It’s the first week of school and you find yourself with only a few precious minutes between classes to grab lunch, so you get a quick bite to eat. Late night study sessions require a call to Gumby’s for Pokey Stix; Sundays you’re at Campus Bar & Grill for $1 burgers; and at the dining halls, you feast on anything and everything.

Your busy schedule doesn’t give you much time to hit the rec center, and before you know it, you’ve gained the infamous Mizzou 22.
But there are ways to eat healthy on and around campus.

• The dining halls all have salad bars. Mix it up and try a new dressing or different topping to keep things interesting. Salads are a great substitute for fries.
• Subway and Which Wich? give you a chance to create your own sandwich from a stockpile of toppings.
• Main Squeeze uses organic, natural and healthy foods in all of their menu items. For a yummy snack, try the Thunder Kiss ’65 smoothie — 16 oz. of orange juice, pineapple, strawberry and banana.
• Most chain restaurants provide low-cal menus. These items usually offer smaller portions of regular dishes or healthier side items: Applebee’s Under 550 Calories Menu boasts a delicious-looking Teriyaki Shrimp Pasta, and Ruby Tuesday has a Fit & Trim Menu with items such as Barbecue Grilled Chicken and a Petite Sirloin.

If you live off-campus, it’s much easier to buy frozen meals rather than spend the time and effort to make something from scratch. There are hundreds of cookbooks out there, but one of my favorites is The Healthy College Cookbook. It offers quick, easy and healthy meals for students on the go.

And when you’re at the grocery store, swing by the produce section and pick out some fresh fruits and veggies to incorporate into your meals. Pretty soon, you’ll be eating better than you ever thought you could in college.