THE FRESHMAN 15 IS REAL. For some it could only be a couple of pounds, for others, it's well over the 15 it's named after. Universities have built in gym memberships in the tuition, and many of us assume that we will take full advantage of them and be in the best shape of our live's because of it. So why is it that most of us gain weight? I can think of a few reasons.
1.) Budget
This is the one that seems like a no brainer, we're broke. With the cost of tuition and living costs skyrocketing, it's no wonder that the average college student doesn't have a lot of disposable cash. If we do, we would certainly rather spend it on things we actually want than spend it on groceries (something we've never had to pay for before anyways). When you go grocery shopping, what's always on sale, is super easy to make, and has all sorts of combinations? Pasta. Literally all you have to know how to do is boil water to make this dish. So it's no wonder that it is a college staple. Here is basically how it works from our standpoint: everything in the aisles is cheap, stuff lining the outer walls tends to be more expensive and harder to make into a meal since it generally requires some cooking know-how. Unfortunately, the outside of the supermarket is where all of the healthier foods are, like fresh meat, fruits and veggies, fresh dairy, and seafood. We tend to fill our carts with things that can be quickly made, are cheap, and happen to not expire for at least a couple of years. I'm sure that doesn't bode well for our digestive systems.
2.)
Fast food is everywhere, all the time.
I'm pretty sure that this isn't just a problem that is exclusive to college students, based on how "large" our country is. However, it is still something that plays a role. Let me just say, I think everyone is guilty of this, at least once in a while.
When we come to college, many of us are use to having meals made for us for the most part. For me, fast food was not an every day thing at home...but it could be when I came to college. When you get to college, you don't have parents around cooking for you, or telling you what to do. Although this is part of what makes college absolutely amazing, it also leads to us ordering pizza at 3 am.. Did I mention that there is a hot light app for Krispy Kreme? Yes, the app will actually notify you when fresh, hot doughnuts are available. That has gotten me into a lot of trouble and I had to uninstall it when I started trying to lose weight.
I know that this seems contradictory to my first reason "budget", but let's be honest, it's hard to realize how easily small charges on our debit cards add up unless you are actually looking at the TOTAL price of it each month. So $6 here and $8 here doesn't seem to be that big of a deal until we realize that we spent around $200 a month on fast food. It's such an easy alternative to grocery shopping, and is literally everywhere. So I'm saying that fast food is a big part of why most of us gain weight in college, and let's not forget the alcohol consumption.
3.) No more varsity sports
I was a varsity cheerleader in High School and spent a lot of time with my team practicing and just being active. I would say that most of us did something that we enjoyed in High School that involved some kind of activity. Well, when you get to college you get really busy with classes, because let's just be honest, no matter how hard your classes in High School were, you were not ready for these classes. We don't even realize it's happening until our jeans are a little tight one day, but we just aren't as active as we were in High School. Yes, we do have a gym membership. But do we really use it as much as we should? Obviously not if we all put on weight.
I think that these are the top 3 reasons why we put on weight in college. Fortunately, weight can be lost, so you don't have to just deal with it. I know that it can be tempting to just wear the yoga pants and oversized t-shirts that you wear to campus, everywhere. Then you never have to deal with those jeans that don't button or that shirt that shows your "beer belly" way to well. Come on though, do you really want to just have to buy bigger clothes at some point? It kind of seems like giving up on yourself if you do that, doesn't it? It did for me, so I never bought bigger clothes, because it seemed like I was condoning my weight gain, and I seriously did not. So here's what you need to do:
1.) Find easy recipes that incorporate veggies and leaner meats, and cut down the fast food meals. You'll be surprised at how many different things you can make, and you'll feel better after dinner instead of feeling sluggish and sick.
2.) Drink more water! Most of us are chronically dehydrated, so make sure that you are drinking half of your body weight in oz of water per day. For example, if you weigh 140 lbs, drink 70 oz of water. This will help you digest food, have more energy, and basically keep everything in your body running smoothly.
3.) I know it's not fun, but you have to exercise. I don't mean walking to the fridge more often, but I also don't mean working out for an hour every day. As long as you get in 30 minutes of good exercise 3 or 4 times per week, this is adequate. I hate working out, but I also hate not being confident in a body that I am going to spend my entire life in.
We are young, so don't waste your youth in a body that you aren't happy in! There are some things that we can not change, and I'm not saying that you need to be "skinny" to be happy. But I am saying that healthy is beautiful, and you will feel beautiful if you are treating your body right. I know that in America we are leaning more towards this idea that it is common to eat horrible and not exercise, and that this is ok. You also hear all the time that "real women" are curvy, and that smaller women are "not real". I don't have a preference on how someone looks, but I do think that treating your body well and living in a healthy way that inspires others to do the same, is extremely beautiful. It's hard to lose weight, but it's possible with some changes and hard work. Don't waste another day being unhappy. Take charge of your life! I know I will never regret starting my journey to a healthier life! <3
