My Top Ten Tips

Believe it or not, my clothes are actually looser than they were at home. I don't weigh myself often, and normally base my health on how I feel and how my clothes are fitting, and by those measurements, college has made me a healthier version of myself. How!? That was my first thought. As I thought about it more, I realized that it's the little things that add up. Based on those little things, here are the 10 tips I have for feeling great during college:

1. Walk everywhere. Just do it.  If you're the type of person who hates walking, college is going to be a hard slap in the face! Unless you're lucky enough to have a car with you, walking is going to become a huge part of your life. Even though it doesn't quite feel like exercise, the miles will add up without you even realizing. Trust me. 
2. If you keep junk in your dorm, you will eat it. This one may seem obvious, but it couldn't be more true. When you're up late studying for that psychology test and your stomach starts to growl, you're going to grab whatever food you have on hand, regardless of whether it's an apple or a bag of chips. 
3. Find a form of exercise you actually enjoy. I've never been a big fan of running. Once in a rare while I'll be in a running mood, but most of the time the thought of running makes me want to crawl into bed and hide! I enjoy exercise because I have found the things I actually enjoy doing. For me, it's cycling, running stairs, yoga, hiking, and my newest hobby, rowing. Find something that makes you both sweat & smile, and do it often!
4. Don't get too extreme when it comes to health. The amount of girls I hear in the dining hall saying things like "I'm not eating carbs for a whole month" or "I'm going on a fruit cleanse" is always funny to me. A healthy diet needs to be whole! Your body actually NEEDS carbs, good fats, protein, even natural sugars. Trying to go extreme and cut out an entire food group (or restrict yourself to one) will only end up making you grumpy and more likely to pile on the pasta when you give up. 
5. Everything in moderation. If that fro-yo machine seems to be calling out to you, have some! Pile on some fresh fruit and granola while you're at it, just don't do it every night. It's okay, healthy even, to allow yourself to enjoy food, as long as it's in moderation. The fro-yo place on campus has a 2$ tuesday deal, and my roommates and I love to indulge on Tuesdays. It makes turning down sweets on other days of the week easier knowing that we have our Tuesday fro yo to look forward to. 
6. Going to the gym doesn't mean you can eat whatever you want for the day. It may sound harsh, but it's true. It's great that you hopped on the ellyptical this morning for 40 minutes, but here's the thing- cardiovascular exercise burns around 10 calories per minute, meaning your workout burned somewhere between 350-450 calories. That muffin you decide to reward yourself with from starbucks has around 500 calories, and there goes your workout! Don't waste the hard work you put in at the gym on something that will be gone in a few minutes. 
7. Don't use food as a reward. I know it's tempting to want to celebrate that A you got on your midterm with a burrito the size of your face, but using food as a reward is not the best idea. Look at the American culture: we celebrate everything with food... and I mean everything. The problem is, there is always a reason to celebrate, which means there is always a reason for a not-so-smart food choice. Instead, try to reward yourself with something else; a new shirt, a manicure, or even a nice soak in the hot tub! 
8. Write down what you eat. It may seem like a pain in the butt, but it's actually quite eye-opening. Try it for at least a few days, and you will be amazed by how it makes you stop and think about what you're putting into your body. 
9. Think about carrots. Let me explain. Whenever I feel that little pang of hunger, I ask myself this question: would you eat carrots right now? If the answer is yes, I am actually hungry. If the little hunger pang goes away, I was probably just bored or craving something. It can be tricky to tell when you're actually hungry, or eating for another reason. Ask yourself about carrots if you aren't sure :) 
10. Healthy doesn't mean perfect. No one is perfect! You should enjoy life and love every minute of it, so don't spend too of that precious time stressing about what you eat or wether or not you worked out that day. Having an unhealthy day does not make you an unhealthy person!