College and the Healthy Life

It's Fall!

School's back in session

People are busy at work

It seems like everyone's so busy hustling around trying to get set with classes, homework, social life, work life, etc that it seems impossible to be on top with your healthy eating and exercise!

What are some tips to help you stay focused while being busy this year?

I know for me, it's a struggle to find time to work out, food prep, AND try and keep all my grades up at the same time! Also, another hard part about this lifestyle is the social aspect. Most people just don't understand our healthy lifestyle and it makes it harder to hang out with them because you may not want to eat the foods they eat, or you're tired of explaining "clean eating", or you're just plain ol' tired from the gym and want to stay in and watch a movie on the weekends (guilty!)

SO, how exactly do you balance it all? What are some ways to keep eating clean and working out, with all kinds of different temptations and obstacles in your way?

1) WALK whenever you can! Ditch the bus! Get moving on your feet in between classes, at work, between meetings, any time you have a chance to be on your feet, DO IT.

2) Take the STAIRS! No elevators for you my friend oh no! Work those legs, burn those extra calories, grow that BUMBUM!

3) The dreaded CAFETERIA! I know most food places are just filled with oodles of NON-clean eating foods and junk. But guess what?! There ARE healthy alternatives! I know most buffets at colleges have an AWESOME salad bar! You can make your own with your own choice of toppings! Ditch the heavy calorie dressings and opt for a nice lemon dressing instead! Add some sunflower seeds for some nice flavor too! Every college has SOME healthy options! And if not super clean, then go for the healthiest choice! White meat over dark, whole wheat over white, veggies and fruits over candy and chips, water over sodas, and greek yogurt over those sugar filled yogurts and puddings!

4) I live in a dorm! How can I possibly have healthy food?!
     Like I said, every college has healthy options, you just gotta look for them! Some schools even have nutrition information on their foods online! So be sure to check those out! No access to a kitchen? That's fine! Hit up your local food store (try and walk to it if you can for some extra exercise!) and buy healthy snacks to munch on! Some examples would be:

Veggies

Fruits

Nuts

Oatmeal (Easy to make in your dorm, most have microwaves!)

Liquid Egg Whites (these can also be made in the microwave!)

Brown Rice cakes or Whole Wheat bread with natural almond or peanut butter

You always have options! Make sure to read your labels though! Don't get fooled by what it says on the front of the packaging! Read the ingredients and nutrition facts too! Be educated in what you're eating!

5) EXERCISE! I know many of you will say, I simply DON'T have time to exercise! That's not completely true! Yes, you're swamped with work, school, homework, friends, etc, but you CAN fit at least a 10-20 minute cardio session! Maybe just jump around and have a dance party in your dorm with your friends! Hit the gym and do a quick High Intensity Interval Training circuit!
If you don't get to exercise one day because you're absolutely swamped, it's fine! Don't beat yourself up over one missed workout! This is a LIFESTYLE, not a complete obsession! Balance! If you're eating clean, a few missed workouts will be alright! But do make sure you're exercising AT LEAST 3x a week for your goals!

6) SOCIAL - the toughest part I know for me. I'm guilty of turning down hanging out on the weekends because a) I'm tired from the gym, b) I hate having to keep saying "no" when they ask me to go eat with them, c) I have my bedtime around 10-11 pm and don't want to stay out too late!
But you CAN be on this lifestyle and still be social! Bring your own healthy snacks when you're going out with your pals! Always bring a big bottle of water too! Keep hydrated all day! If they ask, politely decline the sweets and fatty foods! Keep calm and patient, it's hard for non fitness health nuts like you and me to understand this lifestyle change! But they'll notice how GOOD you look and how HEALTHY! Soon, they'll be wishing they had motivation like YOU! Soon they'll get used to it and stop pestering you! I know one of my friends that I have lunch with every Monday and Wednesday is so used to my clean eating now that she doesn't even ask me about my food anymore :)

7) SLEEP! SOOOOO important! Sleep is very important for weight loss! When you're sleep deprived your cortisol levels get out of whack and go into the fat storing mode! NO GOOD. So get at least 7-8 hours of sleep lovelies! It's good for your whole body too, skin, mood, everything! It's very hard in college, especially with those late night college parties and staying up doing work, but you can do it! Time management! Don't go partying every night! Take "you" time and just relax!

8) NO NO NO NO ALCOHOL! It is SO stressing on your liver, and as you know if you've read my blog post on the liver detoxifying foods, the liver has a LOT to do with fat metabolizing and weight loss! So if you want to see your goals, DROP THE ALCOHOL! So many empty calories too!

Well, those are the basics of living healthy in the college life! All easy little things you can do that can change your entire lifestyle for the better!