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Pre-Workout Snacks

Staying Healthy, , ,

                   

Going to the gym and working out consistently can be very beneficial to our health, but many people struggle with motivation. Everybody who works out has their own reason for doing so, and have their own fitness goals. Whether your goal is to lose weight or gain muscle, diet is an essential part of any workout routine. Eating certain types of foods before a workout will help you get the most out of your body and maximize results to help you achieve your goals sooner. Here are some snack ideas and general tips to help fuel your workout.

 

1. Peanut Butter Sandwich

Many people tend to stay away from peanut butter as much as they can because it is dense in calories and carbs. Although this is true, carbs are actually good, making a peanut butter sandwich on wholegrain bread a great go-to snack before a workout. Before any type of moderate to intense training, carbs are essential. When eaten, carbs are quickly broken down into glucose, which gives us energy and allows our bodies to function at full potential. A lack of carbs during your workout can cause you to feel weak, tired, and jittery. The carbs found in the bread and peanut butter are a strong source of energy to help you through a run or lift. If you are not into peanut butter, fruit, oatmeal, and toast are wholesome alternatives.

 

 

 

2. Greek Yogurt

Greek yogurt is filled with protein, which is essential before and after exercise. If you are into weight training, in particular, this is great before a lift. When we lift weights, small tears are being created in our muscle fibers. A substantial source of protein before a lift helps the muscles heal and grow back stronger. When choosing your Greek yogurt, plain is best because it has significantly less sugar than most brands of flavored Greek yogurt. To help cover up the awful taste of plain yogurt, strawberries, blueberries, or any other fruit is great on top. Some other easy sources of protein before a workout are nuts, eggs, and milk.

 

 

 

3. Water/Gatorade

It is extremely important to make sure you are hydrated before physical activity. Drinking as much water as possible throughout the day will help improve performance. According to Active.com, the average person loses about 37 ounces of water through sweat throughout an hour of moderate exercise. Dehydration leads to weakness, headaches, and muscle pain. Sometimes I like to mix in a Gatorade right before I workout for some added electrolytes and energy. Electrolytes are important for regulating heartbeat and allowing muscles to move properly.

 

 

 

Much like eating breakfast before school, eating the right types of foods before a workout can be extremely beneficial. Everybody is different and has different goals that they are trying to achieve. These guidelines and suggestions are general, and can be tweaked to personal preferences. Pre-workout nutrition is all about finding what your body responds to best. If you feel that something gives you more energy and helps you perform better, go for it! Everyone’s body is different and responds differently to various foods.

Making Your Meal Plan Count

On-Campus Dining, , ,

Do you find yourself with 100’s of leftover meal swipes at the end of the year? Most students here at the University of Alabama purchase a meal plan but don’t know how to get the most for their money. The main reason why people end up wasting meal swipes is because they aren’t sure where or when to go to dining halls. We all prefer to eat out at our restaurant of choice, but if we take a closer look, the meal plan provides great options that don’t require extra money.

Dining Halls
No two people have identical daily routines, but there are plenty of dining halls to fit into any and all schedules. Here are a few dining halls with varying hours of operation that students can choose from

• Burke Dining Hall– Burke is an all you can eat dining hall located in Burke Hall. So if you live in Burke, nearby Tutwiler, or find yourself out on the southeast side of campus, Burke’s your place. They stay open from 7am-2pm and then re-open for dinner from 5pm-9:30pm during the week. Burke offers a wide variety of food options, but always bakes their hot, cheesy pizza every day without fail

• The Fresh Food Company– Nestled in the Science and Engineering Complex area is Fresh Foods. Open weekdays from 7am to 6pm, they provide delicious food choices all day long. From gooey grilled cheeses to chocolatey cookie brownies to fresh, salty French fries, the options are endless. Although it’s sure to satisfy any student, this dining hall sits in an ideal location for students in science related majors who are out and about going to classes.


• Lakeside Dining– Obviously, if you live in Presidential dorms or Lakeside dorms this dining hall lies near you. Lakeside Dining is UA’s biggest all you care to eat restaurant. Asian cuisine, home-style meals, burgers, pastas, sandwiches are just a few of the many selections. My personal favorite is the chicken tenders, fries, and Texas toast because it tastes almost identical to Raising Cane’s. Lakeside stays open on the weekends which can be very helpful when trying to budget your money. Also, they remain open later than most dining halls closing at either midnight or 2am.
• Bryant Dining– While this hall serves only the student athletes for dinner, it serves any student during brunch. This hall offers carved meats, salad bar, and made-to-order deli and grill. Located in the Bryant Hall, this dining option stays open from 8:30am-1pm.
On the Go
Not everyone’s schedule allows them to sit down for a meal each day. Sometimes we just need to grab food and go. Bama Dining understands this too well which is why students may purchase reusable to-go boxes. Here’s how they work:
1) Go to any dining hall and purchase a container for only $5
2) Fill up your to-go box with foods of your choice and take it with you
3) Return your box to any dining hall to have it cleaned and receive a new box to repeat the process
The To-Go Box Program helps out busy students by allowing them to capitalize on their meal plan without it subtracting time from their agendas.

Fresh2Go options are also available at Julia’s Market in Tutwiler and Presidential Terrace. These fresh snacks can be purchased by a meal swipe instead of Dining Dollars which helps to knock off extra swipes if needed.

UA offers many food options on campus, and most people only know half of them. For more information on Bama Dining locations and hours of operation, check out their website.

Array of fruits, veggies, meats, dairy, and carbs.

Taking On The Freshman 15

Staying Healthy, , ,

Let’s face it: no one wants to gain the Freshman 15, but we’re all told about it coming into college. My family said it would come from all the junk food; my friends said it would come from an excessive amount of alcohol. While students often put on weight now that we’re away from home, we can definitely maintain our current weight if not lose weight if we stay on track.

I can already hear all the excuses.

“I don’t have the time to work out enough”

“I don’t have the money to follow a strict diet”

“Drinking is fun. I don’t want to stop drinking”

While these are all somewhat legitimate excuses, making progress really doesn’t take all that much change. What it will take is moderation. Yes, you’re going to have to work out some. Yes, you’re going to have to cut out the alcohol and junk food sometimes. But, the good news is that you’re not going to have to cut them out completely. You just need to follow some common-sense tips that I’ll talk about below, then you’ll be able to enjoy your college experience and stay in shape (get in shape for some people).

 

Exercise

The first step to not putting on weight as a freshman is some type of working out. I take advantage of lifting and running. But, if lifting heavy weights isn’t for you, it could be yoga class, riding bikes, hiking, etc. If you want a pleasant place to run, try running along the river. Here at the slice of heaven we call the University of Alabama, the choices for working out are limitless. There are even classes at the Rec Center that take the guess work out of it.  The most important part of working out isn’t necessarily the type, but the act of actually DOING IT. Find something that makes working out at least a little enjoyable and stick with it. Obviously, the more you work out, the better. But, aim for workouts that are around an hour at least 3-4 times a week to see a noticeable impact. Working out on its own will help tremendously, but like the famous quote goes, “Abs are made in the kitchen.”

 

Caloric Intake

The biggest part of not gaining the Freshman 15 is your diet. If you’re slamming beers and eating Domino’s all the time, working out is not going to have near as big of an impact. I’m not telling you to not enjoy life, but you need to exercise moderation. Enjoy all the great food Tuscaloosa offers, but limit your indulgence to one or two cheat meals a week. I like to have mine on the weekends so I can reward myself for a week of hard work. For options during the week, believe it or not our thousand-dollar meal can go a long way. The dining halls have a salad bar, vegan and vegetarian options, lean meats like chicken and turkey some days and if you’re feeling young again you can even get a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The dining halls can work for our goals if we stick to the healthy options and control our portions.

Try to limit your drinking to once or twice a week as well. Alcohol is empty calories and can completely ruin the effects of eating well. Alcohol also amplifies the effects of junk food. When you have alcohol in your system, instead of metabolizing food and burning off the calories, it’s more focused on burning off the alcohol. Because of this change of focus, more of the large pizza you just ate will be absorbed by your body.

Final Thoughts

The Freshman 15 might sound daunting. But, if you exercise moderation and follow the tips listed above, the Freshman 15 will be reduced to an afterthought. The most important part of watching caloric intake is staying healthy. This can mean different things for different people, so make sure to listen to your own body. Whatever your goals are, with a little tweaking, these tips are sure to bring results. I have even lost almost 20 pounds since school started while maintaining most of my strength from these tips; I know they can work wonders for anyone else willing to give them a try as well!