How to: Lose Some Extra College Pounds

Fruit loops! Finally, the chance has come to taste the savory, sugar-filled delights. Oh, Coldstone. It’s conveniently located near the entrance of the Memorial Union, complete with candy selections and calorie-filled ice cream. And who can forget Papa John’s and Sbarro and their greasy goodness?

Avoiding the freshman (sophomore, junior or senior) 15 is difficult and when efforts are unsuccessful, the weight gain is real. All that freedom in college also meant freedom to eat crap. But not anymore.

Experts, like Deanne Wilson, a registered dietitian for Campus Health Service, say losing eight to 10 pounds a month is OK for the maximum amount of weight loss. However, Wilson recommends only losing half a pound to two pounds per week — half a pound is the most realistic.

Here are some top tips for losing 10 pounds in a month, taken from Wilson and Melinda Johnson, a registered dietitian, ASU nutrition professor and spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association:

Be realistic. Choose a diet you can live with but that also has food restrictions. Make sure your diet is balanced and varied — you can’t live off of salad alone.

Eat when you’re hungry, which is about every two to four hours.

Do cardiovascular activities. You can burn a lot of calories by running, swimming and doing other activities that increase your heart rate.

Have food available. It may take time and energy to plan and pack a meal when you’re half asleep, but it also takes time to wait in line. Purchasing food at a grocery store (and preparing it yourself) is usually cheaper and allows for more variety.

Do something you enjoy. “It doesn’t always have to be in a gym, but something that’s going to get your heart rate up,” Wilson says. “Also, doing things with other people can really help time to go by.”

Cut calories. “The research on weight loss has been really, really clear that it really is all about the calories,” Johnson says. “Weight loss happens when you eat less calories than you burn.”

Eat low-calorie foods. Also, make sure the foods fill you up, like fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Adding lean proteins to your diet can keep you full for longer as well. Examples of lean proteins are skim milk, low-fat yogurt, low-fat cheese, beans and lean meat products.

Build muscle. This helps long-term weight maintenance by keeping your metabolic rate up. That means you might have to learn how to use those scary-looking machines.

Have a plan. “The worst diets happen when we don’t put any thought into it and we’re busy and we just grab whatever’s convenient,” Johnson says. “If we put a little thought into [it]…then that helps us to have a plan in place and it helps us to eat healthier overall.”

Reach the reporter at Rheyanne.Weaver@asu.edu