Control

I hope it has been a good week for everyone!

I was planning on posting yesterday, but I ended up not feeling too great yesterday afternoon/last night and wanted to do nothing but sleep.  Luckily, two glasses of orange juice, 10 hours of sleep, and a couple of bowls of soup later, I feel much better.  But let me tell ya, being sick without your mom there to take care of you kind of sucks. 

I went to class this morning and then worked out this afternoon.  I have pretty much been working nonstop today, which is great because I am basically finished with my work for today!  I did decide that I need new music to workout to or I need to find someone to workout with so I have someone to talk to.  It gets so monotonous and dull listening to the same music all the time. Comment below if you have any suggestions on good music to workout to! I would love to hear from y’all J

At school I am on the freshman board of the Hillel (a Jewish student organization for those who don’t know) on campus.  We had our last meeting tonight which wasn’t so much of a meeting but a celebration of sorts.  Our student leader is graduating and the school year is almost over, so we had a special dinner for the board.  Maggianos and cake- definitely not the healthiest. BUT, it was a special occasion, I ate healthy every other part of the day, and if I want a piece of cake, I’m not going to tell myself no all of the time.  Besides, FYSH board is definitely something to celebrate.  It has left me surrounded by some truly remarkable people. 

 

FYSH board!

One of my friends, Jordan, is also very much into the whole healthy living thing.  The guy is amazing- his goal was to gain more muscle during our freshman year and to say that he fulfilled the goal would be an understatement.  But what is truly remarkable about his healthy lifestyle is his self-control.  If you put a piece of pizza or potato chips in front of him, it seems as if it doesn’t even faze him.  He also eats pretty much the same meal every night for dinner (and a lot of times for lunch): two grilled chicken sandwiches, a baked potato, some sort of fruit , brown rice, and a glass of water.  I’ve asked him before if he ever gets bored of the meal. He said he doesn’t.  In my opinion it is just another testimony to his commitment to a healthy lifestyle. Kudos to him on everything he has accomplished.  I don’t know if he knows it, but he is such an inspiration to all of us to live healthy, optimistically, and vulnerably. 

 

Jordan is on the right

Unfortunately, unlike Jordan, I do get bored.  Generally, I alternate between a salad with a piece of grilled chicken, a grilled chicken sandwich, veggie burger, or some type of fish (if I like what they are serving) for dinner.  As my sides, I normally get two sides of steamed veggies and then either a baked sweet potato or some sort of fruit.  Luckily, I have never been a big fan of the dessert section, which is good because the dessert section is huge. 

This is just the refrigerated section...

Tempting, right? 

I was talking with my friend Allie after dinner one night earlier this week about the idea of eating healthy on a college campus.  We talked about how it is hard to find healthy choices sometimes and how repetitive your meals get if you are trying to eat healthy.  Luckily, the food at my school is actually edible, unlike some other colleges I have visited.  But, even so, Allie and I agreed that it is hard to eat healthy.  We then sat at the table and thought of probably twenty different ways the food could be healthier at Vanderbilt.  Like, why not make the pasta dishes with whole-wheat pasta?  That is a simple solution to making a dish healthier. And how about instead of selling three different brands of the same flavor of oatmeal in the Munchie Mart (our little convenience-type store on campus), we sell just one brand and offer more vegetables in to-go containers in the refrigerated section? 

What I think it really comes down to is control.  When I am at home, I have a lot of control.  I can control what foods are in the house for me to eat.  I can control what I pack for lunch and can control what I eat for dinner.  I can even control how much food I get.  But at school, I don’t have those luxuries.  The lack of control is what makes it hard.  It is also what makes it repetitive. 

But, I suppose that is no excuse for having bad eating habits.  So, I keep trying. Sometimes I don’t do so great, but I do okay. The point is that I am trying and learning.  That’s the best that I can do.  It is the best that any of us can do.