White and Nerdy

[Balderdash]

Hello all,

 

I've been lurking for a while now and thought it was about time I introduced myself. So hi, the name's Alice. I'm a 19 year old freshman just starting college. I found the rebellion while searching online for health tips and decided to check it out. I was super impressed but a little hesitant about joining. I'm more of a research and not take action girl where health is concerned. Also I've struggled with my weight for most of my life. I had health problems starting in middle school and had to take medication that messed with my hormones which meant packing on more pounds.

 

Fast forward to my first year of college and my dream of being a singer. Yep you heard right. I'm perusing the ever useless and silly fine arts major (Vocal performance). However this has served as a huge wake up call to get up and get healthy. Wanting to be a classical singer means being extremely fit or not being cast. It's a highly competitive career and I want to be ready. I also hope to really tune in to my body which I know will improve my singing. 

 

So that brings us to now, 

I have started running regularly again, Have a new weight lifting buddy and am trying to eat better.

 

My challenges:

Making exercise a real habit

Being a total weight lifting beginner

Figuring out how to eat healthy on a meal plan and a budget

 

That's about it, so glad I finally committed!

 

 

[Calen Maethor]

Greetings from someone else with a useless Fine Arts degree. In my opinion, it's only useless if you don't have a plan for it. You have a plan, so you'll make it work.

 

It sounds like you're already off to a great start. Making these things a habit is the hardest part; but, once it's done it's pretty hard to undo. I've really been struggling with eating better. What's been working for me is to make little changes to my diet as I go. I've almost entirely cut out soda, and I've reduced how much bread I eat. I've changed my portions so that my meal is mostly protein, with just a few carbs (which I mostly try to get from veggies). Every little bit counts, you've just gotta make it stick.

[Balderdash]

Hello,

I certainly hope it won't be useless! But even if it was I think it would be worth it. 

Amen to making it a habit being the hardest part. I'm hoping to just make it an everyday no matter what kind of thing, although midterms may not have been the best time to start. Or maybe the best. 

 

Eating healthy has been a real challenge. At home my family ate all organic, natural, mostly vegetarian (me being the exception) and almost all from farmers market. So it was quite a system shock to then be tethered to a meal plan. I've always tended toward overeating and have a major sweet tooth. Hopefully I can make more drastic changes when I have a kitchen. For now I'm going to start making those small changes you mentioned. Cutting out soda and drinking more water is a big one for me.  I also have the dilemma of not being able to eat very scheduled meals as my schedule is both crazy and in flux.

 

Just gotta keep chugging alone and good luck with your changes.

[Rassidan]

     Good call on cutting out soda, that in the long run will do wonders alone. The only thing I caution, as your base seems solid, is watch out for eating on a budget. That tends to lead to some pretty bad food choices if you really don't know what your doing. That and I always point out that while eating healthier is more expensive, it costs more to get stuck on insulin or the multitudes of other drugs caused by eating poorly. Beyond that welcome to the group and good luck on your journey.

[Artemis]

Hi and welcome to the rebellion!

 

I'm also a college freshman who ended up in a similar meal plan situation and the food at home is definitely better than the options here.  I recommend checking this article out: http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2012/10/18/a-college-guide-to-eating-healthy/

 

I've recently been making a huge effort to eat better even when stuck with dining hall fare and so far it's going pretty well, though it is hard when I have to expose myself to all of the bad options.  At home, I could choose not to surround myself with these foods which made healthier choices easier.

 

If your school has to-go boxes that can really help with a tight schedule, as you can leave full meals upstairs in your room.

 

Also, have you thought about joining the current challenge?

[Balderdash]

Rasidan: I'm hoping the soda will start as a jumping off point to better choices. And yes the balance between healthy and cheap is a tricky one. Mostly right now I packing my mini fridge with as much celery and peanut butter as it can hold.

 

Artemis: Thanks and thanks for the link, the paleo stuff is interesting and maybe something I can ease into. Haven't checked out the challenge but definitely will. Although right now I'm in more of a do anything type of situation. 

[Rassidan]

     Everyone jumps off from somewhere and soda is a big somewhere and one I have seen people fail, especially if they are addicted to the caffeine. I had a friend kick soda and smoking at once and to say she was a wreck those first few weeks is an understatement. She did manage but it definitely required help from those around her and with your family eating healthy you have a great resource and support per built into your plan. So I suspect you will come out on top either way.

[Guzzi]

Hey! Welcome on board, and best of luck with the goals. You can do it, it just takes time, and of course hard work. Just joining the rebellion is an excellent start, the community here is amazing and you'll get lots of advice and support.

Ps. Please, please, please tell me your post title is a Weird Al reference?

[crazyjerseygirl]

Operatic versions of Weird Al tunes.

 

I'm just throwing that out there.

[Guzzi]

Ooooh.... I like your thinking.