Heading off to college is a big step for everyone switching from child to adult. It can have a huge impact on your life and lead to a lot of changes that will basically turn your world upside down. Even as a double athlete in high school it took me a while to adjust and develop an active lifestyle again. Here are some tips I would give to anyone coming in.
Being active in college is beneficial to your college experience. Get involved and encourage your peers to join in alongside you.
- Eat Healthy! I’m sure we have all heard about the haunting Freshman Fifteen, and most of us have experienced it. The overwhelming stress and time crunch create a routine of excuses so you can eat something fast and on the go. The way around that is meal planning! Take a Saturday or Sunday and make meals for the whole week that you can just grab and go. It is a great way to save time and even control your portion size too!
- Walk A Lot! Walking is a very simple way to just keep moving. A walk to class or to the park can be very refreshing, mind cleansing, and good exercise! It is an activity you can get your friends into and just burn some calories while catching up on what happened in your day or while planning out your next adventure!
- Join Something! Being a part of the school is so rewarding, especially when it can be beneficial to you in more than one way! Being in Intramural Team Sports or involved in the community and Frisbee tournaments or Flag Football is a great way to get involved and stay active!
- Use The Gym! Most Colleges provide you with a gym facility for free (or a low, reasonable fee). My suggestion is to use it. For little to no cost it is a great commodity to have full access to. Even if it is just to do something fun like a Zumba class with your friends or Yoga to destress.
- Sleep Well! College can be stressful and overwhelming and definitely can lead to some sleepless nights, but sleep is your friend. Without at least 5 hours of sleep your brain will not function to its full capacity and you won’t be remember things you needed to remember! Sleep can be like the oil to your college machine, frequent and necessary!
Being active in college is beneficial to your college experience. Get involved and encourage your peers to join in alongside you.