Introducing myself! College student needing to lose weight

ellenxmariex3
ellenxmariex3 Posts: 165 Member
edited December 23 in Introduce Yourself
Hi! My name is Ellen. I'm going into my second year of college in the fall.

When I entered college, I was exercising 2 hours a day and eating far below my recommended calories by this site. I was 145 lbs, which was dramatic since I was 155 all through high school. Around midterms time I stopped exercising and began eating more and obviously gained all the weight back, plus another 5 pounds. My lifestyle changes just were not maintainable. I'm 160 lbs right now which according to my BMI is just into the overweight category.

Now I'm trying to lose those 15 pounds to get back to 145. This time I'm trying to lose the weight in a healthy and maintainable way! No more binge exercising and only eating dinner!

Height: 5' 5.5" (very proud of that half of an inch... :P)
CW: 160 lbs
GW: 145 lbs

Replies

  • JBHawaii
    JBHawaii Posts: 94
    I feel ya,
    When I entered college I was 178 5'11.5" (I like the half inch too) and I had single digit body fat %. Over the course of 5 years I gained 60lbs. I blamed it on my sedentary lifestyle, the fact that I was getting older etc etc.

    The reality is that college is a great time for your body to stre fat. You (and I) likely eat horrible food, drink too much, and sleep in instead of working out.

    My advice... Swim against the stream. Don't go to Mickey d's for double cheeseburgers with yr friends. Instead, find a local farmers market and buy organic produce. Find a good butcher and buy quality meat, and, most importantly, cut out the drinking significantly. I'm not sayin don't drink, that's crazy, but limit the number of days inn the week that you do (1-2).

    Weight loss in college is a challenge.,in fact, I never did anything but gain... It took me until professional school to change my lifestyle. But, with some modification of the 'normal' college lifestyle you wil be able to make it happen.
  • ellenxmariex3
    ellenxmariex3 Posts: 165 Member
    I feel ya,
    When I entered college I was 178 5'11.5" (I like the half inch too) and I had single digit body fat %. Over the course of 5 years I gained 60lbs. I blamed it on my sedentary lifestyle, the fact that I was getting older etc etc.

    The reality is that college is a great time for your body to stre fat. You (and I) likely eat horrible food, drink too much, and sleep in instead of working out.

    My advice... Swim against the stream. Don't go to Mickey d's for double cheeseburgers with yr friends. Instead, find a local farmers market and buy organic produce. Find a good butcher and buy quality meat, and, most importantly, cut out the drinking significantly. I'm not sayin don't drink, that's crazy, but limit the number of days inn the week that you do (1-2).

    Weight loss in college is a challenge.,in fact, I never did anything but gain... It took me until professional school to change my lifestyle. But, with some modification of the 'normal' college lifestyle you wil be able to make it happen.

    Thanks for the advice!

    I definitely need to find a good farmers market. Over the summer I live in NJ and we have some excellent produce stands that I frequent. But I'm in FL for school and I just haven't found a good one yet. I'll keep looking!

    I do have to cut down on the drinking sometimes too. I did pretty good with that during my second semester but then my friend was getting married so it was a little crazy for a while haha.

    Thanks again!
  • lamilli09
    lamilli09 Posts: 354 Member
    Welcome! I think you'll find that there are actually quite a few of us who are still in school, trying to ditch the pesky freshman fifteen. I'm about to send you a friend request -- best of luck :) If there's anything I can do, just let me know!
  • ellenxmariex3
    ellenxmariex3 Posts: 165 Member
    Welcome! I think you'll find that there are actually quite a few of us who are still in school, trying to ditch the pesky freshman fifteen. I'm about to send you a friend request -- best of luck :) If there's anything I can do, just let me know!

    Thank you! That freshman fifteen is so annoying - I thought it was a myth but no it's definitely true!
  • christinedadali
    christinedadali Posts: 4 Member
    Welcome! I am new here as well ( 1 week now and counting). I too am going back to College ( I just finished my career in the current field to go back and start a new one), and too have some weight to lose. I thought I would send you a request as I may be a bit older but our stats are very similar ( I have a little more weight to lose than you). I put originally that I was 5' 5" but also have that extra half inch and it does make a big difference lol! Add me iff you like as I think not only our our stats are similar but I think we can help each other through the stress part and it helps to have an ear from those who are in a similar place in life. The single most important thing I have found on this journey so far....do NOT give up..even if you have a bad day...shrug it off and look for tomorrow....good luck and I am here if you need to talk :)
  • dirigibled
    dirigibled Posts: 8
    I'm in a similar situation! Sent you a friend request :)
  • classycouture
    classycouture Posts: 888 Member
    My issue when I went to college was the cafeteria food. Things that seemed "healthy," really weren't even close to being healthy. Even down to the "fat free" salad dressing (which I found out later they had mixed in laxatives to help with the "binding" effects of the food they were providing). The best thing is to buy your own food, so you have a better idea of what you are consuming. Best of luck to you!! Feel free to add me!
  • OnTheWayToPerfection
    OnTheWayToPerfection Posts: 115 Member
    I'm looking for new friends too. Feel free to add me!
  • IamL
    IamL Posts: 69 Member
    I'm also a college student trying to lose weight. :) I'm 137ish pounds, trying to get down to 120 (I'm either 5'3 or 5'4... not quite sure which.) Feel free to add me. :D
  • nomena
    nomena Posts: 165
    Feel free to add me!
  • bright_and_shiny
    bright_and_shiny Posts: 67
    I'm another slightly older career-changing college student. Just starting out on MFP - there's a bit about me in my profile. Very happy to make some new friends trying to navigate the student life, healthy eating and exercise!

    My main tip for eating well with a busy lifestyle is to make a big batch of something healthy and freeze it in portions - that way, when you're stressed and have assignments due, the easiest thing to eat is something good for you, rather than convenience food.
  • LoMayer
    LoMayer Posts: 8 Member
    I'm a college student as well. Please feel free to add me.. any of you! :)
  • pandelka
    pandelka Posts: 10 Member
    Your story is almost like mine (we have same height and weight too). When I entered college I was 125lbs (always seeing myself fat, but i definitely wasn't), then I started to eat much junk food and the result after a year and a half was 175lbs.
    I'm 5'5'', two months after I have started MFP I'm with current weight of 160lbs. Feel free to add me.
  • ellenxmariex3
    ellenxmariex3 Posts: 165 Member
    Wow so many responses!

    Thank you everyone who replied :] I added everyone who said it was okay!

    Also thank you everyone for the tips!

    I actually used to work for the dining hall at my college and it was gross. Definitely made me crave a salad.
  • smkdc
    smkdc Posts: 8
    Hey, I'm going into my final year of uni in September. Im relatively new here too. I made an acc and then never used it -_-. I'm really serious about getting back into shape now though so feel free to add me :).
  • mackie121
    mackie121 Posts: 32 Member
    Hi! Wow i love seeing other people like me! i'm going to be a sophomore in college and let me just say the freshmen 15 hit me hard :/ I was so good my first semester (even lost weight!) then I joined a sorority second semester and all my free time was gone, I didn't have any time to work out. Now I'm trying to lose that weight and maybe a little more (padding for this coming semester) but it's so hard to stay motivated! Now i've hit the "good enough" point so it's hard to keep going. Anyways add me!
    Height: 5'5.5 (pretty pleased with that 1/2 as well) ;)
    CW: 143 down from 161 at the start of summer :)
    GW: 130 (then we'll see from there)
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