Have you ever felt as though you are unable to eat healthy because of your busy, homework-a-go-go lifestyle? Felling a bit “bloated,” are we? Well, I’ve got good news for all you would-be health nuts who feel as though the college experience is making you too busy to eat like a champ: it is possible to eat healthy on the go! Y’all ready for dis?!Meet da Gurus!
Miriam Biber and Kammaleathahh Livingstone, Guilford grads of 02 and 05, respectively, are the founders of Sustainable Health Choices, a new-age health clinic of sorts which combines the powers of massage, diet counseling, and even the Japenese art of Reiki to promote “balance and empowerment in life.”
“It’s good to be back on campus,” said Livingstone. “When I was here it was challenging (to eat healthy) because of our food service,” said Biber. “I’ve heard good things about Meriwether. It’s definitely a step up from Sodexho.” These gals know what it’s like. They’ve been there. Which is why they took it upon themselves on Feb. 11th to bust all up in the Shore kitchen and start a ruckus (in the form of a cooking class) about how to eat healthy on-the-go.without breaking the bank. Let the Games Begin: It All Starts with Breakfast Everyone knows that eating breakfast is the most important meal of the day. This is elementary stuff, like knowing that turkey makes you tired, or that humans can eat kale! But for students on the go, it’s easier said than done.
“Honestly I can’t remember the last time I actually had a proper breakfast during the school week,” said first-year Imir Paz, a man who definitely has a lot on his plate, especially with FYE Lab Fast-Track about to begin. “I’m Mr. Jelly-I ain’t got no time for petty (things) like breakfast.” Others, such as former student Ryan “Big Worm” Jarrell, go completely off the wall and eat a quarter pound of bacon, two slices of toast, and like five scrambled eggs for breakfast EVERY DAY! Ridiculous!
“I crave the flavors,” said the Worm. Obviously these are two ends of the spectrum, and both disgustingly unhealthy habits. Biber and Livingstone suggest the following as some examples of quick, healthy breakfasts: -Yogurt, fruit and nut combo -Smoothies -Whole grain waffles (Ego makes them) -Whole Grain Cereal (or Capitan Crunch if you’re all out, wink wink!) Delicious and nutritious, right? Right? Cmon guys … help me out here! Whole grain stuff isn’t that bad. Ring-a-Ling-Ding! Dinner Bell! Dinner may seem like it’ll take a long time to make, unless you cut corners and go the unhealthy route.
“My first year at Guilford we lived in the basement,” said Biber, “and we used to make Ramen in our coffee-maker!” Yikes! Now I know what you’re saying, it’s also expensive to cook a healthy dinner. Even the gurus used to be in that mind set. “And I used to drop a lot of cash on veggie burgers,” said Biber. Oh Snap!
But it doesn’t have to be that way. Take some tips from the champs: -Make a huge pot of soup on Sunday night and freeze in batches for later weeks. -Buy whole-wheat pasta over regular, white pasta. It takes the same time to cook, costs about the same, and is much better for you. -Make your own veggie-burgers! Biber and Livingstone actually made some during their cooking class on the 11th out of kidney beans, rolled oats, mushrooms (no, not those ones!), onions, carrots, bell pepper, garlic, tomato paste, and a lil salt. Yum-yum! Quick Tips from Biber (with nodding agreement from Livingstone): -“Things in the green family (kale, spinach, collards, etc.) provide the most nutritional bang fro your buck.” And steaming them is easy as could be! -“Millet is a great grain, because it is easily digestable.” Also, high in b-Vitamins, and pretty darn cheap! – “It’s good to grind flax seeds before you use them. They’re so small it’s really hard to digest them, so they’ll come out whole if you don’t grind them up.” That means you’ll poop them out! Ha!
So, if you want to have more energy, live longer, have healthier bowel movements, and just all-around feel better, take a few pointers from this brief how-to. And if want to learn more about how to live your life with “balance and empowerment,” check out Biber and Livingstone’s next two workshops, the first of which is about self-massage, and the second about stress management. Like Wilford Brimley says, “they can help you live a better life-I guarantee it.