Studying: Gluttony 101

We've all been there before. You know the feeling right? You've been sitting on your laptop for hours and hour on end (and by that, I mean an hour and a half), and you begin to feel like your life is a never-ending buffet of bad choices and carbs. I call it studying. Like many other students, I stress eat during finals season. During the months of November and December I can only really describe myself as an anthropomorphic chipmunk preparing for hibernation by eating as many Timbits as I can possibly muster my body to consume. That's okay though, I'm burning the calories by exercising my brain and learning about the paradox of Black masculinity in the Western world. It's kind of like high-paced Zumba for your neurons.

And I am kidding. I think we can objectively agree that it's a tragic situation. Luckily, this year I have been trying to eat and drink more healthy options during my study sessions! As I said before, I've tried to limit every student's vice - caffeine. That doesn't mean that I've completely stopped having caffeine - I'm still a student! No, I have just limited my intake. When I do drink coffee instead of tea, I make sure to do it in moderation. I don't mean to sound like a mom, but when you drink coffee make sure you don't overdue it, and make sure to drink water along with it to stay hydrated. I can't tell you how many times I've become too jittery or headachy to comprehend even the most basic of understanding of globalization.

And who can talk about caffeine without bringing up sugar? My friends, it may seem like a fantastic idea to buy a box of Ferrero Rocher to bring some holiday cheer into your study session, but it's not worth it. The like 3 seconds of high that you get will not be worth the amount of time it takes to recover from a devastating sugar crash. It wasn't worth the fatigue, loss of concentration, and impending sense of doom I felt. Instead, be like me, and save the Ferrero Rocher for after you are done your exams, and are in the warm embrace of Netflix (they now have every episode of the Gilmore Girls!). It's natural sugars that come from fruits give me the boost I need to conquer my empty Word documents.

Still, it's okay to get wild every so often. When I near the end of my study session, that's when I allow myself to get maybe... not... the... healthiest food. Sushi is my kryptonite, and tempura is its partner in crime. I'm human! It's okay to splurge once in a while, and you know what it makes me study way more efficiently when I know sushi will be at the end of the grey-coloured rainbow.

Just remember to try and stay healthy through the intense (it's now a sport) times of studying, UofT, and you'll be just fine. I know I am!