Stranded in the college wasteland . . .

Alexis · Tue Mar 30, 2004 2:58 am

Hey everyone - I've been sort of lurking around here for a few weeks, gleaning information and all, and decided to introduce myself, I guess. I'm 18, and a first-year college student, also should probably join the "Little Losers" club since I'm 5'8", 136 lbs and only want to drop about 10 or so pounds . . . a lot of this is for health reasons since heart disease and diabetes run in my family and I want to do everything I can to prevent it. :(

Anyways, just wondering if anyone else is struggling to maintain the SB diet in a college dorm. It's nearly impossible to find anything SB-friendly but salads, and my roommates have fits when I microwave veggies and fish and/or take up loads of refridgerator space. The one thing that did help, though, was cooking a lot of SB-good things at home, freezing them, and bringing them to school. The roommies still went into hysterics over the cooking-fish/vegetable/etc. smell, though. :roll: Most of my roommates and the other girls in my suite (we're in a group of four bedrooms sharing a bathroom/living room, so we're all in one closed-in group) are trying to lose weight by doing the Special-K/salads/yogurt thing, but inevitably they cave in to carb-cravings and binge on brownies or desserts at our dining commons. I fear that a lot of the criticism they have for me is that when someone waves a cookie under my nose, I finally have the strength to say no, and they don't. :x I'm on Day 8 of P1, and haven't checked my weight, but my pants seem looser - which is good because all of my spring clothes are smaller! :lol:

Wow - long stream of rambling, right there. At any rate, again, I just wanted to know if anyone else is dealing with the same thing I am, or has any creative bits of advice for dealing with the food thing or people who have diet-envy. :?:

shar80 · Tue Mar 30, 2004 2:58 pm

hi alexis,

i totally know how you feel about the pain of dieting in college -- its so difficult! (i graduated two years ago). that stinks that you are having to deal with diet envy, too. i've had to deal with some of that since i started SBD too, and it is pretty frustrating! as far as that goes, my advice is to just stay strong and know that they are just annoyed at the fact that you are succeeding where they failed.

as far as the dining hall goes, i know it can be difficult. here's one thing i know i like to do at my cafeteria here at work - make a fake sandwich. i make it up just like i would make a normal sandwich -- a few slices of turkey, some cheese, some onions, lettuce, a slice of tomato, some mustard, maybe a small dollop of mayo....just with no bread! i then eat it with a knife and fork. i know it sounds weird, you actually don't miss the bread that much cause you're getting all the other good stuff.

good luck to you!! :D

redsox23 · Tue Mar 30, 2004 3:22 pm

Hi: I am 5'7'' and my comfortable weight is 120. Currently I am 130, and have tried so many things to lose it. I am only trying to lose ten pounds or so and I was hoping to communicate with you b/c we are both only trying to lose a little weight.
GOOD LUCK!

allihoo28 · Tue Mar 30, 2004 3:40 pm

Ugh! That must be so hard for you! Shar80 has a great idea with the fake sandwich - I have done that too but rolled it up in a lettuce leaf so that I can still eat it with my hands. After you finish P1, you will probably find it easier to adapt your eating.

The part-skim mozzerella sticks shouldn't take up too much room in the fridge. Chop up the veggies in advance and keep them in ziploc bags - they seem to take up less room that way (esp. celery). Hummus is another great snack to keep around (and it comes in little containers). And nuts would take up no room in the fridge!

And YES! - you should join the Little Losers Club. There are lots of us out here. I am trying to lose about 8-10 pounds (3 down, 5-7 to go). The best way to deal with diet-envy is to shut it down immediately or ignore it. Just tell people you are doing what works for you. Stay strong and don't let it get to you. You are taking control of your health and your life. Those diet-enviers might not have diabetes and heart disease in their families.

Alexis · Wed Mar 31, 2004 7:58 pm

Wow, thanks everyone for the great advice. I always was positive that the dining commons were a no-no until Shar pointed out the sandwich idea - and Allihoo, the lettuce thing is totally clever - sort of like a wrap without the tortilla. :)

I managed to catch a ride to the grocery store and stocked up on veggies and hummus - I'd never tried it before, but it's pretty awesome, especially on sliced peppers or zucchini. I had no idea!

Redsox - yes, we should definitely communicate - e-mail or AIM or something. :D

Thanks again for the support and ideas. It's so great to find a place where others are full of great suggestions and creative ways to stick to SBD. :D

crabby · Thu Apr 01, 2004 12:48 am

yeah,, you gotta be creative..

that lettuce wrap is a great idea..

the first i ever heard of it was in a great book called the south beach diet by dr authur agatston..

allihoo28 · Thu Apr 01, 2004 3:12 pm

crabby - you crack me up.

I hope it didn't sound like I thought I was the genius who came up with the lettuce idea! :wink: Just trying to share info.

gibsongirl1971 · Thu Apr 01, 2004 10:10 pm

You could also cut off their complaining about fridge space by getting a small fridge and putting it in your room.

Alexis · Fri Apr 02, 2004 2:03 am

Ha ha ha. *hangs head* I know, I really should read the book - I have it, but it's a matter of finding time to read it between calculus, classics, and Italian, lol. Mostly I've skimmed it and read what I thought were important parts. :oops:

And I'd absolutely love to get a fridge of my own, but unfortunately the university doesn't allow us to bring any large electric appliances like that. Not even a blender or hot plate, believe it or not. :(

But thanks for the advice!

IvyLeaguer07 · Fri Apr 02, 2004 4:26 am

Alexis--

Wow, you sound so much like me! I'm a freshman in college too, and they don't allow us microwaves or george foreman grills or anything. Oh yeah....and plus I'm taking a classics course now too. lol anyway...yes...dining halls suck for low-carb dieters! One thing that i did last week was i went out and bought a really low cal, low carb vinegrette salad dressings, and i usually add 2 chicken breasts from the grill to it. then i also have about 6 oz of low fat cottage cheese. its soo hard to walk by the desert table though....arrrgg!! in my room i keep peanut butter, lots of string cheese and other kinds, and cold cuts. sometimes i steal chicken breasts from the dining hall and keep it in my room for when i cant make it to a meal.

anyway, good luck!

Burdle · Fri Apr 02, 2004 3:56 pm

Hi, Alexis. It has been a good number of years since I was in college, about 35, but way back then in the stone age, I was lucky enough to have other girls in my dorm who were dieting, and we all got together in the chow line and sat together to eat, so we were all encouraging to each other and watching what we ate. Have you considered putting up a note on a bulletin board asking if there are others there on SBD? Nice way to make new friends...also, your roommates probably don't understand how healthy SBD is, it might help you to read the book so you can give them intellegent responses, like 'thanks, but I don't want to eat a cookie, it will just make me hungrier'. As for the fish smell, why not stick to canned tuna or salmon, something you don't have to heat up, and save your fresh cooked fish for times when no one else is around, or you go out to eat. (By the way, it impresses us old folks when you young folks order fish in a restaurant instead of a burger and fries!)
Don't give up. I have been waiting my whole life for this diet. Wish it was around when I was your age. I think I would have lived a much happier life these past 35 years. But, I'M GETTING HAPPIER NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Good luck!
172/150/130 started 1/5/04

zeek · Tue May 11, 2004 12:51 am

Hey Alexis. I noticed that you're from columbus also. I'm guessin that you go to Ohio State too. I'm in engineering here so it's extremely hard to keep up with this SBD. I wish all my classes were right in a row every day and not spread out all over the place because that makes it so much harder to eat right. I'm 5'11 and I'm about 175. I really don't even know how many pounds I need to lose or what my target weight is but I'm just gonna keep trying this thing until I form the habit. Good luck.

Adam

shishibeach · Tue May 11, 2004 1:05 am

totally off the thread of conversation but quickly - Zeek and Alexis I have a couple of questions about Ohio State so if you could PM me or email (seakaypenner@hotmail.com) that would be great.
ok. back to the topic.


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