Fresh Perspectives

Let’s talk about something that is a little heavy, no pun intended, and most definitely real. The dreaded freshmen 15.

We all know there are many things that an incoming freshman thinks about. What if I don’t like my roommate? Will I make friends? What if I can’t find my classes? When and where are the parties? And the scariest of all, is the freshmen 15 real?

I like to put students into three categories when it comes to that one.

There are those who think they could never in a million years be victim of it, or, as I like to call them – naïve.

There are those who accept it, and stick their heads under the ice cream dispenser the first chance they get.

And there are those who get slapped in the face by the extra 15 pounds because they never saw it coming.

Naturally, I didn’t worry about this too much because I’m a commuter. I thought, I can’t gain weight in college because I’ll be eating the same stuff I ate before, and I won’t be tempted with unlimited food like the residents.

I recently found myself somewhere between category one and category three.

I was a student athlete in high school and played sports year-round. I kept in shape without even knowing it because I was doing something I loved.

Once I got to college, I stopped playing basketball, so I stopped having set times to work out everyday. However, I did not change my eating habits.

Now that working out was something I had to pencil in my schedule, I found myself doing practically nothing. It’s not even that I felt bigger, but I felt unhealthy and unenergetic.

I didn’t expect it. I guess I just thought I was in shape my whole life, so nothing could change that. I became one of those naive people.

I also didn’t realize how hard it is to get back into shape once you are out of it. It came to the point where I couldn’t believe that I ever let myself get this bad.   

I’m not going to give you some cliché crap about how it doesn’t matter what you look like on the outside as long as you feel good on the inside. One, looks are important, they just are. And two, I find it near impossible to be overweight on the outside, and feel good on the inside.

So, if you look at yourself in the mirror, and you don’t feel confident or healthy, change it – to an extent though. It is important to lose weight the right way and stay healthy.

I know, working out sucks. No one likes to run on a treadmill to nowhere, or pick up heavy things just to put them back down again.

That’s what I thought working out was. I thought that it meant running countless miles and lifting weights. What I didn’t realize was that exercising doesn’t have to be boring.

Working out can be anything. Some people like dancing, or yoga, or boxing. It’s all about finding a way to get your body moving and your heart pumping. I just had to find what works for me, and stick to it.

I hate the gym, and I don’t like working out in front of people because there are too many expectations. I used that as an excuse to do nothing for so long.

I finally realized that there are no excuses for being unhealthy. I had to start at my own pace, while also testing my limits and pushing myself to go harder.

I’m done making excuses like, I’m a commuter, or I don’t have time, or I don’t like the gym.

Let me tell you, there is no greater feeling than accomplishing something and seeing results.  That goes for anything, not just beating the freshmen 15.

-Carly Trombley

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