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Wellness > Health

Lose the Freshman 15: Fighting Stress with Laughter

This is a sponsored feature. All opinions are 100% from Her Campus.

Hey collegiettes™!

Today has been one of those days where I feel like my head is going to explode. I conveniently have 2 papers, 3 tests, 1 quiz (and something else that I won’t remember until it’s too late) all until Tuesday. Not only is my weekend gone, but my patience as well!39562 1441768403441 1209990197 31149064 1208203 n

I’m in need of some serious downtime, but lucky for me, it’s part of my Jump Start Diet! According to my SELF tip-a-day email: “Constant stress increases levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, and blood sugar, both of which can bring on weight gain.”

I could probably write a novel about how I like to unwind and laugh uncontrollably watching The Office or any movie with Zach Galifianakis, but I’ll spare you the details.

But do you know the best part of scheduling a comedy-filled “me time”? SELF says that “like exercise, laughing lowers stress hormones levels as well as heart-harming cholesterol.” Laughter causes a physiological response that’s similar to the effects of moderate exercise, meaning I’m not only melting away stress, but fat as well!random

I completely forgot to announce the winner of my SELF magazine subscription giveaway yesterday.
Congratulations to Ashley Braswell! I’ll be sending you an email this weekend! Thanks to everyone to entered. I’ll be doing a few more giveaways soon!
ashley
How do you relieve stress? Let me know! Leave a comment below, e-mail me at allylopez@hercampus.com or  Tweet  me (@allylopez).

If you’d like to join me in my healthy, happy weight loss (and please do), go register for the Jump Start Diet on SELF.com and be sure to use the SELF logs to keep track of your daily workout and meals, which is an awesome way to keep track of your calorie intake and how much you’re burning off!

Love, Ally

To follow Ally’s journey on the Jump Start Diet, check out her out on Twitter (@allylopez), and while you’re at it, follow the latest news from SELF (@SELFmagazine) and Her Campus (@HerCampus)!

Ally is a senior print journalism major at the University of Maryland, College Park with a concentration in magazine journalism. In addition to blogging for the Her Campus and SELF magazine “Lose the Freshman 15” program, she writes for the sex & dating section of College Magazine. Her previous internships include being a UMD “style guru” for the Web site CollegeFashionista, an editorial intern for ARCHITECT and eco-structure magazines, as well as a copy editing intern for The Working Press, a daily tabloid that covered the Society of Professional Journalists’ 2010 national convention. Additionally, she has contributed to the USA TODAY College blog. When she isn’t in her bubble of journalism, Ally enjoys spending time with her family and friends, spending insane amounts of money at the mall, and watching every flavor of the Real Housewives.