While summer is a time for relaxation and making memories, some people get caught up in too much relaxation and find themselves acquiring lazy summer habits.

As classes kick into gear, and students balance work and homework, it could become easier to stick with lazy habits. Here are some solutions on how to get rid of a bad-habit rut, including excessive use of electronics, eating too much junk food, lack of and over sleeping and not exercising.

Electronics

The Mayo Clinic said there are six main negative outcomes when spending too much time with electronics: obesity, irregular sleep, behavioral problems, impaired academic performance, violence and less time for other creative activities.

However, there are ways to avoid excessive use of electronics. Do not eat while sitting in front of the TV or gaming systems, the clinic said. Getting involved in other activities that do not involve electronics can help.

Junk food

College students often hit the vending machines, fried food and pizza rolls in excess. Starting off the year with a healthy diet can help students continue healthy eating habits throughout the year.

According to WebMD, there are two main problems with junk food. They are low in satiation value, which means people do not tend to feel quite as full when they eat junk food. The second problem is when people indulge too frequently in junk food, it decreases the amount of nutrients they should be consuming from healthier foods.

However, WebMD also gave two useful tips on how to avoid eating too much junk food.

If fast food is the only option try choosing an eatery that offers healthier choices like grilled chicken over fried options, pizza topped with veggies or a whole-grain wrap instead of tortilla chips. The second tip was to look for products low in sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, milled grains and partially hydrogenated oils.

Healthy snacking is key. Snacking on a bowl of fruit and cheese instead of a bag of chips can go a long way to becoming healthier.

Sleep

As reported by the National Sleep Foundation getting enough sleep is important.

Lack of sleep costs a lot on the body. Sleep deprivation impairs brain functions and can be dangerous while driving. The National Sleep Foundation said a lack of sleep can also lead to serious health problems like diabetes, heart disease, heart attacks, an irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure and more.

Lack of sleep has many health-related consequences, but these are often then followed by school-related problems.

“For deep learning to happen, the brain needs rest to integrate information and to retrieve it when it is needed, and sleep is essential for the both process of integration and retrieving,” said Mary Nii Munteh, coordinator of the Mind/Body Spa and the Biofeedback Center at Student Counseling Services. 

The National Sleep Foundation also included some ways to get enough sleep. Anyone should be able to acquire the right amount of sleep by sticking to a normal sleeping schedule, practicing a relaxing bedtime ritual, exercising daily and making sure the bed is at the right comfort level. 

Exercise

Regular exercise has countless health benefits. Without exercise, chronic health issues such as heart disease, diabetes and arthritis can set in. When someone doesn’t exercise for a long period of time, it only makes it harder for the body to keep up with the physical activity, the Mayo Clinic said.

Exercising on a schedule will overall make someone feel better mentally and physically. Regular exercise also controls weight, lowers the risk of poor health conditions and can boost someone’s energy immensely, according to the Mayo Clinic. 

For some students, such as Liza Dally, freshman in history, the choice of making a bad summer habit was quite easy. Dally said she used her electronics too often. 

Other students seemed to have a hard time choosing which bad habits were their worst because they had multiple lazy summer habits.

“Electronics [are the worst], but because of that I eat junk food, don’t exercise or sleep enough,” said Megan Noem, freshman in open option.

Bad habits all come with consequences, but they all come with ways to avoid the negative repercussions.