College: the land of late-night study sessions, ramen noodles, over-caffeination and juggling classes with work and a social calendar. Time is limited and budgets are tight, so health and wellness often takes a hit.
While college life may not always align with healthy habits, students and professionals said it is possible to be healthy in college, and crucial in order to thrive mentally and physically.
Health encompasses more than just nutrition, exercise or fulfilling relationships, but rather, all of these things working together for holistic wellness, said Kyra Hatton, senior and Student Wellness Advisory Board (SWAB) co-president.
“Health is so interconnected,” Hatton said. “You can’t really only focus on one of those three elements of health. Every one of them is going to impact the other.”
Better to Keep it Basic
Audrey Byker, board-certified health and wellness coach and holistic nutritionist, said wellness is attainable for everyone when made a priority, but individual needs may vary.
“Truly with anything, if there is a will, there’s a way,” Byker said. “If you plan, you’d be shocked by what is possible if you just do a little planning ahead –– your schedule, your meal plan.”
Byker works with clients of all ages but has extensive experience helping college students develop habits to help them maintain optimal health. Her curriculum focuses on individualized nutrition, and she walks clients through how to create a balanced plate tailored to their health goals.
“I just help meet them where they’re at with their skills and resources, and then help them make everything really, really simple,” Byker said. “We just focus on keeping it basic.”
Developing healthy habits now, while in college, will set young people up for the future and students should take advantage of the numerous free resources Pepperdine has to offer, Hatton said. She urges students to attend SWAB tabling events, visit the Student Health Center, seek out the Counseling Center and utilize the support of the Student Care Team, all of which are financially covered through the wellness fee.
“It’s far easier to maintain habits that have been built up than it is to build new ones,” Hatton said. “Your health is an investment in the person that you’re going to be 10, 20, 30 and so on years down the line.”
Balancing on a Budget
Everything is about balance, Byker said.
“All you need are healthy, balanced meals,” Byker said. “That’s it. Nothing more, nothing less, just water in between.”
All well-rounded, complete meals will include each macronutrient: protein, healthy fats and carbohydrates, Byker said.
“I just call those your daily medicine you need,” Byker said. “You need them every day, ideally in every meal, and tailored individually to the individual’s health goals and needs.”
Senior Nutrition major Megan Anderson said she focuses on trying to eat mostly whole foods –– unprocessed or minimally processed foods. She said the fiber she gains from prioritizing fruits and vegetables helps sustain her energy during busy days.
“It helps me stay full for longer,” Anderson said. “Just eating a varied diet, it’s hard to just describe, but I just feel good throughout the day.”
Byker recommends everyone take inventory of the resources and groceries they already have in their homes and begin there.
Anderson said when managing costs, it is important to find grocery stores that offer more for less. But, the less expensive stores may create a transportation barrier since they are not located in Malibu.
“I know the prices at Trader Joe’s are a lot less than some of the other ones, especially in the Malibu area, so that is something that I definitely take into consideration,” Anderson said.
For those who are cost-conscious, frozen foods and produce can be a cheaper way to hit macronutrient goals than fresh fruit and vegetables.
“Frozen produce is extremely high in nutrients because it’s picked at its peak ripeness,” Byker said.
Anderson plans her weekly meals around what is available at her local grocery stores, Ralphs and Pavilions. She said she has a base list of ingredients but will alter her recipes depending on what produce is on sale or in season.
“Doing what you can is kind of the name of the game, especially in college,” Anderson said.
Meal prepping has changed everything, Anderson said. Usually, she preps on Sundays, cooking ready-to-go vegetables and meat for her meals throughout the week.
“It takes maybe like 40 minutes on the weekend, but then the whole week I can just quickly grab some and add it to whatever meal I have,” Anderson said.
With meal plans centered around basic macronutrients, meals can feel redundant, Byker said. But, they don’t have to be — all it takes is a little creativity in the kitchen (or the dorm room).
“Simplicity –– it gets boring,” Byker said. “That’s why you want to learn how to cook. It should be a goal for everyone to just get better at cooking so that you can make your food taste better than in a restaurant.”
Anderson cycles through recipes, getting creative and experimenting with different flavors while using many of the same ingredients.
“One week, maybe I’ll make a pasta and add the vegetables to that, or just have rice and chicken and mix it all together, or tacos, or sometimes I throw more fun, yummy recipes in,” Anderson said.
For those stuck with the Caf, Byker recommended seeking out vegetables and proteins.
“It’s consciously not choosing the food that is not going to love you back,” Byker said.
Byker performed a deep-dive research project for a culinary nutrition class, simulating an ideal meal plan for a college-age woman, living on less than $8 a day. Byker said the report is big on minimal food waste in order to save money.
“That was a really big thing in my report, not wasting anything,” Byker said. “We would reuse stuff, turn it into something else, one-pot meals like hashes and soups.”
Going Out to Eat
As much as many college students don’t like to hear it, the best way to save money and sustain healthy habits is to avoid eating out, Byker said. Since eating out is often a way to socialize and connect, she encourages people to find non-food-related ways to hang out.
“Instead of going out to a restaurant with a bunch of your friends, one thing that I love doing is just cooking with friends, and usually that’s far less expensive,” Hatton said.
This does not mean restaurants need to be cut entirely, but she said that the most nutrient-dense options in a restaurant are often more expensive.
“It’s going to be, trying to find that piece of meat on the menu, trying to get some vegetables on that plate and not sweating too much of the rest,” Byker said.
People should do the best they can to create a balanced plate in their given circumstance, without overthinking it and focusing more on the food than the experience of being with one another, Byker said.
“Recharge yourself,” Byker said. “Do the best you can with what you know. Don’t sweat the quality. Just try to make it balanced. Enjoy every bite and move on.”
Physical Activity
Getting a daily dose of physical activity can feel overwhelming and over-complicated, Byker said. But staying active every day is actually quite simple and can be free of charge. Whether it is small exercises at home or taking some time to walk in nature, she said the goal is simply to move.
“Shut out the noise of over-complicating everything,” Byker said. “You don’t need a gym membership. You have your own body weight you can use.”
Similar to Byker, Hatton highly recommends walking in nature whenever possible, whether with friends or alone.
“Something like that is super accessible no matter where you go, and it can be a great way to engage with all areas of wellness,” Hatton said.
Prioritizing nutrition and physical movement every day in some capacity makes her more productive during the day and helps her sleep soundly at night, Anderson said.
“Being able to go out for walks, runs or whatever I feel like doing has contributed to me feeling energized and ready to go every day,” Anderson said. “And by the time it gets to bedtime, I’m like, ‘I’m ready to sleep now,’ and then I just knock out.”
Long-term health is the ability to move in a functional way and should remain the focus, Byker said.
“That’s picking up, twisting, reaching, stepping, you don’t have to jump, you don’t have to have weights and do all these crazy things at a gym,” Byker said.
Mental Health and the Power of Community
Finding a way to get the body in motion every day is not only great for overall physical health, but for mental health.
“Your mental health thrives when it can have those brain breaks too,” Byker said.
Byker emphasizes the need for everyone to go outside — it’s free, and the human body needs it.
“We can’t forget the power of nature,” Byker said. “The fresh air and sunshine will change your life, especially if you’re focused on the fact that that’s actually medicine.”
Health ultimately comes down to relationships and community, something college can provide in spades, Byker said.
“I believe that all of our struggles at the root are rooted in a lack of love and belonging,” Byker said. “So whatever we can do to address that route and seek out loving, belonging is really powerful.”
The wellness of the entire community helps to facilitate the health of an individual, Hatton said.
“It’s not just one person’s individual wellness,” Hatton said. “The entire community’s wellness helps everybody, being around people who kind of show healthy habits, whether that be healthy eating or just encouraging movement.”
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Contact Ava Heinert via email: ava.heinert@pepperdine.edu
