college calories...

italianchick21xo
italianchick21xo Posts: 6
edited September 25 in Food and Nutrition
Hi everyone, I'm a freshman at college & I've been finding it really difficult to keep my calorie intake consistent. At school, there are really no healthy food options besides salad (which I cannot eat for every meal if I want to get some protein!) &when I come home (about every other weekend) I tend to eat more because there is better tasting food around me!

I tend to eat in my dorm quite often, because I get so sick of the cafeteria food, but i do NOT have a kitchen, only a microwave & fridge. I was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions to food that I could buy that is healthy, or some way to just overall eat healthier? Getting groceries is not a problem, it's the limits that I have that are affecting me.

I would really appreciate any feedback :smile:

Replies

  • ybba12490
    ybba12490 Posts: 252
    I'm in the same situation girl. I usually buy fruits, chobani nonfat greek yogurt, nonfat cottage cheese, sugar free apple sauce, crystal light (to put in my water bottles), 100 cal rice cake or cookie packs, weight control oatmeal, granola bars (some are 100-160 cal), green tea bags, and sometimes slim fast bars or shakes. It's really hard to find food that does not require preparation. Usually in the cafeteria I eat cucumbers, bananas, cottage cheese, bran cereal w/ skim milk. do you have access to a Subway on campus? Or any other alternatives to the cafeteria?
  • scythianlady
    scythianlady Posts: 12 Member
    You can bake potatoes and steam veggies in your microwave. If the dorm has a community kitchen you can make up batches of stuff such as pasta or taco meat to eat or share for a few days. If you're home every other weekend you might also make up batches of stuff at home to take back to the dorm. When I was in college I used to make fajitas with microwaveable rice and precooked packaged chicken. Prepackaged stuff is salty, but if you drink lots of water that shouldn't be an issue. Hope this helps and good luck at school!
  • fireflyangel22
    fireflyangel22 Posts: 85 Member
    When you go home, pack leftovers that you can easily take back to school and eat in your room. That will probably only last you about a week. But would give you more variety. Baked potatoes can also be made easily in the microwave. Steam Fresh veggies (the kind that do not have sauce on them) are also microwavable and healthy. Keep some spray butter, or Mrs Dash seasoning to add low/no calorie flavor. As for protein, try going for chicken in the cafeteria.
    Good luck and Happy Eating!!!
  • cem2168
    cem2168 Posts: 205 Member
    hey! I am a sophomore in college and i am in the same situation as you! i have been stuck with just a mini fridge and microwave all year and its pretty hard to eat healthy in the dining hall. Instead i food shop every week and just forgo the dining hall. feel free to add me as a friend if you want, we can def share tips and tricks and stuff. i stock my fridge with fresh fruits and veggies, frozen veggies, greek yogurt, cottage cheese, cereal, milk, oatmeal etc... as for protein, its really easy to pick up things like a rotisserie chicken thats already cooked at a grocery store, and i luckily have a health food store near me that has really healthy cooked meals like salmon, free range chicken breasts, tuna salad and different vegetarian things like tofu and stuff... i hope this helps!
  • lguy29
    lguy29 Posts: 131
    I'm in the same boat, expect I dont get to go home ever haha. I'm trying out new foods because I'm new to this "diet" but I've found that bagels and peanut butter are good. Also, snag some fruit from your cafeteria. Also, do you guys have a deli? If you can make a fresh sandwich try a turkey sandwich with lettuce and tomato. Or you could go to the store and buy bread and lunch meat yourself. I know the fridges are small as heck! Other good options are oatmeal and even some healthier cereals. If you have a freezer, you can check some frozen meals but those can be high in sodium. They also have dry meals to add water & microwave. Snack foods are great too -- try whole grain chips with salsa. Popcorn is good also!

    Good luck!
  • acasey0123
    acasey0123 Posts: 640 Member
    I am a senior at college and it is a struggle to eat well at the caf because my friends dont make the best choices (pizza, burgers, fries) but I like to eat fresh fruit, have sandwiches since they can be healthy, eggs, grilled chicken, soups can be healthy, my caf also serves whole grain rice, cereals.
    Trust me it is difficult (it still is) but it is doable.
  • ej_xo
    ej_xo Posts: 75
    Before leaving home you should boil a dozen eggs and put them in a container and chuck it in your fridge in your dorm. Eggs have AMAZING protein - can't go wrong really!
  • kamberly
    kamberly Posts: 3
    Keep up the effort! I'm graduating from college in may and over the past 3 years I've lost 75 lbs total, so eating healthy at college is definitely possible. This might not work for you, but it really helped me. First of all, make sure you are going to the gym on campus or at least walking/running around campus. That'll help since you're bound to give in every now and then, and it may help give you the willpower to eat healthier. I know what you mean about the cafeteria having nothing healthy--eventually I just avoided going. I buy a lot of frozen meals-lean cuisines (the pizzas and lasagna are good!). I also buy fruits and veggies, and progresso light soup. Some good snack foods that I found (since you may not have a kitchen) are carrots and laughing cow cheese, steamable microwave veggies, mini pretzels, kroger brand carbmaster yogurt, canned tuna, lots of low cal. popcorn, and for a treat I buy skinny cow icecream. What worked for me was not keeping snack foods around. Hope this helps or gives you some ideas :)
  • italianchick21xo
    italianchick21xo Posts: 6
    those are all great ideas!!! I adore fruit, so I tend to steal that from the cafeteria anytime I can. And we don't have any food places on campus besides the little cafe type things, if you can call them that, but we do have a sandwich area in our cafe. Actually today for lunch I went there to have a turkey& cheese sandwich made & brought it back to my room :) I love all the snack ideas, because I tend to run around a lot since I have class & an on campus job, so sometimes I do NEED to snack to gain some energy& it helps if the snacks are quick & easy! Also the hard boiled egg suggestion is GREAT, I never thought of that and I try to always eat breakfast but since I grab it & bring it with me to work, so it has to be something portable and hard boiled eggs would be perfect!

    thank you everyone for the great advice! I was feeling discouraged today but all these posts helped! :)
  • cem2168
    cem2168 Posts: 205 Member
    carrot sticks and hummus are one of my favorite go-to snacks! pretty portable, and have a good amount of protein and fiber...
  • Ral263
    Ral263 Posts: 318 Member
    another college girl here--

    Another suggestion with the eggs: Buy a large carton of egg whites, pour a cup into a bowl with some spinach and tomatoes, and microwave for 1-2 minutes and you have quick scrambled eggs!

    A great healthy snack is to also buy LOOSE popcorn kernels, then throw a few tablespoons into a brown paper lunch bag, rolling the bag closed until its sealed shut. Microwave for about 1.5 minutes, and then season it with whatever you like: I love cinnamon and stevia for a sweet tooth, or garlic and paprika and lime for savory.

    Also, "steal" raw veggies from the salad bar (broccoli, carrots, etc) that you can have on hand to steam in the microwave. HTH!
  • italianchick21xo
    italianchick21xo Posts: 6
    @Ral263: I love those ideas! I definitely did not know you could make scrambled eggs in the microwave. Eating healthy is all pretty new to me; I'm blessed with a fast metabolism so I've never cared about food until I realized I that for my future I really should eat better. But basically, I lack the knowledge of simple things, such as being able to make scrambled eggs in the microwave. &I love popcorn, but I've never thought about seasoning it, so I'm going to have to try that soon! Thanks!
  • lukimakamai
    lukimakamai Posts: 498 Member
    When I was in college I became the Queen of mixing options. The dorm had a salad station, asain station, sandwich station, home comfort station, burger station, pizza station...I would get brocolli from one, chicken from another, salad... most students just went to one station and got the meal being served. It was kinds strange to be the only person going station to station picking one item from each, but it worked really well for me. Not only did I get the food I actually wanted to eat but I lost 35 lbs freshman year. Granted I went to a college with food options, but I wish I still had someone cook so many meal options and let me pick.
  • italianchick21xo
    italianchick21xo Posts: 6
    i never really thought about mixing stations! we have a sandwich station, salad, pizza, cereal (all day), soup (or oatmeal for breakfast), yogurt/fruit, grilled, &the meal of the day station. ususally in the salad station they have either chicken, tuna, seafood salad, or hard boiled eggs so i try to use that as my source of protein &get salad at least once a day :) oh and we also have a very small vegetarian &vegan section, so it might be a good idea for me to look there for some new mixable options!

    thanks!
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