ELLENSBURG- College, for most people, is their first chance at freedom.



No more rules, no more parents or boundaries.

It can also challenge a young person's ability to make good diet and exercise choices, often resulting in the dreaded freshman 15 (pounds).

For Central Washington University senior Stephanie Sype, it was more like the freshman 20.

"When I graduated from high school, I was roughly 125 pounds," Sype said.

When Sype was attending community college, she went from a structured family lifestyle to waking up at odd hours, having one or two fast food meals a day and started to party and consume alcohol on a regular basis.

But it wasn't just the change in her lifestyle at college.

"Food has always been a trigger for me," Sype said. "When I'm stressed, I eat. When I'm upset, I eat. When I'm angry, I eat...

"I like good food, I try to eat fruits and vegetables, but it doesn't work."

She tried to do something about it and moved back in with her parents. Her weight began to decrease.

Then she enrolled at CWU.

"I went from a steady weight to all of a sudden gaining weight again," Sype said.

According to Andrea Eklund, assistant professor of fashion merchandising, weight gain in college "just kind of happens."

"You are not at home anymore, you do not have regularly scheduled meals," Eklund said.

Eklund recently put on a body image seminar for students in early October.

"Who knows the actual numbers, but students are going to gain some sort of weight," Eklund said. "It's just kind of normal, but once they do gain some weight, many times they panic and try all these diets and go to the Student Union and Recreation Center and start working out."

Some of those students, Eklund said, could just not be done growing yet.

"Your body is not done growing -- you're still in your early 20s, especially for men," Eklund said. "Your body matures, so you are never going to be what you were in high school.

"Getting curvy and getting meat on their bones is a totally new thing (for some women). Many of them freak out a bit, but it's normal."

Eklund said only 5 percent of the population has the genetic makeup to be the size of a model.

"People are striving for these cultural ideals," Eklund said. "What we are striving to be is not genetically normal or average. It's not what most people are."

Staying in shape

For those students who do put on a bit of weight, there are a number of options on campus ranging from the Recreation Center's multi-purpose gym, Outdoor Pursuits and Rentals, intramural sports, riding bikes and physical education classes.

Cody Sims, fitness and membership services coordinator at CWU, said there are also nutrition groups for students to learn how to stay healthy.

"I think probably about 50 percent of the students who come through the doors of the Recreation Center have never been engaged in a formal sense of physical activity, other than maybe their high school PE class," Sims said. "They come to us without really any idea of what physical activity is."

Sims, a CWU graduate and former SURC fitness instructor, said there are several factors that can lead to weight gain, including the accessibility to food as well as stress levels.

Finding time

Sype said on most days, she's running non-stop from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. without going home.

'I'm juggling about a 19-hour job a week, a double major with 16, 17 credits a quarter -- sometimes 18," Sype said. "I've got a boyfriend, a dog, family and friends, grades to worry about -- all these stresses."

With Sype being pulled in every direction, worrying about her weight can become the last thing on her mind. When she could find time, she'd head over to CWU's Dining Hall and grab something to eat.

"They have a lot of really great foods, and I like that it's fresh food and a lot of options," Sype said.

The food, though, if not chosen carefully, could turn out to be a high-calorie meal -- like the deluxe quesadilla in the Market Place that is just around 900 calories, according to the dining hall nutrition guide, which is a new feature at Central.

 To regulate her intake, and to get some motivational support, Sype joined the Ellensburg Weight Watcher's group.

Since she joined, Sype noticed there weren't that many low-calorie dining options on campus.

"They make it almost hard for people who are dieting," Sype said. "They could easily sell individual 100-calorie packs ... you still want those yummy comfort foods and stores are coming out with a lot of lower-calorie options."

Lucky for Sype, and other students in her position, they have a chance to get their voice heard.

Dining Services has launched an online survey that asks questions about each of the dining options at CWU. All student opinions must be given by Nov. 25.

As with all diets, Sims said there are healthy options for those who choose carefully.

"You would think because it is served on campus that it would be healthy, but that's not the case. You still have to make the right choices," Sims said. "Load up on the really healthy food -- the salads, salad bar, the chicken burgers. There are lots of really good things there."