When you start a new diet or commit to a lifestyle change, the most surprising part that nobody tells you about is everyone around you isn’t going to join you. It’s easy to feel that now because you’re eating healthy, your friends and everyone around you is going to join in. They’re not.

It’s difficult to keep up with a healthy lifestyle when everyone around you is still eating like you used to. It’s even harder when you’re in college, especially if you’re away from home in a dorm or living in off-campus housing.

College is the first time you’re living on your own and are in charge of your own decisions. What you eat for dinner is no longer up to your parents. Especially with college events like tailgating, parties or catered student club events couples with the convenience of a vending machine stocked with every unhealthy tempting snack in the world sitting around every corner and the cafeteria that sells fried food and ice cream 24/7. The widely talked about freshman 15 is real.

Contrary to popular belief, there is a way to keep healthy while at college. Sacrificing your social life is not one of them.

1. Stock your fridge with versatile staple foods.

Keep your fridge stocked with foods that are versatile and can be mixed and matched with other foods easily. Think of it as a staple white tee in your closet: it can go with any outfit. Pick foods that have long shelf lives and won’t go bad quickly and foods that you can get several different meals or snacks out of. Nuts are a great example, along with almond butter, whole grain crackers, dried fruit and rice cakes.

Microwavable soups are also great to stock up on, as well as fresh fruits that are easy for grab-and-go snacks.

2. Plan your snacks and meals around your schedule.

We’re used to eating breakfast in the morning, lunch around 12, and dinner around 6 with snacks in between. With busy college schedules, it’s easy to have time blocks around your usual meal and snack times.

Plan your meals and snacks around your schedule. Work out the times you have breaks and fit a meal or snack in. Most professors will let you eat a snack in class, as long as it isn’t anything too messy. Choosing snacks that have more protein will keep you full for longer, which helps unnecessary snacking on those God awful tempting vending machines we mentioned.

Planning your snacks ahead will help you stay away from unhealthy, last minute choice snacking, too. Keep snacks in your bag at all times because you never know when you’re going to want one.

Granola bars are always a solid go-to, KIND bars are delicious and filling while being healthy. RXBARs are, too, with each package saying the exact ingredients of what you’re eating. Fruits like apples, oranges and bananas are great on the go, as well. A lot of cafeterias or dining halls have a fruit basket which 90% of the population seems to avoid, but grab something from it if you pass it.

3. Meal prep.

Someone discovered people were eating leftovers for 3 nights and decided to call it meal prep. It’s a great thing. If you have access to a kitchen, on the weekend devote time to cooking a meal--my personal favorite is chicken fajitas--and make enough to have around 5 serving sizes. Put them in Tupperware containers so they’re ready to pop in the microwave for dinner throughout the week.

Young adults have the worst eating habits due mainly to time restraints. Not having enough time to prepare healthy foods is the most reported barrier on why people don’t keep up healthy eating habits. Meal prepping helps tremendously, since the food is already cooked and just has to be warmed up. Especially for dinner, because after a long day out and about the last thing you want to do is cook a meal.

4. Socialize.

Just because you’re on this lifestyle health kick doesn’t mean everyone else around you is, too. They’re still going to be eating how you were eating before. This creates the temptation to cave and fall back into how you were eating.

A lot of people simply turn down plans altogether because of their healthy eating habits. Their logic is “why go out and eat unhealthy when you could have a night in with a face mask and your healthy meal?”

Don’t do this. Go out. Go socialize. You don’t have to sacrifice socializing for healthy eating.

Before going out, ask to see where you’re going. I usually look up the menu online beforehand and find the healthiest options so I have an idea of what I’m getting into. You can also eat a light meal or snack an hour or two before you leave to avoid overeating or overdoing it. You can always be the one to recommend a new, healthier place to go to as well.

If you’re drinking, try switching to light beers or white wines and try to stay with light liquors like vodka or gin. Of course, balance it out with water in between drinks.

5. Self-indulge but keep an 80/20 balance.

Healthy eating doesn’t mean completely denying yourself of unhealthy foods. Indulge yourself here and there. As long as you follow the 80/20 rule, you’ll be fine.

The 80/20 rule is making sure 80% of your eating is healthy, whole foods. The other 20% is unhealthy, junk foods or “cheat meals." As long as a majority of the foods you’re consuming are healthy, whole foods, then you don’t have to worry about the whole “letting yourself go again” panic.

If you want a greasy food one night, go out and eat some greasy food. However, try to stay away from the “rewarding yourself for eating healthy” mentality. This kind of thinking is easy to develop guilty feelings from eating “bad”, and you want to stray away from that.

Which brings us to...

6. Let yourself “mess up.”

You’re going to mess up. It’s inevitable. You’re never going to have the 100% perfect, 24/7 Instagram worthy diet. You’re going to slip up more than once, twice and three times. It’s okay.

Harboring feelings of guilt and shame after slipping up is going to make your whole new-lifestyle-journey feel like a trip to Hell. The whole point is feeling better and enjoying yourself by bettering your body and nourishing it, not punishing it.

Accept that there are going to be things--especially hormonal things--that will set your cravings off and it’s completely okay to indulge in them, in moderation. Again, as long as your 80/20 is in place, you’re good.

Even though it seems impossible to maintain a healthy lifestyle while in college and keep a social life, it’s 100% doable. Not convenient, or easy by any means, but doable.