The Freshman 15 (and how I avoided it)

I think my biggest fear going into university, was the worry of gaining the Freshman 15. I had heard countless stories of people who had gained an extra 15 (or 20 or 25) pounds during their first year of university/ college. However, now that first year is officially over, I can proudly announce that I did not gain the Freshman 15! In fact, I actually lost a few pounds (not very many, but it was never my goal to lose weight). 

I think one of the biggest reasons that I didn't gain the weight was the fact that I didn't live on residence. Many residences require you to purchase a meal plan, and so you're obliged to eat food that's incredibly high in sodium and who knows what else. But living at home, I had much more control over what I ate, and tried to keep it as healthy as possible. 

Another reason a lot of people do gain the Freshman 15, is the convenience of buying fast food, especially when you think you don't have time to make yourself lunch in the morning. I decided to try to avoid the lure of fast food, and I brought a homemade lunch to school about 99% of the time (there's  an amazing shawarma place right across from one of my classes where I spent the other 1%). It doesn't have to be an extravagant lunch either - peanut butter on wheat, with a banana and yogurt on the side can be a great meal, and takes only a couple minutes.

Finally, the University of Toronto campus is fairly large, and there were a couple back to back classes I had on opposite ends of the campus, so I did a fair amount of sprinting. To be honest, I planned to make use of the school gym, which I only stepped into once, and didn't even work out. However, I did get around to doing a lot of walking, whether it was walking between classes, or going on an hour long walk during a long break, I did a lot of it, which I think helped a little bit. 

So how about you, are you heading off to higher education, with dreams of bettering yourself mentally and physically? Are you in university/ college, with tips about exam period snacking? Or are your school days over, and are you full of advice? I'd love to hear from you, so please comment! :)