Wheatgrass has always been one of those health-food nut standbys that I have shrugged off as being just too holistic. But it’s everywhere these days – Whole Foods, every smoothie station. I’m surprised McDonald’s or Starbucks hasn’t started liquifying it, or that Costco isn’t offering pallets of wheatgrass at wholesale prices. So I started doing some research.

Apparently, wheatgrass is claimed to be a kind of a superfood. Big wheatgrass supporters suggest a tiny shot of is like wolfing down a cow’s belly of leafy greens. In theory, wheatgrass purifies your liver, keeps your colin smooth, helps with skin irritations, energizes your mind and body, and just makes you feel good. It can pretty much do everything except leap tall buildings in a single bound. Those claims are not yet scientifically proven, though no one is doubting the ability of leafy greens to be good for you.

But if wheatgrass does detox your liver, I’d say students should be running to the store to get some – imagine a hangover cure that is all natural and actually helps you get out of bed!

So how did I feel post wheatgrass? Maybe it was the placebo effect, but honestly, I felt good; almost like I had just done something really nice for my body. And it tasted the way I always imagined grass would taste…not too sweet, not too bitter, and really healthy.

Listen Safely!

I could stand up in a stadium full of people and ask over the loudspeaker, “Who likes music?” and I already know what the answer would be: a resounding and overwhelmingly loud, “We do!” People love music, so it comes as no surprise that most of us listen to tunes while we’re working out at the gym or going on a long run to keep us motivated. However, those little earbuds (or even those pesky large headphones!) can cause a lot of trouble for you while you get your Stairmaster on or while your feet are hitting the pavement around campus.

Safety Safety Safety

The biggest concern about keeping your ears covered and your beats strong is your safety. If you drop below a level of constant vigilance while working out, you’re likely to become as klutzy as a novice juggler, and as unaware of your personal safety as a red balloon. Make sure you remain focused on the cracks in the pavement so as not to stumble on them, and to run in familiar and well lit areas to make sure you’re not a target for a mugging or worse.

Safety Squared

Okay, there’s a little more safety involved. If you are working out in the great outdoors, remember that drivers, cyclists, and skateboarders cannot tell that you cannot hear them. So you have to look out for your own safety. Look both ways before you cross anything, and stay alert to your surroundings! Dogs that might want to chase you, rollerbladers that come up behind you, and cars that like to stop beyond crosswalk lines are all bad news to outdoor fitness gurus.

A Little Too Much is Too Much

Music will keep your body pumping and thumping, which is awesome…except when your body is tired and you haven’t noticed because you’re too busy enjoying the latest Lady Gaga hit. Check in with yourself around your usual stopping point to make sure you don’t injure yourself by going too far above your physical threshold.

One Earbud: A No-Go

You might think you can avoid a lot of these headphone pitfalls by just having one ear distracted with music and your other ear free as a lark to hear the sounds of the world. But research shows that just having one ear bopping out can confuse your brain (as if Calculus wasn’t already doing a good enough job of that), and makes your work out actually dangerous.

A few of us live for music, and a lot of us love music with a capital L. Just be safe out there while you’re busy pushing yourself through your every important fitness routine!

Can onions ward off the flu?

A fevered roommate (or two) watching reruns of “Boy Meets World,” while coughing on your couch can really put a damper on studying at home. Why risk getting sick, missing class, and not even feeling well enough to go to the big game this weekend? Or what about all the illness that is rampant at your work-study job on campus; I’d hate to pick up a nasty case of a sore throat just for showing up to work. Recently, a friend told me about a homeopathic way to outfox a nasty cold or flu – by cutting the ends off of a red onion and leaving it on my desk. Figuring I had nothing to lose but a dollar on an onion, I gave it a try.

My experiment began on Monday, when I came into the office early, red onion in hand. I headed straight to the kitchen and sliced the ends off the little pipsqueak, and then placed him on the side of my computer. The office space I share with four other people is industrial as opposed to cubical; in other words, it’s an open space. Germs waft freely without a barrier between us, and with two other student-workers already under the weather, I figured this was the prime location for soaking up any sickness with my onion-sponge.

Three days later, I can say with scientific certainty that the onion-absorbing illness experiment ended in failure. For starters, I’ve got a hearty cough, and have been fighting a fever. And secondly, the office smells like moldy scrambled eggs, and my coworkers are none too happy about the stench. They also mocked me mercilessly for my gullibility, as apparently the sliced onion approach has been featured in a slew of chain-emails thanks to the H1N1 (which incidentally, I had not heard about).

The email being circulated claims farmers were protected from the deadly flu epidemic of 1919. It reads, “The doctor couldn’t believe it and asked if he could have one of the onions and placed it under the microscope. She gave him one and when he did this, he did find the flu virus in the onion. It obviously absorbed the virus, therefore, keeping the family healthy.” Compelling, right?

Well, there has been an actual study about this email chain that debunks it. David Emery writes, “There’s no scientific basis for this old wives’ tale, which dates at least as far back as the 1500s, when it was believed that distributing raw onions around a residence guarded against the bubonic plague. This was long before germs were discovered, of course, and a prevalent theory held that contagious diseases were spread by miasma, or “noxious air.” It was apparently believed that onions, whose absorbent qualities had been well known since ancient times, could cleanse the air by trapping harmful odors.” Basically, the story of the onion is an urban legend.

It really is too bad there isn’t some easy answer to stopping the spread of viruses and other airborne illness. Guess we’ll have to stick to washing our hands more often and not touching our eyes, nose or mouth!

It's not torture – it's just floss!

Twice a year, we all end up in that strangely shaped chair, a masked and armed assistant poised over us and a spit-sucker draped precariously over our lower lip…Yes, twice a year, even college students go to the dentist for what feels like a final exam of our oral health abilities. Pertinent periodontal questions will be answered: Is my brushing technique up to par? Do I swish mouthwash with enough vigor? Will I be told I’m drinking too much coffee (the horror!)? And without fail, before we leave this jaw-dropping exam, we are reminded to floss.

Flossing is really tripping me up these days. I have always been told that easing a waxy strip of glorified thread between my molars, incisors, and everything tooth in-between, is essential to having amazing dental hygiene. And dentists throw out powerful messages such as “you only floss the teeth you want to keep” as they prowl through your mouth. But why is there such a lack of emphasis on reasons to floss in the real world?

A simple search on Google proves I’m not making chewing gum out of toothpaste here. Finding well researched articles about the benefits of flossing is actually difficult. And finding articles that throw down the flossing facts in a way that someone outside the American Dental Association would understand is darn near impossible. After sifting through articles that all seemed to have been written by the same person whose job it is to slightly revise the same information for a variety of sources, here’s what I have boiled down as to why you, the college student, should keep your toothbrush close, and your dental floss closer:

1. Halitosis is the Grossest
The point of flossing is to clean where no toothbrush has gone before – between your teeth. And what is between your teeth? Tiny bits of old food and plaque that build up and will emit a peculiar odor when you open your mouth to talk, smile, breathe, and yes, kiss that girl you’ve had your eye on in class. Bad breath is a killjoy for any conversation, and leads to certain doom when leaning in close for a canoodle.

2. Smile Security
If you don’t floss, there is more chance of your smile resembling those incredibly terrifying pictures your dentist has up on their wall next to their diplomas. Scraggly gums, giant gaps, and worst of all – removed teeth.

3. Saving Teeth is Good for Your Life
Your mouth is a warm, spongy gateway to the rest of your body. Good germs, gnarly germs, and bacteria of all shapes and sizes, can and do enter you physical being through your mouth. By cleaning out all the little crevices between your teeth, you are not only increasing the life-span of your chompers, but you are taking more steps towards overall well being.

4. No Pain is a Mouthful of Gain
Um, have you had dental work done ever? Flossing decreases your chances of needing to spend extra time in the dental chair. So unless your dentist is incredibly witty and interesting, a daily floss can get you back on campus and in the classroom–a much preferable place to be.

Flossing does not have to suck the life out of you. At least group on the internet is at least attempting to make flossing appear to suck less than we’re prone to believe it does – The National Flossing Council. You can find flossing haiku, flossing videos, and information about the annual Flossing Day holiday. But for the most part, you’re going to have be your own cheerleader when it comes to fetching the floss. My suggestion? Do it with a friend. If misery loves company, then flossing loves a party.

Sure, they're pretty, but they are useful too!

Maybe one of the worst Hanukkah gifts I received was a set of hand-held weights. They came on a little pyramid shaped holder. Red three-pounders on top, green five-pounders in the middle, and purple eight-pounders at the base. I recall scowling at them, wondering why my parents couldn’t have just gotten me a pony like every other ten year old at the temple.

Yet despite my initial and long standing hatred of those weights, I kept them. In fact, I have had those weights for 14 years now. I have carted them from my parent’s house to my dorm room, and then to all my subsequent college housing experiences (including the 10×12 joke of a space I called a studio apartment the year I decided I wanted to live by myself). Faithfully they lived in the bathroom cabinets, in a garage, under my bed, and in the closet, always ready for me. And while at first I was carrying them around–because yes they were strangely mine–one day I realized I was carrying them around because I was ready for them. In fact, I was more than ready…I was actually using them.

It all started because I joined a Jazzercise class–partly to get in shape, partly because the dance aerobics class I liked wasn’t being offered at a time I could squish into my schedule. At Jazzercise, the first half of the class is spent doing aerobic exercise and the second half is for strength and core. Well, it was quickly apparent that I was not going to get strong from doing arm curls to The Pussycat Dolls’ “Don’t Cha” without holding onto some weights. So I picked up those red three-pound weights and kept them in my car, along with my exercise mat.

And then I found myself feeling antsy when I was trying to write an essay for my Sociology of Education class. I picked up the five-pound weights and mindlessly lifted them while I sat in front of my laptop, trying desperately to defy the writer’s block that was making itself comfortable. Soon I was lifting those weights every day for a few minutes while I watched television or waited for my pasta water to boil.

I have used all three sets of weights at various times in my on-again, off-again fitness career. Sometimes they are handy for a class I want to take, sometimes I just keep them sitting out in my room so I am apt to pick them up and do a few curls for my triceps. Having my own set of weights means I never have to scramble to find resistance, and it also means that I can use them with home workout videos (like Tae Bo) or drag them with me to Boot Camp.

So interestingly, while all the My Little Ponies (never did get a real one) and Gameboys have slowly been filtered out since I have matured into a young adult, the one gift I saw no use for has become one of the only lasting gifts I received as a child. I continue to use the weights and at this point would never consider donating them to the Salvation Army. Even if months or a year goes by without my breaking them out, I know eventually I’ll want to use them again.

I wonder if my parents knew then that exercise was going to be the gift that kept on giving–a constant in my every day routine–or if they were just praying I would show any desire to do something physical one day. Perhaps I would have enjoyed calling my parents dumbbells when I opened this gift, I now would like to christen both my parents and these hand-weights with a new title: smartbells.

Boot camp isn't just for recruits anymore.

I know a place where fatigues never go out of fashion, where whistles are blown so regularly they sound like soothing wind chimes, and where yelling in order to achieve results remains the preferred method of motivation. I know what you’re thinking, and you’re close. Want another hint? The fitness community has been inundated with this latest workout craze.

With Jazzercise fading into the past (though I do anticipate its revival – if roller derby can make a come back, leotards can too) and the Support Our Troops ribbons continuing to make sales, aerobics instructors everywhere have combined strength and endurance training with the popularity of patriotism. The result? Fitness Boot Camp.

And let me be the first to tell you, it is awesome! Boot camps offer a total body workout. From core strengthening to muscle development to increasing endurance, boot camp encompasses all types of workout musts.

Randomization ensures your heart-rate remains up.

I know it sounds weird to emulate the army just to get a workout. But seriously, the army has it down. Here is a true story: the drum major of my high school marching band, Aldo, was incredibly popular. I think the entire school knew his name and if not, at least his smile. Aldo was built a bit like an ox. He was thick and while he wasn’t quite toned, no one would ever have described him as being “fluffy.” He finished high school, enlisted in the Marines, and spent the summer in boot camp in Camp Pendleton (on the coast of Southern California). He came back to visit the marching band at the start of the school year before he got his overseas assignment, except it took us all a solid sixty seconds to figure out who this lean, muscular man was standing in front of us. In fact, it was not until he grinned sheepishly that we recognized him at all. Boot camp had made Aldo into a panther.

Who doesn’t want to be a panther? I do. The desperate housewives of Orange County do. Even the preppy Bostonian working-moms and dads do.

Here is how it works:

You wake up super early, because boot camps almost always start before the sun has even poked its sleepy rays out from the horizon and show up at the class, which is held outdoors. This outdoor venue provides a great backdrop for warming up and core conditioning. Staring at the Milky Way while you do crunches is downright gorgeous and being able to inhale fresh air makes holding a plank position for sixty seconds tolerable. Everyone counts out loud in a militaristic fashion. Roll is called.

After core and warm ups, a variety of activities may take place. Boot camps thrive on randomization, so the participants cannot begin to guess what is going to happen. Campers bodies are constantly in a state of shock, which keeps the heart-rate up and keeps calories burning. There may be jump-roping or weight-lifting or circuit training. Perhaps there will be a really long run with bouts of lunges and leg strengthening mixed in. I would not be shocked if I were asked to scale a brick wall or parachute out of a helicopter at this point. At boot camp, anything is possible.

And the results are impressive. I’ve witnessed men and women alike drop inches and gain confidence while increasing their overall health. I went from being able to pump out 10 push-ups a day to over 200. I almost wish I was kidding – my shoulders did not need to look any bigger. If you do not have a six-pack by the end of boot camp, I would not believe you went to boot camp.

Due to their huge success and popularity, fitness boot camps are everywhere – there are private companies that host them, community centers that offer recreational classes under the boot camp title, and even college campuses like Texas State University and the University of Maine are developing physical education courses in the national defense training style.

The best part of boot camp is that you get it over with so early in the morning while you are still so tired that it usually seems like some sort of really intense dream you had rather than a workout. And because you have forgotten what it was like by the next morning, it makes it easier to get up and do it all over again . Check it out.

As long as you actually sleep, powernap with whomever you like.

You are prone to passing out in lecture. Studying in the library zonks you out. But staying awake at a late night party is a cakewalk. Go figure. Ever wonder why snoozing during the daytime is easier than making microwave popcorn? It is not simply because the tasks you are missing out on by catching some z’s are often mundane and boring. There is more to it than that; sleep deprivation is involved, changing your body habits to being more nocturnal, and the sheer will to be awake when everyone else is having a good time factor into the college sleep schedule. The good news is that you can have your cake and eat it too – you possess an almost superhero ability to be alert through all sorts of events with one trick: the power nap.

Why would you want to tap into this unrealized strength? Because napping can increase your energy, strengthen your mental capabilities, and fight drowsiness caused by lecture, long drives, and working lengthy shifts. News organizations everywhere have been writing about this new pajama-inspired craze. Even NPR has recently been researching and reporting on it.

I was shocked to learn that there are actually directions offered for how to power nap on the internet. WikiHow will never cease to amaze me with their selection of articles– they have more how-to instructions than there are choices at the dining commons salad bar. The rules are easier than joining Fight Club (plus you can talk about power-napping with whomever you choose).

1. A Place for Everything
Find somewhere to nap. Somewhere that sleep is actually going to happen (so that charming guy’s dorm room where your last slumber party took place is a no-go). Make sure it is as dark, as cozy, and as relaxing as possible.

2. Alarm Yourself
Yes, get night-timey with it and set your cell phone alarm for twenty minutes from your start time. This is a crucial step, as anyone who has ever been a lethargic napper knows. A lethargic napper sleeps for half an hour or longer, and wakes up feeling groggy and wearing grumblepants. The power nap only works if you sleep for fifteen to twenty minutes.

3. Squeeze Them Closed
Lower your eyelids gently. If you are suffering from sleep deprivation, you will likely become snore central without much effort. However, you may struggle with falling asleep simply because it is weird to take a nap in the afternoon. Do not stress if you are unable to pass out if you are tired. Just lying with your eyes closed and taking deep breaths will offer some of the benefits of power napping.

4. Wakey Wakey!
As soon as your alarm chirps, get your pretty face out of the pillow. This is imperative in order to equip yourself with the full benefit of the power nap. I know, sleep is so tasty delicious. But you’ll be back. WikiHow takes this step even further. They suggest that you “…follow up with physical activity. Get your blood flowing with a few jumping jacks or push-ups, or a little bit of jogging in place.” Staying in bed and not moving around ensures that you will feel like a beached whale instead of a playful dolphin.

One of the most common reasons students are tired during their class day is that they are not getting enough sleep at night. Sleep deprivation can be a serious issue if you insist on driving on the road when your eyelids are wiggling shut, and can severely impact your grades if your Sociology professor notices your penchant for napping in the back row. Hence wanting a power nap in your back pocket. Besides, any activity that incorporates jumping jacks is an activity that I want to do.

Keeping enemies closer may be toxic to your health.

We’ve all seen dramatic television shows like Gossip Girl or comical movies like Mean Girls and probably scoffed at the theatrics the fictional characters on such dramas create. Particularly in their interpersonal relationships with the people around them. Watching Blair and Jenny constantly play nice while scheming behind each other’s backs for Queen Bee status, or Kady and Regina placing three-way phone calls in order to create chaos has a certain appeal because they are such fake scenarios. Or are they?

Who doesn’t have a friend that they are not entirely fond of because she kissed the guy you like or is apt to cut you down during a round of Apples to Apples, or at least a friend who you’re concerned may not be entirely fond of you because of her aloof behavior?

These frenemies in real life may not be as vindictive and scheming as the ones we see on big and small screens, but they are certainly just as toxic. Research now suggests that this hybrid breed of acquaintance–half-friends, half-enemies–are bad for your health. Seriously.

Hanging out with friends is supposed to be one of the most relaxing things you do in a day–right up there with taking a shower or practicing yoga in your dorm room. However, hanging out with frenemies has the opposite affect. According to a study by Dr. Julianne Holt-Lunstad, “Love-hate relationships may threaten your cardiovascular health by preventing your body from relaxing in everyday situations and by failing to provide social support during more stressful times.” Not to mention these relationships tack on additional stress not just while you are hanging out, but before and after as well.

If you are not sure whether your pal is of the frenemy flavor, watch for repeated instances of him or her verbally knocking you off your feet by delivering scathing insults masked as compliments, constantly talking down to you, and seeming to relish in your failures rather than share in your times of success. Another quick test? “You know a friend is really a frenemy if she brings out the worst in you and leaves you feeling drained,” say Andrea Lavinthal and Jessica Rozler, co-authors of Friend or Frenemy? “A sure sign you have a frenemy is when that person cancels plans with you, you’re relieved instead of disappointed.”

Want to hear stories about frenemies? Check out This American Life’s broadcast on the subject. Or share your own here!

The new breakfast of champions.

I know it is not in vogue to say this, but breakfast has flaws. Sure, it is wrong to forgo a morning meal. Starting your day off with nutrients provides energy to your body and fuel for your brain. Major medical bigwigs continue to prove that people who eat breakfast make healthier choices throughout the day and are more successful at maintaining their desired weight. Yet, despite the studies that show time and time again that eating breakfast is the best way to start off your day, I cannot bring myself to slurp down a bowl of fruit and yogurt after I wake up. Not only is it hard to make smart breakfast choices, I also don’t enjoy eating before the crack of eleven no matter what activities I have planned.

Part of my beef with breakfast is due to the fact that the foods society has embraced as morning-acceptable are extremely unhealthy. Cold cereals such as Captain Crunch and hot cereals like instant oatmeal are laden with sugar. Cooked breakfast staples like waffles or pancakes, bacon, and hash browns have more calories than the short walk to class from my residence hall can burn. And muffins? Those puppies are stuffed with your daily fat requirement. There are simply too many calories being offered at breakfast time.

The obvious answer to this issue is to choose a healthier, more nutritional breakfast. Half a grapefruit and a hardboiled egg, or a bowl of fruit and half a cup of homemade granola would do nicely. Apple slices sparsely spread with peanut butter. Or get creative and steam some asparagus with a Morning Star vegan-sausage patty. Being conscious of the choices you make regarding breakfast food may lead you to some socially peculiar meals, but taking care of yourself is far more important than trying to fit in by gnawing on a Pop-Tart.

Another reason breakfast hasn’t bowled me over is that in order to eat it I have to wake up earlier. Put simply: sleeping until ten minutes before class starts ceases to be an option if I want to have a nutritious breakfast. So what is a student to do? If my body needs sleep more than it needs food, perhaps putting off a meal is in order. Juggling priorities is what college students do best and mine definitely go: sleep, class, food. I can always eat later, but that lecture on Italian architecture is only going to be given once this semester.

Perhaps, like me, you are a fitness fanatic and your weekend wake up routine often involves bounding out of bed for a run. But how does that fit into your avoidance of breakfast? Proper nutrition for an athlete, even just a recreational runner, is important–you need protein, carbohydrates and vitamins to run your best. Runner’s World reports that, “…when you run in the a.m. without eating breakfast, your pace will feel harder than it is, you won’t be able to reach higher intensities, and you’ll burn fewer calories as your body goes into conservation mode from the lack of fuel in your system.” This news comes at no surprise, but it leaves little room for those of us who abhor breakfast.

When this scenario occurs, I do one of two things depending on how I feel. First, I can eat a very small amount of food–a spoonful of peanut butter or a Cliff bar–and go for my run as planned  (the bar is as close to delicious as a nutrient bar gets and offers healthy ingredients with a light number of calories). Or I run on an empty stomach. Yes, it is true. I will run without nourishing my body. According to Marion Nestle, a nutritionist at New York University, “What you eat–and how much–matters more to your health than when you eat.” Provided I am committed to watching my calorie intake and to making sure I do eat enough protein to recover my muscles from a run, skipping breakfast in favor of working out does not have to be detrimental to my health.

Whether you like breakfast or not, the important thing to remember is to be true to your body. Listen to what you need. If you are not sure what meal plan works for you, experiment with eating breakfast, how much you eat, and what you eat. If you are a breakfast fan, intelligent choices about what you eat are going to matter more than the fact that you are fueling up for the day. Be smart and be balanced in whatever morning path you take.

*
Sources:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/food-and-nutrition/AN01119
http://www.aolhealth.com/medical-myths/medical-myths-eating-before-bed
http://scienceblogs.com/cortex/2006/09/breakfast_is_bad_for_you.php
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-242-301–6761-0,00.html

I don’t think my friends and I were every very good at managing the stress of the end of the school term. We usually just drank more coffee than usual, spent hours in the library, and went on long runs around town. I wish we’d had something like animal-therapy. This all leads me to wonder as to what other stress-saving tactics are being used on your camps during finals week. What have you guys seen in the past? Or what did you see this past finals season?