College life is full of activity – both physical & mental – meaning, It’s time to learn, explore, make new friends, festivals, assignments, deadlines, events, hangouts, and whatnot. And, that’s how it should be. Isn’t it?
But during all this, health often takes a backseat most of the time, especially for kids staying in hostel/PG.
However, what most of you don’t realize is that these increasing demands – both physical & mental – will only be met if you use the right fuel aka “nutrition” & do proper maintenance aka “Physical activity” of your vehicle aka “your body” for a sustained period of time.
And things get even more challenging for kids staying in hostel/PG to get proper nutrition. So, let’s give you the strategies and tools needed to easily manage your nutrition while staying in a college hostel.
Nutrition approach & strategy
Out of three macronutrients – protein, carbs & fat – protein is difficult to get and over 80% of Indians lack this macronutrient according to a 2017 survey (1). And protein deficiency has been linked to a variety of negative health outcomes (2).
Long story short, protein is what you need to be concerned about. Carb & fat sources are available in plenty, Even if you’re not conscious about them, you’ll consume them in good quantities anyway.
And don’t think, protein is only needed by people engaged in sports and muscle-building activities. It is needed by everyone, though the quantities might change.
And it’s not that you consumed the recommended amount on a single day and you’re done. You’ve to consume it through your diet regularly. So prioritize protein over everything.
Protein sources for non-vegetarians – chicken, fish, eggs, meat etc.
Protein sources for vegetarians – Dairy (milk, paneer, dahi/curd, chaach), soy (chunks, granules, dal, tofu), legumes (dal, rajma, chole etc), nuts & seeds etc.
Refer to this article for cheapest protein sources.
Strategy for hostel mess
First, look for protein sources mentioned above and add them to your plate. Then add any of the carbohydrate sources such as – parantha, roti, sabzi, uttapam, cheela, idli, dosa, rice, bread, poori, pasta, macroni, pasta etc. Don’t fill your plate entirely with these.
Most of these sources also have fiber attached, another crucial non-caloric macronutrient.
Add some salad for additional fiber & micronutrients.
If there’s too much oil in curry, remove the oil as much as you can. We don’t want unnecessary calories coming in. Follow the same approach for non-curry items as well.
It’s not the we don’t want fat in our diet however, we don’t want extra fat which adds nothing but free calories.
How to complete protein if hostel mess has fewer protein options?
Purchase eggs and boil in your hostel/pg room in a kettle or purchase a cheap egg boiler from Amazon. It will cost around ₹350.
Secondly, you can purchase milk, paneer, curd etc. from the market and have it. If not, purchase any unsweetened milk powder from Amazon. It will give about 35g of protein per 100g.
Target around 15g protein per meal and 15g protein for different foods will look something like this.
For people engaged in sports activities or have some fitness goals such as muscle building or fat loss, their protein requirement is above normal requirement, about 1.2-2 g protein per kg of body weight. So if your body weight is 60 kilos, you need 72-120g protein/day.
Aim for 20-25g protein at each meal which will look something like this.
Foods you can stock in your hostel/pg room (perishable & non-perishable)
These will ensure that even if you’re late for class, you can quickly have your meal & get going.
Secondly, it will save you a lot of money.