Getting WAY off track on vacation!

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Jubee13
Jubee13 Posts: 132 Member
in Goal: Maintaining Weight
So here is my story. About 20 years ago, I lost 50 pounds and have maintained that loss (more or less). However, the past few years I've gained and lost the same 10 pounds over...and over...and over. It's always the same situation. I go along just fine until we go on vacation. I determine I'm going to indulge in moderation, then get right back to tracking as soon as we get home. This works for the first few days, then somewhere along the line I decide to throw caution to the wind, and just make a new start when the vacation is over. This would be ok, but I can't get back on track after I get back home and always always always gain back those ten pounds. Then I lose them for the thousandth time. I REALLY want to not let this happen. Does anyone else have this same struggle? Any advice on how not to do this? I always think I have my mind made up it's not going to happen but it always does.
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Replies

  • mygrl4meee
    mygrl4meee Posts: 943 Member
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    How fast do you lose the ten pounds? Could a portion of the 10 be water weight?
  • jensocha
    jensocha Posts: 1 Member
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    Same issue here vacations ruin it every time ! its seems to be that once you let your guard down it all goes wrong. I am on vacation now and started to cheat, but I am going to try hard to stop. I am going to indulge in the atmosphere and entertainment not the food and liquor! Best luck to you it's not easy !
  • foreverslim1111
    foreverslim1111 Posts: 2,619 Member
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    I had a similar pattern with cruises. On one I gained back 8 lbs and my clothes were tight at the end of the cruise. So now, on cruises my policy is no morning pastries, no rolls and no deserts. These are foods that I normally don't eat at home anyway. Also I don't add sugar or butter to any drink or meal. Also I don't clean my plate but try to eat slow by putting down the fork, sipping water between bites and I stop eating when I'm pleasantly full.

    I also set my self a goal of walking at least 3 miles (wearing my ped.), taking the stairs not the elevator and getting in at least 2 gym workouts in per week.

    There has been no weight gain on my last 3 cruises, and I still managed to have a great time.
  • suruda
    suruda Posts: 1,233 Member
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    I've gone on vacation twice since starting on MFP this round...both times, I have tried to find a happy medium. To me, that means being more active than typical, making better choices when I am able and not denying a splurge when I want. Both vacation's showed a gain but both came off the first week. If it goes on that quickly, it tends to come off quickly...IF you get right back on track!
  • brenn24179
    brenn24179 Posts: 2,144 Member
    edited April 2015
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    holidays and vacations are hard on me. I always gain weight. Congrats on keeping all that weight off for 20 years. You are an inspiration. I can see it is always going to be hard keeping it off. I have had mine off for 4 years but like you I have my struggle times. I guess we get food we don't normally have and go a little crazy. At least you do get it off, I hope I can do as well. It might help to have friends on here, the support is wonderful
  • Jubee13
    Jubee13 Posts: 132 Member
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    mygrl4meee wrote: »
    How fast do you lose the ten pounds? Could a portion of the 10 be water weight?

    Yes, for sure, because I lost four pounds the first week, and I am pretty small. The rest was fat weight because my clothes were very tight. When you are short and have a small frame you feel every pound!
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    thats good effort to put on 10lbs!! the most i have gained is 5 after a week of all inclusive.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    You're not alone. I was losing weight perfectly until my vacation last July (visited family, stayed at a hotel, ate every meal out). I tried to limit the damage but ended up gaining 4 pounds... I lost 2 very fast but I still haven't managed to go back to my lowest weight. It's like a switch turned on and I just got so hungry all the time and it got really hard to stick to my goal when I came back. Finally found my groove back a month ago, and I'm dreading my next vacations in July.
  • MamaJ1974
    MamaJ1974 Posts: 443 Member
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    I guess you have to stop going on vacation...
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    In my opinion it's not the gaining weight on vacation you should focus on - it's whatever is stopping you getting back on track afterwards. No point focussing on maybe 4 weeks out of the year, it's the other 48 you need to worry more about.

    I tend to gain at the rate of 1lb a day on vacation. About half is temporary bloating which goes very quickly. The other half I nibble away over a few weeks.

    My choice would always to enjoy the time away (including food and drink) and accept temporary weight gain plus the inevitable cut when I get back home.
  • CrabNebula
    CrabNebula Posts: 1,119 Member
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    I went away on a cruise, ate and drank like it was a Bacchanalia, came back 8lbs heavier and within a week was -1 from where I started the day before I left for the cruise. I immediately went right back to doing what I did before I left for the cruise. Never questioned it, just did it. I was so upset about the 8lb gain (regardless of what it actually was) that there was no way I was doing anything but going back to 1200-1500 a day. I think I was more motivated to lose weight after the cruise than I was before I went on it!

    I think what really helps on a cruise is never using the elevator. I vowed not to use it and I don't think I had ever climbed up and down more stairs in my life in the span of a week. I also refused to eat or drink anything that sucked. If I didn't like it, I left it. That meant I didn't really eat that much from the buffet. In the MDH/specialty restaurants, I made it a point not to eat more than 2/3 of any dish. There was also a gym on board. I didn't use it then, but I definitely would use it next cruise around. My excursions were pretty active. Hiking, adventure, and walking city tours.

    I have a vacation to Hawai'i in November. I am thinking about all the cool things I can do like snorkling, kayaking, swimming, hiking, playing with lava, seeing the historical sites. Food factors very little into it. I think we have planned to go to a luau one day of the trip, but otherwise, just planning on picking up some stuff at Costco and cooking out of the condo. I think that is something that has really changed about my mindset. Before, I would have been focused on what I could eat and drink on vacation and then second priority all the things I could do. Now it is the opposite.
  • Serah87
    Serah87 Posts: 5,481 Member
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    I'm getting ready to go on a cruise here in a few weeks, I'm not going worry about it. Why??....because we don't do a lot of vacations, so I'm not worried about any weight gained, 2 years ago we went on a cruise, I gained 7 pounds it all came off a few days later, plus I plan on doing a lot of walking, too. Vacations, etc, are part of life, including the food with it, I still to some degree watch what I eat, but if they have the melting cake or what ever it's called, after dinner desert I will be having that every night!! ;)
  • Jubee13
    Jubee13 Posts: 132 Member
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    TavistockToad wrote: »
    thats good effort to put on 10lbs!! the most i have gained is 5 after a week of all inclusive.

    I didn't gain 10 pounds on vacation!! The few pounds gained on vacation isn't the problem. I can't seem to get back on track AFTER the vacation. That's where the REAL weight gain comes in!
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    edited April 2015
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    foreverslim1111 wrote: »
    I had a similar pattern with cruises. On one I gained back 8 lbs and my clothes were tight at the end of the cruise. So now, on cruises my policy is no morning pastries, no rolls and no deserts. These are foods that I normally don't eat at home anyway. Also I don't add sugar or butter to any drink or meal. Also I don't clean my plate but try to eat slow by putting down the fork, sipping water between bites and I stop eating when I'm pleasantly full.

    I also set my self a goal of walking at least 3 miles (wearing my ped.), taking the stairs not the elevator and getting in at least 2 gym workouts in per week.

    There has been no weight gain on my last 3 cruises, and I still managed to have a great time.

    ^^ this ....as it could be my reply too :smile: (except I aim for minimum of 6 miles a day)
  • kdiamond
    kdiamond Posts: 3,329 Member
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    I diet down 2 weeks before vacation and 2 weeks after, then I'm back to normal - nothing too extreme, just a 500 calorie deficit per day from my maintenance calories. It works every time.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    kdiamond wrote: »
    I diet down 2 weeks before vacation and 2 weeks after, then I'm back to normal - nothing too extreme, just a 500 calorie deficit per day from my maintenance calories. It works every time.

    It's my plan too. Eat at a deficit 2 weeks before and after. I WISH I could not think about food when I go on vacations but sadly food is always on my mind.
  • julsfergus
    julsfergus Posts: 3 Member
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    Keep tracking, even when you're bad. It helps.
  • PegMoffat
    PegMoffat Posts: 24 Member
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    Trying different food and drink while on vacation is all part of the experience. It is a shame to spoil that part of the experience by worrying about everything we put in our mouths. I am convinced that most of the weight I put on while on vacation is due to increased intake of sodium. We make most of our meals, from scratch, at home which means we are able to control what goes into them, something we can't do with meals we eat out. I find that if I can get back to my normal eating habits when I get home, the weight generally comes off within the first week.
  • Jubee13
    Jubee13 Posts: 132 Member
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    kdiamond wrote: »
    I diet down 2 weeks before vacation and 2 weeks after, then I'm back to normal - nothing too extreme, just a 500 calorie deficit per day from my maintenance calories. It works every time.

    This is a great idea! I'm going to try this!
  • foreverslim1111
    foreverslim1111 Posts: 2,619 Member
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    PegMoffat wrote: »
    Trying different food and drink while on vacation is all part of the experience. It is a shame to spoil that part of the experience by worrying about everything we put in our mouths. I am convinced that most of the weight I put on while on vacation is due to increased intake of sodium. We make most of our meals, from scratch, at home which means we are able to control what goes into them, something we can't do with meals we eat out. I find that if I can get back to my normal eating habits when I get home, the weight generally comes off within the first week.

    I didn't feel that it spoiled the food part of my cruise at all. And I did try many new foods. What really used to spoil it for me was gaining 8 lbs at the end. So, now when I cruise I really have fun and don't stress about food or weight gain at the end. But we are all different and I'm glad you've found a way that works for you.

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