Being between 18 and 22 years old, most college students are at the pinnacle of their health. This is the perfect time to capitalize on youth and start building good habits around living a healthy lifestyle. However, college students don't have lots of free time. As a result, they put off health in the name of pulling all-nighters and making good grades.

While I commend the discipline and dedication of those who pull all-nighters, such behaviors are not a part of a healthy lifestyle. For those who feel as though they have no time to exercise or eat healthy, this article is aimed at you. I have provided several tips and hints for people who want to start building healthier habits but feel as though they don't have the time:

1. Set Specific Fitness Goals for Yourself

Even though you're new to this, you probably have a general idea of what you want to get out of training. For most people, this usually involves a degree of aesthetics (having a big chest or a nice butt is a plus, after all). But one of your goals could be a performance goal, like running a 14:00 two-mile run or squatting 250 pounds. And those are great, too. My point is that you should be specific about what you want to get out of training.

2. Tailor Your Training Around Your Goals

Now that you've said what you want to get out of training, build your workouts around these goals. If you want to run a 14:00 two mile, then start running more. If you want to squat 250 pounds, squat more. There are all kinds of resources on the internet with regards to all aspects of fitness.

Here's a hint: there's a lot of literature on some fitness subjects (particularly bodybuilding), and it's very easy to get overwhelmed with conflicting advice. Just take all of this information with a grain of salt, and try something that fits with the goals that you set for yourself. If it works, great! If not, try something else. Just don't avoid working out because you're afraid you're going to do the wrong thing. Trust me, it's not that big of a deal.

3. Find Something You Actually Enjoy

Let's face facts: if you don't like something, you're probably not going to do it. Find the fitness trend that makes you happy and that you want to be good at. It can be bodybuilding, powerlifting, running, cycling, swimming, or even crossfit. If you enjoy it, you're more likely to be good at it and keep at it for a long time.

4. Start Slow but Stay Consistent

If you've never worked out consistently, doing a regular workout is a bit rough on your body. Don't worry, because your body has amazing adaptive mechanisms to build up strength and resiliency. But these resiliency mechanisms take time. And it also takes time to learn your craft. Not everyone is born with the ability to squat 250 pounds with perfect technique, after all.

I usually tell beginners to train three days a week at the beginning. This gives your body enough time to build muscle and cardiovascular endurance in between workouts and still keep a normal life schedule. As you make progress, you can then start training more frequently and/or with higher intensity.

5. You Don't Have to Train All the Time to be Healthy

Yes, the Olympic athletes train five to six days a week. Yes, Arnold Schwarzenegger trained two times a day for six days a week for the majority of his career. But it's worth noting that these people are at the top of their craft. Not to mention that they get paid a lot of money to train.

Unless you're trying to enter the Olympics or the IFBB, you don't have to train a bunch to be a healthier human citizen. Sure, training more frequently might help accomplish your goals. But you have to decide where your fitness goals are, what your body is like, and what your schedule is to determine if training more frequently is beneficial.

6. Prioritize Sleep

I can't stress the importance of sleep. When you work out, your body is physiologically stressed and in need of repair. Your body's time to repair and rejuvenate itself is through sleep. If you pull all-nighters or get three hours of sleep a night, you are robbing your body of that much needed revitalization time. Not to mention the massive amount of studies that indicate sleep deprivation has a host of negative long-term health effects.

7. Keep Healthy Foods in Your House

Eating healthy is a lot simpler than it's made out to be. The more healthy foods you keep in your house and the less crappy food you keep in your house, the more likely you'll reach for the healthy stuff. Buy lots of fruits and frozen vegetables (these are a lot cheaper than you think). Buy lean protein sources like chicken and fish. For your carbohydrates, try whole grain carbs like brown rice. Cook with healthy oils like olive oil or coconut oil.

Sidebar: In my opinion, you really don't have to count calories unless you're a competitive athlete and/or a bodybuilder. Just focus on cutting out the stuff you already know is unhealthy and make the commitment to eat more nutritious whole foods.

8. Don't Be Afraid of Indulgences

Again, unless you're a competitive bodybuilder or athlete who's trying to cut weight, a day at Whataburger won't kill you. Notice, however, I said a day. Not several days in a row. Enjoy college life and don't be afraid to eat unhealthy every now and then. Just stay focused the other 90 percent of the time and eat healthy.

9. Form Is Everything

There's a right way and a wrong way to do things. Having bad form in any sport will lead to injuries, which prevents you from training at all. Look up videos and find people in your sport who are experienced, and have them critique you.

For my weightlifting friends: Squats of any kind (bodyweight, barbell, half depth, full depth, etc.) are not bad for your knees. I don't know why this myth still exists, but it does. In the words of powerlifter Chad Wesley Smith (who squats over 800 pounds, by the way), "Squats aren't bad for your knees; bad squats are bad for your knees."

10. Push Yourself

The only way you're going to get the results that you want is by going outside of your comfort zone and challenging yourself. If it were easy, everyone would look like Arnold Schwarzenegger. In the words of Marcus Luttrell, "If you don't push your limits, you'll never really know where your limits are."

You have my tips and you have no more excuses. Go out there and be healthy!