Eat. Sleep. Gym. Repeat.
- Alena Black
- Jun 17, 2019
- 8 min read
Let me just start out by saying that the Freshman Fifteen is real. The weight gain didn't hit me until my last two months of my SECOND semester, but either way, it came when I least expected it. At the time, I was really stressed because I had midterm test up until two days before finals started, and my friends and I were staying up late trying to get homework done and study for tests. It was all a mess. Needless to say, I gained weight. I knew it too. But at the time, I was just eating to make myself have some quick happiness before crying and doing more homework. I had been so good for the first 3/4 of my freshman year, I was very disappointed in myself.
Future BYU Students, beware of the vending machines. They will be the death of you. I thought the buffet style cafeteria that was available was the culprit, but it was really the vending machines. Soda, candy, chips, pizza bites, ice cream, you name it. Those vending machines had everything. So during a late night of studying, my friends and I would go on a vending machine break and buy something. BAD BAD BAD. The first semester and part of second semester, I got away with it because I walked so much on campus. Once I started hitting midterms and finals, eating more to made me feel quick rush of energy, I easily gained 10 pounds. Regret.
I also did not really work out much my freshman year either. I had little motivation to go to the gym when I could be hanging out with friends instead. None of them wanted, or had the time to go to the gym, so we just didn't. Second semester was a little bit better because I took a tap class and started going to the gym by myself, but those last two months proved to get the best of me. I did not have time to go to the gym because I was studying, and I was eating more junk food to stay awake and "reward" myself for working so hard.
Now that I am living in my own apartment, cook my own food, and buy my own groceries, I am much more in control of what I eat. I also now have a gym membership, and plan to take at least one wellness class each semester to force me to exercise. This blog post is going to be on what I am doing now to lose that weight, and keep it off like a true fitness queen. From eating and curving cravings, to what I do for exercise. As a disclaimer: I AM NOT A DOCTOR OR HEALTH EXPERT. This is what I am doing for myself and I am not telling you to do any of these things. This is just what is working for me and I wanted to share it. Let me know if you have any questions and I will do my best to answer them! Enjoy!
Food
During Freshman year, as I said before, I had a dining plan that allowed me to eat at the all-you-can-eat cafeteria, buy from the vending machines and stores, and eat at the fast-food restaurants or dine-in restaurants on campus. I had so many options, yet I was also pretty limited. There were only so many healthy options that actually tasted good. I know that I definitely did not over-eat a lot, but I was not consuming anything that was actually good for me.
Now that I buy my own groceries, I have cut way back on carbs, and have included more protein and "good fats" into my diet. I now opt for low-carb options for tortillas and sandwich thins, and pre-made zoodles. I also eat more chicken, tuna, and salmon in my diet than the previous beef heavy meals the Cannon Center had. These are lean meats that have less fat. Not to mention, they are way cheaper to buy. Avocados are a bigger part of my diet and I have branched out to making other vegetables tastier too. I now make kale and zucchini chips, carrot fries, and I even eat bell peppers raw. I make sure to include a lot more vegetables in as many meals as I can. By sneaking them into my smoothies, or just steaming them and eating them with chicken. I am also doing my best to stay away from most processed foods which has worked. I rarely snack in between meals now. I just don't feel the need to. I am full until the next meal.
I still don't make very intricate meals, but I still make healthy, low calories ones that fill me up. When I do want to try making a fancier meal, I will look on the Tasty App and find a couple before I go shopping for the week. They have plenty of low calories, easy, healthy recipes.
Another trick that I use is a calorie counter. This isn't new or anything, I just am much more honest counting my calories now. The past times I tried to count calories, I used to not log certain snacks. Yes, that defeats the purpose of a calorie counter. No, I don't know why I did that. In order to lose weight, you need to be in a calorie deficient. Meaning, you need to burn more calories than you take in. For me, I eat about 1,000-1,200 calories a day depending on my workout for the day which is about average for people trying to lose weight. If you have a heavier workout, it is okay to have more calories so that your body can heal. Just make sure the calories are coming from good foods for you and not sugar. Personally, 1,000-1,200 is a good caloric intake for my body. I do not feel starved or stuffed. I know other people who work out more than I am right now take in more calories, so it all depends on your body, and what you are trying to do. Just be aware of what your body needs and do not deprive it of food or binge eat. For keeping track of my calories, I use an app called Lifesum. It is a basic calorie counter that tracks your meals and snacks. It can also track water intake and exercise.
Cravings
I am a sugar addict. It's not that I never had it as a kid or anything, I just love anything sugary. This is what made those vending machines so tempting. Even now, I crave cookies literally all the time, and if you know Utah, cookie delivery services are VERY ACCESSIBLE. I literally got the Chip cookie of the month every month, and will most likely continue to do so, but now, I am much more aware of how it will fit into my calories for the day. Treating yourself once a month won't put you that far back, and sometimes you need the treat to motivate you to keep going.
I also eat a lot more fruit now. The Cannon Center had horrible fruit in my opinion. They were always mushy and gross. I now love to make smoothie bowls with frozen and fresh fruit. It fills me up and takes care of that sweet tooth while being much healthier.
I am nowhere near perfect when it comes to cutting out sugar. I have tried many times to just cut it cold turkey and last about a day. This time, I am weaning myself off of it by letting myself have a couple chocolate chips each day and decreasing the amount day by day. Slowly but surely, I am getting better with my cravings and so hopefully these tricks can help you too.
Workouts
I used to do competitive dance all throughout middle school and half of high school. This kept me very active. I easily took 24 hours of dance classes each week if not more. When I decided to become a cheerleader for my high school and stop dancing, I was doing a lot less cardio, but at least I was still doing something physically active. Once I came to college and was no longer doing any of those things, there was no way for my body to burn off the calories I was consuming. I also was living on campus making everything within a 5-10 minute walking distance.
As of right now, I do not have a car and I now live 5-6 blocks away from campus. That is about a 15-20 minute walk to the closest edge of campus. The far side easily takes 30-35 minutes. While this is a good start to burning calories, I knew I could do more. I decided to try out a few fitness classes.
As part of my spring term classes, I decided to take a Zumba class. Let me tell you, this class is the definition of a PARTY. It is so much fun! I highly recommend Zumba for anyone who is like me and hates traditional cardio. Easily within a 30 minute time period, you can burn up to 400 calories depending on the movements and how hard you push yourself. I plan to take a fitness class at BYU each semester now because I want to be able to have a class that is pure fun and healthy for me.
In addition to that, I tried out a couple gyms and classes near me. I tried an OrangeTheory free class which I loved but the price was a little steep for a struggling college student. I also plan on trying out a boxing place near me. I also tried out a gym that is very popular near my school. I chose to buy a membership at VASA so that I could do run on the treadmill, swim, do some weight-training, and take classes such as yoga, Zumba, and even cycling. It was a very versatile membership, so I decided to sign up. So far, I really enjoy going to the gym. The only downside is that since it is so close to campus, there are lots of students there who are super fit. Gym-timidation is real. But, I am determined to get results, so I just suck it up and do my own thing.
A basic gym workout that I will do (I switch it up a lot cause I get bored):
10 min treadmill warm-up 3.2 mph 5.0 incline
15 HIIT treadmill sprints 8.5-9 mph 0 incline 20 seconds on, 40 seconds off
Ab routine (crunches, plank, plank twists, V-sit, toe taps etc.) I suggest YouTube for routines
Arm or leg/butt (I alternate days) I suggest YouTube or Instagram for routines
10 min treadmill cool-down 3.0 mph 3.0 incline
Even if I don't feel like doing any weights for that day, I will always do cardio. If I'm not feeling the HIIT cardio, I will jog for 15-20 minutes. I used to hate cardio, but I think it is because I didn't know how to do it. I was running too fast and couldn't keep my pace for more than 4-5 minutes. I since learned that I have to have a much slower pace in order to run distance. I can now see why people like running. I definitely wouldn't say that I like it, but I don't hate it as much anymore either. Also, when I don't have the time to go to the gym (20 minute walk, 30 minute bus ride, and 20 minutes back), I will just do an ab workout at home.
I am more determined than I have ever been before to become happy with my body. I have always found faults in my body, and it has really taken a toll on my confidence. I can honestly say that I have already felt a difference in my body with these changes. I am much more energized, less hungry, less bloated, and I actually like working out again. I am excited to see how this journey will shape my lifestyle, habits, and body. If you see me having a moment of weakness, please set me straight. FITNESS QUEEN HERE I COME.
If you have any questions, workout recommendations, or need/want to give motivation, leave a comment or DM me!
XO
Alena
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