When you are inspired by heading to college and starting a new life, your mind is full of excitement and expectations. New friends and opportunities are waiting for you! At the same time, some other no less important things may stay aside. Students don’t pay too much attention to exercises and healthy nutrition when starting a self-sustained life at college. While you had obligatory physical education at high school, it is your responsibility to take care of your body now. This might be more challenging than you think, because college life is a busy life and lots of distractions will definitely occur.
College life provides youngsters with a certain degree of freedom. However, there is a risk that your freedom will turn into chaos. Eating fatty snacks instead of balanced meals, studying till the late night, and neglecting physical activity are the main bad habits students usually adapt. You should remember that beginning to live a healthy life while at college is important. There are three main reasons for this. First, sports and healthy diet will keep you energetic and motivated. This way, your studying will be less overwhelming, because you won’t get tired too fast. Second, you will develop positive behavior that will bring numerous benefits in your adulthood. Third, regular exercises will increase your self-esteem and being. While college life is extremely stressful and students become vulnerable during this time, maintaining good habits that will keep you fit is crucial. When your mental state and self-esteem are healthy, you will focus on something really important like your studying, goals, communication, interests, and directions you want to follow in your life.
You should learn to take care of yourself when you are a young person. A conscious approach to your everyday activities is something that will improve your experiences in all possible ways, so you don’t have to neglect it. As such, let’s move to some practical tips on how to start a healthy lifestyle in college.
Get enough sleep
Remember, sleeping is one of your main resources of energy. Don’t let anything prevent you from having enough sleep. Partying all night and sitting over your papers till 4 o’clock of the morning may sound fun. However, sometimes it’s better to go to bed earlier or delegate your homework to an essay writing service instead of harming your health. Some people say that you should sleep no less than 8 hours. In the reality, this is individual, so just pay attention to your state. Sleeping too much is as harmful as having a lack of sleep, so mind the way you feel and come up with your own amount of hours.
Grocery store instead of a pizzeria
You will be tempted to buy a deal of unhealthy snacks and choose fast food instead of healthy meals. We insist that you should throw all the chocolate bars, potato chips, and soda away and load your fridge with vegetables, fruit, fish, and lean meat. There is a plenty of simple and fast healthy recipes, so take a while to cook something for dinner instead of ordering pizza or burger. Fatty and sugary food will ruin your metabolism and increase the level of insulin in your blood, which will cause weight gain and low level of energy.
Fiber-rich food and vegetables
Temptations will get into your way all the time, especially when your friends are eating fast food all the time. When visiting a college dining hall, make sure to start your way from a salad bar. Get yourself a plenty of vegetables before you move further. Add some chicken or fish and a perfect dinner is yours. Avoid drinking juices and take tea or water instead. Juices contain too much sugar, which is incredibly harmful.
Grab fruits
When you see a bowl of fruits in a dining hall, grab some for yourself. Take fruits to go and eat them instead of desserts and sweets. Don’t be shy to stock up in a dining hall – this way, you will have healthy snacks and save some dollars. Apples, pears, oranges, peaches and other fruits contain vitamins that will give you a boost of energy. By the way, bananas are sugary and the most useless, so don’t eat too much of them.
Stay hydrated
Not only you should forget about soda and juices, but also limit your coffee and tea breaks. While juices and soda are sugary, coffee and black tea are dehydrating. Replace them with water and green/herbal tea. Drinking enough water will improve metabolism and help you manage your weight. Also, water absorbs and leads harmful chemicals out of your organism. You should drink even more fresh water when you go to a gym. Also, don’t forget to add a couple of additional glasses if you are consuming alcoholic beverages and salty food.
Make exercising a part of your daily life
The main thing in exercising is regularity. If you make them a part of your routine, you will easily stick to them for a long time. College is a perfect time to find out what kind of sports you prefer: yoga, weight lifting, running, cycling, martial arts, football, or anything else? Maybe, you like team sport? Alternatively, maybe you prefer all of them? Try different options and find which one (or two, or three) is suitable for you. Visit sport section a couple of times a week and enjoy it as a study break or something you start your day with.
Take your friends to a gym
It’s great when you have buddies to work out together. Motivate your classmates to join you and turn running or weight lifting into a hang out. This has a lot of benefits. First, you will have fun. Second, you will keep yourself tuned, because this is an activity you share with someone else. Third, you may have a healthy feeling of competition, which will encourage you to do your best.
About the Author
Jennifer Pauli graduated from Corvinus School of Management and finished the faculty of Journalism at Corvinus University of Budapest. Currently, she is an editor, business writer, and copywriter, working with 1ws.com and other well-known companies, blogs, and personalities. Follow her on Twitter and LInkedin