What comes to your mind when you think about living through your college days? Perhaps partying all night, living off cheap microwavable food, extracurricular activities, or grabbing a big bag of chips and gulping it down with an energy drink? In short, do you think college life is all about living an unhealthy life and ignoring your well-being?
While these assumptions are quite true, it does not mean that living a healthy life during college is entirely impossible. It only means that you might need to make extra effort to avoid being overtaken by your extracurricular activities and social engagements.
- Stay away from alcohol
College life is not all fun; often, you get acquainted with people who are a terrible influence and promote bad habits such as drinking. Regular pubbing and clubbing with friends is the easiest way to embroil into heavy drinking habits. Often, students drink because they want to get accepted into the company of college heartthrobs or they want to avoid being called misfits.
But, for your health, you must address your drinking habit. It is easier to quit when you are new to it and not yet an avid drinker. But once this habit develops and gets stronger, you might need professional help from rehabs such as the Palm Beach Institute to detox your body and focus on creating a healthier lifestyle. These professional rehabs have streamlined alcohol rehab and recovery programs that help you come back to life and manage your withdrawal symptoms. But isn’t an ounce of preclusion better than a pound of cure? So, instead of waiting for your alcohol consumption to reach a dangerouslevel, it is better to stay away from it.
- Eat a healthy diet
During college days, you will find more motivation to ignore your food than prepare your meal and have it on time. For instance, it is much more convenient to ignore eating a healthy breakfast when getting late for class or binge on fast food with your friends. But remember, these habits are not going to help.
Ignoring breakfast will make you hungry later and crave sugary foods and drinks. Similarly, overeating fast food will likely affect your weight and may even result in obesity.
Diet and healthy food promote your physical health and improve your cognitive functions. While late-night pizza runs and burgers seem the best solution when you run late on your assignment, theywill not help in the long run. Instead of contacting fast food places, look for eateries where you can find healthy food and get it delivered at odd hours.
Also, plan your meal and eat at least three meals per day. Add ample fruits and veggies to your diet. According to a 2020 study, upping your daily fruits and vegetable intake by 66g can reduce the risk of type-2 diabetes by 25%.
Stock up on healthy snacks and keep some in your college bag all the time. Grabbing some whenever you feel hungry replenishes your energy stores and prevents you from looking for unhealthy food options. If you live in the dormitory, keep fruits and vegetables, nuts, low-fat cheese, and protein bars and eat some when the hunger kicks in during the day.
- Keep your body active
If you can take time out for partying and spending with your friends from the busy study schedule, you can make some more to keep your body active. If there is an on-campus gym, get the membership; otherwise, look for a nearby gym or hit the road in the morning for jogging, participate in sports activities, and group fitness exercises.
Even if hitting the gym every day is impossible, walking or cycling to and from class can help keep your body in motion. Consciously plan your daily physical activity and incorporate at least one rigorous exercise session weekly; two are more recommended. If nothing works, you can do cardio such as jumping, pushups, and squats in the comfort of your room.
- Develop a routine
Without developing a routine and committing to it, you cannot bring out the results of all the healthy habits you incorporate into your life. For instance, you cannot stay healthy for the rest of your life by eating healthy food just a few times. Similarly, exercising once in a while and forgetting it for months will notbenefit. Living a healthy life is a constant struggle that needs dedication. Routine helps you stay organized, focused, and motivated and promotesself-discipline.
Plan your day by dedicating time for meals, workouts, spending time with friends, and studying. Maintain a healthy sleep schedule, and avoid frequent late-nighters. Incorporate activities that make you happy but,simultaneously, healthy.
- Keep your surroundings clean
Busy college life does not mean you get a license never to clean up. When you get up in the morning, make your bed before going to the bathroom to shower. If you don’t make your bed at that time, you will probably ignore it even after you come back from college.
Make sure your study table is organized and free of clutter. Stack up all your notes and journals so you can easily find them when you are late for class. Don’t forget to keep your reading table chair out of the way because you will bump into it and hurt your toe when moving here and there in a hurry. Also, regularly wipe down the doorknobs and handles and wash the bathroom twice a week.
Conclusion
Keeping yourself healthy is important for college students as college studies constitute a significant milestone in their life, capable of changing their life food good. But college is also the time when taking care of one’s health seems the most difficult.
Between spending more time partying, clubbing, and participating in extracurricular activities, taking care of your health by eating healthy food and exercising seems less attractive. But still, it must be your priority because the healthier you are, the better you can enjoy your college life.