Healthy Eating at and around UWM

Earlier I wrote about maintaining a healthy lifestyle when coming to college. If I would have to say the top three things to focus on when having a healthy lifestyle are:

1. Food
2. Exercise
3. Maintaining Habits

I'll be writing on the other two in the next couple of weeks, because they are all equally important.

I know one of the hardest parts about eating well is that it is expensive. A box of pasta is cheaper and more filling than a bag of spinach. Even when you aren't making your own food, grabbing a cheeseburger on the go is easier and faster than a salad. (Don't get me wrong. Cheeseburgers are one of the greatest inventions along with electricity and paperclips.) UWM, along with University Housing, is making it easier and easier to find healthy and affordable eating options all around campus.

Each of the Residence Halls has a cafeteria with a salad bar, sandwich shop, and grab and go options that are always open during their operating hours. Instead of grabbing a bag of chips on the way to class, it's just as easy to grab an apple (and the apple is less expensive). Sandburg and RiverView both have convenience stores that have prepackaged salads, sandwiches, and fruits and veggies to grab on the go. Cambridge has a new addition to food that is offered at UWM called ReStore Plus More.

The option to cook food is available in all of the Residence Halls. It doesn't matter if you live in a suite with a kitchen or not. RiverView and Sandburg both offer a community kitchen in the building. In Cambridge Commons a kitchen is located in the lounge on every floor. There are several grocery stores within reasonable distance of campus. The convenience stores in the Residence Halls also sells some basic cooking ingredients.

The Union offers restaurants that serve subs, wraps, stir fry, pizza and more. The Kenwood Inn is a great place to eat, especially for vegetarians. It's located on the third floor of the Union but has limited hours, so make sure you look into it before you go. On the ground floor is the Union Terrace that is a version of a cafe in the residence halls. Great news. Any place that sells food on campus is a place where you can use your meal plan.

Campus isn't the only place to get food. Within two miles of campus are quite a few restaurants, many of which are extremely healthy. These one's especially have great vegetarian and organic options. Here are some of my favorites:

1. Beans and Barley
2. Hotch-a-do
3. The Comet Cafe
4. The Eatery on Farwell

 Like I said before, there are places to shop for groceries around campus or just a bus ride away.

1. Pick N' Save (two locations)
2. Milwaukee Public Market
3. Riverwest Co-op
4. Whole Foods
5. Outpost Natural Foods
6. Aldi 

I'll hopefully be posting about meeting with the nutritionist/dietitian that is on campus. They are an amazing resource and can help make the transition easier. Eating healthy and maintaining a certain diet when moving to a new place can be difficult, but it can be done.