Dieting on Vacation?

Hey guys!

I'm pretty new here, I just started two days ago, although I've been on a weight loss plan for about three weeks. I've lost five pounds in that amount of time, before I cam here. That being said, my mom and I are taking our annual, week-long trip to Disney World next week, and while I'm super excited (who wouldn't be?), I'm also really nervous that I'm going to ruin my weight loss program.

We try to eat sensibly while we're there. We usually have a breakfast bar for breakfast, a couple scoops of ice cream for lunch (a habit I may break this year), and then a grilled chicken wrap at our favorite quick-service food place for dinner. We're also walking pretty much constantly, so I know I'll be getting good exercise.

Should I allow myself to splurge a little while Im on vacation? Do you track calories when you go on vacation, or do you just try to eat sensibly? We don't snack in between meals, and we aren't going for greasy foods. Would you guys cut out the ice cream, no matter how "traditional" it is?

What do you think?
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Replies

  • tonyrocks922
    tonyrocks922 Posts: 172 Member
    Hey guys!

    I'm pretty new here, I just started two days ago, although I've been on a weight loss plan for about three weeks. I've lost five pounds in that amount of time, before I cam here. That being said, my mom and I are taking our annual, week-long trip to Disney World next week, and while I'm super excited (who wouldn't be?), I'm also really nervous that I'm going to ruin my weight loss program.

    We try to eat sensibly while we're there. We usually have a breakfast bar for breakfast, a couple scoops of ice cream for lunch (a habit I may break this year), and then a grilled chicken wrap at our favorite quick-service food place for dinner. We're also walking pretty much constantly, so I know I'll be getting good exercise.

    Should I allow myself to splurge a little while Im on vacation? Do you track calories when you go on vacation, or do you just try to eat sensibly? We don't snack in between meals, and we aren't going for greasy foods. Would you guys cut out the ice cream, no matter how "traditional" it is?

    What do you think?

    On vacation I tend to track calories, but not macros. Your plan doesn't sound like you'll be eating excessively.
  • chels0722
    chels0722 Posts: 465 Member
    I think you should go and enjoy yourself! Obsessing over food can ruin a perfectly good trip. Just watch your portions and don't eat when you aren't hungry :) logging is up to you.

    If I were on vacation, I would log in every day just to keep my day tracker up, but I probably would not log my food because I wouldn't want to spend the time on it.
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  • freelancejouster
    freelancejouster Posts: 478 Member
    Definitely log what you eat and try and stay right around maintenance if you can, but don't worry too much and enjoy your vacation!
  • EmmaKarney
    EmmaKarney Posts: 690 Member
    Maybe track calories but go up to your maintenance level so you allow yourself a bit more.
  • carrieous
    carrieous Posts: 1,024 Member
    i dont diet while on vacation but i do workout because it makes me feel good. Not watching what i eat and also not working out would make me feel horrible at the end of my vacation. So to avoid that i try to at least get in a few good runs. Hotels usually have a fitness center of some sort which i always try to take advantage of:)
  • tricksee
    tricksee Posts: 835 Member
    If I'm on vacation, I go all out and don't worry about it until I get back. Once I'm back it's 'balls to the walls' time and kick back into shape ASAP!! no messing about. Total dedication.

    if you can do that. Then let yourself go, but know it's only for one week and once you return, you'll have work to do!!

    If you're not like that though, I guess you could just eat healthy every other day and eat what you like in between!! That way is win-win.
  • ottermotorcycle
    ottermotorcycle Posts: 654 Member
    I went to Disney while on a diet as well.
    What I found was that I was spending SO much time walking around that I could eat basically anything and I didn't really lose weight. A lot of the time I got really irritable because I was trying too hard to stay in my calorie goals. Log your walking and you'll have plenty of wiggle room for ice cream. Or don't log. I really doubt you'll gain weight.
    Disney is also chock-full of fresh fruit stands and such. You said you don't often snack throughout the day but seriously consider buying some fruit.

    I'm going to Canada soon on vacation... I'm not going to mind what I eat. I'm probably going to subsist on poutine, maple syrup and beer. A vacation is a vacation!
  • purplelizzard
    purplelizzard Posts: 93 Member
    I wouldn't worry too much about logging, unless you want to, but just make sure you are watching your portion sizes. Have fun! :)
  • lisagyo
    lisagyo Posts: 20 Member
    When we go to Disney we usually get the dining plan - I let the diet go while I'm there. Just enjoy your time there and the food and you can get back on track when you get home! I gained 7 pounds back while we were there in August, just jumped right back into my diet and exercise routine and it came off in about a week.
  • JoanB5
    JoanB5 Posts: 610 Member
    I totally agree...the trip costs too much to be grumpy. I kept some hand-eatable snacks in a fanny pack like starbursts or skittles so my blood sugar would't drop too much between expensive meals. One of us carry a fanny pack with a water bottle on it to keep from getting dehydrated. The rush of all the rides and such can really wear you out. Have fun!
  • Thanks for all the advice, guys!

    I'll definitely log my walks, and I'll see if I can't do some research on portion sizes and calories of planned meals before I go. I just dread coming back from a week and finding all my hard work thus far gone down the drain! It sounds like maybe I was worrying a bit too much :)
  • Lisah8969
    Lisah8969 Posts: 1,247 Member
    I've been to WDW 5 times in the last year since I started on MFP. I still track my food while I am there. I also bring my gear so I can run while I am there in addition to the official Disney races that I do while there. I don't limit what I can eat (oooohhh those cupcakes at Starring Rolls at Disney Hollywook Studios I will never totally skip those!), but I do find that I am not as eager to clean everything off my plate as I once was. So go and enjoy! But DO NOT step on the scale as soon as you get home if you aren't prepared for the increase. It will be mostly water weight gain from eating out all the time, but the number can at times be scary.

    And the ice cream....are you talking about a Dole Whip? I don't pass that up on a trip to The World either! LOL!
  • dearladydisdain
    dearladydisdain Posts: 7 Member
    I don't worry about dieting on vacations. It's not going to destroy your progress, I promise!

    Also, I eat SO much more than what you described when on vacation lol. That's about one meal for me.
  • kaybelieve
    kaybelieve Posts: 118
    I'm going away myself to Magaluf on a girls holiday in 129 days, and for me the alcohol is going to take up my daily allowance so I think whilst I'm on holiday I'm just going to go for it.
    Not stupidly on food, where that's concerned I'll have small portions and just be as good as I can with that but I'm not going to restrict myself to 3 glasses of sex on the beach a night to fit in with my calories.
    I rule the calories, the calories don't rule me.

    Have a brilliant time at Disney and don't let this get you down, even if you do gain a few pounds you will get it off again! x
  • NatzC123
    NatzC123 Posts: 150 Member
    don't worry about it! enjoy your trip and just return to normal after it! and what you described food wise doesn't sound like you will be splurging all too much anyway!! enjoy yourself :smile: and i am so jealous by the way that you are going to Disney!! :love:
  • lildee55
    lildee55 Posts: 28 Member
    I went to Disney while on a diet as well.
    What I found was that I was spending SO much time walking around that I could eat basically anything and I didn't really lose weight. A lot of the time I got really irritable because I was trying too hard to stay in my calorie goals. Log your walking and you'll have plenty of wiggle room for ice cream. Or don't log. I really doubt you'll gain weight.
    Disney is also chock-full of fresh fruit stands and such. You said you don't often snack throughout the day but seriously consider buying some fruit.

    I'm going to Canada soon on vacation... I'm not going to mind what I eat. I'm probably going to subsist on poutine, maple syrup and beer. A vacation is a vacation!


    ^ This... You never stop at disney....
  • Rose_bee
    Rose_bee Posts: 226 Member
    I'd go from a lunch of two scoops of ice cream, to something high-protein (sandwich or something) and a single small kids scoop of ice cream. :)
  • melsmith612
    melsmith612 Posts: 727 Member
    I've heard before that the average person walks ~16 miles/day while at Disney World. I wouldn't worry too much about what you're eating at meals if you plan on walking all day around the parks and not snacking in between. It sounds like you've got this covered, ice cream lunch & all!
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I would not break the tradition. Your post doesn't sound like you typically overeat on vacation anyway, especially when you consider all the extra walking. I wouldn't worry about it.
  • And the ice cream....are you talking about a Dole Whip? I don't pass that up on a trip to The World either! LOL!

    I'm absolutely talking about those dole whips. My mom doesn't like them (she prefers getting a chocolate chip ice cream cone on Mainstreet) but I loovvee them.
  • a_mandolin_
    a_mandolin_ Posts: 336 Member
    Enjoy yourself and make healthy choices with some treats (after all, isn't that what you'll be doing the rest of your life :tongue: ) I just got back from Disney. I tried to be conscious of healthy eating, but still managed to stuff myself (how can you pass by one of the confectionaries and not get one of those giant cookies or pecan carmel rolls?) Yet, we averaged 7-8 miles of walking a day and I lost about half a pound in the week anyways! Disney is good that way, forces you into lots of exercise :wink:
  • 2013sk
    2013sk Posts: 1,318 Member
    Oh no I dont diet on holiday............!!! Before maybe.... Enjoy yourself and have fun....Lifes too short to be counting calories all the time!!!
  • rjmudlax13
    rjmudlax13 Posts: 900 Member
    I'm going on a cruise next week. I definitely plan on spluging! Although, it will be a controlled splurge. I'm basically going to set MFP to my maintenance calories (or TDEE not - 20). This way I can eat the maximum amount of calories without worry about gaining too much weight. I plan on doing some light workouts like a 15 min jog in the morning. The key is to not obsess when you are on vacation. If you go a little overboard, who cares? If you gain a couple pounds, who cares? It's vacation! Enjoy yourself. You're not going to all of a sudden gain 30 lbs in a week. Just don't bring any bad habits back.
  • MissKitty9
    MissKitty9 Posts: 224 Member
    I wouldn't stress about logging---you're on vacation! You're already in a healthy mindset, so you'll most likely eat reasonably & won't get too far off track, anyway.
  • Warchortle
    Warchortle Posts: 2,197 Member
    There is a gym on board.. you can indulge a bit, but you know don't forget to work out.

    I will say biking while a boat rocks up and down is an odd sensation. It feels like you're biking on hills.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    NO...it's vacation. I don't count calories on vacation. I find vacations and the like to be good practice for real life...the one I will lead when I get to maintenance...intuitive consumption and portion control. I've been doing this long enough to know what a portion of something looks like and what my daily caloric intake looks like. Sometimes you just have to take the safety net away and practice real world eating.

    To boot, when I'm on vacation, I'm generally a lot more active than I am day to day at home. I'm pretty much always out and about walking around...doing some activity, etc. Whereas at home, I'm pretty sedentary outside of my exercise and a little yard work and house work. A few years ago, my wife and I went to Belize for a couple of weeks. I didn't at all watch what I was eating and drank like a fish...I lost 5 Lbs in those two weeks. I think largely because we walked pretty much everywhere and I was scuba diving and snorkeling daily and we were out dancing in the evenings. Plus...eating a lot of fish and fresh fruit...so probably less calories in general than I would consume at home on average back then.
  • KimJohnsonsmile
    KimJohnsonsmile Posts: 222 Member
    I leave tomorrow for Jamaica for 5 days. Yippee! My first vacation with my hubby since our honeymoon 12 years ago (first vacation w/out our kiddos, I mean). I've been doing MFP for about a year, and have been busting my butt even harder for 3 months to get in "bathing suit" shape for this trip. I plan to splurge and enjoy myself and not worry. I've learned over the past 12 months that I can't stuff myself w/out feeling sick afterwards. Futhermore, after 12 months of clean eating, most rich foods and fried foods now make me sick, and I don't want to spend all my time in the bathroom if you know what I mean. BUT, I've paid too much for this trip to look back and wish I'd just let loose and enjoyed myself. I will eat what I want, within reason, and enjoy some yummy desserts that I don't eat in my regular life now. I look forward to 5 days of not tracking my food, to be truthful.

    So, although I think perhaps choosing ice cream as your main course for lunch may be a little over the top, I say enjoy yourself - within reason - and then hit it hard when you get back. HAVE FUN!
  • EAPTX
    EAPTX Posts: 42 Member
    Vacations tend to derail me. Since I am fortunate to be at a point in my life where I take five or six nice trips a year, that really matters if I let it derail me. So I've started looking at vacations as an opportunity to get lots more exercise, and walking at WDW would definitely fit that. I also find that if I stick to my plan and come through a vacation, holidays, or special event feeling virtuous, I am reenergized and motivated to keep going. After all, it is not as if I'm trying to just lose weight and then gain it back. I'm shooting for a total lifestyle makeover here, which includes severely limiting pigging out, or at least redefining it!

    But it is important that I keep it in perspective and forgive myself if I go over - and do the math. Like, it would be mathematically improbable to have gained so much real weight!
  • domgirl85
    domgirl85 Posts: 295 Member
    Yay for Disney World! I went 2 weeks ago! I wouldn't worry TOO MUCH while on vacation. I found this post before I went http://www.disneyfoodblog.com/healthy-eating-in-disney-world/.

    Also, I went with my mom. We did a lot of meal sharing since most of the meals are huge anyway. We'd get one and maybe some extra vegetables on the side and share everything. That helped us save money, not overeat (and stuff ourselves), and we still got to enjoy food that wasn't particularly healthy. Also, I got water with every meal. I drink water a lot anyway so the hardest part was drinking less so I wouldn't have to keep running to the bathroom.

    Have fun!!!!!