Health and Fitness

Tips for staying fit

1.Stay organized, make a schedule and keep to it, there's nothing more important than developing a routine and sticking to it.  This involves planning when/ how long you study for, when you wake up, when you eat, etc. developing organizational skills helps you stay on task, eat healthy, and develop a good workout schedule.

2.Eat breakfast.  Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  It is better to separate meals over the course of the day rather than to max out on certain meals.

3.Go to the gym.  The ARC or CRCE are good places to workout as they both carry a vast variety of equipment whether it be for Cardio, Mass Building, or Strength building workouts. 

4.Develop a good diet.  Working out by itself is not enough to stay fit, you need to watch your calorie intake, carbohydrate intake, etc., you can start by removing bread from your meals and transition to removing other unnecessary meal items.

Tips for staying healthy

1.  Make sure all your meals include the proper amount of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals. It is     important to balance the amount as well as types of foods that you eat in order to help your body.

2. Wear a jacket or proper outer gear before walking outside. It is important to keep yourself insulated against the harsh winds and snow of Illinois.

3. Get proper amounts of sleep. It is vital that you sleep enough hours per night in order to rest your body up for the next day. It is more beneficial to get some sleep before an exam rather than try to cram information in.

4. Take multivitamin supplements in order to complete your diet if you feel as though your current diet is inadequate. 

5. Stock up on medications. It is important to be prepared for the worst in case of an emergency.

6. Know where McKinley is. It is very beneficial to there when you need special attention medically because they are vey knowledgeable and know how to help. Many people do not know where McKinley is or think it is too far away from them so they do not take advantage of the resources provided to them but this is a very good place to check out.

Places to stay fit and Healthy:

• The ARC- ammenities include swimming pool, basektball courts, indoor track, weight room, etc.
• CRCE- ammenities include indoor pool, basketball courts, weight room.
• McKinley Health Center- Nurses and Medical staff are available for appointments and check ups as well as for addressing any other medical concerns you may have
• Your dorm- you can do workouts from the comfort of your own home
• Ikenberry Commons Upper level- fitness rooms
• Ice Arena- Perfect place to stay active! 
• The Great Outdoors- you can go for a quick jog or run around campus!

by; Gibran Mendez and Nikhita Moolayil

Places to Eat

Getting hungry? Well you better be prepared to eat because U of I has a ton of places to eat and socialize. 

• University of Illinois offers 3 meal plans with ranging credits in which students can either buy a full meal in residence halls across campus and credits which can be used to buy individual food items from sandwiches, drinks, or just a quick snack.
• Tired of food in housing? Then head out to green street where a range of foods catering to a wide variety of people and cultures. Some delicious restaurants along green street include sushi rock, Korean spoon house and insomniac cookies where cookies can be purchased until 3 in the morning!
• Running around campus and don't have time to head to a restaurant? U of I has various places where a quick snack can be purchased. The basement of the union has several fast food areas including chick-fil-a, Jamba juice, and S'barros. The Undergraduate library has an Espresso Royale where a quick drink can be fixed up or a yummy pastry can be purchased.
• More restaurants can be found on these websites.
• http://www.urbanspoon.com/n/106/46343/Champaign/UIUC-Campus-restaurants
• http://housing.illinois.edu/Current/Dining/Locations%20and%20Hours/Classic.aspx
• http://housing.illinois.edu/Current/Dining/Locations%20and%20Hours/A%20La%20Carte.aspx

Bus system

Survival Guide to the Buses: Transportation is your best friend and worst enemy

Students should make sure they know which bus to board. They can use the bus apps that provided bus routes in order to reach their destination. If they are at FAR and want to reach the Quad, they should take the North and West buses. When returning, they should take the South and East. If students are uncertain as to which bus they should take, they should not be hesitant in asking the bus driver if the bus stops to their desired location.  Thus, buses can be an easy way of transportation once students learn how to use it.

1.    You can use the text message to track the bus. Look for the text message number for each station.
2.    Notice the hopper route.
3.   Notice N and S or E and W take you to opposite directions.
4.   Remember to pull the yellow line along the window to request the stop.
5. Always plan the route before the trip.·       Make sure you know the difference between North, South, East, and West. Just because you got on the Silver, doesn't mean you are headed the right way.
6. Get the Apps CU Transit and Stop Lite to show you what buses to take or what buses are approaching at your current location. It’s a great way to plan out your schedule ahead of time so you know just what time to catch the bus.
7. The Illini take you all around campus, however if you are trying to get somewhere quick it is not your best choice because it takes forever to get places.  Having a bike handy or using Zipcar are other viable options.
8.   If you live in the dorms FAR or PAR you will learn to take the teal or silver. They take you to the main locations that you will need to go as a freshman.
9.   Become familiar with stops like Transit Plaza, Illini Union, Gregory at Library, and Armory and Wright. Knowing the streets is important so you know where to catch the buses.
10. Don't be afraid to ask the bus drivers or other students about what bus to take before you take the wrong bus. Everyone is pretty understanding.  It will take a couple weeks to get used to everything.
11.   Make sure you are paying attention on the bus to your stop because you have to pull the line before you stop so the bus will stop. (It will keep going if somebody doesn't pull it; trust me it has happened to me.)
12. Sometimes the best ways to learn the bus system is to just get on different buses and see where they take you.  A safety note is to make sure you explore the buses while the sun is up. There is nothing fun about getting lost at night.
13.  The buses don't run as frequently on the weekends so plan to walk a lot or just wait for the next approaching bus coming about every 20 minutes.
14.   If you are trying to go to the mall or Walmart you should get on the Yellow North. Most likely you will have to catch that at the Transit Plaza because that bus does not run to every dorm.

                                                         Nia Green, Despina Hadjiagapiou, Sheng Jin, Yuqing Zhang

Housing

University Housing:

Busey-Evans Residence Halls

1. Located in Urbana on the East side of campus
2. All female dorm
3. Rooms all have carpet with air-conditioning
4. No wifi access
5. Dining hall with complete cafe corner

Lincoln Avenue Residence Halls 

1. Located in Urbana on East side of campus near McKinley
2. Co-Ed
3. Lounge with Grande Piano
4. Specialty Restaurant Dining Hall
5. Sustainability LLC and Scholars Community living options

Florida Avenue Residence Halls 

1. Located in Urbana near Illini Grove
2. Co-Ed
3. Aire-conditioned rooms
4. New furniture
5. Dining Hall with specialty restaurants
6. Living options for Health Professions and Women in Math, Science, and Engineering

Ikenberry Commons North Residence Halls 

1. Located on West side of Ikenberry Commons near ARC
2. Barton (female only), Forbes (co-ed), Hopkins (co-ed), Lundgren (male only); Nugent (co-ed) 
3. Brand new Ikenberry Dining Hall
4. Library, TV rooms, game room, exercise room, lounges, and music practice room
5. Living Options for LEADS, Transfer Cluster, and Beckwith-supported residents 
6. 57 North
7. The Caffeinator 

Ikenberry Commons South Residence Halls 

1. Located in Urbana on West side of Ikenberry Commons
2. Scott (co-ed), Snyder (co-ed), Weston (co-ed), Taft (co-ed), Van Doren (co-ed); New Hall (2013)(co-ed)
3. Large library, computer center, music practice room, game room, and TV rooms. 
4. Brand new Ikenberry Dining Hall
5. Library, TV rooms, game room, exercise room, lounges, and music practice room
6. Living Options for Weston Exploration and Substance-Free
7. 57 North
8. The Caffeinator

Pennsylvania Avenue Residence Halls 

1. Located in Urbana near Florida Avenue Residence Halls
2. Co-ed 
3. Library, computer center, game room, lounges, and TV room.
4. Newly renovated dining hall
5. Living Options for Global Crossroads Living-Learning Community and Intersections Living-Learning Community 

Illinois Street Residence Halls

1. Located in Urbana (southeast)
2. Townsend (co-ed) Wardall (co-ed)
3. Air-conditioned
4. Library, computer center, weight room, lounges, and dining hall.
5. Living Option for Innovation LLC 
6. La Cocina Mexicana and Taste of Asia dining specialties 

Places and Ways to Relax Around Campus

• The first place where many student's enjoy relaxing is South Lounge in the Illini Union. This room has many couches and arm chairs that lot's of student's use to relax and even nap between classes. The ambiance of the room adds a sense of peace, since it is upheld that it be silent in the room.
• Another great place to relax in the union is the Vending Machine Room, where you can relax, have a snack, and spend time studying or just hanging out with friends.
• Down in the basement of the Illini Union is a mall style food court, with many choices for lunch and dinner. There is also an arcade and bowling alley which are great for a fun night with friends after midterms. 
• Another popular place to relax is right on the Quad itself. On any given warm day you'll see student's napping in the grass, hanging out, or even the tight rope walking club. Student's will even bring hammocks to tie to the trees on those warm spring days. 
• The Japanese House, located just past FAR and PAR, is located in the middle of a serene forest and garden. It's calm and quiet, and a great place to get away fro all the stress of midterms and finals.
• The engineering quad is another serene place where you see a lot of over worked engineering students take time to unwind. The creek that flows through it creates a sense of peace as you walk to the middle of the quad. The grass is also soft and a great place to just lay down.

Balancing work and play

College is the young adults’ introduction to life.  It is a whole new experience, specific to the individual, where freedom to do as one pleases without parental restrictions can be alluring.  The most integral skill we learn in college is balancing work and play.  Without guidance, this task can seem insurmountable.  Many students’ struggle with this freshman coming of age and as a result, I have created some tips and tricks of the trade that have helped me survive freshman year.  Hopefully these may guide you safely and sanely through the trials and tribulations of being a freshman.  May the force be with you:

1. ·       Make sure you know where tutoring and office hours are before finding out where all the popular bars are to frequent.
2. ·           Plan out your schedule at the beginning of each week so you know what needs to get done if you plan on going out during the weekends.
3. ·       It's not detrimental going out during the week because it happens in college.  However, knowing sleep is hard to find ask yourself...Is it really worth it if you have an early class in the morning? It is recommended to get 8 hours of sleep a night but the body can suffice on 6 minimum.
4. ·       Make sure you are studying 3 hours a week per credit hour per class.  At the same time you don't have to study for 3 hours straight. Make sure you take mental breaks because if you are not focused then you are wasting more time when you could be doing something else.
5. ·      If you have garage band and the instrumental to your favorite song (and you think that you are a decent rapper or singer) take 10 minutes to record your voice over the instrumental with things to study so you can listen to them while walking around campus.  It is a nice study break making the song and then you can have fun studying by listening to your new song.
6. Organize the time efficiently and keep track of the schedule.
7. Focus on your work during study time makes work more efficiently and it can save time for playing.
8. Work hard, play harder.
9. Study everywhere and anywhere. 

Students should set up a schedule to allot their times. Thus, they can establish their priorities and effectively execute them.  They should avoid doing their homework last minute because it will cause a great deal of stress, It’s important to study but also have fun occasionally. Participating in fun activities is a good way to relieve stress. However, every weekend does not need to be a party weekend. Thus, balancing work and play is an important aspect of the college life.

                                                        Nia Green,  Despina Hadjiagapiou, Sheng Jin, Yuqing Zhang