How to Lose the Freshman 15

Many college students don't understand why they've gained so much weight in their first year, yet it makes complete sense when some of the Freshman fifteen causes are pointed out to them.

The most common Freshman 15 causes are:

* Lack of time to exercise

* Eating unhealthy dorm food

* Eating large meals at buffet-style cafeterias

* Snacking on junk food throughout the day and into the night

* Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol

"The Freshman 15 is real and it sucks. I was incredibly frustrated for so long, but I eventually learned how to lose weight effectively and lost 20 lbs in just one month.
Find out how I did it

Here is my freshman fifteen story:

When I started college, I was a relatively thin girl. I was 5 ft 7 and weighed 128 pounds. I had heard stories about the freshman 15 - the weight gain many students experience in their first year of college - but never really gave it much thought at the time. I was eating what I liked, which was admitly mostly junk food and unhealthy snacks.

I had breakfast, lunch and dinner 7 days a week in the dorm cafeteria, which was buffet style and paid absolutely no attention to the nutritional value of the food I was eating. I'd make sure I had enough chips, cookies and chocolate for the long study sessions which would sometimes go late into the night. Lots of coke and coffee to keep me awake and alert during the day.

I had no time in my busy schedule to exercise. With all my classes, tutorials and lab sessions, I had no time to hit the gym. It was a struggle to finish all my assignments on time and find the time for a few extracurricular activities.

I went home for Christmas after the first semester and was shocked when I stepped onto the scale. I was 140 pounds then - which meant I had gained 12 pounds in under 4 months!"

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When students first start college or university, they typically go through a severe lifestyle change.

For many, this is the first time they've been away from their parents. No more rules and guidance about what food should be eaten and what is nutritious, students are able to do whatever they want and eat whatever they want.

Students in upper years don't tend to gain as much weight because they have already experienced first year and/or because they move off campus and don't eat at cafeterias anymore.

However, once the weight has been put on, it can be hard to lose. Many students find themselves trying all sorts of different ways to lose weight without success.

Most people think aerobic exercise is the only method of exercise for burning fat. However this is time consuming and can be flat out boring!

The good news is that there is a much more efficient way of literally transforming your body than spending hours doing aerobic exercises at the gym - and it only takes 15-25 minutes, 2-3 times per week!

Too good to be true? It's not! Find out more.

If you are trying to lose the freshman 15 by going on these diets, such as those mentioned on the Rachael Ray show, you will not keep your weight off.

They fail because they are meant to be short term and most of the time are far too restrictive. They're unrealistic and your body knows it.

You may lose weight initially, but it will be mostly water weight. What is worse is you may lose active muscle tissue! If you lose muscle tissue, this will make it harder for you to lose fat in the future because you're lowering the amount of calories it takes to sustain your body weight.

Most people find that once they go off these types of diets, they end up bigger and more demotivated.

Don't put off it off any longer, make the decision to lose the Freshman 15 today.

Research has found that the Freshman 15 may put young men and women on the road to obesity - don't let it happen to you!

"So, I entered college as a thin girl being 5'7" and 131 pounds. The freshman 15 hadn't really crossed my mind. I had always exercised regularly and ate fairly healthy. As I studied, i didn't do much exercise and as time went on, I didn't exercise at all. I started to eat more junk food and partied.

I didn't really notice until my pants started getting tight and when I looked in the mirror right before spring break. At this time, none of my pants fit and even my brand new ones got tight. I looked in the mirror one day only in my new 39 D cup bra and my underwear to see my butt had gotten huge, my thighs were much larger, a double chin, and most of all new rolls of fat were all around my huge belly that hung over my panties.

I hadn't stepped on the scale since january where i was shocked to see my gain of 56 pounds! bringing me to 186. I had gained a ton since then and decided to face the music and go on the scale. I stepped on and waited, I looked down but could barely see due to my belly. It read 232. I had gained 101 pounds in my freshman year all together and my parents were shocked.

I am now in my junior year and weigh 285 pounds. I have tried everything but can't lose the weight. Don't end up like me. Obese at age 20"

- Jenna
Indiana
from Freshman15.com

"Before I started university, I was about 130 lbs, average for a guy my age. But I started eating fatty cafeteria food, getting no excersize and drinking alot.

Just before Christmas, I noticed my clothes were alot tighter. I weighed myself and a had gained about 15 pounds.

Sometime in January I noticed I had outgrown my clothes. By the end of the school year I had gained 36 pounds!"

- Chris
Ottawa University
from Freshman15.com

"When I started college I was 5'10" around 154lbs. It was average for my height but I'd probably put I had always been really thin so, starting college, without much worry, I basically let myself go. I was living at home so I snacked throughout the day and ate normally in the evenings. Sometimes I'd grab some fast food while at school or eat in the cafeteria. During fall semester I put on 7-8 pounds and over break maybe 3 or 4 more.

At around 165 I felt heavier but didn't really look much different. During the spring my snacking increased as did my trips to fast food places. It seemed like the bigger I got the more I packed it in and by summer I had hit 182lbs. Over the summer I had some coworkers make comments about my weight and I managed to exercise and diet back to 168 by late July but I yo-yo'd back to 176 by the beginning of the fall.

That fall I lost it and infrequent stops became frequent, every other day snacks became daily and I found myself coming back after Christmas break at 207lbs. I had gained 53lbs in a year and a half! Where I used to be at a healthy weight I was now obese and where I used to be comfortably thin I was uncomfortably fat.

It's been quite sometime since then and I did manage to lose most of that weight, though I used to hover around 185-190 quite frequently. Still, currently at 178, what is considered slightly overweight, it's easy to see that if you don't watch your weight and go too far it's tough to ever really get back."

- MK
Akron University
from Freshman15.com