[SkinnyorBust]

Ok, so I'm a broke student..

I don't have the money for fancy food or a gym membership or home workout equipment. Any ideas?

[kiah6]

Do in home walking during the winter and walk outside when the weather is nice. It really does make a difference.

[Finch13]

I'm a broke student too! I can't afford the gym any more so I stick to running and I really think it's great for losing weight. I started out running for 30 sec, walking for a minute for 30 mins and gradually increased my running time.

As for food, calorie counting is the way to go for me. It means I can pretty much eat whatever's in the fridge already while concentrating on portion control. I do avoid sugary and fatty foods when shopping too.

Hope this helps

[bargoo]

You don't need fancy food. Shop the sales at the supermarket, do not buy prepared foods. Use fruits and vegies in season, they are cheaper. Beans are a healthy food that you can use many ways and they are cheap. I'm thinking, pinto brans Navy beans kidney beans the dried variety.

[susiefleshner]

i don't go to the gym and have lost 85lbs so far. i go walking
when weather permits if i can't walk i use my exercise bike. i lift weights i bought from Walmart. im a firm believer you don't need a gym to exercise. i too shop the bargains in the store. i use a lot of frozen vegetables.




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[Changergirl]

I'm not a broke student, but I can't afford a gym membership. What I've been doing exercise wise is downloading videos. I recommend the 30 Day Shred, it's a great workout and is just over 20 minutes a day. Unfortunately for me I live in an apartment and the jumping got a bit too loud so I'm currently doing Walk Away the Pounds videos. They're pretty repetitive and get a bit boring, I make sure I'm watching something else or listening to a podcast.

I can't help you as much for food, as I currently live in Korea and the options/prices are completely different. What I would recommend, especially if you're cooking for one, is to make large portions of different healthy meals on Sunday, freeze them and then eat them as needed. I found when I was trying to cook healthy for just me I would waste so much food and get discouraged because I was wasting money that I couldn't afford to.

Good luck!

[vabs]

If you can get a meal with fiber and protein in it, you're golden.
Frozen vegetables are ideal in terms of cost and ease of use (if you have a freezer and someplace to heat them up). Things like whole wheat bread, bagels, tortillas, pitas, etc are relatively cheap and go a long way to making a filling meal. Just look for ones that have some fiber in them.

On the protein front, beans are full of fiber and protein, keep forever with no refrigeration, and they're really cheap (this assumes you have the facilities to cook them, though).
Other cheap and healthy proteins: eggs and store brand tofu.
Tofu can be baked or crumbled into a salad, AND it can be frozen, so you can stock up when it's cheap. There's also shelf stable varieties, so if you don't have a fridge that could be a life saver.
Eggs can be hard boiled for salads, or just fried up and eaten in a sandwich or burrito. They keep for a pretty long time, too.

If you're eating from a dinning hall, just look up appropriate portion sizes for foods (ie, one serving of meat should be the size of your palm, starches should be about the size of a tennis ball, etc) so you can estimate calories. Go for any combo of protein and fiber.

For exercise, there's plenty you can do at home without equipment! For a bunch of free exercise videos, try http://www.youtube.com/user/BeFit

Walking is also a great calorie burner, believe it or not, because most people are fit enough to do quite a bit of it.

[sontaikle]

I was a broke student too when I started. There are so many free resources on the web!

Calorie counting, for example, is free and there are many sites where you can find calorie counts

[kaplods]

Check out the shoestring meals forum. Lots of great "cheap" ideas.

Hubby and I started our health/weight loss journey when our money was incredibly tight. Many months our food budget was $25 for the whole month for the both of us.

I highly recommend the frugal-living books like "The Complete Tightwad Gazette," and others. All the money saving tips really add up quickly.

[novangel]

Myfitnesspal.com to track calories is free. The cell App is also free.

Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred plus two 5p hand weights are about $20 total at Walmart which I guarantee results. Alternate days with walking/jogging outside at no cost.

Also you could just get the hand weights for 10 bucks and find Jillian on Youtube, but I'd rather have the DVD.

Goodluck!

[Kery]

Walk whenever you can, on campus, in town, whatever.
If you're living in a building with lots of stairs, walk/climb the stairs several times a day (1h stairs climbing = 1000 calories burnt, if I remember well; so even 'only' 5 minutes can already wield some benefit).
Running, but make sure you have good running shoes first, otherwise you'll strain your joints.

(I don't know your starting weight, so maybe running would be too much to start with. But walking's a really safe bet for everyone, in any case. )