As a first year college student, it is easy to pack on pounds when being away from home. This is what people call Freshmen Fifteen. It becomes easy to grab unhealthy choices, whether we’re on the go or just out of pure boredom. We become so adjusted to this lifestyle that we do not notice what and how much we are eating. According to a recent study, 70% of students gain weight during college.
With the right mindset, it is easy to eat out at local eateries and making healthy choices. Having a fitness or calorie-count application on your phone, such as My Fitness Pal, can really help when going to eat out. You do not have to stick with just green vegetables when going out to eat. My Fitness Pal lets you eat what you want, while managing how much you should take in. At McDonald’s for example, students have all grown a love for fries and Big Macs. Instead of ordering such a heavy meal on carbohydrates and calories, we can substitute the Big Macs for a grilled chicken with no bun and a small fry. Add a sauce to the chicken and the calories have been slashed from ordering a Big Mac. A Big Mac has 550 calories and 260 calories from fat. A grilled chicken sandwich on the other hand has 350 calories and 80 calories from fat.
Chipotle is another local favorite. Substituting white rice for brown rice is a more healthy option. White rice is 170 calories, while brown rice is 160 calories. Ordering your meal
without corn and keeping the cheese to a minimum can also lower the carbs and calories.
Eating in the cafeteria at your school gets pretty old and tiresome; college students enjoy going out to local eateries, when it’s affordable and in their budget. Luckily, most delis and restaurants offer a variety of foods that are low in cholesterol, saturated fat and trans fat. Eating out does not mean you must sacrifice your health or diet. According to an article How to Eat Healthy When Eating Out, found on usatoday.com, Sandra Ketchman shares a few tips on how to eat healthy when eating out. Ketchman says that choosing a restaurant with full menus means more healthy dinners to choose from and it also gives us the ability to customize our meal. Another helpful tip Ketchman shares is asking the server about healthy menu options before ordering. Making a request to the chef to trim away any visible fat from your meat or poultry and asking for margarine instead of butter is also another healthy tip when going out to eat. Using these simple tips can help, when eating out and still wanting to enjoy your favorite meal. Ketchman’s tips can be quite helpful, especially when being a college student, who is tired of eating cafeteria food- the same food, everyday.
In conclusion, we can enjoy a nice meal at our favorite restaurant without packing on the unnecessary carbohydrates and calories. Using a fitness or a calorie-count application such as My Fitness Pal can help us out when we are not sure of how much we should take in. Being away from home can definitely change a college student’s eating habits and with the resources that are available for us, for everyone, can help us out with that situation.
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