Transitioning into college is difficult in many respects.
Leaving your friends and family at home, getting acclamated with a new location and lifestyle, and trying to manage a new level of academia with a college social life. The transition often ignored, though, is the drastic change in eating habits. The college budget often leads people to microwave meals, ramen noodles, or eating primarily at dining halls. With all of the options in the dining hall, it can be hard not to load your plate up with pizza and french fries. This change can naturally lead not only to low energy due to your body not getting what it needs, but to weight gain-the freshman fifteen.
Here are three easy ways you can eat healthy while on a college budget.
1. Meal Prep
Rather than planning on going to the dining hall for every meal, set aside an hour on Sunday to prep dinners for the upcoming week. Dishes like chicken and vegetables over brown rice, salads, or even turkey tacos are both healthy and can be made easily in a communal kitchen (most dorms have them!) Check out this
2. Get to Know Your Dining Hall
Dining halls often have an array of choices that will stay fairly consistent, so get to know your dining hall! Find ways to incorporate food from different stations into yummy dishes. For example, make a fun salad by getting different meats and cooked veggies and incorporate them into your normal salad choice. Spicing up your meals will make it easier to avoid the unhealthy go-tos.
3. Utilize Tupperware
Investing in tupperware is not only cheap, but essential in maintaining a healthy lifestyle while on the college budget. Not only can they be used for meal prep, but for storing healthier dining hall or school event options. Some dining halls are stricter than others, but my friends and I always sneak in tupperware to take back some fresh produce from our dining hall, saving us a lot of money. Schools will also have a ton of barbeques and different events with food, so bring some tupperware and take back some pasta salad! Having healthier options in your dorm will help you avoid settling for ramen on chips. Plus, there's no harm in taking advantage of the abundance of food on campus, especially when you're paying so much to go there!
Happy healthy eating!