Avoid gaining the Freshman Fifteen!

Ahh, the dreaded freshman fifteen. I mean really, what's up with that? I recently received an email asking me my advice on how to avoid gaining the "freshman fifteen." If you're off to college and are scared of the thought of gaining weight, I've been there. I certainly gained weight in college and here are my tips to avoid gaining the freshmen fifteen!

Why do most people (girls in particular) gain weight when they leave home and go to college?

Well my friends, I hate to tell you but there are quite a few factors why you're gaining weight. Partially it's your lifestyle and the other part is hormones... eek! Right around the 18 year mark, your hormones change and unfortunately so does your metabolism. Combine that with late night pizza and drinking and you're in for a nasty combo. To top it all off, most of us who played sports in high school don't continue onto the college level, and with that our workouts are out the door. Suddenly you're on the fast track to the freshman fifteen (like me)... or fifty for that matter! Yikes.

What can you do to avoid gaining the freshman fifteen?

1. Accept. First things first, you're not in high school anymore. Which means, you're not a little girl anymore. Part of becoming an adult is accepting your new womanly figure. Your body is going to change, diet or no diet, exercise or no exercise, whether you like it or not. Embrace your bigger bum, boobs and hips. Congrats, you're a grown up.
2. Take responsibility. For most people, college is the first taste of freedom. You can eat what you want, drink what you want, and stay out as late as you want. There's no one telling you to "eat your vegetables" and "drink your water." It's now up to you to take care of your health because no one else is going to do it for you. Make smart choices. By all means stay up late and go for that midnight run to the local pizza joint (I certainly did!) but the next day, get your lazy but out of bed and go do something active instead of cuddling in bed watching Netflix (yup, that was me). You can splurge at night as long as you make up for it the next day.
3. Make a Plan. Until now, everything was planned out for you. You went to practice because you had to, you ate a healthy meal because there was no other option. Now, it's up to you. Make a plan to eat healthy and workout. I always encourage people to schedule their workouts into their calendars. Choose three days a week before or after class and write your workout into your schedule... and don't cancel! Also, plan for healthy meals. I've got tons of easy, healthy recipes that you can make at home. Invite your friends over and eat at home... don't go out to eat for every meal! And if your eating out of the cafeteria, stick to the salad bar and only reward yourself once or twice a week. Remember: an all you can eat buffet is not your friend!

College can be the scariest, most challenging. most fun and most life changing time.. Don't get caught up calorie counting (that's what I did) or succumb to whatever diet your friends are on.  It doesn't matter what you look like on the outside if you don't feel good on the inside.  Keep yourself accountable by eating healthy and working out. If you're reading this post, you're on the right track... I'm here to keep you motivated! Enjoy your time but always remember that you aren't invincible. Take care of your body and your mind... it's the only one you have! Oh, and fight on Trojans! :)