Any Teachers? Need some tips!

Yes, plan to bring your own lunch/healthy treats as a routine. Avoid making careful observations of "treats" in the lounge. Just keep walking. (Depending on the time of the year, sometimes there are many caloric things in the teacher's lounge.) Keep hydrated. When the nights get long in doing prep work, make sure you save calories for snacking, because you may need something. Plenty of people will be interested in healthy choices around you, but some "just don't care" or have given up on themselves. If you're an emotional eater, like me, the time after school and before supper can catch me off guard. So, find some way to "decompress" without eating your way around the kitchen after school----this is a huge deal for me. Especially if it has been an extra challenging day. If I make a snack of a small protein/small carbohydrate around 3:30, it helps a lot! You will bring so much more to your students if you can take care of your health! Best of luck to you!

So reading this, I can totally relate.

Last semester while I was losing weight, I was student teaching, and in first grade too!

I would say, have all your meals already planned out, so you know what you're eating through out the day.

Also, make a workout plan and stick to it. I made sure that I hit the gym every night after I ate dinner, no matter what else that I had to do.

When it comes to first grade, they love attention! Be creative, be yourself, and don't stress! You'll have a ball!

Good luck!!!!!!!

I teach middle school I put on a lot of weight during student teaching, so I applaud your proactive effort to make a plan! Use exercise time to do all of the "reflection" you will no doubt have to do for your supervisors. That way you can multi-task. You need the exercise to de-stress. Best of luck to you!!

I am student teaching in third grade and also in 8th grade science this fall so I am in the same boat as you. I liked reading all the tips from current teachers...very helpful! Good luck to you Keep me posted!

I taught kindergarten for my student teaching credit. I knew I was never going to be a teacher, but I had to complete it to graduate. It ended up being one of the best experiences of my life, although the teacher of the class (a friend of mine) said she got a lot of calls at home asking her why there was a man in the classroom with her and making sure she didnt leave me alone with the kids.

Not sure what that has to do with the question, but oh well.

Anyway, I would say this to anyone who has a stressful job (I believe my current position is as stressful as anything anyone does): you gotta have two lives. When you leave work for the day, you cant take those kids and your problems in the class home with you. You have to have positive things in your life around you to balance out the chaos of a stressful career. I am the kind of person who does better on my diet/exercise when I am under stress. But if you are the opposite, you must do what you can (hobbies, activities, etc) to turn off your teacher life and turn on the normal one.

Hello, I just finished student teaching half a semester in 3rd grade half teaching middle school math. I agree with the post above me-- eat in the lounge if you don't you miss out on a lot of helpful advice! (or you could be viewed as rude if everyone eats there except you; basically do whatever your cooperating teacher does) I packed a lunch everyday while I was in 3rd grade but bought everyday in middle school. I would strongly suggest to PACK your lunch. I would eat a protein granola bar (the South Beach Peanut butter or Chocolate ones are yummy and are low calorie/high protein.) That way I would stay full until lunch and then I would eat a dry turkey sandwich on rye, a piece of fruit and a 100 calorie pack of pretzels with a bottle of water. I will admit sometimes when I would get home I would want to eat everything in my kitchen, since I was doing so much for student teaching and working 30 hours a week (not recommended!!!!) I would make sure I ONLY had veggies and fruit to snack on and then ate lean cusines for dinner, I cant lie, I actually love them!! Trust me student teaching is much more enjoyable than you would think- kids are painfully adorable. Biggest piece of advice I can give you-- write a FULL WEEKS lesson plan each weekend, then on Monday make all photocopies/packets and you will not be as stressed. I spent about 8 hours every Sunday planning but then was able to have my nights to work during the week, and its MUCH easier to tweak a lesson plan then to write as you go. Hope this helps!!

To all the wonderful advice, I would add: buy yourself a crock pot.

You will be working loooongg hours, so having something at home, all ready to eat will save you LOADS of temptation from "just grabbing something on your way home."