University is a time where memories are formed. Four years of late-night cramming, walking into class wearing pyjama bottoms, debating the use of imagery in Frankenstein, and testing the limits of your liver with vodka shots, that you’ll one day look back on and describe to your grandchildren as the best days of your life. But between the last-minute essay writing and three hour classes, there is hardly time to go for a run or take a yoga class. And the tempting smell of the burgers in the cafeteria is so alluring. For students it’s hard to live a healthy lifestyle. Everywhere you turn there are artery-clogging deep fried snacks or delectable sugary desserts. And there’s hardly any time to make a trip to the gym. However, being healthy and active as a student may seem difficult and unrealistic, but it is very possible. University is a time to increase your friends, your knowledge, and your alcohol tolerance, not your waistline. Here a few suggestions and tips to help you stay on track with your healthy goals.
Time Management
Like everything else in university, a successful healthy lifestyle comes down to time management. This may be the hardest thing for a student to master. It’s so easy to put off assignments till the last minute, but budgeting your time will save you a lot of stress and all-nighters. Always remember P and S, no not peach schnapps and Smirnoff; Planning and Scheduling. Elina Man is a third-year English and Mathematics student at the University of Toronto Scarborough Campus. Aside from attending classes four days a week, working part-time at a tutoring centre, and studying at least two hours a night, she also devotes two to three days a week to working out. “I want to live to a good age,” she said describing her motivation for being healthy as she lowered and raised the weights at the UTSC gym. Her arms turned a bright red hue with each raise of the metal bar. “And I want to look good,” she gave a chuckle, taking a break from her long set of biceps curls. Man agrees that being healthy is “all about scheduling.” Between her exercises she told an anecdote from her first year at university where she would try to go to the gym on a whim but never really followed through. She feels that it is better to plan set days when you want to work out. Right now she plans on going to the gym every Monday and Wednesday. Knowing she has specific days and times to work out makes it easier to budget her schedule around her workouts and motivates her to actually go to the gym. Scheduling certain days to exercise help make it become routine. Having routine workouts make going to the gym and being active essential to your weekly schedule.
The Most Important Meal of the Day
Your grandma wasn’t lying when she lectured you about the importance of breakfast. Breakfast is a way to fuel your body and mind for the day. But when you’ve woken up five minutes before class, running out the door laptop in hand, it’s easy to skip the “most important meal of the day.” “[Breakfast] is extremely important,” said Ramona Seupersad the fitness program assistant for athletics and recreation at UTSC. “People actually gain weight from not eating breakfast,” she went on. When you sleep you haven’t eaten for a long period of time and your metabolism is lowered. Just as drinking coffee can wake your mind up, eating breakfast wakes up your metabolism. If you don’t eat than your metabolism is in low mode. Man admits to skipping breakfast, but said she couldn’t survive the day. Breakfast doesn’t have to be a grand event. Scrambled eggs and toast or a bowl of cereal make great meals. Or if you’re running late gulp down a yogurt or nutrition bar. Try to avoid high-in-sugar treats because you will just crash later. Breakfast is one way both your mind and body are being activated. But nothing replenishes the body like a good night sleep.
Sleeping Beauty
In university sleep becomes a foreign concept, like French politics or the plot to a James Bond film. Who can spend precious hours dreaming when there are assignments to be done, chapters to be read, and knee-slapping hilarious videos of cute animals on the internet? But it seems Sleeping Beauty was on to something when she took her deep slumber. “Sleeping helps to repair and rejuvenate the body,” Seupersad said. Although our minds are floating away creating wonderful dreams, or in some cases frightful nightmares, our bodies are at work repairing itself. The body uses the resting period of sleep to build muscle tissue damaged in a workout. Sleep deprivation not only affects you physically but mentally as well. Proper sleep patterns help students function better mentally. “If you’re going to class you’re not going to be focused if you’re not getting enough sleep,” Seupersad said.
Food for thought
For many the struggle to live a healthy lifestyle lies with food. Being active means nothing if you don’t fuel your body with nutritional food. In university it’s easy to give in to temptation and buy the greasy slice of pizza or the dripping-in-oil fries. Seupersad explains that it is better when you make your own food “that way you know exactly what you’re putting in your mouth.” However, the temptation to eat fatty food is multiplied for those who live on residence and don’t have the opportunity to make their own meals. Stephanie Coratti is a freshman living on residence at the University of Guelph and admits it can be tempting to eat unhealthy. “With a meal plan it’s really easy to eat a lot of fried foods,” she said. She relies on sheer willpower to avoid the scrumptious gourmet cakes. Her school does however, have a wide range of foods including salads and wraps. But the fruits and vegetables are usually more expensive, and there’s nothing students hate more than spending money. Although students don’t have the luxury of making their meal, living on campus does have its advantages, primarily living so close to a gym.
Busy, Busy, Busy
For commuters nothing is more painful than standing in a crowded subway trying to read your textbook, sandwiched between people while your feet burn and the overwhelming smell of body odour fills your nostrils. After a long day of waiting for buses, lugging around heavy bags, and listening to monotone professors, there is little energy, motivation, and time to work out. “I’m not very happy about using so much of my time to travel,” said Victoria Valdez a first-year student at the University of Toronto about her two hour commute to school. “Of course they [students] have time [to work out]” Seupersad chuckled. Studies show that adults should get 150 minutes of physical activity per week. What many people don’t understand is that the 150 minutes could be spaced out throughout the week. So you don’t necessarily have to be active every day, as long as you get the full 150 minutes for that week. Also many universities include membership to the school gym in tuition fees. Since you’re already paying for it, you might as well get your money’s worth. Many school gyms also have extended hours for students with overbearing schedules. Recently the UTSC gym changed its hours to Monday-Sunday from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. “It’s more convenient,” said Man taking a sip of water. But for those who still have no time to make a trip to the gym there are ways to be healthy from your own home. Instead of watching funny babies or cute sloths, use YouTube to be productive. There are many exercise videos like yoga or aerobics posted online that are easy to follow and user friendly. Seupersad also describes various calisthenics workouts, like push-ups and sit-ups that can easily be done at home. There are other little ways one can incorporate physical activity into their life. Taking the stairs or getting off the bus a few stops before and walking the rest of the way are a few little things that can help make a difference. No matter how busy you are there are always ways to stay active.
Partying, Partying, Yeah!
The best part of any student’s week is going out partying. What better way to let go of a week’s worth of stress and pressure than with a nail-biting game of beer pong? But all the partying, tequila shots, and dinner outings add up. Going out and being healthy is something Man, Coratti, and Valdez all struggle with. “It’s difficult to remember about trying to be healthy at social gatherings because I’m so focused on having a good time,” Valdez remarked. Alcohol, though tasty and entertaining, is loaded in calories, especially mixed drinks. One bottle of beer has around 150 calories, a glass of rum and coke has about 182 calories, and a margarita has 453 calories. Now telling a student not to drink alcohol is like telling Lady GaGa not to set a piano on fire; it’s not going to happen. And there’s nothing wrong with having a few drinks. Seupersad says moderation is key. “You’re allowed to have the occasional alcoholic drink, but 80-90 per cent of the time you should be trying to stay healthy.” When it comes to alcohol try limiting the amount of drinks, or switching to a low calorie beer instead. Another aspect of the student social life is the many restaurants and pub outings. Seupersad maintains that many restaurants now have healthy options, which makes it easier to stay healthy. In this new technology age there are applications on your smartphones that act like electronic food diaries. Applications like Calorie Counter track the amount of calories and nutritional information for food items from many popular restaurants. This allows users to know exactly how much calories they are ingesting and plan their dinner outings accordingly. Another trick when out to dinner is to trade in the sugary carbonated beverages and opt for a cool glass of water. Also an easy way to burn of a few mixed drinks is dancing. An hour of dancing roughly burns around 350 calories. So counter the high-calorie meal with a few hours on the dance floor. Being healthy doesn’t have to limit your social life. 
University is difficult enough with the gross amounts of readings, the numerous hours of lectures, and the wild parties, without the added stress of increasing your pant size. Being active and healthy as a student is extremely possible. And not only does living a healthier lifestyle affect you physically but it also makes you more mentally aware and focused. You’ll have more attention on what you’re doing in class and be able to take in more of what you’re learning. Being active also helps relieve unwanted stress. “It’s a great way to reduce the stress from all your exams and assignments,” Seupersad said. With new technological advances and a little self-control it is perfectly possible to have a healthy social, academic, and overall life.
