I had been a vegetarian since I was 13, but my staples included buttered pasta, pizza, grilled cheese, bagels, English muffins, and cereal with frozen yoghurt instead of milk, just because I could! My dining hall even had these humongous (bigger than my hand) rice krispies treats and brownies, and I had at least two of those every day.
I'd have a banana here and there, and maybe an apple, but as far as veggies went, I literally ate none. I was a vegetarian who didn't eat vegetables! I think my dining hall offered a salad bar, but why would I eat veggies if there wasn't anyone telling me I had to?
One food group I definitely got enough of was candy! Every night I'd hit the store downstairs. They had bins of jellybeans and gummy candies, and I'd eat an entire bag every night. No wonder I was constantly bloated and had issues with breakouts.
A few months into my Freshman year, I discovered that I was majorly lactose intolerant. That didn't stop me from eating all the cookies, pizza, and ice cream I could get my hands on because I'd just pop a Lactaid pill every time I ate.
My junior year, I moved into a small dorm that was basically a house with 16 rooms and a kitchen. We'd take turns cooking meals for the entire house — all vegetarian — and this is where my joy of healthy eating was finally sparked. This is where I learned the basics of how to cook dry beans, how to bake tofu, and how to make vegetables taste good — all skills I used to eat healthier and lose the weight after college.