Insight

Campus has options to beat weight and clock

Sean G. Donovan
sdonova3@mscd.edu

Being overweight is not that rare anymore. More than half of the people in this country are obese, and the same holds true on this campus. Though advertisers still use people whose body types are considered "slim" or "healthy," the average consumer is getting wider and heavier.

Even I count myself as a Hefty-American, weighing in at 285-pounds as of late last week. For me, being a large person is more than just beefy man boobs and leaving craters, it's about facing adversity every day from a world that does not see me as healthy. In fact, you do not have to point out the blatant irony that a person with a weight problem is telling you how to get healthy. Believe me, I see the irony every day when I flip past Dr. Phil on TV. But I digress.

But what is there to do about it on campus?

For some people the freshman 15 is inevitable. Whether the freshman in question is 18 or 35-years-old, the amount of time being active is quashed by the time needed to hit the books. Then we go to the food court in the Tivoli and find ourselves faced with the good and evil of the food industry: Taco Bell and McDonald's on the left, Wok and Roll and Subway on the right. I find myself torn between the restaurants of good and evil at least twice a week and, more often than not, I find myself going to the side of healthier eating. This was not always so. I remember a time when ordering a quesadilla or a few double cheeseburgers was my lunch fare for a day.

The struggle can be won. The Auraria Campus has a lot of ways to help trim those unwanted pounds, or at least keep them in check. There are a lot of simple ways each of us can exert our bodies in small ways every day.

One way I like to go is by walking a lot. We sit on a very large campus and walking great distances is inevitable. If you are looking to make it into a small workout try carrying more books with you in your backpack. If you are one of those people who carry your books around in a rolling backpack try picking it up once in a while. The exertion might be good for you. I myself planned my classes this past summer and this semester to give me the most walking for my buck. You haven't lived until you've made the trek from South Classroom to the King Center in less than five minutes.

For those who take public transportation: make it work for you. Try getting off the bus a few blocks short of campus and walk the rest of the way. As for myself, I try to take the C-Line train that stops by the Administration Building to make the walk to my first class. It's a long way, but that's the point.

I've even started to bring deodorant with me to appease some of my classmates who are not so fond of my walking the extra mile.

Making good eating choices is pivotal, as well. For some of us, our diets consist of what comes out of the vending machines located in every building on campus. The next time you feel the craving to buy a sleeve of donuts or a bag of chips from one of the vending machines, take a short walk over to the Tivoli's food court or bodega, or to the snack bar in South Classroom to partake in a healthy alternative, such as soup or a sandwich.

I'm trying to keep my calories to a minimum by not snacking in between classes. I am finding that cutting out the Cheetos and the mini donuts makes it easier for me to get in and out of my desk. Who would have thought?

Finally, for those of you who want to go hardcore on your dieting there is the Auraria Recreation center in the Events Center. Starting this semester, I have resolved to go there a few days a week to help keep my weight down. The Rec Center offers a lot of different workout choices, from treadmills and exercise bikes for a cardiovascular workout to weights for pumping up those guns. There's even a rock-climbing wall for those of you who think the possibility of a fall from great heights is the only way to work out. Personally, I prefer the seated bicycle machine. It allows me to burn excess calories while still in a position to read the pages I forgot the night before.

See, it's all about being functional.

A healthy lifestyle is achievable for everyone. Even the Feds are getting involved. They are launching a Website, www.smallstep.gov. It has even more useful hints for those wanting to find small things in everyday life to burn a few more calories.

I may be 285-pounds, but that's a big step down for me. This summer, I topped out at 315-pounds and looked every bit of it. Then, one morning, I woke up with some slight chest pains and knew it was time for me to get in shape. Two months later, I'm trimmer and living a better life, but I still have a long way to go. But, as a community, we can all find our way to live a better life.