. If I wanted something, I made room for it in my daily calories. If I went over one or two times on special occasions, that was fine. I ate healthy foods a lot of the time but didn't cut anything out and ate what I wanted while being mindful of portion sizes.

Exercise helped a lot too.

After gaining the freshman 50 (I know thats not even a real thing..and it happened in 1 semester) I was able to lose it all my junior year. Here are a few tips

1) Workout in the middle of the day, between classes
2) Drink less (this will lower your tolerance so you will need less to get drunk) and drink alcohol on the rocks with no mixers, or add soda water instead of soda
3) Dont eat in the dinning halls. What I mean is, take a container to the dining hall, pick out healthy options and leave as fast as you can, before the other things tempt you.
4) Try to dance as much as possible when you are drunk
5) Enroll in any fitness classes your school offers
6) Minimize meals with friends ( I know that is hard, but chances are they will be eating unhealthy food)
7) Never skip breakfast. Instant oatmeal is a great healthy option that you can keep in your dorm room.
8) Bring healthy snacks everywhere you go, especially when you are studying.