Have you ever heard about the Freshman 15? I’m not sure if it’s even still called this anymore, because it’s been a long time since I’ve been in college, but when I was in college, the freshman 15 referred to the weight gain that most freshman experienced. It was their first time away from home (in most cases), they had to fend for themselves and had to learn how to feed themselves. Usually, the easiest thing to eat was all of the junk food, or the fast food that was always around. At least when you lived at home, you were some what restricted to what your parents would buy, and what you bought yourself outside of your home.
When I first starting dating my now fiance, he took me out all the time. He would bring me food all the time, and we would have Taco Bell Fridays along with cheese and salami nights all the time. Well, because I wasn’t moving around (it was winter time so I was in hibernation mode) I started to gain weight. Unfortunately, now that I’m older my metabolism doesn’t burn calories as fast as it used to. Well, after a lot of other things happened, and moving out of my parents into the apartment and not eating right whatsoever every night, I gained about 50 lbs in that first 1.5 years. I read an article a few months back talking about how if you gain weight at the beginning of your relationship, it shows that you are comfortable and in a healthy relationship. Now obviously this won’t be the same for every relationship, because some couples meet each other and get along because they have things in common that include healthy living and working out. So, just because you don’t gain weight, it doesn’t mean it’s an unhealthy relationship.
With today’s installment of Monday Motivation, I wanted to touch base with some things that can help you avoid this weight gain from the mistakes that I made. Yes, the food and going out is fun and games, until you can’t button your jeans haha. This happened to me, and I learned from my mistakes. This did not happen to me until I met my now fiance. That tells me that this was the best relationship for me in all of my years of dating. Which is why I said yes when he proposed. Well, let’s get into the steps of how you can avoid the relationship weight gain.
Workout
Now, I know what I’m about to say has nothing to do with a relationship, however it’s a good example of what you can do. With our big move to Florida, I was eating terribly and eating whatever was easiest because we were so busy and towards the end of being in NJ I had nothing to cook with, along with when we arrived in Florida, I had to buy the minimum of what I needed to cook since I already had all of in our container. I started feeling like I was gaining weight (my scale was in the container haha) because my jeans started to get a little tighter. I decided to start working out a little more than I was before. Yoga was great, but I needed to add some cardio into the mix to burn all the fat and calories that I had put into my body. I would say, if you aren’t willing to eat healthy while you start dating someone, definitely move around so that you don’t put on weight, and put it on fast.
Date Night/Eating Out
Date nights are fun, and I will actually be writing a post about why they are healthy and important, however this can usually lead to eating lots of things that aren’t that great for your body. What you can start doing is making sure that you chose healthier options. Of course nothing will be as healthy as cooking at home, but there are some really good salads out there (just make sure you don’t drown it in dressing because that’s counter productive). You can also eat seafood instead of that burger. You can definitely have substitutes in your date night meals. It’s also so easy to go to the movies and then either eat the junk that’s at the movies or even grabbing something as simple as Taco Bell afterwards. If you are going to eat at the movies, maybe instead of grabbing a soda with your already 1,000+ calories of snacks, grab a water. When grabbing a quick bite afterwards, try to stick with something small because you shouldn’t be eating right before bed because it’s not healthy for your digestive system.
Cooking
Maybe instead of going out to dinner, try staying in sometimes. It’s always healthier when you cook from scratch at home. This will also show your significant other that you can cook. There are so many good recipes out there, so even if you’re a terrible cook, there is a recipe out there for you. You can also control the amount of non healthy things that go into a recipe. You can control the amount of oils and butter, and you can substitute. It may not taste the same, but it can be fun. Or even if you and your significant other cook together. That might be a fun date night.
Active Dates
It’s so easy to go to the movies and sit for a couple of hours, then get in your car to sit some more, and then go home to (you guessed it) sit. A suggestion is to take dates doing something active. Go for a hike, or even sign up for something like Tough Mudder. If both of you like to be active, maybe you could sign up for a gym membership together. This will help in not only keeping things interesting and unique, but it will keep you moving.
xoxo Monica
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