College Tips and Tricks to Keep you Focused

A great way to fight stress eating is to have healthy meal and snacks options on hand. Find your staples at your dining hall, nearby restaurants, local deli or grocery store or order food online. It may seem like you don’t have the time or energy to seek out healthy food options when you have so many other things to worry about, but eating healthy will actually help keep you feeling mentally and emotionally strong. Poor eating habits will maybe satisfy your cravings in the short term, but in the long run you will just feel more tired and sluggish at the end of the semester. Even if you don’t have access to a mini fridge or kitchen you can still eat healthy. Find nonperishable items or items that can be kept at room temperature such as nuts, trail mixes, protein bars, peanut and almond butter, whole wheat bread, cereal, apples, rice cakes, roasted edamame, bananas, oranges, healthy chips, crackers and popcorn, roasted chick peas, and much more. If you do have a mini fridge, you can add Greek yogurt, more fruits and vegetables, hummus, cheese, turkey, skim milk, cottage cheese, mustard, tuna, ripe avocados, sugar free pudding and more – including foods that you order in or pick up locally or from the dining hall. You might even get lucky and find that Mom and Dad send you a healthy care package with snacks and supplies  Having healthy options in your room is also going to be helpful during those all-nighters when you are looking for sugar and caffeine. Consuming sweets and energy drinks may keep you up, but they will also cause you to crash and feel terrible the next day. It is much better to go for something healthy when you need something to perk you up. If you do have a kitchen, stock up on some cooking basics like eggs/egg whites, oil and vinegar, salt and pepper, dry spices, vegetable soups, cooking spray, frozen vegetables, etc. Even if you don’t have experience, find some easy recipes and cook for yourself.