How Do You Stay On Track For Summer??

CatWhispererrrr

Just wondering how everyone keeps on track for summer! I have already run into so many challenges with BBQ's, drinking alcohol, dinners on the patios, concerts, vacation time ect. Logging seems like a hassle, and fun through eating and drinking seems much more appealing!! Looking for tips!

missiontofitness

Just wondering how everyone keeps on track for summer! I have already run into so many challenges with BBQ's, drinking alcohol, dinners on the patios, concerts, vacation time ect. Logging seems like a hassle, and fun through eating and drinking seems much more appealing!! Looking for tips!

Logging is essential to stay on track. I pre-plan my bbq's/drinking ahead of time, and try to fit everything into my macros, or exercise more so I can eat more. Prelogging helps me make better decisions when I'm actually there, even if I'm only guesstimating the foods that will be present.

sugarlemonpie

I agree with above, I log absolutely everything! Sometimes it can be a bit tough, but at the end of the day I know exactly what I am eating and what results to expect with my fitness and calorie deficits.

Other than that, just make healthier choices. Have the grilled corn on the cob instead of potato salad. Eat your burger without a bun. Load up on any veggies! Go without cheese. Just make good substitutions and don't listen if someone is trying to get you to eat something or questioning why you're eating what you are. Think of every meal as fuel for your body, not just something that tastes good momentarily. It's gonna stay in your body way longer than it did in your mouth!

Hope that helps!

emilyx3

This will be my first summer on MFP but personally summer time for me is the easiest to eat healthy. I never want to eat too much since its hot out and have learned simple healthy options. For BBQ's: Chicken Kabobs and Bunless Burgers (sometimes I get sandwhich thins or the whole wheat pita from trader joes! or even make burger lettuce wraps) Also, grilled veggies is probably the best thing to have ever happened to me! Also lots and lots of salad. For drinks I love Vodka Club and to make it a little fun make ice cubes with fruit and juice frozen within them.

JesterMFP

There are the odd occasions that I don't track - Christmas Day for example, or when I'm away on holiday, or just can't track for some reason. Special occasions. The thing is though, summer isn't an occasion, it lasts for months. It's part of life. In fact, a quarter of your life happens in summer. There are lots of times that logging seems like a hassle, regardless of the time of year, but it's still important. It still works and (unless you are able to maintain your weight without logging, in which case, go for it) if you stop just because it doesn't seem like a fun thing to do in summer, you will end up regretting it. The odd day here or there where you go over your goal isn't going to matter in the long run, but don't see it as an excuse for a three month free-for-all. If it's truly a permanent lifestyle change, it should be something you can work with at all times of the year.

Enjoy your barbecues, keep logging as much as you can (it can definitely be more difficult when you're eating things other people have cooked etc) and keep an eye on your weight. When you're making your own food, try and stick to the same routines you have the rest of the year. Take advantage of the warmer weather and lighter days to be active outside. Maybe you'll end up gaining a pound or two over the season, but if you keep an eye on your weight, and don't give up logging altogether, you can probably limit the amount of damage done, even if it feels a bit more challenging/stressful at the time.

Oh, and just one little tip that I do - if I'm at a barbecue, I try to stick to eating mostly protein and salad/vegetables. I by no means eat low carb or low fat in general, but I know that the calories are likely to sneak in with burger buns and potato salad and coleslaw and cheese etc, and if I'm not in a position to weigh/measure stuff, it's better to limit those things for the duration of the event in question.

CatWhispererrrr

These are all great suggestions!! My schedule changes a lot in the summer time, which gives me lots of time to workout and be active which is great. I just find it really hard to be as diligent with eating. BBQ is great, and I can generally make better choices than I did last summer (like bunless burgers, more veggies ect) but I'm not really willing to not have a good time with friends and family! I don't ever pre-log so maybe I can give that a try! I have to say summer is excellent for fresh and healthy food options -- but lets be real - drinking increases a lot!

missiontofitness

These are all great suggestions!! My schedule changes a lot in the summer time, which gives me lots of time to workout and be active which is great. I just find it really hard to be as diligent with eating. BBQ is great, and I can generally make better choices than I did last summer (like bunless burgers, more veggies ect) but I'm not really willing to not have a good time with friends and family! I don't ever pre-log so maybe I can give that a try! I have to say summer is excellent for fresh and healthy food options -- but lets be real - drinking increases a lot!

That it does! That's why I like exercising too. For my birthday dinner, I accrued a slight deficit each day the week of to have an extra calorie allowance, and also burned an 300 calories the day of so I knew I could go a little more lax than usual. Prelogging is also awesome, since it gives you a general idea of balancing food with alcohol, so you can have a good time and still follow your goals!

cwolfman13

Maybe look at your diet, fitness, nutrition, etc at the macro level rather than the micro level...

ETA: when proper diet (noun) and fitness are just a part of your overall lifestyle, this kind of stuff tends to be a non issue....going to a Saturday evening BBQ (as I'm getting ready to do) does not somehow magically undo all of my awesome nutrition during the week or the 80 miles I've ridden this week or the weights I've lifted this week. I'm going to cut lose and enjoy every second. And by the by, I've been easily lost weight and have easily maintained weight now for over a year with exactly the above perspective on all of this.

stephe1987

Portion control. Eat what you like, just less of it. Don't forget to log food and drink. Keep your diet at 80/20 so you don't deprive yourself and you don't overdo it.

bwogilvie

I have to say summer is excellent for fresh and healthy food options -- but lets be real - drinking increases a lot!

Well, you can always go to this site: http://getdrunknotfat.com. There you'll find out that spirits, especially those like vodka, gin, tequila, and others without much sugar are the lowest calorie drinks. A gin and tonic with diet tonic water is about 100 calories (1.5 oz. gin), whereas a 12-oz craft beer is 150-200 calories depending on exactly what is in it.

However, it's probably better to go for lower-alcohol drinks if you want to have more than one or two drinks. A Bloody Mary with half as much vodka as usual still tastes more or less the same, but it has many fewer calories. For that matter, if you mix it yourself no one would know if you left out the booze entirely.

CatWhispererrrr

80/20 is a good rule of thumb, but it's tough to not go over that! I try and stick with my macros as closely as possible, but i find that very difficult sometimes. Alcohol doesn't exactly fit into that equation.

http://getdrunknotfat.com/ this site is great!! I generally never drink beer, but I am sucker for whisky and diet coke! Or a glass of red wine! I guess the trick will be to make sure it all fits into my calories, and to not cheat on the logging!! I dont want to derail my efforts, but I also don't want to miss out on fun!