Eating clean on a college campus

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brkooska
brkooska Posts: 1 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hello, I have had some struggle eating healthy on my college campus. I can't afford to make my own food all that often, so I am generally stuck with what we have on campus, which consists of a subway, chic fil a, and the student union which has your basic cafeteria foods such as pizza, chicken, fries, etc. It also has a really nice mongolian grill place also which I usually have for lunch and have noodles with chicken and spinach, but you can only have that so often.

Does anyone have any helpful tips about how to eat healthy in college if you're limited to what's offered with your meal plan? Thanks!

Replies

  • mookdog94
    mookdog94 Posts: 8 Member
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    Heya, fellow college-goer here. I switched off meal plan this year and started cooking my own stuff, but for the first two years was on meal-plan completely. Does your school have any buffet-style dining halls? Generally it's easiest to find good choices there (as long as you avoid temptations). Does it offer grab-and-go type pre-packaged stuff, like salads, yogurts, veggies or things like that? I still grab a to-go veggie tray from time to time, love those things! With the cherry tomatoes, yum!

    Keep an eye on whatever Vegetarian options are offered- they could be healthier than than the meaty alternatives. If you have no choice other than pizza, at least make the most of it and opt for veggie-lovers rather than greasy pepperoni, and use a napkin to try and get some oil off if it's the type that literally drips oil when you pick it up. Feel free to message/add me if you want to chat about it if I forget to respond here lol. Best of luck!
  • AJ_G
    AJ_G Posts: 4,158 Member
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    First, eating clean and eating healthy are two very different things, don't use them interchangeably. In order to eat healthy, just set up your calorie goal and proper macronutrient goals and just eat whatever you want to hit them and you're eating healthy. Back when I was in the dorms the dining hall was buffet style and was always changing, but they would cook you chicken breast on request no matter what was being served. Look into seeing if that's an option.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    Clean does not mean anything because it is "vague."
    Eat less.
    You can lose weight on campus.
    Have the burger without the fries. Have only one piece of plain cheese pizza to keep the calories low.
    At chick fil et, the grilled chicken sandwich has 320 calories.
    At Subway, the 6" turkey & black forest ham is 280 calories. The 6" Subway Melt is 240. Go online and look for other sandwiches of theirs that fall into fairly low calories.
    The Mongolian grill is a great idea. Look for other opportunities in your day to eat fruit and veggies because those are usually low calorie and filling.
  • MaryCS62
    MaryCS62 Posts: 266 Member
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    My daughter just finished her first semester of college, & has to eat gluten free (celiac). Interestingly, most of the gfree options were in the "healthy options" station--things without sauces, or heavily processed. However, if they don't have anything she likes --trip to the salad bar for her.
  • BlackTimber
    BlackTimber Posts: 230 Member
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    I would recommend picking up some fruits and vegetables and keep that stuff around for snacking. It's real easy to overeat high carb/high fat snacks. I understand what you mean about "clean". You want to find the less processed foods. There was a good suggestion above about asking for a grilled chicken breast rather than getting the , breaded, fried, laced with preservatives and frozen variety. Other than that, use your own eyes and try to make better choices. And, don't be afraid to ask for anything you want. The amount colleges get for their meal plans is a lot of money.

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