Stay fit & healthy at University – Top Tips From a Student

Going to university can land some surprises on unexpected students. First of all there’s the freedom to do whatever you want, whenever you want, with whomever you want. This can be a dangerous cocktail, especially for some people’s health!

All this freedom, combined with fresher’s week, it’s very easy to forget the small things that keep you in shape, feeling healthy and fresh – the main thing here is that it doesn’t take a gym, personal nutritionist or personal trainer to point these things out, just an experienced student, like me!

First of all, most students get the dreaded ‘uni stone’ – the 1 stone of weight that you put on (at least) by starting and continuing university, in the environment of ‘do what the hell you want’ – while this is fine, it’s good to not let it get out of control, and to be aware of why it may happen and what you can do to control it.

So, here are top tips for staying healthy at uni!

Walk to uni! If it’s not too far, maybe consider a hybrid, half walk, half bus? In my second year, I used to live about 3 miles from uni, so to keep myself active, I used to walk these three in, and back again. It used to take around 40 minutes each way, but it was exercise that I would miss out on, and in a routine, you forget about the effort!

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Plan your meals. Yes, this sounds really boring, and really OTT, however, when you actually take the time to sit down and think about what you need, it allows you to make sure you’re not eating or drinking unnecessarily. It also allowes you to plan a shopping list to save cash! You can plan in some healthy and not so healthy meals to have a good balance.

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Replace some of our nights out drinks with healthier alternatives, like Vodka & diet coke instead of beer or cider. Each pint of those two contains around 300 calories, imagine how many you pack away in a night out! One single vodka diet coke contains about 45 calories, you do the maths.

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Drink lots of water. With a university diet of booze and crap, even if you don’t do any of the above, make sure you drink lots of water all the time. Not only is this great for your skin, but it’s also good to keep you hydrated and on top form with your work and play.

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Fit in a jog now and then. If you’re at a loose end, go for a 15 minute run! A spot of exercise now and then makes you feel good through the release of endorphins and helps to keep you alert and active.

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There we go! Those are some of the tips that I found helped me to remain in decent health across my start at uni! If you have any other tips, please comment below!