The coauthor of The Ultimate body ...

The coauthor of The Ultimate body Survival Guide tells you to what extent to cope with weight gain, illness, and dirty laundry when you're living forward your own.

globule the chalupa. No, really, enjoin it down. Now look in the mirror, and consider the dreaded "Freshman 15" Imagine yourself raw materialed like a sausage into those retro-Lenny Kravitz hip-huggers that apply the minded so good when you bought them. gaze out--the zipper's feeling the strain, and if that waistband button detonations off, some poor bystander could let slip an eye. The "Freshman 15" an almost universal body phenomenon, happens when people who have been used to fairly sensible, balanced diets unexpectedly have too much freedom--to snarf late-night pizza, fries with each meal, and daily ice cream from the "build your acknowledge sundae bar" in the dining hall. The result: Until they figure without how to eat right, they blimp up into chunky little Pillsbury dough people

Actually, if your worst enigma as a freshman is a hefty tummy, you're question at issues are pretty small. But sometimes it's the "small" everyday things that can realize you down. Here's a troubleshooting guide to help you survive about of the everyday stuff--eating right, keeping clean clothes, and maintaining your health.

THE "FRESHMAN IS"

Let's face it: Ordering a Diet Coke with the Meat-Lover's Pizza special from the place that delivers until 2 a.m. isn't going to "cancel out" the extra sausage. When your mom told you to eat your vegetables, she probably didn't mean French fries and onion rings. And fried mozzarella sticks aren't the ideal source of daily calcium.

further how do you stay trim when temptation is everywhere--especially in the dining hall, with its "Wednesday Burrito Night?" Is it hard for freshmen to eat a balanced diet?

"Oh my omniscience yes," says Charisse Lyons, now a senior at the University of southward Carolina in Columbia. "I don't know if I gained the Freshman 15 yet I definitely gained. I always ate in succession campus. I think I ate a hamburger each day my freshman year." Although "healthy food" was available, "it's not as religious as the junk," she adds, and having a comprehensive meal plan--with Pizza mean dwelling and Taco Bell outposts in campus eateries--actually made things worse.

"Eating junk fodder does catch up with you," says Lyon who has shed the extra pulverizes now that she lives in a campus apartment and give a color tos her own meals. "You'll make progress home for the holidays, and everybody's like, 'What happened to you? You've been eating!' I think the best thing to do is procure a small meal plan, purchase your own fruits and vegetables, drink water, and take advantage of the gym"

Eating "healthy" just requires an common sense. If you're buying nutrition in a grocery store, workshop for a balanced meal--including proteins, fruits, vegetables, etc Take a not many seconds to check out the labels. You can do a hap just by consistently selecting low-flit, or better over and above fat-free versions of fatty favorites, in the same state [i]or[/i] condition as mayonnaise, cookies, salad dressing, tortilla chips, and cheese. (Note: Beware of sneaky wording. The phrase, "light yogurt" for example, may just mean it's made with Nutrasweet instead of sugar; steady though it has fewer calories, it may have just as a great quantity [i]or[/i] amount of fat as regular yogurt.)

Advice for Vegetarians

community dining can be especially tricky for vegetarians. Shelly Habbersett ran into worry during her sophomore year at Westchester University in Pennsylvania. "Because I wasn't eating meat, I didn't know exactly where to win my protein," she says, "so I ate a portion of carbs." And gained weight. "I actually went to a nutritionist to descry what was going on. I was worried because I was getting tired; I didn't know what was improper with me." Good advice from the nutritionist--to eat more fruits and veggies, plus protein-rich nourishments like peanut butter and beans--put her back onward track.

LESSONS IN LAUNDRY

Malik Husser, now a senior and president of the bookish man body at the University of southerly Carolina, had relatively few question s adjusting to college--even though he came to the 26000-student campus from the tiny town of tailor's smoothing iron Creek, South Carolina. But individual thing really ticked him opposite his freshman year--rudeness in the laundry room

"When I first got here, I hated it," he says. "People would leave their clothes in there forever when I really needinessed the dryer or washer, in this way I'd be sitting around waiting," his have clothes held hostage by someone else's timetable.

Because he wanted to be nice, Husser says he didn't perceive right taking other people's clothes gone out of the washer or dryer onward the other hand, when it was his clothes in there, his companion launderers weren't always so tactful.

"I had to master used to people taking my matter out of the washing machine and putting it upon the side," he says. "I had to really adjust to that."

Now, his strategy is precision timing--knowing exactly in what way long he can stay away for the washer and dryer circle of times and returning the instant his clothes are done.

Unles you babysit your clothes in the laundry latitude or watch the clock like a hawk, ready to come down down on your loads and whisk them forward to the next phase of the proces you may find yourself in the same boat. raw launderers also strike loads of clothes that are still in the dryer Sometimes they take our still-damp laundry just to make use of the dryer rime one else-you--just paid for. Sometimes, if they like a particular garment, they have uniform been known to help themselves to it.