It seems college students have two options when it comes to eating.
The first is eating a quality meal that is probably unhealthy. These meals usually come fast, like fast food or dining out, and come loaded with high calories or fat. If not fast food or dining out, they’re warming up microwave food that is just enough to fill the pit of the stomach.
The other option is a healthy meal that seems to take a lot longer to prepare or is not as readily accessible while dining out.
My friend, Yussef, was the first to show me that there’s a third option: eating quality meals that are also healthy.
It really isn’t impossible to eat healthy as most make it out to be. Setting some time on the weekend to prepare and plan weekly meals can go a long way for being healthier.
The first step to eating healthy is self-discipline. Whether it is not eating out frequently or planning meals for a week, it is important to make the healthy decision while eating. Most choose to eat out as a means of social accessibility or simply because it becomes the quicker alternative. Next time your friends say, “let’s go get some Whataburger,” either choose to order from the healthy and nearly non-existent menu or choose not to go. It is a sign of a promising self-discipline that most need when choosing to eat healthier. This is not to hinder anyone from necessarily refraining from eating out; rather, it’s a step for individuals to be aware of what they choose to eat.
The next step to maintaining a proper diet is organization. By organizing meals and delegating when and what you will eat, it will not only help out your weekday schedule, but also make sure you are filling up your stomach properly each day. Calendars or phone schedules reminding you when or what to eat can help you eat properly too. It will stop you from skipping meals and also help you plan ahead for what to eat.
Eating healthy, from what I’ve witnessed from Yussef, also improves the mood of an individual. He has shown me that eating healthy makes you sleep better, increases your energy and also feel good about yourself. He never misses a meal, starves himself or longs for a triple-decker Whataburger. Instead, he is self-disciplined and even got his girlfriend, Kalie, to jump in on the healthy lifestyle.
It’s a lifestyle that I, and others, should try to achieve.
