Pizza. Photo by Katelyn Avery.

Pizza was the main component of this semester’s college diet. As a transfer student my first time in a dorm, and enjoying a wonderful meal plan, didn’t take place until junior year. Two and half years of community college, which forced me to scrounge for food, built me up to this moment. The buffet styled dining hall was everything I had dreamed of.

They serve pizza almost every day, and I’m not complaining. Pizza is my “food boyfriend.” I could grab a slice for every meal. I’m not just throwing compliments around for pizza though. For a while I actually had pizza three times a day. Lunch, snack time, and dinner. My only regret at the time was that I couldn’t have pizza for breakfast.

At first the weight didn’t come. I had to walk five minutes to the dining hall, and ten minutes to some of my classes. I was constantly on the move, so the “Transfer 15” didn’t hit me. Then I began to add more pizza into my life.

At first it was one slice at a time, paired with something like a chicken sandwich. Then it turned into an addiction. Two slices would fill my plate. That totaled to six slices most days. As the weeks fell into October the soft serve ice cream machine also called my name. I wasn’t gaining a lot of weight, but I could still feel the difference. My clothes still fit, but some of my lose shirts were becoming more fitted, and I knew it wasn’t because they were shrunk in the laundry.

The soft serve ice cream went first. The machine was hard to avoid at first, but I knew I had do something about the weight. I didn’t want to gain anymore unnecessary pounds.

During the visit home for Thanksgiving break I explained to my family that I had to change my diet. I hadn’t gained enough weight for my family to say anything, but after some questioning they said they could see it. When I went back to school the “diet” continued.

I still eat like a college kid, just without as much pizza and ice cream. I traded the slices for chicken sandwiches, and I moved right on past the soft serve ice cream machine. The weight was leaving.

When I came home for winter break I felt a lot better. I have been back to the pizza bar, and eventually I will go back to the soft serve ice cream machine. However the “Transfer 15” experience made me well aware that moderation matters.

-Katelyn Avery

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