LIFE IN THE FAST LANE:
EATING FOR ENERGY
Anna Dudey
I
So you say you’ve got classes
straight through from eight thirty a m.
to three-thirty p m ? And a midterm in
two of them? Feeling a little stressed
because you only have five minutes for
lunch9 Grabbing an extra large coffee,
two donuts and maybe a Pepsi, too. just
for "good measure to fuel you up for
the hectic day9 If so. STOP1 Let s back
up two sentences Not only are the do
nuts high in fat and sugar, and the cof
fee and pop high in caffeine, this food
fix will also sap your energy rather than
fuel you up, leaving you even worse off
than before you ate First let me explain
how this works When you eat a sugary
donut, it causes your blood glucose to
rise very fast as the body starts to uti
lize the sugar for energy Unfortunately,
in this case, since you might not get an
other chance to eat with this busy
schedule, once the donut sugar is ab
sorbed. your blood glucose will contin
ue to plummet until you feel tired, slug
gish and drained Donuts are not only
sweet but a fat as well Many donuts
contain 5-8 teaspoons of fat1 The
caffeinated drinks produce a stimulat
ing effect by increasing respiration rate,
heart rate, blood pressure and the se
cretion of stress hormones This effect
peaks after only about an hour Al
though a cup or two of coffee per day is
most likely harmless, there are better
and healthier ways to keep yourself go
ing on a hectic day Ideally, coffee
should be consumed for it's taste rather
than its stimulating effects
Now. let s start the busy day over,
this time with some healthy food which
will keep you going First, instead of a
donut, have a whole-wheat bagel. This
way, in addition to getting complex car
bohydrates for guick energy, your body
will also receive some fiber and vita
mins At about only 165 calories, it's not
a bad deal Instead of coffee, let's throw
in some low fat milk or yogurt Along
with a good dose of calcium, the small
amount of fat in these dairy products
will slow down the digestion of carbo
hydrates from the bagel, so glucose
trickles gradually into the blood, giving
a steady supply rather than a big rush A
bagel with a splash of milk or yogurt is
also a good source of protein and die
tary protein is linked to an alert disposi
tion While we re here, let's also add in
an apple or a banana for some more
complex carbohydrates, fiber and vita
mins. If you think you might not get an
other chance for a snack during the day.
it might be wise to toss an extra bagel
or an apple into your bag to nibble on
during a class later in the day Now
you're all set for tomorrow . . THREE
MIDTERMS!
◄ Learn to relax. Deep breathing is ;a natural relaxant. Tr\ to take several
deep breaths each hour.
◄ Smile. You'll be surprised at how good it will make you and others leel.
◄ At the end of the day, take a brisk walk, do a few minutes of fast dancing, or
bod\ shaking. This stimulating exercise will loosen you up and get \our blood
flow ing.
◄ Practice unwinding everydav, don't wait for your annual vacation. Your
bod) is the onl\ one you get—be good to it!
◄ l ake control of your own life. Liu up to your expectations, not someone
else's.
J
Dana Hiatt
y'J
A BOOK
is a reliable
friend a romantic an enigma
a mysterious one a tragedy a
comic a historian (and a way to
learn more about the topics in the
Well Now).
TALKING TO YOURSELF by Pamela E
Butler
Explores the automatic thought process
es which lead to damaged sell esteem
poworlessness and anxiety Provides ad
vice on how to restructure negative self
talk into realistic, enlightened messages
THE RELAXATION AND STRESS REDUC
TION by Davis Eshelman and McKay
A workbook containing 20 chapters of in
formation and activities for different ap
proaches to stress management Great
for the individual and as a reference
guide in conducting stress management
programs
THE WELLNESS WORKBOOK by Travis
and Ryan
Covers the gamut of health and mental
health concerns —exploring stress, sexu
ality emotions feelings, sleeping and re
taxing Contains information, trivia,
prose activities and poetry Quick, easy
reading
The Stress Diet
Oaneel Hennagin
Are you wasting time while studying tor
finals ’ Is your productivity so poor that it
takes you hours to accomplish what
should only take 45 minutes ? The answers
to these problems may be as simple as
what you are feeding your body As finals
approach, its typical for students to feel
like their health is going down the tubes
Alertness, clear rmndedness and energy
seem to evaporate Many even become ill
during this period Much of this is the con
sequence of the nutritional habits we de
velop during this grueling time According
to Regina Sara Ryan and John W Travis
authors of Wellness Workbook Preparing
for a crucial exam will alter the body s
chemistry and motivate a change in eating
habits How this change in chemistry is
responded to effects how we feel and per
form on exams All mghters with hourly
junk food samplings is an example of a
prescription of lethargy mdrqestion and
impaired concentration
Aie you abusing your body? It's com
mon to procrastinate and burn the mid
night oil in a marathon of assignments In
order to accomplish this caffeine and
sugar are gulled Our nutritional habits
are a primary factor in our well being how
ever food is fuel and food is composed of
organic chemicals- and food has much to
do with performance outcomes When a
schedule takes a turn toward command
performances it's best to alter one s meal
schedules accordingly When jamming
meals into tiny time slots, one eats fast
generating stress throughout the body
When we eat fast the body becomes
stressed there is an increase in heart rate,
respiratory rate hormonal secretions and
acid indigestion So. plan time out for
meals and a chance to breath deeply This
is as much a (actor in examination prepa
ration as is the studying
Quick meals often entail easy, high tat
refined foods Fats contain twice as many
calories as carbohydrates and proteins per
gram According to Ryan and Travis, a
diet high in fat. sugar, and refined grains
is the prescription for illness Certainly
no one has time tor a cold, the flu. or sleep
disturbances
When sweets are consumed alone (can
dy candy, candy at midnight to four a m ).
due to sudden absorption of glucose
there is an immediate rise in blood sugar
resulting in an abrupt burst of energy, eu
phoria and a satisfied feeling However
these feelings are short lived and when
the blood sugar begins to drop, it leads to
letdown, burn out and craving for more
sugar, or salty foods, excess calories and
bulk and the sequence perpetuates itself
As far as a prescription for illness,
foods which are high in sugar and fat are
usually low in nutrients. Fiber and vita
mins per calorie are diluted by fat and
sugar and hunger is satisfied while the
body may not have the working mgredi
ents it needs There is no confirmation
that sugar will erase the nutritive value of
a perfectly adequate diet only when re
fined sugar substitutes or hinders a nor
mal diet does it become an insufficient
food item
As the term winds down and demands
increase optimize your returns by taking
care of yourself Feed yourself rest your
self and enjoy the upcoming vacation with
vitality and vigor It requires a little bit of
planning and defunctmg the myth that fi
nals must be a marathon of sleeplessness
and stress Your body will reward you if
you take care of it
Tackle or Dresser Drawer It
Lynelte Low
With so much to do and so little
time, mid terms, projects and finals be*
come crunch time’ on campus Aside
from these projects, grocery shopping,
laundry, house cleaning, car tune-ups.
meetings, relationships all add to
the "to do or 'to deal with list Re
suit9 Stress, anxiety and hurry sick
ness"
Before stress can be relieved, it
needs to be identified —the
stressors —what are they? A million
things to do is more a matter of time
management than marathoning Not
everything needs to be done now, right
away, pronto. As the case load grows,
do some sorting and allow the nones
sentials to be filed away for a while
Imagine your week as a 3 drawer bu
reau The top drawer contains things
which must be done immediately The
middle drawer contains priorities
which can wait until the top drawer is
emptier) The bottom drawer contains
put off until the other two art' gone
through tasks
The key to this mental time manager
is to create a list of the things you
need and want to do Get everything
on the list that's biting at you Organ
ize these everythings" and let go It's
easy to lose perspective and spend 5
hours worrying for every hour working
For today, do what can feasibly be
done and put off tomorrow's list until
tomorrow As a great philosopher once
said One day at a time
/
Is The Little Voice In Your Head
Stressing You Out?
Beth Qalser
I
Stress The word hisses in my
mind —"stresssss " It feels like a headache in
my temples, it feels like dry eyes that itch and
burn; it feels like a nondescript knot in my gut I
hate this feeling, but largely, I choose it
When I enter arena scheduling, I unconscious
ly resign myself to stress. We expect it as we fill
in bubble-cards with number two pencils and
sign up for the inevitable And we can endure it
because school always ends, this is a temporary
thing —but someone forgot to tell stress that
Stress reaches outside of this mecca into ev
eryday life, demands, deadlines, losses and
changes But only when we chose to pack it up
in our memoirs and carry it out with us.
Stress isn't so much an event as it is the inter
pretation of an event To a certain degree, then,
we can choose how much stress we ll be ex
posed to. What is stressful to one person will
leave another nonplused which has much to say
about how each processes the stressor
"Self talk is one way an event is transformed
into a cold-sweat producing, heart pounding ca
larmty. This is the dialogue of our thoughts, tip
toeing across our consciousness, taking in
events and thinking them through Self talk de
velops habits in its work style which can be sup
portive or debilitating Self talk can play tapes
that say: I can't do this; this'll take me forever;
I'm not capable of this task —I'm not smart
enough . " or it can play "I'll do my best at this
and that's all I can do; I -know I’m good at this
but simply don't have enough time to demon
strate it." Given constraints, we can do our best
and feel satisfied or mentally flog ourselves
with shoulds' and what ifs
Self talk develops standards which are sup
portive and challenging or defeating and unre
lenting, Sometimes it gets caught up in perfec
tionism Perfectioriistic self talk features: I'm
never good enough I can't live up to these
standards . I'll fail if I don't get an A 1 Per
fectionism draws a distinction between failing
and succeeding; black and white There is no
progress or improvement; only making the mark
or missing it Supportive self talk acknowledges
improvement It notices extenuating circum
stances such as a cold, a flu. and exceptionally
busy week and other things which may over
shadow optimal performance Outcome is rela
tive to what is going on in an individual’s life.
Some days are better than others
Self talk is the corridor between event and
perception; it codes events as terrible, awful or
as okay, and acceptable. Self talk becomes our
self fulfilling prophecy and that prophecy can be
a cheering section or a "boo-hiss " A choice ex
ists to endure self talk throughout the term or to
learn to listen to it. guide it and direct it Our
self talk goes with us when we leave college life
and hence, our stress—or lack of it
College stress can be a training ground for
how to manage and reframe stressors in every
day life A starting point is to note self talk Is it
realistic? Does it take on a defeatist, fatalistic
tone? Is it supportive or unrelenting? From
there, consciously create —or restructure nega
tive messages. This takes practice, insight and
faith in your abilities to cope and come out fine,
extenuating circumstances and all
As is a tale, so is life; wliat matters is
not how long it is but how good it is.
It is not because things are difficult
that we do not dare;
it is because we do not dare that the\
are difficult.
1.mins \nnacns Seneca < 1st ic»tur\ VI).I
Editor: Beth Gaiser
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Carmel Crowe. Chrissy Bloome. Valerie Shannon,
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IVcr Health \d*isors: Dana Hiatt. Anna Dudey. Heidi Reeder
Melanie Steed Ronme Joll, Daneel Hennagm
Ginny Ehrlich, Matt Gripp Lynette Low Lor
Novich.
i'rirtluttimi Jennifer Archer. Alice Cannon. Sandi Daller Jim Finch.
Jennifer Huey Wendy Morris. Ingrid White
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