SuEstrellita

So I just wrote this great post and it got lost, so here are the cliffs notes:

~ALCOHOL: Are you a drinker? I've seen more thin girls gain a lot of weight because of beer than pizza during their freshman year. Just think about how caloric one weekend at college can be for the typical "frat boy" type student. Friday - Breakfast, Lunch, then pizza for dinner - with a few beers, of course...followed by...more beer (or whatever type of alcohol.) Then Saturday breakfast? Cold pizza, then maybe lunch, dinner, and again drinking. Those two days alone can really pack in a lot of calories. If you drink, consider laying off a bit.

~EXERCISE: I lost 10 pounds the second semester of my freshman year by working out. I used the elliptical trainers because it's low impact but good cardio. I lost a lot of weight from my lower body. I was very happy with my results within a few months of going 4 times a week for a half hour to 45 minutes. I'm not one to give advice about WHAT to do or for how long or anything - but I'll give you advice about how I stuck to it.

- Find something you enjoy. Maybe it's Tennis or jogging or biking. Whatever it is, if you like it, you'll do it more.
- Listen to music. Especially if you're in a gym...it makes the time go by faster.
- Use that time as YOUR time. When I work out I study for tests (I don't bring notes with me but I can go over concepts, terms, lists, etc) or plan when I'll do my assignments, just generally organize my life. I also think about things that have happened, things that are bothering me or things I'm looking forward to. If you get really bored, my last resort is mentally creating music videos to go along with whatever you're listening to.
- Try to find a regular time to go. My schedule this semester was crazy but I went almost every Monday/Wednesday/Friday at 8:15 AM (Yes, this meant getting up way too early) and Tuesday/Thursday at 3:30. I gave myself the weekend off if I made it every day that week - any soreness I had from weights later in the week would be more or less gone by Monday and I felt more energetic having rested a bit.

~EATING: First of all, when you're working out you won't feel as guilty about those little "special occasion" splurges. For example "Yeah, I'll have a piece of my roommate's birthday cake...it's a special occasion and I worked out today!" Although you can't go around eating anything you want and expect to lose weight, I have found that I enjoy those little splurges more since I'm not worried about my thighs or tummy with every bite. Here are my other few tips that won't be life-changing, but will cut out a few of those extra calories.

- Making eating compromises with myself. I'll go have a burger on the weekend, but I tell myself that I either need to get the Boca burger and then I can have fries or I can get the beef burger (they really need to get turkey) and then just have a side salad. Another option is the side salad and boca burger option that allows me pudding. You get the idea.
- Don't keep bad food around! Right now I'm having a TERRIBLE time with the snacking and stuff. I'm home from school and there are cookies, chips, pie, stuff like that EVERYWHERE. My new alternative snack is baby carrots with light dressing. Works pretty well. Anyway, it's easier at school to not keep things around. I'd stock my fridge with apples and powerade and my "snack food" was pretzels. Oh, and if you're craving chocolate I highly suggest the Viactiv calcium chews. Not bad at all.
- Remember all those things you read in magazines about healthy meals that don't sound so bad. Chicken breast can be done 1001 different healthy ways. I also love cottage cheese so I stock up on the lowfat stuff.
- I'm a big believer in smoothies. A little orange juice (fresh squeezed is the best of course) some frozen bananas and whatever else you like...the banana will thicken it without making it milk-shake-ish.
- My post-dinner dessert a lot of days came from our school smoothie bar. I threw a bunch of raspberries into a plastic cup, then tossed a few chocolate chips in and mixed it up. Kinda like a Godiva chocolate raspberry bar but less calories, ya know?

Anyway, good luck, I hope my experiences and stuff trigger some ideas for you. Make sure your goals are attainable and reasonable. Best wishes!