It’s no secret that the infamous “freshman fifteen” weight gain is often attributed to the increased consumption of alcohol that comes with newfound freedom in college, especially if the alcohol is accompanied by high-calorie mixers. In general, drinking some of the “tastier” beverages out there, whether they are alcoholic or non-alcoholic, can slip some unwanted floods of extra calories into your diet (Did you know that the average Long Island Iced Tea has 780 calories? Eek.).

Fortunately, thanks to some recipes from Hungry Girl (nutritionist Lisa Lillen), I’ve compiled a few seriously good low-cal cocktails and other yummy drinks that won’t make you feel deprived, but won’t wreak havoc on your diet.

“Magical Low-Calorie Margarita”

Ingredients:
6 ounces diet lemon-lime soda
1 1/2 ounces of tequila
1 packet (two 5-cal) servings of sugar-free powdered lemonade drink mix (use half if you want your drink less sweet!)
2 tablespoons lime juice
5-8 ice cubes or 1 cup of crushed ice
Optional: lime wedge (for a cute garnish!) Read More »

When I was a sophomore, I went kind of bonkers on my meal plan and totally ran outta free-food-cash at the end of my second semester.

While I was whiling away the couple of weeks between the end of the semester and sweet, sweet winter break, I ended up supplementing my meager collegiate diet with tons of grapefruit, since I was lucky enough to have a fruit tree in my backyard.

I came up with all kinds of ways of eating these acidic, pink babies: drizzling them with honey, cubing them in salads, juicing them, and slamming them down with a glass of O.J.

What I didn’t know then was that eating a little grapefruit with every meal helps you shave off pounds. Of course, thems were desperate times, and I don’t think I cared very much about stemming my freshman fifteen, but whatevs. Read More »

Everyone’s heard of it, and no, it’s not a first year’s urban legend. The Freshman Fifteen is all-too painfully real, and extremely hard to avoid.

However, if you’re smart enough to check up on CC before heading off to the most fabulous four years of your life, there’s still hope!

Just follow these guidelines and you’ll be happy to return home next summer with your washboard abs (or, you know, minimal love handles) still in tact.

1. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again. Don’t deem your shiny new meal card a free-for-all twenty-four hour all you can eat buffet. It’s NOT. Yeah you’re in the mood for pizza but ooh a burger might be nice and holy mother of Mary unlimited soft-serve? Before you know it your quick lunch between classes could feed an entire third-world country.

It’s okay. Focus. Eat what you’d eat at home. A sandwich on wheat bread. Some chicken breast and salad? Keep it healthy, the binge drinking will make up for the slice of chocolate cake you so wisely skipped.

2. Stay active you fat lard! Not only are you no longer working out five days a week for your high school cheerleading squad, but you’ll likely be lounging and snacking a lot more (I’ll get to that later, you’re not off the hook.) so it’s important to exercise! Not only do you probably have free membership to an on campus gym (take advantage of all that tuition you’re paying for mama’s sake!) but it’s a great way to meet all the cute muscley boys. Yummy! Read More »