The first week of school is always crazy, but now that it’s under way, you’re probably trying to figure out what kind of a routine you want to keep going through this semester. It may or may not involve taking a trip or two every week to the gym, but if it doesn’t, here’s five relatively easy ways to stay healthy during the semester without even trying.

1. Stay hydrated.

This is actually more important than I realized. The health benefits of drinking water in itself can’t be stressed enough. Think you’re hungry? Drink more water. Chances are what you’re feeling for hunger is actually dehydration from not drinking enough water. Drinking more water is also a much healthier alternative to coffee or soda. It keeps you just as alert and focused as the caffeine may, minus the headaches that come with too much – or too little – of it. Pro tip: When it comes to drinking water, if peeing is all you’re doing, you might want to cut back. Just take a look at the color of your pee. If it’s so clear that you can’t even tell you’ve peed even though you know you just did, yeah, you’re clearly hydrated. (And, yes, I did just go there).

1. Walk where you are able.

This is probably easier said than done for some. To avoid a guilt-ridden feeling, I’ve been walking more places instead of going to the gym.  One example when it comes to walking, especially when it comes to stairs, is to remember it’s easier to walk downstairs than it is to go upstairs. Such as up one, down two, etc. I do this every morning on my way to my first class even if it’s all the extra exercise I get out of my day. Not to mention with the first few weeks of getting back into gear, those elevators are going to be crazy packed! See? You’re already getting ahead of some people faster.

1. Make and bring your own lunch to school.

This does not mean cheating and getting a small pizza from Domino’s the night before to take with you, as tempting as that may sound. Use some old Tupperware and cook up some chicken or beef to toss into a salad for some extra protein. Especially, if you did end up having to take a class every day of the week, your wallet will eventually thank you. Keep in consideration, some of the school’s food favorites, sushi and noodles (at least $10 each or thereabouts) do add up in one week alone!

1. Remember to keep in touch.

I used to be horrible at studying over the semester. As in almost too good at it that it sometimes ended up being all I did. Turns out that’s actually not as good as it sounds in theory. While we’re good now, one of my friends I’ve been seeing more lately than I used to even told me once that he thought he had “dropped the ball” when I stopped talking to him when in reality that was just how crazy into getting the ‘most’ out of my semester I had gotten at the time. While your friends will hopefully understand if you’re one of the lucky few who do take grades seriously as you should, remember grades are not the be-all and end-all of every semester and that sometimes it’s good to take a break (something to remember before mid-terms start eating you and your brain alive well into finals!) where one can be had.

1. Get ahead. Stay ahead.

Use the extra time you have not in class or at work to do that homework you’re probably putting off while knowing you shouldn’t be. If you get finished early, don’t always take that as a reason to either do nothing or just goof off. If you know what you can do next, do it. That way when you get a surprise cancelled class or something comes up you weren’t expecting (good or bad), you won’t be freaking out realizing that for all that stuff you put off, you have to pull an all-nighter from the moment you get back home.