You’ve probably read, heard and seen enough evidence by now to be convinced you’re going to gain weight at college. For some it is due to all the parties, for others it’s the late-night eating, and for others it may be the unlimited cafeteria offerings. But no matter what the source of the excess calories, if you want to avoid gaining even one unwanted pound your first semester, you need to have a plan to prevent it before you step foot on campus.

With many years of experience and volumes of research behind me, I am prepared to share with you the one piece of advice that can keep you in the same size jeans all year long, while your dorm mates have switched to sweat pants 24/7.
Here’s the Scoop

The most important thing every college freshman needs to do to preempt weight gain is to establish a meal schedule right along with her class schedule. Yes, eating regular meals is the foundation to weight control.

The secret to this practice is how differently we eat when we are sitting down to a meal compared to when we are just grazing or skipping meals and snacking. At meals we choose better foods and eat them in better combinations. And the good news is, you don’t have to have the credentials of a registered dietitian to know what the better choices are.

How to Plan a Menu: 101

If asked to plan a “good breakfast” menu, most people could come up with cereal, fruit and milk or eggs, toast and juice. The same thing holds true for lunch and dinner. If asked to describe a lunch menu, you might suggest a turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread with an apple, and for dinner you might think a tossed salad with some grilled fish, steamed vegetables and brown rice.

If you could have come up with these ideas on your own, you’re ready to start meal planning for yourself. If you weren’t even close, then heed this one simple rule for menu planning to help you along. The Rule: Meals should have at least 3 different food groups in them.

Your Meal Ticket to Weight Control

Now even if you know what the components of a balanced meal are, that doesn’t guarantee you are always going to use that information. But knowing what to eat is half the battle. Lack of choices, money and effort make up the other half.

Fortunately, your pre-paid meal ticket gives you access to all the cafeterias on campus where someone else is doing all the shopping, cooking and clean up! All you need to do is show up, and that’s why you have to allot the time in your schedule.

What you may be surprised to learn is that your 3 meals don’t have to conform to the types of food and times of day that defined your meals when you were you growing up. You don’t even have to call them breakfast, lunch and dinner. You just need to divide your day so you have regular, predictable times to eat.

When to Eat

Ideally, the first meal should occur within an hour of waking up, even if that’s at two o’clock in the afternoon. The next meal should be 3-4 hours later and the last one 4-5 hours after that.

Once you have that regimen built into your daily schedule, your meals will help you to keep your hunger under control and prevent binges. And when you do feel the need to snack, you won’t be as likely to seek “reward foods” because you can’t use the alibi, “I haven’t eaten all day” to justify that bag of chips.

So even without perfect portion control and when you’re not working out 4 times a week, eating regular meals can keep you from gaining weight. It has to do with the psychological impact of sitting down at a table to eat. The memory of it stays with you longer, whereas mindlessly snacking does not.

Need More Information

For those who want more guidance about meal planning or advice on how to put together a more personalized diet and exercise program, you’ll find everything you need in Fighting the Freshman Fifteen – A College Woman’s Guide to Getting real About Food and Keeping the Pounds Off. Order your copy at www.FreshmanFifteenBook.com .

Robyn Flipse is a registered dietitian specializing in food, nutrition and health communications. She has written two books – The Wedding Dress Diet and Fighting the Freshman Fifteen.