Have you ever wondered how you could eat healthier? Have you ever tried to diversify your own eating options to no avail? If these are questions that you have ever asked yourself, then Clark Athletics’ Nutritionist Night has the right tips for you. Hosted by campus dietitian Kristen Chulada, this year’s Nutritionist Night focused on some key ways you can help yourself eat healthier. One of the main focuses of the night was on eating healthier, not eating less. Although event host Kristen Chulada is the campus dietitian, she emphasized the importance of eating what’s best for your body rather than eating less. “I want students to know that they can value health while still enjoying their favorite foods and don’t have to obsess over rigid eating behaviors,” Chulada commented. As an on-campus employee, Chulada wants students to know that she is there for both student-athletes and non-athletes alike, to help them eat healthier and be happier.  “I first started working with Clark University as the Campus Dietitian last winter, and with increased virtual opportunities this semester, we wanted to highlight the services I have to offer and make sure students know I am a resource on campus,” Chulada stated.

This concept of nutritious eating may sound good to many students, however others’ might not know where to start in improving their eating habits. According to Kristen Chulada, that’s  Clark’s Nutrition Night strives to solve. Rather than just talk about healthy options, Chulada took the message “show and tell” to heart, as she introduced one of her best healthy breakfast options to students. “Overnight oats are one of my favorite breakfasts, mainly because they are so easy to make,” Chulada stated. “One of the biggest barriers I see with college students not eating breakfast is lack of time. They are rolling out of bed and heading straight to class with no time to prepare a well-balanced meal.” 6:00 am practices for student-athletes and 9:00 am classes for students highlight the challenges Clark students face in having time to enjoy the most important meal of the day. Chulada’s recipe for Apple Pie Overnight Eats aims to solve that problem. Taking only 10 minutes to bake, Chulada’s pie consists of a short recipe that includes: old fashioned rolled oats, walnuts plain Greek yogurt, milk, an apple, chia seeds, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and maple syrup. Once you make sure you have all of your ingredients, the next step is preparing the Apple Pie Overnight Eats meal itself. Below is a completed recipe for the healthy meal:

Step 1: Prepare The Apple Slices

• Cut your apple up into small slices
• Put your slices into a safe microwavable dish
• Add a dash of cinnamon and 1 teaspoon of maple syrup to the bowl
• Proceed to mix the bowl with a spoon
• Put the bowl into the microwave for 30 seconds
• Mix them again and put them back into microwave for 15 seconds

Step 2: Prepare The Oatmeal

• Put a half cup of rolled oats into a mason jar
• Add half a cup of Greek yogurt into your jar
• Add half a teaspoon of vanilla extract into your jar
• Add 2 teaspoons of maple syrup into your jar
• Add half a tablespoon of chia seeds into your jar
• Cut up your walnuts into small pieces
• Put them into your jar
• Add the heated apple slices into your jar
• Add half a cup of milk into your jar

Step 3: Finish Your Apple Pie Overeats Meal

• Secure the lid of the mason jar
• Shake the mason jar repeatedly 5 to 10 times
• Put the mason jar in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours
• Take the mason jar out of the refrigerator, and pour the overeats meal into a bowl
• Eat your newest healthy meal

Following these steps, many students have expressed gratefulness for having a healthy breakfast recipe they can implement into their daily lives. In her final moments of interviewing with the Scarlet, Kristen expressed what she hopes students were able to take away from her presentation. “I want students to know that they can value health while still enjoying their favorite foods and don’t have to obsess over rigid eating behaviors,” Chaluda said. Nutrition is all about balance and finding what foods make your body feel best, physically and mentally.” With this in mind, Kristen Chaluda has her mindset on other fun ways to help students on-campus grow healthier eating habits. “Once I can make visits to campus again, I look forward to hosting more nutrition education sessions and food tastings in Higgin’s Café, and working with our dining team to continue offering creative and tasty healthy options,” Chaluda finished.

For daily nutrition inspiration, students can follow Kristen Chulada on Instagram @kristen_campuseats, where she provides easy healthy recipes, nutrition information, and holistic wellness tips. Students, staff, and faculty on campus can also reach out to her via email ([email protected]) to set up virtual nutrition counseling meetings.