How to stay healthy in college

Going to college means making a lot of decisions for yourself, including how to treat your body. Getting so much freedom at once can be pretty exhilarating, but it can also lead you to throw out all responsibilities and forget about things like eating healthy and exercising. Here are some tips for staying healthy throughout the semester.

🥕 Stock up your room with heathy foods

Surrounding yourself with healthy snack and meal options will make it so much easier to choose them over the fast food restaurant down the street. If you have an apartment or dorm with a kitchen, stock up on foods that can be made into multiple meals like beans, rice, frozen fish/ meats, frozen veggies, or pasta. You can even make large portions at the beginning of the week to eat later on! If you have extremely limited space for food (a microwave and a few shelves), you’ll have to be a bit more creative. Try buying your favorite fruits and veggies, then chop them up and place them in baggies so they fit in the fridge better. As for dry foods, nuts are always a great snack to go for!

Basically, just avoid bringing processed snacks and unhealthy frozen meals into your room, because you’ll consume them in an uncontrollable way.

🥕 Check out your campus cafeterias

Cafeterias can be very different from campus to campus, then you should to take a look around and see what yours offers can make it easier to choose the healthiest options available. Some days offer healthier options than others, so be prepared to get creative with your meals. For breakfast, try to get some eggs with a bowl of oatmeal topped with whatever fruit is offered. At lunch and dinner, try to have some veggies and search for the healthiest main dish they are offering.

🥕 Go on a tour of your campus gym

Most colleges provide students with free access to the campus gym, so take advantage of it! If offered, take an actual tour. You’ll learn a lot more ‘bout what’s available, what classes are offered, and what events are going on.

🥕 Take advantage of free class offers

At the beginning of the semester, the campus will offer a week of free classes for students to come in and figure out which ones they’d be interested in. There will be yoga, pilates, boxing, strength training, and tons of other options for every fitness goal you might have. If the campus does this, try out a few, even ones you’re hesitate about.