How I lost my Freshman 15

It started in first year with the limitless freedom in the dining halls. Growing up we never really kept sweets in the house except for special occasions, so having cookies around constantly was not only new and exciting, but I gained the aptly nickname “Cookie Monster.”

Then I learned about stress and all nighters, and how eating helped me stay awake to study. I’d go to town on anything edible near me.

Not to mention that eating is a social thing and I was surrounded by new people. Grabbing food and going to frats to drinking really shitty beer just added on the cellulite. I was perfecting the way to dress to go out without wearing tight clothes.

I easily gained 15 pounds by the end of my first year here at UVA and I was definitely self conscious about it. I had been very active in high school with sports, so being a little overweight was depressing.

By second year I was obsessed with trying to shed the pounds. I looked up exercise routines, tried new diet fads, followed fitness motivation accounts on Instagram, and counted calories.

All of my friends here were skinny and had a high metabolism. I wanted to hate them and blame them for my compulsion, but I couldn’t. I didn’t even want to talk to them about it. I remember calling my dad and telling him how unhappy I was about my weight.

“Most parents would be freaking out hearing this. Are you OK?”

Dads are the best, and he honestly helped me by counting calories with me and sharing yummy healthy recipes. His support means the world to me, but it still did not make the weight disappear.

I even spent money on a trainer. I paid a guy living in California to send me meal and workout plans. I had to text him pictures of the scale every week. How dumb is that? I still was not losing weight.

It took me the whole summer after my third year to drop the weight I had gained. The secret: I was in the real world. I was working 300 miles from my friends and family, surrounded by new people, and too busy working and having fun to notice I was not eating as much. I found healthy and easy things to make.

Tip: Toss kale into pasta sauce. It is more filling, nutritious, and pretty tasty.

I learned moderation too. After I came back for fourth year, these habits thankful stuck. I found healthy foods I like so I keep them on my grocery list, and I am too poor to eat out so that has helped too.

Stop worrying about your weight because it will change. I spent way to many hours looking up dieting tricks, worrying about what I looked like, and feeling awful for no reason.

If you gain some weight, so what? So many other people have to, but it is important to find out who you are, what you love, and just go do that. The world has its way of balancing itself out, and you will too.

Keep your chin up, good looking, you can do it.