Pepperdine students gain more than experiences while abroad

Katelynn Quick, a Pepperdine sophomore Integrated Marketing Communication major currently studying in Heidelberg, Germany, snaps a picture of frozen yogurt she and friend Gabrielle Storey are having abroad (Photo courtesy Katelynn Quick)

The “freshman 15” may not be a problem for students at Pepperdine, but students report that studying abroad does pack on unwanted pounds.

A Pepp Post survey of 51 students found that 67 percent gained weight while studying abroad. Lots of yummy new food to try, less time to exercise and an inconsistent schedule all conspire toward weight gain.

“The food was so unreal, I was in Florence so Italian food is obviously the most amazing,” said Mary Mattingly, a junior public relations major who also spent last school year in Florence. “I ate out often, much more than I do here, but we had a live-in chef so every meal was a three-course meal and it was definitely restaurant quality.”

Roughly half of those who gained said it was only five pounds or less. Another 41 percent gained between five and 10 pounds. About 5 percent said they gained between 10 and 15 pounds while another 5 percent reported gaining 15 pounds or more.

Pepperdine offers programs in Buenos Aires, Florence, Heidelberg, London, Lausanne, Shanghai, and Washington D.C.. The Institute of International Education ranked Pepperdine as the No. 1 university in the United States for “Highest Percentage of Students Who Study Abroad” as well as “Number of Students Who Study Abroad for Full Academic Year” in 2015, according to Pepperdine’s website. Approximately two thirds of Seaver students study abroad during their time at Pepperdine.

A big part of experiencing the culture abroad is the food.

“In other countries I always tried to eat local food at least once to explore the culture and see what they value based upon their food,” said Steven Matkins, a junior double majoring in religion and Italian who studied in Florence last school year. “The food is incredible. We had a personal chef who makes bomb food Sunday night through Thursday night.”

Susan Helm, associate professor of nutritional science at Pepperdine, gave three reasons in an email for why she thinks most students gain weight overseas. She said the cost of food leads students to choosing cheaper, high fat and high sugar foods. Cultural differences may also mean the food they choose has hidden oil and sugar. And finally, traveling means students keep an inconsistent schedule.

Sunnie DeLano, a visiting instructor of nutritional sciences at Pepperdine, wrote in an email that there is no one factor that causes a person to gain weight while overseas, but there are a multitude of influences that can play a role.

“Living in a new environment can be challenging to a lot of people,” DeLano said. “We have to adjust to new eating habits, schedules, food choices and availability of food options.”

She said the stress of living in a new country can also play a role.

“Eating can be a form of comfort and students often experience adjustment and some homesickness while away for prolonged periods of time,” she said.

Students might also see a change in their eating patterns and choices because of a prolonged sense of being on vacation.

“I always stress mindful eating,” DeLano said. “Just because you are ‘on vacation’ doesn’t mean you should eat past a comfortable satisfaction and give your body more than it needs.”

Julia Latimer, a junior political science major who studied abroad in London last year, shared her perspective on why she thinks students gain weight while studying abroad if they spend too much time in their houses and not enough time walking around.

“You can gain weight by not doing anything,” Latimer said. “In addition to eating a new cuisine and consuming large amounts of alcohol.”

Lauren Gottschall, a junior sports medicine major who studied in London for fall 2015, didn’t gain weight herself, but she knows others who did.

“I know students in other programs have said they gained weight because they didn’t have to walk to a lot of places and they ate a lot of carbs and meat,” Gottschall said.

Katelynn Quick, a Pepperdine sophomore integrated marketing communication major, currently studying in Heidelberg, Germany, said she likes to eat at local restaurants to experience the culture, but she has found a way to incorporate healthier eating while abroad as well.

“The meals here are not always the healthiest, so I like to cook too,” Quick said. “The grocery stores are pretty cheap.”

Katelynn Quick, a Pepperdine sophomore integrated marketing communication major currently studying in Heidelberg, Germany, shows off a house-made truffle pasta dish she had while traveling in Italy. (Photo by Katelynn Quick)

Karl Kalinkewicz, assistant director of Pepperdine’s International Programs, studied in Florence as a student and while working for International Programs he has been on work trips to London, Heidelberg, Shanghai and Buenos Aires.

“When I was in Florence, because I walked everywhere, I didn’t feel my weight or eating habits were affected at all,” Kalinkewicz said.

Although Kalinkewicz was not affected by weight gain, he recognizes that it is a problem for some students.

“Gaining weight while abroad is an issue for some people,” Kalinkewicz said. “There is a combination of having a lot of food and being able to have however much of it as you want. In Florence you have a chef that cooks for you, and there is Tiramisu every Thursday night. There is as much as you want to eat, and some people, if they’re not thinking about it, do pick up weight or bad eating habits.”

Between classes, traveling and exploring a foreign country, students found it tough to fit in exercise.

“I exercised maybe like seven times each semester,” Mattingly said. “It was bad.”

Caitlin Quisenberry, a junior philosophy major who studied in Switzerland for a semester last year, also found it hard to find time for exercise.

“I exercised once a week if I had the time,” Quisenberry said. “Not very often.”

Although students said they did not exercise much during their time abroad, Pepperdine’s international programs do provide options for exercise.

“Most of the campuses have either gyms or physical education classes offered such as tango dancing classes in Buenos Aires and equestrian classes in London,” Kalinkewicz said. “There are options but one thing I try to highlight during orientation is how students must find a way to do what they do here for exercise when they are in a new location that may not have the same facilities or equipment.”

Katelynn Quick (center), a Pepperdine sophomore integrated marketing communication major currently studying in Heidelberg, Germany, and friends while traveling abroad in Heidelberg (Photo courtesy Katelynn Quick).

DeLano thinks studying abroad is a very exciting opportunity to explore new foods and cultures and one shouldn’t be so concerned about weight gain that they limit themselves on the experiences.

“However, be mindful of portion sizes, get lots of variety of food groups, don’t forget your fruits and veggies and listen to your hunger and fullness cues to feed your body the right amount of food for you,” DeLano said. “Lastly, be sure to stay active, it’s both healthy for you physically but also a great stress reducer.”

Kalinkewicz also said the risk of gaining weight is not something that should stop students from studying abroad.

“I think you could gain just as much weight here making unhealthy decisions like eating a Chipotle ‘quesorito’ everyday and sitting in your room watching Netflix all of the time,” Kalinkewicz said. “For anyone who has any dietary restrictions or problems we are usually able to accommodate them. The programs work very hard to help those students. Even if they’ve had a history of weight problems or nutrition problems, you can still do the same things abroad as you can here.”

Quick shared what she loved most about studying abroad.

“My favorite part about being abroad is the accessibility of so many opportunities to go to other countries and try new things,” Quick said.

Anastasia Kitsantas, professor of educational psychology in the College of Education and Human Development at George Mason University, found in a study that study abroad programs impact student’s cross-cultural skills and global understanding. Students agreed that the cultural gains from going abroad were well worth any possible weight gain.

“My favorite part about going abroad was the independence and freedom I gained,” Quisenberry said.

Pepperdine students who shared their struggles with gaining weight abroad said the weight-gain was not their only take-away from their experience.

“My favorite part of being abroad was that I was able to live and develop relationships with people that I never imagined being friends with,” Mattingly said. “But honestly I am closer to those people now than I have ever been to anyone in my life.”

Matkins felt similarly about the relationships he found while abroad.

“The memories that I built with the people who will remain my best friends for the rest of my life are amazing,” Matkins said.

Megan Dunn completed this story in Dr. Christina Littlefield’s fall 2016 Jour 241 Class.