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Eating Healthy in College on a Budget

Eating Healthy in College on a Budget

It can be extremely difficult to eat healthy in college, so I’ve pulled together some of my favorite tips to share to make the process easier!

All of the items you see below were under $150 and can fit in my dorm shelf and mini fridge. I promise, eating healthy in college (even living in the dorms) is possible. I’m super busy all the time with two jobs, an internship, this blog, sorority life, and a full class schedule. If I can do it, you can do it!

Smoothie ingredients

Smoothie ingredientsMake a healthy snack or meal replacement with a quick and easy smoothie. Use almond milk for protein, frozen berries, a whole banana, a spoonful of almond butter, and a handful of spinach. I promise, you won’t taste the spinach AT ALL! It’s the easiest way to get a healthy serving of fruits and veggies.

Healthy snacks

Snack idea

I love tuna and crackers for a quick, protein-packed, snack!

Snack idea

Take these to-go packs of ranch and a Ziploc baggie of carrots when you’re on the run. It’s so easy to take these in the car, on the way to class, or for your lunch at work.

Snack

I always crave fresh fruit while I’m at college. Unfortunately, most dining halls do a terrible job at providing fresh fruits or veggies. Berries go bad pretty quickly, but I’ve found grapes to last a little longer. They’re also easy to just throw in a Ziploc bag and take with you – no slicing necessary.

Two go-to lunch/dinner options

Lunch/dinner

You can make little roll-up sandwiches super quickly by spreading on some cream cheese, layering on turkey and spinach, and then rolling it all up. I take these in little bags for my lunch at work. They’re filling and delicious.

Lunch/dinner

I’m not vegan, but I am obsessed with these vegan chicken patties. They are SO good! They taste like chicken nuggets while still being healthy somehow. I have a huge stash of about four of these boxes in my freezer because I eat them so much. I love throwing a patty and some instant brown rice into a Tupperware for lunch at work. You can just put it in the microwave for a minute and everything is hot and ready to eat!

At least one breakfast option

Breakfast

I honestly cannot stress the importance of breakfast enough. Especially for college-aged kids – we need fuel in the morning. So many of us are running off to class and then work and then other clubs/activities and then finally working on homework. Since we can’t always rely on being well-rested in the mornings, our bodies crave fuel. Make sure you have one breakfast staple on hand. I like having yogurt with some protein-packed cereal – you can easily plop some into a paper bowl and take it on the go if you need. EAT BREAKFAST! Your body will thank you.

Super quick microwave meals

Microwave

Yeah, I know. This isn’t ideal. However, eating something is much better than eating nothing. We all know that Easy Mac and Cup-O-Noodles isn’t the best choice for our bodies. I’ve found Annie’s organic mac n’ cheese and Barilla’s pastas to be the best alternatives. Sometimes, we are just too tired to even think about making ourselves something healthier. Trust me, the idea of just heating something up always sounds appealing. Just make sure when you do eat these quick, microwavable meals that it’s not all the time and they’re not completely terrible for you.

 

One thing you can make that feels like a “real” meal

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Cooking in the dorms is virtually impossible. However, I have found there are a few creative ways that you can whip together something that resembles a “real” home-cooked meal. I use a hot pot (like this one) to boil water. Once the water is boiled, I add in quinoa and olive oil. Quinoa is so versatile, but I love putting lime juice, corn, black beans, tomato, and avocado in it. A light and healthy meal, it doesn’t take that much time to make but let’s you feel like you’re actually cooking. I usually make a medium sized batch of this and put it in containers for lunches for the rest of the week. To hear more about the recipe, check out my other post here.

 

Your favorite goodies

Goodies

Yep, you’re allowed to pig-out every once in a while. Having some of your favorite goodies on hand allows you to feel comfortable and like you’re not completely depriving yourself. I really think it’s important to have some of your favorite things nearby especially if you’re feeling down or homesick.

A few more tips:
  • Pack snacks in Ziploc bags for portion control
  • Never eat in bed
  • Don’t eat while watching TV or when you’re bored
  • Put smoothie ingredients in Ziplocs and store them in the freezer – the fresh spinach and fruits will last much longer
  • Almond milk can be stored on your shelf until you open it. After that, put it in your fridge
  • Drink green tea in the morning. Put lemon and Stevia in it
  • Drink water!
  • Don’t drink energy drinks
  • Brush your teeth right after dinner. You’ll be less tempted to late-night snack once your teeth are clean

 

Was this helpful for you? What are your go-to healthy college foods?
9 Comments
April 5, 2014 by
Lifestyle

Fraternity/Sorority Flags from GreekLifeStuff.com

Kappa Alpha Theta flag from Greek Life Stuff

Greek Life Stuff is the go-to place for sorority/fraternity flags! They have almost every single fraternity and sorority represented in their store. In addition, they have flags for co-ed organizations such as business or law fraternities. They even have a few other items available such as lanyards and beanies, but flags are their main product. Be sure to check out their main site as well as their Etsy shop!

Greek Life Stuff was extremely generous to provide me with this Kappa Alpha Theta flag for only $3 (the price of shipping). I am completely obsessed! Whether you live in Greek housing, the dorms, an apartment, or a house, it’s the best addition to any room. (They also stuck a Theta lanyard in the box too which was such a great surprise!)

Kappa Alpha Theta flag from Greek Life Stuff

I got the traditional Theta colors of black and gold, however they have options like pink to customize your flag how you want! There’s other styles available as well such as an American flag style with stripes and one with the crest of the organization.

I would highly recommend buying through them because they ship fast and are such a fun way to show your fraternity/sorority pride!

Fraternities they offer:

Alpha Epsilon Pi || Alpha Gamma Rho || Alpha Kappa Lambda || Alpha Sigma Phi || Alpha Tau Omega || Beta Theta Pi || Chi Phi || Chi Psi || Delta Chi || Delta Kappa Epsilon || Delta Sigma Phi || Delta Tau Delta || Delta Upsilon || Kappa Alpha Order || Kappa Delta Rho || Kappa Kappa Psi || Kappa Sigma || Lambda Chi Alpha || Lambda Phi Epsilon || Phi Delta Theta || Phi Gamma Delta || Phi Kappa Psi || Phi Kappa Sigma || Phi Kappa Tau || Phi Kappa Theta || Phi Iota Alpha || Phi Mu Delta || Phi Sigma Kappa || Pi Alpha Phi || Pi Kappa Alpha || Pi Kappa Phi || Psi Upsilon || Sigma Alpha Mu || Sigma Chi || Sigma Nu || Sigma Phi Epsilon || Sigma Pi || Sigma Tau Gamma || Tau Kappa Epsilon || Theta Chi || Theta Xi || Triangle || Zeta Beta Tau

Sororities they offer: 

Alpha Chi Omega  || Alpha Delta Pi  || Alpha Epsilon Phi  || Alpha Gamma Delta  || Alpha Omega Epsilon  || Alpha Omicron Pi  || Alpha Phi  || Alpha Sigma Tau  || Alpha Xi Delta  || Chi Omega  || Delta Delta Delta  || Delta Gamma  || Gamma Phi Beta  || Kappa Alpha Theta  || Kappa Delta  || Kappa Kappa Gamma  || Phi Mu  || Phi Sigma Sigma  || Pi Beta Phi  || Sigma Alpha Iota  || Sigma Delta Tau  || Sigma Kappa  || Sigma Sigma Sigma  || Tau Beta Sigma  || Theta Phi Alpha  || Zeta Tau Alpha

Check out their site here: http://greeklifeflags.3dcartstores.com/

Check out their Etsy store here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/WindyCityFraternity

I received this flag at a discounted price of $3 when it is regularly $24.99. Greek Life Stuff is an official Greek License Vendor. All opinions are my own. 
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February 28, 2014 by
Lifestyle

Meal Prep: Salad Jars

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Eating healthy while in college or having a hectic schedule is extremely difficult. One of the ways to avoid fast food, snacking, and starving is to plan out your meals for the week. As a busy college student, my class and work schedule doesn’t allow for me to make it to the cafeteria for lunch during the week. Because of this, I have to pack my lunch for the day. I could easily just pack peanut butter sandwiches or Easy Mac. But after living off those freshman year (and gaining the typical freshman 15), I have no desire to continue this unhealthy lifestyle. Yes, planning out your meals for the week requires extra time and thought. But I promise it’s worth it.

One of the easiest meals to prep for the week is mason jar salads! These are really popular on Pinterest and one of my coworkers makes them regularly. So I decided to try it out for myself and have been pleased to find that it is a life-saver! Not only are they super quick to prepare, they are extremely healthy and convenient.

What you need:
– a mason jar or any kind of air-tight jar
– salad ingredients of your choice

How to pack your mason jar salad

Step 1: dressing
– add one or two tablespoons of your choice of dressing first to the bottom of the jar

Step 2: non-soluble (non-absorbent) veggies
– add any kind of non-absorbent veggies such as corn, carrots, etc.

Step 3: beans, grains, pasta, seeds
– pour in your source of carbs or vegetarian protein by adding beans (rinsed and drained), grains, pasta, whatever you choose

Step 4: cheese, eggs, meat, protein
– add in whatever cheese or hard boiled eggs, chicken, meat, or tofu you’d like

Step 5: absorbent veggies and fruit
– add your fruit or more soluble veggies such at tomatoes
– if you are prepping these for the week, add these ingredients the morning you plan to eat the salad just so they stay as fresh as possible

Step 6: absorbent grains, nuts, and seeds
– this is where you can add more absorbent products such as quinoa and flaxseed

Step 7: salad greens
– now you can add your fresh spinach or lettuce
– this should fill your jar to the brim. Pack it fairly tightly

Ta-da! You’re done! Now seal the jars and store them in the fridge. You can make these on Sunday night and they will remain fresh until Friday afternoon! Keep in mind, although they are stored in air-tight containers, they will only stay fresh for 5 days. When you are ready to eat your salad, pour the contents into a bowl, toss, and enjoy!
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November 4, 2013 by
Lifestyle

Chegg’s Marketing Understands Students

chegg

I recently rented all of my textbooks through Chegg and was happily surprised to find all sorts of goodies in the box – not just my stuffy, boring textbooks. Wedged on top of my Microeconomics book was a Red Bull. Next to that laid some travel sized TRESemmé shampoo and conditioner, 5 Energy Gum, and a coupon for Hulu Plus.

This little tiny gift has a serious impact. The gesture tells students, “Don’t worry, we’ve got your back.” It’s a pat on the shoulder, a push to the right path, a smile in our direction. Telling us that we don’t have to face another school year alone.

But above all, it creates a loyal relationship with us. I obviously want to purchase my books from a company that rewards me for being financially savvy and caring about my education. They also don’t send random promotions or useless gag gifts. They understand what students want – and need. An energy drink? Yes please. Travel sized shampoos? Perfect for when I visit home. Hulu Plus offer? Procrastination central. Why would I order with anybody else?

Buying textbooks is often a cause of extreme anxiety and frustration for many students, but companies like Chegg are learning how to make this process easier. They strive to lighten the burden financially and mentally. I could go on and on about how amazing it is that Chegg offers such low rental prices, but that’s another topic for another time.

This is the kind of marketing that excites me. It’s innovative. It’s fresh. It doesn’t feel in-your-face or superficial. It has a clear message and creates a strong following of loyal customers that will return semester after semester. Well done, Chegg.

 
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September 2, 2013 by
Lifestyle

Dr. Oz 3-Day Detox Cleanse!

dr. oz detox groceries

This past summer, I tried my first ever detox cleanse. People do detoxes or cleanses for many different reasons, but for me it was all about re-setting my body to how it is supposed to function and ridding my body of all the harmful toxins it had accumulated.

After freshman year and not really taking care of my body, I felt this was the most appropriate time. So I did my research and of course, I ADORE Oprah, so I had to check out if Dr. Oz had any program. It turned out that he does! Dr. Oz designed a 3 day detox cleanse that is incredibly simple so somebody like me (not exactly an expert) could follow along easily and successfully.

Basically, this detox consists of drinking four smoothies a day. There are three recipes – one for each meal. You are allowed to repeat your favorite smoothie as a snack between dinner and lunch. You take vitamins throughout the day and have green tea with lemon and Stevia in the morning. At night, you reward yourself with an Epsom salt bath with lavender extract. Pretty simple, right? Every single vitamin, ingredient, and sip of tea has been scientifically designed to provide your body with the nourishment it needs and to effectively flush out harmful toxins.

Dr. Oz compiled everything (even the shopping list!) into this one page super handy sheet. 4_055_3DayDetox

That was my Bible for the three days.

If you’re interested in doing this at some point, I would HIGHLY recommend it. It’s so easy to do and the best part is that you can prep everything in advance. It’s great for people on the go with busy schedules. Spend maybe an hour the first day prepping everything for each smoothie. Put all of the dry ingredients into freezer bags and when you want that smoothie, just grab it and add the liquids and blend! Super quick, super easy.

Each step of the detox is critical right down to soaking in the bath. Do not skip any steps! Everything has been chosen deliberately and carefully for the best results possible.

My experience:

I went into this detox with an open mind and heart. I had no idea what I was about to do, but I was determined to DO it. I committed myself 150% to sticking it out all three days. I’m not going to sugarcoat it – the first two days are extremely difficult. In the case of this detox, it is ABSOLUTELY mind-over-matter. The third day is not as bad because it becomes more of a habit at that point.

Here’s my groceries for the three days:

dr. oz detox groceriesBreakfast was AMAZING! I love it and still drink it all the time.

breakfast smoothieLunch was good too. I really enjoyed it when I added 1/2 cup more pineapple. You’re really not supposed to alter the recipes at all, but it just needed to be a bit sweeter. Also, a few tips to make the texture better – cut up everything TINY! And blend one ingredient at a time. There’s a lot of course veggies going into this smoothie. You want to make sure it’s smooth, otherwise you’re going to hate it. In the picture below, that was my first time making it and I blended everything together at once and did not cut things up small. It was a very gross texture. So don’t do that! But I also still drink this one!

smoothie3 I did not like dinner one bit. Perhaps it’s because of the cayenne pepper. A lot of people posted online and seemed to really enjoy dinner, but I absolutely HATED it! I really had to just grin and bear it by gulping it down fast. That’s why I didn’t take a picture. Because I was mad at that smoothie. Because it was evil.

Make sure you treat yourself to the bath and the morning tea! Those were the highlights of my day.

My results:

I felt lighter and I had much more energy. I never was hungry on this detox – I simply missed solid food and crunching. It’s definitely one of the easiest and best things you can do for your overall health and body. I lost three pounds total and a LOT of bloat. I would HIGHLY recommend this to anybody. But beware – do NOT go back to eating terrible foods after this. Continue eating a clean and healthy diet and you will be golden. This is supposed to reset your system. It is NOT a miracle weight loss diet. The weight I lost was purely a bonus.

Anyways, if anybody has ANY questions at all, do not hesitate to ask me. I could talk about this detox forever! Happy cleansing y’all!
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August 30, 2013 by
Lifestyle

DORM RECIPE: Quinoa in College!

meal prep

meal prepHere’s a SUPER simple and quick quinoa recipe that I absolutely adore. It should take about 20 minutes and this will provide 4-5 servings – enough for lunches for a whole work week!! (ps – the picture says meal prep Sunday because I made it then. I know it’s Thursday today haha)

What you’ll need:

  • An electric water heater/hot pot that you can cook food in like this guy here that I have from Target
  • Measuring cups and spoons

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup rinsed quinoa
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 can whole kernal unsweetened corn rinsed and trained
  • 1 can black beans rinsed and trained
  • 1 avocado
  • 1 tomato (or canned & diced tomatoes)
  • 1 zucchini
  • 2 tbsp. lime juice
  • 1 tbsp. olive (or grape) oil
  • 1/2 tsp. cumin
  • pinch of salt

Instructions:

Boil water in kettle. Rinse quinoa in room temperature water. Add rinsed quinoa to boiling water. Let simmer for 15 minutes (or until fluffy and cooked). Mix together corn, beans, avocado, tomato, zucchini, lime juice, olive oil, cumin, and salt together in a big bowl. When quinoa is cooked, fluff with a fork. Add quinoa to large mixture of the other ingredients. Serve hot or cold!

SO EASY! I promise you’ll love this recipe. A lot of people add a bit of hot pepper to theirs, so feel free to do that if you want a little kick. Have fun and happy cooking!!!!
1 Comment
August 30, 2013 by
Lifestyle

Healthy College Eating

One of my new favorite things is creating yummy, healthy meals for myself that can be easily made in a DORM ROOM! Yep, it’s possible. I have a small mini fridge, microwave, blender, and a hot water kettle. So how could I possibly cook anything remotely healthy?

Well, I’ll tell you this – my mini fridge would not be featured on the TV show “Greek” or in any typical college movie. It’s not full of beer or vodka. Or jello shots or ice cream. It’s full of fresh veggies, fruit, hummus, whole wheat pita bread, yogurt, and WATER!

I’m going to be posting a lot of tips and tricks on here about how to stay healthy in general, but especially while in college. I hope you tune in and enjoy!
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August 30, 2013 by