As college students, we have all heard the warnings. The playful banter about gaining that “Freshman 15” eventually turns into a reality. Providing a 10-step program to prevent the dreaded “Freshman 15,” The Dorm Room Diet, by Daphne Oz, provides a plan to prove the warnings wrong.

The introduction of the book describes a somewhat exaggerated, yet fairly plausible plight of the college student.  Waking up to an acne-struck face, eating on-the-go after hitting snooze one too many times, not fitting into outfits that were perfect before, taking four-hour naps, indulging in a “pick-me-up” sugar meal, and eventually heading back to bed, more tired than imaginable. The contrasting college student that Oz describes (after following the steps in her book, of course) has a clear face and is happy to wake up in the morning. Their clothes fit better than ever before, leaving more than enough time for a balanced breakfast.  This ideal college student is not swayed by sugary desserts or carbonated drinks.  They work out after this breeze of a day and still have time to hang out with friends.  Could this really be reality?

As a recent college graduate, Oz knew the downfalls of an unhealthy lifestyle.  Overweight from the time she was seven until seventeen, she changed her ways, losing 10 pounds her freshman year of college, breaking the well-founded stereotype.

Just as emotions and stress run high in college, Oz hoped to create a tangible plan for students facing the same dilemmas she did.
Oz prefaces the “get informed” section of the book by saying that a recent report claimed that only 6 percent of American college sophomores had gained 15 pounds their freshman year.  Then again, about 50 percent of these sophomores reported gaining 2-5 pounds over their freshman year, slightly less shocking but still entirely avoidable to Oz.

The main cause for this shift in weight, says Oz, is the pure freedom of the college experience.  Diets and exercise are no longer regimented by parents or school.  It is all up to the individual student, and it is often that responsibility that gets a student into the dreaded situation of going home over Thanksgiving break to a sea of unsurprised faces at the already noticeable different fit of one’s jeans.
The following steps of the how-to guide include easy recipes for healthy living, exercises for the confines of the dorm and nutrition tips for buying food on campus.

While the 10-step plan does not promise a seamless year of weight loss, it does give hope that new college students will not fall into the treacherous hole of inactivity and overeating.

While some of the advice is not entirely realistic, the book seems to have a firm grasp on the issues that college students encounter.