Navigate Your College Dining Experience With Confidence

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By: Bonnie R. Giller, MS, RD, CDN, CDE

saladplateWhether you are a returning college student or just starting out as a freshman, the nutritional landscape can be difficult to navigate. The nutritional backdrop on most college campuses often includes make-your-own waffle bars in the dining halls, dorm rooms filled with junk food, student centers supplied by fast food chains, late night pizza delivery, and everything in between meeting the definition of calorie dense, greasy, and unhealthy. It is no wonder why most new college students gain the “freshman fifteen”, and some frequently gain even more. College is a time of change, wonder, excitement, freedom, loss of boundaries, and stress. With all of that going on, it is no surprise that healthy nutrition falls to the wayside.

Perhaps a basic nutrition class should become mandatory in the core curriculum for all entering students. However, since this does not really exist for students outside of the nutrition field, the following provides some tips for college students to maintain healthy nutrition when they return to school.

Dining Hall Eating:

Dining halls are becoming more informational by displaying calorie counts and nutrition information on their offerings. This is a good way to navigate your way to healthy meal options. Being mindful about your meal options also goes hand-in-hand with paying attention to the nutritional information being provided. Make sure to choose fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean meats and protein options, and low fat dairy products.

Dorm Room Options:

Knowing how to keep your dorm room stocked with healthy options may seem like you are privy to insider trading secrets. However, it does not have to be that difficult. Discovering your local grocery store can help stock your dorm room, while also keeping your wallet in check, especially if you purchase store brand items.

teensMost dorm rooms are limited in their capacities to facilitate the preparation of healthy meals because they are usually only stocked with a mini refrigerator and a microwave. Therefore, dorms should be stocked with healthy options that do not require extensive cooking or preparation. Such options include fruits and vegetables that can be eaten alone, or made into a healthy salad. Other options include whole grain bread for making sandwiches with peanut butter, tuna fish, or low sodium, low fat cold cuts.

In regards to the microwave, there are lots of microwave-ready, specially packaged food items available these days such as, brown rice and vegetables. Healthy snacking options should include low sodium, low fat popcorn, almonds or peanuts, yogurt, and whole grain cereals. Canned goods can also be good stocking options. Canned vegetables are often more fresh than those found in the produce section, with the added benefit of being less expensive.

Hydration:

Staying hydrated is of particular importance. Since your body is made up of approximately 60 – 70% water, it is imperative to drink the recommended daily intake. Drinking adequate amounts of water will keep your metabolism working at its full capacity, keep you energized and attentive, keep your short-term memory working, which is important for test taking, and quench your thirst, which is often mistaken for hunger. Make sure to stay hydrated with water as opposed to high sugar content soft drinks or fruit drinks, coffee, and energy drinks. Staying hydrated with water is as simple as keeping your room stocked with cases of water, or buying a water filter pitcher, such as Brita, and filling up a reusable water bottle to carry around campus with you.

Balance:

fruitswhiteObtaining balance is key. This involves creating daily specific routines. Routines will help you carve out sufficient meal times in between classes and/or work in an effort to maintain metabolism efficiency. If you are still finding it difficult to find balance and make healthy meal choices, then visiting with the school nutritionist may be the missing link.

Finding nutritional balance does not have to be as daunting as it seems. You do not have to join your peers in fulfilling the “freshman fifteen” prophesies. If you remain mindful enough to make healthy decisions the majority of the time, then you can be on your way to a healthy college experience.

– Bonnie R. Giller helps chronic dieters and those struggling to lose weight achieve weight loss without suffering through another diet that doesn’t work. She does this by creating a tailored solution that combines three essential ingredients: a healthy non-diet mindset, nutrition education and caring support. She utilizes the principles of intuitive eating, which is eating based on your internal signals of hunger and satiety versus situations or emotions. The result is they lose weight and keep it off without dieting. Bonnie is a Registered Dietitian (R.D.), Certified Dietitian-Nutritionist (CDN) and Certified Diabetes Educator (C.D.E.). She is also a Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor. Bonnie is the author of 5 Steps to a Body You Love without Dieting. Get your copy Free and learn more at www.brghealth.com.