Any 1L Law Students out there? I need your help!

Here's a crazy piece of advice I got as a second year summer ten years ago - make fitness a habit now, because your schedule is only going to get crazier. And it's true. Blah. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news!

2L here! Like you, I am also balancing working full time and going to school in the evenings. (Don't worry, it gets better second year!) I try to work out in the mornings before I go to work and as far as my meals go, my fiancé has been an absolute dream. He prepares all of my dinners for me for the entire week on Sundays. All I have to do is find him a recipe that I want to try and he makes it for me. Without him, I don't know where I would be, probably eating garbage all the time haha. Sometimes it is hard to wake up that early to work out but I usually try to bring a book or some flash cards with me on our stationary bike (the emanuels law in a flash are amazing btw- and there's also an iPhone app for them) that way I can study and work out at the same time. Feel free to add me and good luck in your first year!!

I am a 4L and am actually just a couple of months from finishing. I have to admit, I wish I would have done what you are doing in my first year. I only started working on my health in July. Since starting to work on my weight and eat healthier, I have actually find that I have more energy and perform better on my exams and assignments. It isn't easy. I know it takes a lot of time to manage a household, work, study, and try to exercise and eat well on top of it. It helps me that my husband is in this with me and working on his health at the same time. Just like working your way through law school you'll get lots of different advice, but you'll have to find what works. Here are a few things I have found to be helpful for me in the past few months:

- I either plan my eating for the day first thing in the morning or last thing the night before and get it loaded into myfitnesspal then. You can always make changes if it doesn't turn out that way.
- I combine my workouts with stuff I need to do anyway. I don't leisurely walk through the grocery store, I make a list and walk through at a good pace burning calories as I shop.
- Similarly, I have made little changes. I stand while folding laundry now instead of sit. I have started paying attention when I shop and am now buying lower calorie whole grain bread and things like that. Watching for those things have helped me to easily cut a few calories without even thinking about it. The little bit of extra time spent there saves me time on a daily basis when planning my food.
- I have also learned that if I set myself up right, I can do some basic calisthenics like leg lifts or even light strength training with hand weights while reading (this may or may not work for you depending on if you are someone that can concentrate that way)..
- I just don't keep bad stuff around anymore. It is easier to snack on healthier stuff if that is all you make available to yourself. I know this can be difficult with other members of your family sometimes, that is why I HAD to finally get my husband on board to make it work for me.

Also, remember it is ok to walk away for a bit. When stress gets to be to much, a quick walk around the block or whatever exercise you like can really clear your head. It is easier to fit in exercise when it is 15 min here and there rather than trying to block out 30min or an hour. I have even taken walks around the building with classmates between classes. The biggest thing I suggest is getting your whole family on board. You'll need that just to get through law school.

You can do it. Find the things that work for you with school, home, work, and health. Then make them habits. Good Luck. Feel free to add me if you'd like. I'd love to encourage you on your journey.

I am a 4L evening student and I work full-time. I don't also have a family to manage though. As a 1L it can be crazy, especially as you're approaching your first set of finals. I know I was wreck and ready to quit law school about 20 times during my first semester.

As for advice, about balance life, law school and fitness. I didn't really start focusing on figuring that out until last year (my third year) and it made all the difference so good for you for trying to figure things out now. I can recommend a few things that worked for me:

My school doesn't have classes on Friday nights so that was my food shopping day - I would go and buy the things that I liked that were on sale at the grocery store (focusing on produce - I'm mostly veg. but I'm sure you can follow the same protocol with regard to meat products). I found doing this helped me keep variety in my diet, and eating a variety of fresh veggies each week helped keep my energy levels up. I would then supplement my fresh produce purchases with some frozen things I could through together in a pinch - bagged frozen vegetable, Amy's burritos, and Kashi TV dinners. I also like to keep frozen veggie burgers on hand for myself. I also use oatmeal for quick meals (I do overnight oats and instant but try to avoid instant as I limit added sugars in my diet)

I would find that cooking big batches of food over the weekend was so helpful. I usually do soup becuase - you can get your reading done while the soup simmers (in your case this might be harder as your kids may be trying to get your attention when you're home). You can portion out the soup or whatever you made and keep some in the fridge and put the rest in the frezzer then you have homemade TV dinners.

I also found that protein shakes were very helpful. I usually replace one meal a day with them (I use GNC total 25 variety becuase they have an oat blend in them so you get some fiber as well as protein for low calories). I also add a table spoon chia seeds to at least on meal a day - to get a fiber and omega 3 boost. Chia is either added to my oatmeal or protein shake.

As for exercise, I found that just walking or doing light exercise didn't work for me because I was always stressed about something while doing and would quit. I needed to workout more intensely so that all I was thinking about during the workouts was the workout. I found that in boxing classes. I know take three classes a week and it's great. Mayeb you can find something that incorporates you're children. I know trampoline parks/gyms are getting pretty popular I see groupons for those a lot. Or you can try laser tag or things like that.

The good news, which I'm sure you've heard a million times already, the first year is the hardest! It is so true. Especially for night students. After my first year I NEVER went to class four nights a week again! That was best thing because it gives me a week night to get extra cooking/reading or a workout in. Also, for my third and final year at law school I changed my hours at work (I work as an administrator at a school) so I work form 7:30 - 3:30 instead of 8-4, which allows me to take earlier classes and not have to be in school until 10:30 every night! I know you mentioned you're working in a legal job and from what you mentioned it seems they are supportive of your going to law school, so that may be an option for you.

Well I hope any or all of this was helpful. Good luck. I also would recommend trying to make major lifestyle changes right now as you are gearing up for finals mode, as that may lead to more stress.

Feel free to reach out if need any support from a fellow evening law student.

I would find that cooking big batches of food over the weekend was so helpful. I usually do soup becuase - you can get your reading done while the soup simmers (in your case this might be harder as your kids may be trying to get your attention when you're home). You can portion out the soup or whatever you made and keep some in the fridge and put the rest in the frezzer then you have homemade TV dinners.

The good news, which I'm sure you've heard a million times already, the first year is the hardest! It is so true.

Absolutely big batches (especially soup) are awesome and easy. Especially if you have a crockpot. Mine has been my best friend since starting to work on my weight/health in July. My husband or I throw everything in in the morning and pretty much forget about it all day or even throw it all in before bed at night and put meals away in the fridge and freezer in the morning. Frozen veggies are a great help or you can even by pre-chopped/sliced fresh sometimes.

I agree, the first year was the hardest. As my advisor always tells me "put your head down, dig in, and there is a light at the end of the tunnel."