For those of you that do not know, a ‘Freshman 15’ is the 15 pounds every college freshman is expected to gain. It can vary from 15 pounds to 30+ pounds depends on how hard you actually go. Some freshman are lucky and don’t experience the ‘Freshman 15’, then again, some of us are not.

Dear Freshman ‘15’,

I dreaded you for years, stayed up late making workouts to avoid you, yet here you are. My senior year, I promised my classmates that I would never fall victim of the ‘Freshman 15’. I even stooped so low to buy myself a scale to guarantee I would never see you, ever. But that was a year ago. Now that I have you, I have a few words to tell you; thank you. That is right, I said it, thank you. Although nobody enjoys gaining weight, this is the small amount of weight that I can deal with. Why? It is part of the experience.

Freshman year was hard, to say the least. Getting used to the new area, making friends, making enemies, and basically trying to make a new life. College is where you get to start over and make a new reputation. It is the point of your life where you are to make mistakes and to learn from them. Although we all have a goal coming into our freshman year to be successful and make good choices, it rarely ends that way. In fact, I remember making the most mistakes this past year. At times, I thought that these mistakes would ruin my life; but then I snapped out of my ‘over dramatized episode’ and realized that it was just another day to sweep under the rug.

I remember the exact moment when my ‘Freshman 15’ started. You would think that the open cafeteria would instantly put weight onto our new and vulnerable bodies. The three meals a day, all you can eat ice-cream, hamburgers, and pizza. Am I right? However, it was different for me. The first four months zoomed by and I didn’t gain a pound. I started to think of myself as invincible; nothing could touch me. It was at this moment, that my Freshman 15 started. Just thinking that I was in the clear, my body decided to play a prank. That short week of Thanksgiving Break, I gained a total of 10 pounds! After that, it didn’t stop.

Finals week was what tipped me over the edge. It was as if every professor thought it would be funny to assign the last six chapters to learn, on top of the accumulated test. Every essay I ever procrastinated, every chapter I purposely didn’t read all came back for revenge. In finals week alone, I gained another five pounds. On the other hand, I had all Christmas break to lose that weight and return to normal. Wrong! Going home to family, where they cook homemade meals, I gained another five pounds.

Though stress is a lot of weight itself, I am thankful for the memories that helped me gain the weight. Every late night chicken nugget run to McDonalds, every party that I ‘did or didn’t’ drink at, every second dinner that I didn’t need but ate anyways for the memories, those are the experiences I will never regret. If I was to sit at home or refuse the food, I would have never formed the connection I have with my college friends now.

A Freshman 15 is not always a bad thing. Though you come home a slightly bigger you, you are full of memories and moments you will cherish a lifetime. The weight can be easily shed, but the memories can never be replaced. So here is to the freshmen in college: if you have an opportunity to slam a 20 piece chicken nugget, if your friends are going to make chocolate sundaes for dinner, if you want to bring a pizza to sports practice, or if you want to just spend your day eating Doritos and watching Netflix with your peeps, go ahead and do it! College is a short experience. Get some friends, make mistakes, and gain some weight; there will never be a better reason to weight gain, other than the ‘Freshman 15’.

Sincerely,

A Caring Sophomore.