This is Why College Students Struggle to Lose Weight Sometimes ...

Losing weight can be difficult for college students for a variety of different reasons. It’s when the freshman 15 try to creep up too, so that can make it even more difficult. But it’s not impossible. It’s good to look at the reasons losing weight is a struggle so you can strategize ways to overcome them.

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1. You Aren’t Sleeping Enough

Getting sleep during the college years is no easy task. There’s a lot going on that can interfere with your sleep. Staying up late to study or socialize is normal during this time in your life. But recent studies show that getting less than 6-7 hours of sleep can contribute to being overweight. So while you may not be able to get a good night’s rest every night, make it a goal. Not only will you feel better but it’ll give your weight loss efforts a boost.

2. Mom Isn’t Cooking Your Meals Anymore

When you lived at home, you may have had your mom or dad cooking meals for you. Home cooked meals are generally much lower calorie and lower fat than snacks, fast food or cafeteria meals, which are what the average college student lives on. Home cooked meals offer a better nutritional punch, too. It’s hard to work around this but do the best you can. Try to make the healthiest choice possible wherever you eat.

Frequently asked questions

3. You May Not Be as Active as You Were in High School

If you were active in some sort of high school sports when you were in high school then you were burning some or a lot of calories from participation. If you haven’t continued that interest into your college years then you’ve lost that advantage. But there are other ways you can exercise. Most colleges offer gym memberships at a low cost to students or perhaps even for free. You can also walk around the campus for exercise or go to an exercise class with your friends.

4. School Cafeteria Food Isn’t Exactly Low Cal

Cafeteria food isn’t always the best option when you’re trying to lose weight. It can completely sabotage your diet. If you have to eat at your school cafeteria then try to make the best of it. Go for salads, broth-based soups, fruit, whole grains and lean meats. Those are healthier and more diet friendly choices.

5. Fast Food is a Staple of Your Diet

Fast food is usually the other way you get your meals when you’re a college student. After all, the taste usually beats cafeteria food, right? But fast food can be full of fat, cholesterol and other bad things. Thankfully, there are more options for healthy eating at fast food restaurants than there used to be. Many restaurants now have a website that lists nutritional information so you can use that to help you make wise choices.

6. Healthy Foods Cost More

Let’s face it. Many healthy foods cost more than junk food. Add to that the fact that most college students are on a budget and you’ve got an issue. All you can do here is do the best you can. Watch sales and compare prices to help you get the best buys on healthy food.

7. Your Roommates May Unintentionally Sabotage Your Efforts

Even if you’re trying very hard to eat healthy, your roommates may unintentionally sabotage your weight loss efforts. If they don’t have the same diet goals that you do then there’s going to be a clash. It’s hard to eat unbuttered popcorn when your roommate is pigging out on chips and dip. It puts temptation at your fingertips and that’s hard. But you can stick to your healthy eating plan with a little willpower.

These are some reasons losing weight is difficult when you’re a college student. Are you in this position? What’s your biggest struggle?

Feedback Junction

Where Thoughts and Opinions Converge

@alka it depends on where you live and what's available, and what they eat. In my family we switched to healthy vs fast food daily a few years ago, and our food budget for 3 people went up by 200$ a month. It's especially expensive at first, as most things like rice, seeds, anything dry that doesn't go bad quickly, are better deals in bulk, but are expensive for first purchasing. We cut out all fast food and only ate at home, and our budget nearly doubled for the first few months, then went down for a bit, by like 150$, but then went up every time we needed something that was expensive. I also live in Canada and so in the winter (9 months of the year basically) fruits and vegetables are twice as much since they aren't local. In the summer, cherries are basically given away at farmers markets. We've bought buckets full for 1$. But on the winter they are 20$ for a little bag of them. Eating healthy isn't cheap in most places until you have everything stocked, and then it can be cheaper, but it goes up with fresh foods and things like that.

The trick is to control, eat less and exercise more. I picked up weight and felt depressed as I wasn't loosing any fat, but rather gaining. I encouraged myself and set goals that every month I'll try and loose off 2-3 kegs, and it worked! So try and controlling those hunger pangs, eat less and exercise more. You'll get sexy back ;)

@Karena yeah but it is a persons choice to eat the berries or pig out on two family size bags of chips. But yeah I agree.

@karena thank you so much!! :)

All this happens because healthy food requires a good time of preparation and you are low in finances ,all you eat is fast food or something to just pass the feeling of hunger. I personally didn't gain weight ,because I always walked the city rather than taking a cab soo I always have my weight on check without stressing myself wether I will gain weight or not.

Yess this is me!! I sadly gained 30 pounds during my first year and it's been very hard to lose the weight. But I'm not giving up lol

Number 6 isnt true. If you buy healthy groceries once a week instead of buying fast food everyday you would save a ton of money and look good doing it to. It really deeply bothers me when people complain eating healthy is expensive cause it is really actually cheap if you know how to budget and quit fast food.

Don't have enough money to spend on healthy foods 😂😂

Don't forget alcohol!

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