The next year in Belize, I really tried to so better, but there is so much good food down there. I tend to get that, "I'm not going to be able to have this again for another WHOLE YEAR", attitude... I came home 10lbs heavier that year.
This tendency of mine is the reason that I get a panicky feeling everytime I think about our upcoming vacation. On Dec 16 we leave for a MONTH LONG vacation to New Zealand! A MONTH... do you have any idea how much damage a MONTH of eating three meals a day out might cause?!?
My husband's sister lives in Auckland, so we will be staying with her for a week at Christmas. She is not slim and learned to cook from my mother-in-law (translation: loads of butter, cream, whole milk, cheese etc)... and then we will be travelling around the country for three weeks eating in RESTAURANTS!
Luckily - I will have almost three months of maintenance under my belt before I go, so maybe I will be more attuned to exactly how much I can eat. But it will be really hard to count calories and monitor my weight!
Readers might have noticed that I like to make lists, so here is a list of some of the strategies I am going to TRY to use in New Zealand... if you can think of anything else that might help me out, I'm open to suggestions/advice:
1. Keep a food journal. even though I can't count the calories precisely, writing it all down and guestimating calories will help with accountability.
2. Measure portions. I have a portable food scale, I will bring that and use it to measure calorie dense things, (even in restaurants!) who cares what people think!
3. Monitor my weight. I will figure out a way... I will find places to weigh myself, or I will bring a measuring tape and take my measurements once a week, and I will fit into the same clothes on the way home that I wore on the way there!
4. Try to eat like home. In restaurants I will have: no appetizers, no desserts, and no alcohol (with maybe a once or twice a week exception to one of those... just like home). I will keep 2 of my three meals a day meat-less... just like home.
5. Don't go overboard. At home, if I have a splurge, I can recover by going back to my plan the next day. Any splurges on vacation will probably stay with me until I get home. So, I will keep my breakfasts light (cereal, toast, oatmeal)... those things are usually available in coffee shops, and I can't succumb to big egg/bacon breakfasts just because they are there! At dinner, I will order one meal and split it with my 6 year old. If it isn't enough food we can always order MORE after (e.g. a side salad to share). This will also help keep costs down too!
6. Eat healthy. When you are eating out a lot, consumption of fruits and vegetables always seems to be lacking, so I will try not to let this happen (e.g. I will stop at grocery stores for fruit to snack on, and maybe have salads with no dressing for my lunches...)
7. No french fries. Will they really be any better in New Zealand? I doubt it.
8. Excercise. This is the most important. Bring my running shoes and RUN, everyday... it will be a great way to see different cities and the weather will be great! I will also have to try to do some weight training (push ups, sit ups) whenever I can.
Funny, I am most worried about the week in Auckland when we will be house guests. In restaurants I can be picky and order things to my liking. But, I don't want to be an ungrateful/difficult houseguest. What if they serve me whole milk to put on sugary cereal? What if they serve dessert everynight? What if they butter vegetables, and put cream in everything? I won't get my almond milk, or my grapefruit, or my vegetarian sandwiches at lunch :-( I am obviously a creature of habit and routine, and being away from that makes me nervous!
Whenever I mention this "vacation anxiety" to anyone, they respond with something like, "You're on VACATION, you shouldn't worry about it!!"... well that might be OK when your vacation is a weekend, or a week. But when it's a month? Nobody seems to understand...
Sigh - anyway, this post has grown to be way longer than I originally intended. I am sure I will write more about my trip in the coming two months before we leave. Here is my eating yesterday. Again, I was low in calories, but too stuffed to eat anything more... I went for a really easy/slow 5km run (31 minutes).
I think your list sounds great ! print it out and keep it in your purse so you can refer to it now and then maybe ? I am sure you will be fine , especially if you are running daily. I have a vacation planned for next June. I am styaing at a time share condo so I plan on buying stuff to eat breakfast there, and taking a lot of Kashi bars with me to eat while we are out and about. It is scarey, but think of it as a test. Life throws all sorts of curves at you....... learning to navigate your way around them will only help you in maintaining your weight loss for the long haul ! I am so jealous ! New Zealand !!!! Sounds amazing !
ReplyDeleteI like your list too. One that I would add it to take only clothes that fit you like a glove. Your cute skinny jeans, fitted skirts, etc. You will be able to tell really quickly if things are getting out of hand!
ReplyDeleteAt people's homes I had to just learn to say, "No thank you." It was hard though because I didn't want to hurt their feelings. I realized that my weight/health were more important than eating too much of a "good thing!"
You will do great. Three months of maintenance will give you a good head start into this vacation.
I do like your list. I do have trouble on vacations or family gatherings still, but I also know that I can easily return to good habits now and it doesn't spiral into days/weeks of overeating.
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