If You are a freshman in college or a high school senior, you have surely heard about the dreaded ‘freshman-15’. Most studies show that about 66% of students experience weight gain during their first year. Contrary to popular belief, most students actually only gain 2.5 to 3.5 pounds on average, not as high as 15 pounds. However, If this weight gain is common enough to have a specific term coined for it, then it is only wise to be familiar with it. What is it that causes young healthy adults to all of a sudden experience weight gain? Can it be prevented? If so, how? Let’s get into it.
Although the average weight gain is under four pounds, many students do indeed gain more than 10 pounds within just the first semester. Luckily, the ‘freshman 15’ is completely avoidable as long as you are aware of its possibility and the reasons that cause the ‘freshman 15’.
1. New Eating Habits
The drastic weight change happens as a result of drastic changes in the environment, daily routine, and eating habits. In high school, you are used to eating homemade meals that are planned out for you. You normally don’t choose your meals. On the other hand, in college, your every meal is handpicked by you from a buffet with endless choices. Many of these choices are not necessarily healthy: fast food, chips, sugary drink, fried snacks, etc.
2. Food Is EVERYWHERE
In addition to dining hall food, there is food everywhere you go. If you are going to any organization or club meeting, there will almost always be pizza or snacks there.
If you live in the dorms, there will be free snacks later at night during exam weeks. There is usually so many campus events that offer free food during the beginning of the semester. All the free food available is almost never healthy food.
3. The Booze
Blame it all on the alcohol, why don’t you. Well, alcohol is to be blamed for many college students’ freshman 15. Alcohol is basically empty calories; it contains all the calories with no actual nutrients.
Plus, you are more likely to eat even more junk food when you are drunk. Booze doesn’t exactly go pair well with salads.
Sugary drinks such as sodas and sweet coffees also fall under the same umbrella. Overconsumption of sugar slowly and steadily destroys your ability to realize when you are full, which leads to overeating.
4. Stress
Your college years might end up being some of the most stressful years of your young adult life. When you go from a very structured high school life of fixed class times, fixed mealtimes, and fixed bedtime, the chaotic college routine can be hard to handle. No one day is ever the same in college. You might have a part-time job or internship that you schedule around your class times. Your class schedule, activities schedule, and work schedule will be different every day. Then there is homework, extracurriculars, office hours, social events, etc.
With just so much going on at all times in college, it can be stressful to juggle classes, work, and social life, especially during midterms. I kid you not, I got a bald spot during my junior year because I was stressed out at most times.
Your body will try to mitigate the stress by reaching for comfort food such as cookies, fries, or chips. All this stress can lead to hormone imbalance, which can also lead to stress eating.
5. Lack of Exercise
Most likely, you will be much busier in college than in high school. Unless you are doing a college sport or physical extracurricular activity, you will find it hard to find time for exercise.
In high school, there is a mandatory gym period. Plus, most students do some sort of physical extracurricular activity. In college, your extracurriculars will be in your related to your major. Unless your major is related to sports or you are studying on a sports scholarship, the chances of you getting physical exercise as part of your extracurriculars is less likely.
Most likely, you will have to SPECIFICALLY make time for exercise, which most college students just do not prioritize. Ultimately, overeating is not accompanied by exercise leading to weight gain.
How Can You Avoid It All Together?
The very best way to prevent sudden weight gain is to develop healthy habits that you can sustain long-term throughout college. Good eating habits and sleeping habits will be a godsend.
Practically, you can pick some of the habits that I have listed below and slowly incorporate them into your daily life.
- Do not eat while watching TV or studying as it leads to overeating.
- Keep an embargo on sugary drinks (if you can just choose one habit, pick this one. It will make a HUGE difference).
- Try to eat regular meals and avoid skipping meals.
- Keep healthier snacks nearby when studying (nearby, but not at arm’s length).
- Drink plenty of water.
- Watch your portions in the dining room.
- Try to get a similar amount of sleep every night (avoid sleeping 2 hours one night and 12 hours the next).
- Watch how much you drink (Those are a lot of empty calories).
The biggest thing that helped me keep off the freshman-15 was to meal prep all my food and keep it ready to eat in the fridge. This immensely helped me avoid skipping meals or eating snacks for meals.
I hope these suggestions will help you keep off the freshman 15. More importantly, many of these suggestions also help you maintain your mental health, which ultimately leads to good physical health.