dorm life – College Admission at Loyola

Living On Campus After Freshman Year

By Meredith Simmons | November 4, 2016

When most of your friends are headed off to state schools, it can seem really weird that here at Loyola you’re required to live on campus for two years. Of course, there are always ways to get around this rule, but for the most part, sophomores tend to live on campus. Don’t fret though, living on campus after freshman year isn’t all bad, and here’s why.

Freshman year you’ll live in one of five dorms; Mertz, Campion, San Francisco, De Nobili, or Simpson, but after first year you have a lot more options. Now you can pick from residence halls like the beautiful lake side Santa Clara, or if you prefer a double, Regis Hall. Another interesting thing about upper class men dorms is that some of them do not have front desks! If you’ve already lived or are living on campus, you’ll know the luxury of this.

Another luxury of living in upper class men housing is the over night policy. While living in first year housing you have a pretty strict non-Loyola student overnight guest policy. Once you graduate to second year housing you have much more relaxed guest policies and don’t have to worry about getting a guest pass 24 hours in advance to your best friend from out of town spending the night.

Living in upper class men dorms is also nice because it gives you a chance to adapt to living with a little more independence before actually getting your own apartment. You can live apartment style after freshman year which means you’ll have your own bathroom and kitchen. This makes it easier to cut down your dining hall plan (which you’re required to have) to only a five day and start cooking for yourself!

In the end, living in student housing for two years really isn’t that bad. It gives you one more year to live in a community with your classmates and not have to worry about adult things like bills and cooking. You’ll have plenty of time to live on your own and be an adult, so don’t rush it. Who knows, maybe you’ll end up loving your upper class men housing and keep living there till senior year, you never know!

Eating Healthy On a Meal Plan

By Meredith Simmons | March 23, 2016

One of the worst things that everyone hears about Freshman year of college is the Freshman 15. The supposedly infamous 15 lbs that most freshman will gain in their first year of college. The worst part is that according to WebMD, this old college wives tale, is for real. After some serious googling, I found a statistic that says almost every 1 in 4 freshman gain at least 5% of their body weight, or about 10 lbs. So I guess it’s technically the freshman 10.

So how do you curb the statistics and stay healthy a a freshman in college? Here are a few tips that I have picked up throughout my first year of college at Loyola eating on a full seven day meal plan!

The best thing you can do to avoid gaining an unhealthy amount of weight, is to work out regularly. Take advantage of all the activities and resources that Halas has to offer! You can do everything from rock climbing to yoga in instructor lead classes, or you can do your own thing in the weight room or cardio room. This unfortunately isn’t always easy due to the simple fact that you’re in college and you’re stressed out and have a billion things to do. So what else can you do that doesn’t cut into your intense Netflix schedule.

Stay away from the french fries and pizza as much as possible. These are things that are always going to be in the dining hall, always there staring you down and tempting you to come and indulge – DON’T! Instead of french fries, try the homemade potato chips in every dining hall on campus! Instead of the regular made pizza hit up De Nobili dining and make your own pizza full of fresh spinach, mushrooms, tomato, or any number of yummy fresh veg.

Skip the self server ice cream machine. Don’t worry Loyola makes this one pretty easy because most the machines are perpetually broken, but nonetheless, there are plenty of other sweat after meal snacks to grab instead! My favorite is a banana with peanut butter- super delicious, super good for you.

Go whole grain! All the sandwich bars and bread options for the toaster offer whole grain or whole wheat bread/wraps. They taste practically the same and are just a little healthier which is everything!

Toast instead of waffles. Even though the waffle machines in the dining halls are awesome and really fun especially the first week of school, you can’t eat waffles and pancakes every day. My favorite alternative is whole grain toast with peanut butter and banana on top!

Take the fruit. There’s almost always apples, pears, or banana’s in the dining halls. Take them, steal them, hoard them, but most importantly – eat them. They taste great and are an awesome alternative to chips or junk food.

Stock up on granola bars/ protein bars to eat before exam or early classes. This is key, staying energized and eating all your meals is going to make you feel better and be a better student. If you’re not a morning person, like me, this is great for the days your running late for an 8 am or to catch the shuttle downtown.

If you have the extra cash, mix it up and eat out once in a while. There are amazing restaurants around Chicago and right here in Rodgers Park, treat yo self and go out for sushi or Italian every so often. It’s a great break from the monotony of your meal plan and will probably be made of high quality ingredients which is, you know, also good.

All in all, gaining a little bit of weight your freshman year, it’s no big deal. It happens to everyone whether you can tell or not. Being on a dining plan and living life as a college student is a lot different then living at home. Don’t let stereotypes and body standards dictate how you live completely, but do be aware that there are little things you can do to stay healthy freshman year.

Loving yourself is 100 times more important than staying a size 4.