With the fall semester just underway, tons of freshmen at EMU are experiencing college life for the first time.
While most likely welcoming their newfound freedom, the chance to meet roommates and friends and beginning their academic studies, one tradition first-year students generally want to escape is the dreaded Freshmen 15, referring to the roughly 15 pounds students often gain during their first year at college. The Freshmen 15 can easily be avoided by following a few steps.
Step 1: Make Time for Food
Healthy eating is simple when you’ve planned ahead. This means knowing in advance when you’ll eat and where. Just as you organize your class schedule and study sessions, designate regular meal and snack times. Aiming to eat something every three to four hours is ideal because it will provide your body with a consistent source of energy and allow you to get to your next meal without feeling starved.
Overeating is often the result of skipping meals and allowing your body to get too hungry. Plan to have a snack between classes if you find yourself going longer than five hours without sitting down to a meal. Protein and complex carbs are your best bet: Think peanut butter on a whole-grain cracker or yogurt topped with a sliced banana.
Step 2: Seek Out Healthy Food
Identify healthy places to eat on campus. The Student Center, Eastern Eateries, Dining Commons and Cross Roads Market Place all offer healthy options such as salad bars, shaker salads, wraps and vegan/vegetarian entrees.
Prefer to pack a lunch? There’s many travel-friendly nutritious options including sandwiches, sliced raw vegetables and hummus, whole fruit and dry cereal. By preparing food the evening prior, you’ll have healthy food ready to go in the morning and can avoid a trip to the drive-thru or vending machine.
Step 3: Keep Plate and Portion Sizes In Check
Whether at a buffet line or café, your plate should look roughly the same. Aim to fill half your plate with vegetables, raw or cooked. Designate one-fourth of your plate to a protein-rich food such as a chicken breast, hamburger patty, tofu or bean salad.
Finish off the last three-fourths of your plate with healthy carbohydrates, preferably from a whole-grain source such as brown rice, whole-wheat pasta or a whole-grain roll. Starchy vegetables like potatoes and sweet potatoes are other great options for carbs.
Ensure appropriate serving sizes by following this guide: a deck of cards for meat, poultry and tofu; a golf ball for peanut butter; a CD for bread and bagels; a baseball for apples, oranges and most other fruits.
As for veggies, enjoy as much as you’d like.
Step 4: Get Moving
Whether it’s a sweat session at the REC-IM, a jog with friends or simply a walk around campus, engaging in regular physical activity can go a long way in helping to prevent unwanted weight gain.
In addition to the calorie-burning effects of exercise, regular physical activity is a great way to relieve stress and deal with boredom – two culprits that tend to facilitate weight gain.
Squeezed for time? Get in a quick yet intense workout through interval training. Alternate periods of high intensity with equal time of easy activity. Think 60 seconds of hard running followed by an easy, 60-second jog. Repeat for 20-30 minutes.
Step 5: Take Advantage of the Resources Available
EMU offers a variety of resources to help you manage your weight and stay healthy. Make an appointment with the Office of Nutrition Services to have your body composition tested and your diet analyzed.
A registered dietitian and dietetic students are on-site to provide nutrition counseling and education programs. Use your Eagle Card to work out at the REC-IM. Dining Services offers nutrition information for food served in its dining halls and convenience cafes. Or study health and nutrition in one the many PEGN classes offered on campus.
Overall, make healthy eating a priority and you’ll never need to worry about the Freshmen 15.
