We were all young once, some of us more recently than others. But what we all had in common is that we could eat anything and not think twice about it. Corndogs, pancakes, ice cream, endless amounts of cheese and candy; and we didn't have to worry about a thing. Throughout middle and high school metabolism's are still pretty fast, they might slow down slightly but nothing too major to worry about.

And then you get to college. What's that phrase everyone says? Oh yeah, The Freshman Fifteen. According to Dictionary.com, this is "the average amount of weight gained by students during their first year of college". Those inconvenient and unattractive 15 pounds can be attributed to laziness, easy-access to food, sometimes depression, and that pesky metabolism. With a change that can't be easily felt or monitored, it's extremely easy to gain some weight and not even realize it.

Upon my research, females tend to gain more weight and easier than males because men tend to have more muscle than women, and because muscle burns more calories than fat, men tend to have a faster metabolism, too. So to my fellow women, next time you see that guy at the gym who goes just as often as you but seems to have lost twice the amount of weight, don't sweat it -- no pun intended. Men are literally built to be more lean than women. However, I'm not trying to discredit men and their hard-work, that's not what this article's about.

We all struggle with our weight or are unhappy with some part of ourselves at some point in our lives. As a young female in college, the pressure to look a certain way is overwhelming. I'm constantly stuck in the same cycle. Buying enough organic, non-GMO, green, gluten free food for a week, realizing I'm only young once and I should take advantage of it buy stuffing my face with burgers, pasta, milkshakes, and pie for a week, spending all my money on said foods and eating ramen and soda for a week, and absolutely hating myself for a week until I start all over.

Of course, I should love myself the way that I am and find someone who loves me the same. But, it's just not realistic in this society. When your constantly surrounded by television and movie actresses who embody a size 0 and it just looks so effortless, when you scroll through Instagram and everybody and their mother is a fitness expert going on and on about their journey, and just the constant comparing yourself to anyone and everyone you see day-to-day it's physically, mentally, and emotionally demanding.

I've come to the dismal realization that I have to work hard, harder than I ever have, to lose this stubborn weight that my unapologetic metabolism oh-so graciously put upon me. It's unfortunate and certainly undesirable, but it is the reality of 99% of our lives and we all need to realize that our metabolism isn't what it used to be.