Student diet ideas

Oat revolution oatmeal is really good, so is campbell's healthy choice soup.

I am totally in (mostly) the same boat.

What is your kitchen situation exactly? Do you have any sort of kitchen-like room? Got a hot plate? Or just a microwave?

In terms of budget, pay attention to sales at your supermarket. Get as many free "club cards" and "rewards cards" as you can... don't ignore coupons and only use the ones for things you actually will indeed use.

I find smart ones to often be affordable frozen food, but if you possibly have any way of preparing food, I wouldn't eat frozen food daily (many reasons that stuff is kind of horrible for you even if it's not fattening.)

Do you live there? I'd get a fridge, they aren't that expensive. You can get one second hand from someone who graduated. You're probably doing a lot of eating out and all I can say is, trim the bread off sandwiches like subs which give you a loaf of bread with a meal, get it without mayo and take it home and put on the low cal stuff, which now tastes as good as regular. If your cafeteria has all you can eat meals, grab an extra fruit and pocket it for a snack later. If you have a microwave, get steamfresh vegetables. They are very tasty and just a couple minutes in the microwave.

Boca burgers. The Patti and some bread and then go.

i live off sandwiches (made w/ chicken breast), pasta, balance bars, dried fruits, etc....

i just toast a loaf of bread (whole wheat) ahead of time as well as grill all the meat (~ 6oz slices). takes about 15 mins. altogether. all i do is put together the bread, meat, veggies and sauce (i use spicy mustard) when i'm packing for the day. no reheating required.

whole grains with spaghetti sauce or italian, whatever you prefer. also takes about 20 mins. tops, most of the time goes to water boiling. i make a huge container in the fridge for the week and scoop out what i need. any veggies you want to add, it doesn't take a whole lot of time to steam them or however you like your veggies. i personally put a little water in a big pot, heat on high and toss in my chopped veggies and turn the heat off. i let the remaining steam cook the veggies. i have an electric stove though, so the stove-top surface stays heated. if you have gas, leave the heat on longer.

there's also frozen veggies and those steamers i see at the market. the steamers you can just pop in the microwave. i don't use those though, but if i needed to, i would. they're better than chips or what you would get as a side on campus besides salad.

again, none of these i reheat, since i prefer my food cold to room temp. anyway. i also try to minimize using microwaves. but since you have microwaves on campus, you can always heat whatever up.

balance bars are awesome on the go. 200 cals. per bar. i like the mint crunch, sweet & sour almond chocolate, lemon meringue crunch, & sweet & sour peanut butter. the almond is my fav. i have boxes of these things. :laugh: i only ever eat a quarter at a time. they really are a lifesaver sometimes esp. when I'm studying, slept late and don't have the time to pack food. dried fruits like raisins, mangoes, etc... for something sweet. i have tons of these on hand as well. oh and nuts, but i don't make a habit of eating those. can be pricey.

my classmate sits in class eating her yogurt and banana. she will not miss her breakfast. :laugh: nothing easier than throwing a yogurt cup in your backpack with a banana. my other classmate works full-time and carries around whole wheat raisin bread lathered w/ almond butter. they're pretty tasty. she carries so much that she can offer me some. :laugh:

oh and amazon, and i'm sure other places do as well, sell really light-weight and thin icemats. they're about $1-2 each.

I just finished uni for the year but i will have this problem when i go back next year, i was thinking the same. All i could think of was salad with a can of tuna and fruit

I was a student for 6 years in total and worked up to 30 hours a week, and for 4 of those years I commuted 1.5 hours each way. These were my healthy tricks:

Quinoia! Make it for dinner one night and make double or 3x. It's great with just some spaghetti sauce from a jar and warmed in the microwave.

Pre-cut whatever raw veggies you like on sunday and put them in 5 separate re-sealable plastic bags in your fridge- take one with you every day and eat all the raw veggies before you dig into your meal, or as a snack. You can re-use the bags every week after a quick rinse and dry. My tip is not to save the bell pepper for Thursday or Friday as they can loose their crispness quite quickly.

I used to put salad greens in one large container, and on top of the greens I would put dressing (in a small container) and some tuna (in a plastic baggie or small container) and then mix it all together just before eating.

Bring Cristal Light packets and a re-useable water bottle, it's great for when you crave something sweet while studying.

Bring a thermos and some tea bags- if you can't find a kettle, use the microwave for the water. Tea is great for those long nights in the library and will keep you from mindlessly snacking.

As another poster said- oatmeal is great! I would pre-measure my own ingredients and put it all in separate re-sealable plastic bags. Quick oats (so cheap), dried fruit (raisins, etc), crumbled dark chocolate, sugar/sweetner, or whatever you like can be used. Just grad a pre-made baggie and your thermos on the way out the door. Hopefully you have access to a kettle, but you could warm the water in the microwave if you need to.

Dry cereal- again use those re-sealable bags (and again, since cereal is a dry ingredient, you can re-use them). Pre-measure the cereal out into one-serving size portions and grab one on your way out the door. My favourites were cheerios, frosted flakes mixed with all-bran or mini-wheats.

My undergrad uni had a commuter student lounge- it was awesome! There was a kettle, toaster, microwave, fridge, spices, dishes, bowls and cutlery available- hopefully yours does too. My post-grad university didn't have these facilities, but it was still doable, I used to have to bring a lot to school, it was a pain in the butt, but It was healthier and I saved SO much money!

Bring Cristal Light packets and a re-useable water bottle, it's great for when you crave something sweet while studying.

what reusable water bottle is everyone using? i use nalgene, but water (or any liquid) will leak out of these, if they're not standing upright in my bag. :blushing:

Totally in the same boat. I need to eat fairly often, and going hungry results in disaster. Here are my favorite snacks:
skim milk cappuccinos- pricey but low cal with sugarfree syrup
babybel light cheese- 50 calories, and they come in big bags, also will be fine not refrigerated for several hours
boiled eggs- I steal the little salt and peppers from the cafeteria to dip them into
apples- they stand up to being in my bag all day
yogurt- don't forget a spoon

For meals:
chili in a pouch- you can get these from costco or the ethnic section of some grocery stores, it's ~300 cal for the whole pouch, which can be dumped into a container and heated in the microwave
any legume with rice and cheese is pretty much a winner, and many can be served at room temperature
sandwiches- light bread + (avocado/light cream cheese) (PB/low sugar jam) (goat cheese/veggies) (pesto/veggies)
salads- bring the dressing in a pouch or container so the veggies don't get soggy

if you have a freezer at home:
homemade chili- make a huge batch and separate it into single servings
pasta- add jarred sauce and light cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, anchovies, artichokes, ect. and freeze them in single servings
frozen burritos- microwave them in a container to avoid an explosion that will probably end in tears and be sure to check the stats, as some are quite fatty, I like Amy's varieties

I've been an undergrad for far too long, so I hope that my extensive experience living the student life is at least of some assistance!