8 Practical Tips To Eat Healthy In College

If you are a college student, or have been a college student, you know how difficult it can be trying to avoid things like bad eating habits and even the Freshman 15. Difficult does not mean impossible though. Hopefully, with the tips I’m sharing today, it will feel less overwhelming to eat healthy in college.

Why It’s Important To Eat Healthy In College

It’s important to eat healthy no matter your stage of life or where you are located. College is no exception. What you eat affects more than your body, it also affects things like your skin, energy, and even your mind. Some of the benefits of eating healthy include, increased immunity, increased focus, more energy, and it gives you a mood boost. 

These benefits are especially important in college, where you need to stay focused and well to excel in your classes. It’s not only your grades that will benefit. Your social life is also sure to be positively affected because you will be feeling your best physically and mentally. 

Now that you know why it’s good to eat healthy in college, let’s get to how you’re going to make it happen.

8 Tips To Eat Healthy In College

With some planning and intentionality, eating healthy while living in a dorm is possible. Follow these tips and you’ll see how doable it is. 

Navigating The Dining Hall

This section is for those that have a meal plan or choose to utilize dining services on campus. Dining halls can be intimidating sometimes. There is so much food and countless options for how to build your plate. Let these tips guide your dining hall experience.

1) Don’t Wait Until You Are Starving To Go Get Food

I had a bad habit of doing this while I was in college, and still am guilty of doing this today as well. When you ignore your hunger cues for too long to where you are on the verge of starving, you are setting yourself up to make poor eating decisions. At this point you’ll be willing to eat anything and won’t take the time to consider if it’s a balanced meal. 

It all comes down to being mindful of your body and what it needs when it needs it. When you start noticing some hunger cues close to meal time, it’s time to get to the dining hall. If you can’t get to the dining hall yet, or it’s not time to eat a big meal, grab some water and a healthy snack. I’ll be sharing more about the latter later on in this post.

2) Be Mindful Of What A Balanced Meal Looks Like

In order to eat a healthy, balanced meal in college you have to know what that looks like. Basically, you want to make sure your plate has protein, whole grains, fruit/veggies, and if you eat dairy add that too. Your ratio may be different depending on your diet needs. If you like visuals, check out My Plate to see what these amounts should look like on your plate.

3) Make A Lap First Thing To See What’s Available

Once you get to the dining hall it’s time to take a lap. Look around and see what is available. Start thinking of what you might want and weigh your options. This will help you determine what your eating healthy in college options are that are still yummy to you.

4) Skip Out On The Soda

I know it is tempting to go to the fountain drinks when they are right there. However, water is the better choice here. It’s okay to have soda every once in a while. If you start noticing that you are drinking more soda than water, it’s time to step away from the fountain drinks.

In Your Dorm Room/Apartment

Whether you aren’t feeling like going to the dining hall, don’t have a meal plan, or live off campus, this section is for you. I’ll also be sharing healthy snack ideas and tips so really this section is for everyone.

5) Make Mealtime Simple

When you are cooking for one and have limited space, the simpler the better when you want to eat healthy in college. You don’t want something that will take a lot of prep or use a lot of ingredients. In college, you’re simply busy enough.

A microwave and mini-fridge will be your friend, and so will prepping things ahead of time. Go ahead and chop any veggies and portion out any snacks you get from the store as soon as you get back to your dorm or apartment. That way they are ready to go when you need them.

6) Plan Out Your Meals So You Know What To Shop For

While you don’t need to be specific with your meals, you do need to make an overall plan of what you might want to eat that week. Doing so will help you make a grocery list, and stick to it. You are working with a limited space. You don’t want to buy a bunch of random things that you may or may not eat.

7) Find Inspiration On Social Media When You Are Stuck

If you’re not sure of what meals to make that will be simple, but healthy, a simple search will help you out. By searching “healthy dorm room meals” on Pinterest, TikTok, and even Instagram you’ll find a plethora of ideas from other college students, dietitians, and more. It’s a great idea for those times when you are feeling stuck and uninspired when it comes to planning your meals to eat healthy in college.

8) Have Plenty Of On The Go Options 

It’s time to talk about snacks. When it comes to choosing something to snack on you want something that will fit your on the go lifestyle. Snacks like yogurt, jerky, protein bars, and fruit are great options when you are heading out and need something quick.

Bonus: Some Dorm Room Approved Meals To Get You Started

I want to end by giving you a few ideas to get you started in your healthy eating journey. Here are some ideas for breakfast, lunch/dinner, and snacks.

• Breakfast: overnight oats, scrambled eggs in a mug with avocado toast, yogurt and granola with a piece of fruit, breakfast burrito
• Lunch/Dinner: rice bowl, sandwich with a side of veggies (I love the individual servings from Green Giant), quesadillas, loaded baked potato, microwave chili, salad bowl, soup
• Snacks: hummus and veggies or crackers, trail mix, smoothie, popcorn, apple slices and peanut butter

Final Thoughts On Tips To Eat Healthy In College

Now you are all set to start making healthier eating choices while in college. Which tip do you think will help you the most? Let me know in the comments.

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