News: Best Semester Ever: Bad Habits, Begone!

Sunday, October 18, 2020

Best Semester Ever: Bad Habits, Begone!

You've completed an entire week of our Best Semester Ever course. Nice work so far! Things are probably in full swing now with classes, activities, and homework. So today, we're going to give you some ideas about how to strip away the bad habits that get in the way of having a successful semester.

Those habits can affect all aspects of your life — academic, social, personal. And with the stress of college, it's easy to fall back on those easy habits, even if they're not the best. That's why we're here to help. Today, we'll focus on some of the physical and mental habits that are helpful to break. Tomorrow, we'll give advice about academic habits.

And remember: You won't be able to kick a bad habit in only one day. You'll have to take these suggestions and build on them for the rest of the semester.

Let's get started!

GET THE MOST OF YOUR SLEEP

College students are notorious for struggling with sleep problems, from pulling all-nighters to study to staying out super late on weekends. Proper sleep is essential for physical and mental health, though, so breaking your bad sleep habits is one of the most important things you can do. As a young adult, you should be getting between seven and nine hours of sleep each night. Here are some suggestions on making the most of those hours:

Stay away from electronic screens for at least 30 minutes before heading to bed. Alternate activities for that time? Read a book. Meditate. Do some quick and easy chores.

And if you absolutely have to look at a screen before bed, download f.lux for your computer. It makes it easier for your eyes to look at a screen at night.

If you really need a midnight snack, make sure it doesn't contain caffeine. You know to avoid coffee and soda, but a sweet treat of chocolate is also a no-go. Try something like yogurt or a banana instead.

Be more aware of when, and how, you take naps. Naps should be taken in the early afternoon, and ideally you will sleep in a slightly upright position rather than fully flat to prevent deep sleep. And don't nap for too long — 20 minutes is a good goal.

Stop hitting snooze in the morning! If you struggle with this, try a new alarm that requires more physical exertion to be turned off, like this one that you have to shake repeatedly.

If you really want to improve your sleep, take BuzzFeed's 2-Week Morning Person Challenge to learn more tricks for optimizing your nights and mornings.

STAY BODY-POSITIVE

It can be easy to feel body pressures at college — and to fall into bad habits surrounding how you treat your body and yourself. You can break those thought patterns, though.

Focus on how you feel with an "inner beauty regimen" by taking some time to think about why you're proud of yourself or what beautiful things make you you.

Write out an actual list of things you like about yourself that you can refer to when you're feeling down.

Don't judge foods in pure moral terms. That is, don't think of what you eat as either "good" or "bad." You're allowed to treat yourself every once in a while without feeling guilty.

Stay away from "fitspo," or images/motivational quotes online that have an unhealthy focus on physical appearance. You shouldn't exercise to look like someone else — you should do it to look and feel like the best version of yourself.

Surround yourself with friends who make you feel good about yourself. If you notice your friends being critical of your body or how you dress, it might be time to find new friends.