Learn how to eat healthy with Laurenne Foley

460
Reading Time: 2 minutes

The hectic lifestyle of a student often makes it difficult to eat a well-balanced diet. With processed foods cheaper and easier to prepare, many students choose less healthy meals as a way to curb their hunger. In addition, skipping meals, binge drinking, lack of sleep, not drinking enough water and missing workouts leave students among the unhealthiest people around.

Incorporating exercise into your life in addition to eating nutritious meals can greatly affect your energy and study habits. There is no question that healthy eating is linked to mental health and studies have shown that those who watch what they eat perform better in school. Beginning your day with a large glass of lukewarm water and lemon thirty minutes before you eat will activate your enzymes and help with digestion throughout the day.

You should try to eat six small meals a day in order to boost your metabolism. Like a fire, your metabolism needs to be stoked every three hours in order to work at its optimal level. Keep in mind that your stomach is only the size of your fist and can’t hold large amounts of food at a time.

While avoiding cheap, fast food may seem difficult at times, natural nutritionist, Laurenne Foley suggests managing your time as a way to avoid these quick fixes. “Take a couple hours on Sunday to prepare your meals for the week,” says Foley, “invest in some Tupperware and cook a bunch of lean chicken, veggies and brown rice.”

Having your meals prepared and on hand to snack on will decrease the chances of you turning to candy, chips and bagels to fill you up. Drinking water is also crucial to healthy eating and people often confuse hunger with thirst. 

Small changes in your lifestyle, like skipping out on cream and sugar in your coffee each day can also make a big difference in the long run. Avoiding temptations like greasy cafeteria food is key. Pass on the fries and actually take the time to buy some healthy groceries.

Eating healthy can actually be cheaper than junk food if you plan accordingly. Look in the flyers for sales and make a grocery list rather than shopping on a whim. The benefits of eating healthy are sometimes hard to see right now but will definitely contribute to your overall well-being in the long run.

Right now, your metabolism is spiking. This may allow you to eat whatever you want and not notice any real difference in your shape or health.  The older you get, the harder it is for you to burn fat cells so it’s best to start now.

Dairy, wheat and fast food are huge contributors to acne and poor skin too. Aside from a great complexion, good food will also greatly reduce your risk of developing heart failure, cancer or obesity. All of which are huge problems in North America right now.

 

Eating clean, natural foods will help you focus on your studies, keep a lean body and a healthy heart. 

If you have any questions or are interested in learning more about healthy eating, Laurenne Foley can be contacted at laurenne.foley@gmail.com.

Emily is in her fourth year of Political Science. She loves studying and academics which follows into her research work. She's a stern black coffee drinker and is a proud Acadienne. When she's not working or doing school work, you can find Emily listening to 70s music on vinyl and watching Parks and Recreation. If you ask her about parliamentary institutions, she won't stop talking.