I remember when I started college, I was terrified of gaining the notorious "freshman 15." I had seen this happen to people I knew and didn't want it to happen to me. All summer I had been working out and had lost twenty pounds. I felt better than ever and was finally able to go clothes shopping without feeling insecure when I looked in the mirror. I was so scared that I would lose it all when I went to college.

It's not that I don't have portion control or self-control, because I do. It's just I was afraid of having easy access to all the foods that I knew I shouldn't be eating would be too tempting to resist.

In a strange turn of events, when school started, the "freshman 15" turned into the freshman -5 for me. I greatly underestimated how much walking I would be doing on campus. I was also working out and burning 500 calories on the cross-trainer every day. On average, I was burning close to 1000+ calories daily, which wasn't the problem.

The problem was that I wasn't eating enough. Due to being very homesick, I barely ate at all. I was surviving off of only drinking coffee and water and eating the occasional snack or two. I was in a calorie deficit because I consistently added onto that by eating less and exercising more than the previous day. I felt horrible physically and mentally.

When I realized that I was doing to my body I began to change my lifestyle.

I still kept working out every day because the gym will always be my happy place where I can get away for a few hours. Instead, I began increasing my calorie intake and staying away from empty calories such as Ramen Noodles and bags of chips. These have no nutritional value, so I began to eat more fruits and veggies. I also allowed myself to have a treat once in a while, such as fries or chocolate. This way I wouldn't be tempted to go crazy when I finally had it again. Overall, I feel amazing physically and mentally since I realized the error of my ways and changed them.

Staying active and healthy changed my college experience, and it can change yours too!