Healthy Living at OU, Not Impossible!

Before we came to college we all heard talk of the notorious "Freshman 15," and many of us thought that it couldn't happen to us. Freshman Brian Ross says, "I was really athletic in high school, I never imagined that I could gain weight just from coming to college, but it happens."

College is a complete change of lifestyle for most people, and with that change comes new challenges like deciding for ourselves what we are going to eat everyday, whether or not we want to exercise (or if we have time!), and whether or not we want to go out with our friends at night and have a few drinks.

All of these decisions have important effects on our health, so its important that we make smart choices. Many people find it hard to stay healthy while living on a college campus because instead of having parents to grocery shop and cook for us, we have to do it ourselves, and unless you are on a sports team here at Ohio University, no one is forcing you to get exercise. And then you add in the typical college night life and it can be a recipe for health disaster.

But it doesn't have to be! There are so many ways to stay in shape around campus, especially with such a great rec center like Ping. Janna Townsend, a junior Management Information Systems and Finance major, says "I try to go to Ping everyday. I usually run, but I have my days when I just don't feel like running so I hop on another machine like the elliptical or bike, there's tons of things you can do there." And its true, the Ping Center page on Ohio University's website boasts:

"The Ping Student Center is a recreational center that has a climbing wall, five gymnasiums for basketball and volleyball, two multipurpose gymnasiums for floor hockey, soccer, and other activities, eight courts for racquetball and walleyball, a four-lane walking and jogging track, cardiovascular workout equipment, cybex resistance equipment, aerobics, weight training and martial arts rooms, locker rooms and a television lounge."

Like I said in an earlier post, going to the gym isn't the only way to get exercise. OU has a bike path that runs along the river that is great for walking, jogging, biking and rollerblading so grab a friend a few times a week and hit the bike path. Getting your friends involved makes exercising a painless, and even fun, activity.

Intramural sports are offered every quarter and are a great way to get exercise as well. "Playing broomball fall quarter really helped to keep me in shape, and I played with all of my roommates so it was fun," junior Megan Parris says about her experience playing intramural sports. Even throwing around a football or taking a dance class can give you the exercise you need during the week. You can spread your workout throughout the day, as long as each increment of exercise is at least 10 minutes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Along with getting exercise, healthy eating is the key to a healthy lifestyle. You aren't going to be able to eliminate all of your bad eating habits overnight, doing this takes a little effort. As you begin to change the little things, like buying fresh produce instead of bagged or canned produce and drinking tea instead of soda, these changes will start to add up and you will feel healthier and happier in no time. The CDC says that by reflecting, replacing and reinforcing you will be able to permanently improve your eating habits. Reflecting on specific eating habits, replacing unhealthy eating habits with healthier ones, and reinforcing new, healthier habits will help you to eat healthier all the time.

Being healthy is all about feeling good and making the right decisions for yourself. At times, making health-conscious choices can be difficult on O.U. or any other university's campus but it is not at all impossible. There are many students who are living healthier despite the challenges of a college campus, and you can do it too. Making little changes in the way you eat and being active can help you maintain a healthy lifestyle wherever you are.

Nutrition Myths, Busted!

With all the fad diets coming in and going out of popularity, sometimes it is hard to know what to listen to and what to do to live healthier. Especially during this time of year, with summer and bathing suit season coming up, people come up with some crazy things to do to get in shape and these things just aren't necessary so I am going to debunk a few of the myths I have heard about nutrition and health. Here are some nutrition myths that I think everyone should know are false:

# 1. Eating at night will lead to weight gain

We often hear that eating after 7 or 8 p.m. will lead to weight gain because you are not as active at night as you are during the day, so when people are trying to lose weight they stop eating after a certain time everyday. This is NOT true. Studies have shown that it doesn't matter what time you eat, but it matters how much you eat when it comes to weight control and weight loss.

#2. You can boost your metabolism by eating small and frequent meals

Some people say that eating more frequent, small meals will speed up your metabolism, causing you to burn more calories than eating three larger meals everyday. The truth is, that weight control and weight loss is based on how many calories you take in every day versus how many you burn every day. So when you are trying to manage your weight, it really doesn't matter if you eat five small meals or three regular meals every day, just as long as you are burning more calories than you are taking in.

#3. Organic food is healthier than the rest

Many people think that because organic foods are natural and contain less chemicals and additives than regular foods that they are healthier and more nutritious for you. And as college students, that isn't exactly what we want to hear considering that organic foods are often more expensive than other foods and we have limited budgets. But good news: organic foods are NOT more nutritious than conventionally grown and raised foods. In an article on CNN.com, Alex Avery, the director of research at The Hudson Institute Center for Global Food Issues says, "Organic foods have never been shown to be healthier, more nutritious or more safe than conventional foods."

#4. Fasting will help you lose weight

People think that by fasting or skipping meals, they can quickly and effectively lose weight. False. It may help you lose weight in the short-term, but once your time of fasting is over (because you can't fast forever) your metabolic rate will have slowed, which could actually cause you to gain weight. This is because while fasting or skipping meals you are not only losing fat, you are also losing lean muscle and tissue (causing the decrease in weight). The loss of this muscle and tissue can actually cause your metabolism to slow, having the opposite effect and causing you to gain weight after you begin eating regularly again.

#5. You need to drink 8 glasses of water a day

Its true, we need our hydration, but we don't have to get it by just drinking mass amounts of water everyday. Other things like juice and milk can give us the hydration we need. So if you are thirsty, have something to drink, but don't worry yourself over drinking 8 glasses of water each and every day.

Don't Skip the Sweets

When many people think of healthy living, they think that sweets have to be completely cut out of your diet. There are many things that you can make that are both sweet and nutritious for you. Studies have shown that eating dark chocolate provides many benefits to your health and your body. Dark chocolate, as well as cocoa, is rich in antioxidants which can help to protect your body. Eating dark chocolate can also help improve your cardiovascular health. It can help to reduce your blood pressure and improve blood flow, doing your cardiovascular system a world of good. So next time you are craving chocolate, go ahead and give in and grab yourself a bar of dark chocolate. My favorite kind of dark chocolate is Dove's Dark Chocolate. You can find the nutritional information on other brands of chocolate here.

There are other things you can make to get your sugar fix without all of the calories and fat of most desserts. Instead of having a piece of triple chocolate cake for dessert, try having a cup of fat-free frozen yogurt topped with fresh fruit, such as strawberries and pineapples, to make a sundae like this strawberry-pineapple sundae, which is only about 181 calories and 0 grams of fat.
Photo courtesy of: http://www.eatingwell.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/standard/recipes/DF2896.JPG



This Quick Lemon Freeze is also great summer/springtime dessert that are low in fat and in calories. They are the perfect way to get your sugar fix on these hot, sunny days!

Exercise at Home

As college students, we have busy lives. Our schedules can get pretty crazy and sometimes we just don't have the time or motivation to get out of the house to exercise. And motivation can be hard to find on those rainy days, or those days when its too hot to be outside, so I'm going to tell you about a few exercises that you can do in the comfort of your own home. In a previous post, I mentioned how the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend that adults get a total of 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity every week and do muscle-strengthening activities twice per week that work all of your major muscle groups (arms, legs, back, abdomen, etc.). I talked before about what you can do to to get your moderate-intensity aerobic activity requirement every week, so now I'm going to tell you about some muscle-strengthening activities that you can do at home.

The CDC website suggests activities such as yoga and lifting weights, but there are many other exercises you can do at home that use your body weight for resistance. So next time you are stuck at home on a rainy day, or have no motivation to go out and exercise, try these muscle-strengthening exercises in the comfort of your home:

To strengthen the muscles in your chest and arms, you can do the modified push-up. It is just like a regular push-up, with a few simple modifications to work the chest muscles better.

To work the major muscle groups in your lower body, such as the thighs, gluteals, and hamstrings, you can try doing squats. Also, lunges can be done to work the other areas in your legs such as the upper thigh, buttocks, hip extensors and quadriceps, and you can do them with or without weights. Heel raises will work your calves for a complete leg workout.

Working your core muscles is really important when trying to strengthen your muscles because your core supports the rest of your muscles. The V-sit will work your core (abdomen and back), and its easy to do. The classic abdominal crunch is also a good way to work your core muscles.

Fast Food Happens

So we all don't have the time to cook every meal for ourselves every day. Fast food and eating out are sometimes the easiest thing to do on our busy college-student schedules. Instead of running through a drive-thru for a burger and fries, try the healthier items that the following restaurants offer for a fast, guilt-free meal. These restaurants also offer their food to-go for a quick and easy meal.

Jimmy John's offers a Low Carb Lettuce Wrap called the "JJ Unwich." You can get all of the same ingredients that you would put on a regular sandwich wrapped in lettuce for a low-carbohydrate alternative.

Brenen's has a Low Calorie "Resolution" Menu with a variety of sandwiches that are under 500 calories when served on sourdough, wheat, rye or pumpernickel breads. One of the sandwiches on this menu is the Lo-Cal Italian which has sliced chicken, ham, lettuce, tomato and onion with a fat free Italian dressing. They also offer low-fat strawberry and plain yogurts as a side to any deli sandwich.

Pita Pit, who's slogan is "Fresh thinking, healthy eating," offers a Resolution Solution menu with six pitas under 470 calories. The Fresh Garden pita is only 290 calories and has romaine lettuce, tomatoes, onions, green peppers, cucumbers, black olives, and mushrooms with tzatziki sauce. This is a healthy and fast meal and great for vegetarians!

Subway has eight six-inch subs that have six grams of fat or less. These include the Ham, Oven Roasted Chicken, Roast Beef, Subway Club, Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki, Turkey Breast, Turkey Breast & Ham and the Veggie Delite. You can also get any of the subs as a salad.

Buffalo Wild Wings has great salads. My favorite is the Chicken Tender Salad, which has chicken tenders tossed in your favorite Buffalo Wild Wings sauce on top of lettuce, tomato, onions, croutons and cheese and your choice of dressing. You can get any of the salads with or without chicken as a healthy alternative to a burger and fries.

Applebee's offers an Under 550 Calories menu with about 5 different entrees under 550 calories. This weekend I tried the Grilled Shrimp & Island Rice, which is seasoned, grilled shrimp on top of citrus rice with vegetable. It was delicious!

Ruby Tuesday highlights Smart Eating Choices on it's menu, including steak and a grilled chicken wrap with lettuce, cheese and light ranch dressing. Ruby Tuesday also has a salad bar where you can build your own salad with whatever you want on it.

Bob Evans features a new Fit From the Farm menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The items on the Fit From the Farm menu are versions of their regular items on the menu, but modified so that they are lower in calories and fat.

Quiznos has over 20 items on the menu under 500 calories. These items include both classic and signature subs, soups and salads. The Turkey Ranch & Swiss is a classic sub under 500 calories and has turkey, Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato, red onions and ranch dressing.

You can find all of these places quickly on the map below for those days when you just don't have the time or energy to cook a healthy meal.


View Fast Food & Restaurants with Healthy Alternatives in a larger map

The Gatorade G Series

I don't know how many of you have heard of the new line of products that Gatorade has come out with, but it is called the "G Series." It consists of 3 products that aim to improve your athletic performance: one for before you workout, one to drink during your workout, and one to refuel you after your workout.

The first step of the G Series is the PRIME. This is a 4-oz. pouch you take 15 minutes before your workout/competition and it is designed to prepare you by giving you carbohydrates, B vitamins and electrolytes. These three things give you energy and the power to complete your workout.

The second step is the PERFORM and you take it during your workout/competition. For this step you can use the Original Gatorade drink, the Low-Cal G2 drink, the Original Gatorade powder or the Low-Cal G2 powder (which you just add to water). These will keep you hydrated and and help you maintain a good performance.

The final step is the RECOVER, which is taken after your workout/competition. This drink has protein and carbohydrates to help you replenish and rehydrate after a tough workout.

I recently saw the following commercial and I was curious about it. I just had to try the G Series for myself.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwhatsg&v=nWAjioAfDW0&feature=player_profilepage

So I did. I took the Prime before I went on a jog this morning and I brought along a bottle of Original Gatorade (step 2, Perform) for the duration of my jog. It actually worked pretty well. I felt like I got a stronger start to my jog and I was able to jog a little longer before giving up. Drinking the Gatorade throughout my workout helped me to continue running when I thought I was going to have to stop. After my jog I drank step 3 of the G Series, Recover, and surprisingly I didn't feel exhausted for the rest of my day, I felt refreshed. I thought that the G Series was great, so my advice to you is to try it. I think it would be a great thing to have on those days when you just don't feel like exercising because it gives you a little extra energy and the strength to endure more during your workout.

The different steps of the G Series come in different flavors like berry, fruit punch and orange, and you can get them at almost any grocery store. I really liked it so hopefully you will too!