Scroll around each topic. I will
list what to eat in the dining halls, some meals I enjoy, and a menu of healthy
options available at fast food restaurants common to colleges.
EATING IN THE CAFETERIAS
MEATS/PROTEIN
The dining hall is the best place to
go if you are trying to eat clean. Yes, most college campuses boast about their
fried chicken and fried fish days because the large majority of the campus
enjoys a nice, greasy home-style meal. But, they always offer a baked version
of those foods on each line for those who would rather the lighter options.
Stick with the baked versions of the proteins and you have the most important
part of your plate picked out. The most popular types of meat sold in college
dining halls are chicken, white fish, and pork. Turkey and beef will make
appearances often as well depending on the season and menu rotations that
college uses. Pork loin, baked or sauteed fish, turkey and baked chicken are
all great staples to start your healthy plate with. For vegan options, look for
tofu or soy alternatives, almost always offered at at least one station, just
ask a server to direct you to it. Also, most grill/burger stations keep a
selection of black bean or veggie burgers on hand in case a student asks for
it. I enjoy getting either of these, without a bun, and eating it over a salad.
VEGGIES
Here is something I bet you didn't
know.. because colleges must be careful of their vegan and vegetarian students,
most of the vegetables on the station lines are cooked in olive oil, NOT
butter! You really can't tell the difference. So load up on all the veggies you
want, guilt free. Check out the baked potato bar, if offered. It is good to
have one good starch a day. If you are trying to lose weight choose one of the
following per day- baked potato without tons of butter/cheese/sour cream, sweet
potato, peas, or green beans. I would stay away from eating more than one of
these per meal unless you are doing heavy weight training and can afford the
extra calorie boost.
SALAD
BAR
DO:
Add a variety of the leafy greens available.
Different types of salad
greens yield different nutrients. I like to get a scoop of each salad base they
have available that day. Say yes to all the chopped veggies displayed!
Make your salad as colorful as possible. Beets are tangy and great for
vascularity, peppers are rich in countless nutrients and fiber, banana peppers
are fermented and thus yield probiotics, carrots are sweet and help regular
blood sugar levels. Add some plant based protein. Most of us don't eat
near enough protein as we should, salads are an easy way to get some lean
protein in. Try the green soy beans, sunflower seeds, and chick-peas. These are
all super rich in fiber as well. Say yes to mushrooms! The
mushrooms are one of the healthiest things in the dining hall and often the
least eaten. Mushrooms are packed with nutrients and antioxidants that fight
cancer, stimulate weight loss, improve digestion, boost your immune system, and
so much more.
DONT: Keep the salad dressing to a minimum.
You can ruin your entire healthy salad by drenching it in
dressing. The best option is to use the vinegar, lemon juice, or olive oil
almost always provided next to the dressings, instead of actual salad dressing.
Next best option is to use any fat free salad dressing options the dining hall
provides or just limiting yourself to no more than a table spoon of dressing on
your salad. Just eye ball it, you know if you're going overboard. I try to make
myself look at dressing as liquid fat, how much fat do I want to put on my
salad? That usually helps me think twice about how much I put. Limit your
cheese. One tiny pinch of cheese on top of your salad is more than
enough! Be careful of the meats. Because campus dining is a
business, it is no secret that companies look for the most cost effective
options when ordering food. Salad bar meats tend to be highly processed. I
wouldn't recommend the little ham squares, but a pinch of bacon (as long as its
real bacon) or white meat chicken is just fine. Just keep in mind that these
are usually more chemically processed and contain more preservatives than the
other meat options in the dining hall.
KARRAH
SUGGESTS THESE MEALS
- Vegetable Stir-fry: If your dining hall has a stir-fry line or Mongolian
grill (where you can choose veggies, protein, rice/noodles and a sauce),
double your amount of veggies, choose a lean protein, and skip the
rice/noodles. I like to use chicken or tofu with mine and add teriyaki
sauce.
- 1:2:1 Home Line Meal: One lean meat, 2 choice veggies, one plain potato.
Today I will have baked chicken (leg and a breast), Brussels sprouts,
squash, and a plain sweet potato with some salt.
- Giant Salad and cup of soup: Sometimes I use two plates/bowls because ours are tiny.
I usually get the same thing every time; 1 scoop of each-kale,
iceberg mix, spinach, black olives, onions, peppers, mushrooms, carrots,
soy beans, chick peas, banana peppers, a pinch of cheese, a pinch of
bacon, two shakes of vinegar, two shakes of olive oil. Whatever cup of soup
they have. I love all soups. Except tomato, ew.
- Burger (no bun) over veggies: Does the server look at me like I am a crazy person
when I ask for no bun? Absolutely. Dare to be different. I'll get two
patties (regular, black bean or veggie), then walk over to the salad bar
or stir-fry line and get either fresh spinach to put the patties over, or
have the server at the stir-fry line saute some onions and peppers for me
to put the patties over. After awhile, the servers get used to your weird
requests, don't worry!
- Breakfast Options: Eggs, don't be afraid of the yolks, turkey bacon if available,
toast with peanut butter. OR if your cafe has made to order omelets,
ask for egg whites only and load up all the veggies and one meat, ask for
only a pinch of cheese or they will load it up.
STARBUCKS
- Soy latte: Drinking
the coffee black is of course optimal, but if you have to have some
flavor, try a soy latte. It's packed with protein and low in carbs so it
will keep you full and give you the energy you want. And it tastes great! 150
calories in a grande, most of those calories coming from the protein, only
13 carbs.
- Skinny Vanilla Latte: 120 calories in a grande, 0g fat. Sugar free and fat free options aren't my
favorite because you need to process the ingredients and add a lot of fake
stuff to get the taste right, I usually try and stick to all natural
options. But if you don't care about chemicals this is a low calorie
option.
- Iced Coffee with Soy Milk and 2 Stevias: 35 calories in a grande, 4 carbs. This is my go to when its not freezing outside. Tastes
great, and is as close as you can get to drinking it black calorie wise.
Stevia is a natural sweetener made from a plant, that is the only fake
sweetener I will use.
- Egg white Spinach Feta Wrap: 290 calories, 10g fat, 33 carbs, 6g fiber, 19g protein
- Turkey Bacon Sandwich: 230 calories, 6g fat, 28 carbs, 2g fiber, 13g protein
- Oatmeal: 140-190
calories Depends on the toppings you
use. If you didn't know already, you subtract the grams of fiber in a food
off the amount of carbs to get the net carbs. Oatmeal is packed with
fiber, making it a great meal for any time of the day.
Chick-fil-A
- Any salad with fat free dressing: Chick-Fil-A makes all their salads in the morning when
they open, I can vouch for them because I see it done each morning when I
get to work. They use real ingredients and lots of fresh fruits and
veggies. I suggest this as a lunch option because they are higher in
calories due to the fruits, but eating fruits before 3pm is great, gives
your body plenty of time to metabolize them before you go to bed that
night.
- Grilled Chicken Cool Wrap with Fat-Free Honey
Mustard: 340
calories, 13g fat, 30 carbs, 15g fiber, 36g protein. The macro nutrients in this meal speak for itself. This
is a great option for lunch or dinner and the fiber and protein will keep
you full for a long time. This is my favorite meal to get a Chick-Fil-A.
- Nuggets, entree only: Literally it does not matter if you get grilled or
regular nuggets. Their nutrition information is only 30 calories
difference and the grilled nuggets have more saturated fat than the
regular. This is just a matter of preference. Either one is perfectly fine
for you as long as you don't order fries. Switch to the fruit cup instead!
Chick-fil-A fruit cups are always very fresh and of good variety.
Panda Express
- Skip the fried rice and noodles: Most of Panda's entrees include a lean protein paired
with some mixed veggies. A bowl full of that is great for you! It's the
rice and noodles that will start packing on the pounds. Brown rice is not
any more special that white rice. That is a myth. The nutritional
differences are so small you might as well get the white rice. Rice isn't
bad for you, but if you are trying to lose weight, I would limit it.
Moe's, Burrito Bowl, Chipotle, Etc.
- Stick to bowls: Skip
the tortillas and make yourself a rice bowl and pack on the veggies and
pick a lean protein like chicken or tofu and you have yourself a healthy
meal. No need to count calories when it comes to made to order
restaurants. When you're eating whole foods, as long as you stick to real
veggies and proteins, and limit the processed foods like breads, cheese
and sauces, you can rest assure that you are eating a meal that your body
will burn up instead of storing for weight gain.
Subway
- Stay away from fatty meats like salami, pepperoni,
meatballs, and tuna. Tuna
salad has a lot of mayonnaise, even though tuna alone is great for you,
the mayonnaise is all fat.
- Choose any bread you want: As long as you don't eat Subway every single day, the
bread is not going to hurt you. There is not a huge nutritional difference
in wheat bread and the other breads at Subway even though they advertise
it that way. So pick what you want, or make it a salad and skip the bread
all together.
- Choose the lean meats: Carved turkey, grilled chicken, sliced turkey, and
teriyaki chicken are all great lean options.
- Dressings: Too
much fatty dressing can ruin your healthy sandwich. Ask for light mayo or
skip the mayo entirely and just add mustard. Mustard is almost calorie
free and it packs a punch so you will get the flavor boost you are looking
for.
P.O.D
or Other Campus Convenient Stores
- Protein shakes and meal bars: I spent the majority of my dining dollars in the POD or
at the gym buying protein bars and shakes. Switching breakfast, lunch or a
snack out for one of these is an easy way to jump start weight loss. They
are also very handy when running late for class and starving, and of
course, as a snack for after a gym session because #gainz.
- Grab & Go salads or snacks: You can often find pre-made salads, parfaits, and other
healthy snacks in these types of stores. It is smart to stock up on a few
to keep in your dorm. Just remember my rules on salad dressing!
- Yogurt: Don't
even get me started on how much I love probiotics. You should be taking or
eating them every single day. Yogurt is great and filling. Try to pick
brands that don't add sugar to their products when possible.
- Frozen meals: Check
the freezer sections of these stores. If they carry frozen meals, they
most likely have at least a couple healthy options.
I
hope you guys find these tips helpful. Hopefully now you can add some variety
to your diet and save some money by using the meal plan you are required to
have anyway. If you have a restaurant or question that you would like me to add
into this post, please DM me on my Instagram!
