Travelling to Guatemala without gaining weight
rnasm
Posts: 29 Member
Hi,
This is my first time posting here, but I have been tracking on my fitness pal for three months now. I am posting this for my sister, she is going to Central America next week, mostly to Guatemala, but also thinking about going to Honduras. She will be mostly spending her time with friends and touring.
We have been on a diet for 15 weeks now, calorie counting on MFP and using slim fast products. While she is not exercising enough and her activity levels are very low, she is still doing great sticking with her goal and has not taken any breaks.
For the trip we have agreed that she should take a semi-break during the trip, as calorie counting will be too hard to do while eating out. Also, her activity level while travelling will be much more than her current and she will be wearing a tracker to better know. She agreed though that she should follow some rules.
The rules we have decided till now are as follows:
1) No dessert after meals, only one per day as snack, focus on local foods.
2) No foods (especially snacks) that can be found back home (so she will not take it as an opportunity to binge)
3) Portion control: each meal has a set size (dinner one standard size plate, including appetizers. Breakfast and lunch we are yet to decide)
4) Breakfast: If eating local foods only portion control (not decide on portion) if normal foods eat same as when calorie counting (max 200 cal)
5) No sweet drinks, allowed to experience local drinks once but only half a glass.
6) Alcohol: I am still trying to get calories on their local drinks, but might make less strict rules about it.
Our main concern now are the food choices, especially that I cannot find alot of information on Guatemalan food. We have found a few rules on Mexican Mayan cuisine, as what to aim for, what to eat less of, and what to avoid, but from what I understand it is not that close to Guatemalan food.
I would really appreciate any more ideas on this, either about general tips and rules regarding travel to "exotic" places, or Guatemalan food in particular.
Thank you, I am really looking forward to your replies
Rana
This is my first time posting here, but I have been tracking on my fitness pal for three months now. I am posting this for my sister, she is going to Central America next week, mostly to Guatemala, but also thinking about going to Honduras. She will be mostly spending her time with friends and touring.
We have been on a diet for 15 weeks now, calorie counting on MFP and using slim fast products. While she is not exercising enough and her activity levels are very low, she is still doing great sticking with her goal and has not taken any breaks.
For the trip we have agreed that she should take a semi-break during the trip, as calorie counting will be too hard to do while eating out. Also, her activity level while travelling will be much more than her current and she will be wearing a tracker to better know. She agreed though that she should follow some rules.
The rules we have decided till now are as follows:
1) No dessert after meals, only one per day as snack, focus on local foods.
2) No foods (especially snacks) that can be found back home (so she will not take it as an opportunity to binge)
3) Portion control: each meal has a set size (dinner one standard size plate, including appetizers. Breakfast and lunch we are yet to decide)
4) Breakfast: If eating local foods only portion control (not decide on portion) if normal foods eat same as when calorie counting (max 200 cal)
5) No sweet drinks, allowed to experience local drinks once but only half a glass.
6) Alcohol: I am still trying to get calories on their local drinks, but might make less strict rules about it.
Our main concern now are the food choices, especially that I cannot find alot of information on Guatemalan food. We have found a few rules on Mexican Mayan cuisine, as what to aim for, what to eat less of, and what to avoid, but from what I understand it is not that close to Guatemalan food.
I would really appreciate any more ideas on this, either about general tips and rules regarding travel to "exotic" places, or Guatemalan food in particular.
Thank you, I am really looking forward to your replies
Rana
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Replies
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I'd start by not calling them 'rules'. The word 'allowed' makes the hair on my skin stand up. I feel restricted and like my holiday fun is being suppressed already, and I'm not even going anywhere, but that's personal (and not relevant to your question, I guess).
I get the focus on local food from a certain perspective, but if there are tastier, healthier non-local options, wouldn't it make sense to opt for those?
I think your sister will be most likely to binge if she continually has to say no to everything her friends are enjoying. This is what I experience anyway. So I wouldn't 'forbid' her to have snacks she can find back home too (mind you, this includes all fruits etc.). To me it'd make more sense to aim to stick to three meals a day and two small snacks, one of which being a piece of fruit. Then an 'unhealthy' snack or dessert once a week or so (which makes me realize: how long is she going for? If it's just a week, I wouldn't fret too much).
I think portion control (don't go all out just because it's a buffet), knowing your food (red sauces over white, steamed, baked and grilled over fried, lean meats over high fat etc.) and not drinking too much are your best guidelines when on holiday.
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Those "rules" sound like a drag. A 200 calorie breakfast before a full day of sightseeing? "Allowed" to experience half a glass of a local drink?
How about these rules instead?
1) Enjoy your vacation.
2) Be mindful about how much you are eating and drinking.
3) Taste local foods and drinks with a sense of adventure, not shame and restriction.
4) Be active, exploring the world - walk, bike, hike.
5) Return to regular eating when you return. Weight gained - which is likely to be minimal, if any - will soon be gone.
I'd also consider changing your "diet" to one that is more sustainable for the long-term. I mean, diets are great at losing weight, but when the focus is on restriction and what is "allowed," that makes transitioning from the diet into long-term maintenance pretty difficult. I lost 130 pounds and have been keeping it off for 2.5 years. I never worried about how to continue my diet while on vacation because I wasn't ever on a diet. Instead, I enjoyed myself, enjoyed my vacation, recharged and refreshed, ate things I didn't typically eat, loved my time away, then returned to my normal once I got back. As a result, vacations never set me back long. In fact, the break - mentally and physically - from logging and routine made it much easier to stick with my habits for the long haul.
Just my two cents.
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The "rule" thing is weird.
Look for the vegetables and fruits. Limit fried if you can. Also choose sweets carefully.
If you are near the coast, you will have seafood options.
http://vanessabarrington.com/2009/01/a-tour-of-food-in-guatemala.html0 -
Hi klmw91,"but if there are tastier, healthier non-local options, wouldn't it make sense to opt for those?"
She enjoys latin foods, and exploring foods in general. There is no blanket no against other foods, just that she should follow the existing pattern she has been following. This is just a way of ensuring she does not feel inclined to stick to food she knows than to explore which is the purpose of travel.
That's a good thing to keep in mind"To me it'd make more sense to aim to stick to three meals a day and two small snacks," thanks. 0 -
ShannonMpls
What we are doing now is very sustainable, there are no pure "restrictions"; she eats any food she wants, knows how to make healthy choices, monitor that weekly food distributions are healthy. Her concern now is that the cuisine is very new.ShannonMpls wrote: »"I'd also consider changing your "diet" to one that is more sustainable for the long-term. I mean, diets are great at losing weight, but when the focus is on restriction and what is "allowed,""
Of course that is there! But when we consider travel to be a part of your lifestyle, when you travel atleast one week every 5 weeks, go to a new places once every 2 months, then healthy "rules" should be taken into account.ShannonMpls wrote: »1) Enjoy your vacation.
I understand that a person should look for sustainable, and not to aim to continue losing weight while travelling, but gaining weight especially due to lack of knowledge of local food to make good choices will be depressing.
Thanks again0 -
When I travel I eat whatever I want but in a reasonable quantity and don't count/log. I don't continue to lose, but I've never gained anything but water weight on vacation.0
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That is what we are hoping for, she is not planning on counting/logging, but it is hard to judge what is reasonable with such a new cuisine, and will she should still enjoy the amazing foods on offertonyrocks922 wrote: »When I travel I eat whatever I want but in a reasonable quantity and don't count/log. I don't continue to lose, but I've never gained anything but water weight on vacation.
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It should be fairly easy to find foods that are low calorie and low fat. It should also be easy to find good fruits and vegetables, but be very careful about food safety and cleanliness. Raw green salads are not terribly safe anywhere in Latin America. Only drink pure fruit juices that have not been made with any potentially contaminated water. Avoid ice at all cost.
Unfortunately, those cultures tend to eat a lot of very high-carb foods, so that is a big challenge for those who are sensitive to carbs.
You are likely to get in much more walking than usual, so you may not have to be super careful about what you eat, especially for a relatively short trip.0 -
There aren't any local alcohols in those countries that are worth trying. Mostly you will find beer, rum and aguardiente, all of which are available in some form worldwide.
If you are at a coffee or cacao farm, or are served local/high quality coffee or chocolate, that is something to indulge in. Tropical fruit juices can be amazing too.0 -
azulvioleta6 wrote: »Only drink pure fruit juices that have not been made with any potentially contaminated water. Avoid ice at all cost.
I think this is blown out of proportion. People get travelers' diarrhea from eating differently and they blame it on the water. I haven't been to guatamala specifically but I've drank iced drinks and water all over central america with no ill effects.0 -
I've had cholera...trust me, that's not the way you want to lose weight! In more than a decade of living and traveling in Latin America, the only time I ever got seriously ill was when I drank juice made with water in a slightly-sketchy restaurant.
I'm also a bit iffy on eggs, milk products, and meat in Latin America...if in doubt, make sure that things are thoroughly cooked and served hot.
Seafood can be of surprisingly good quality and freshness even quite far away from the coasts. I lived in Quito for a long time and was really impressed with how great the seafood was up in the mountains.
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tonyrocks922 wrote: »azulvioleta6 wrote: »Only drink pure fruit juices that have not been made with any potentially contaminated water. Avoid ice at all cost.
I think this is blown out of proportion. People get travelers' diarrhea from eating differently and they blame it on the water. I haven't been to guatamala specifically but I've drank iced drinks and water all over central america with no ill effects.
It honestly depends on where I was. If I were in a sketchy area I'd avoid drinking the water and having ice in my drinks at all costs. More local places I wouldn't be as worried. With that said there still is the chance that you can get a contaminated ice cube in a drink.0 -
Going to Guatemala and not wanting to gain weight?
Drink the water.0 -
I went to Guatemala last year. The portions are smaller than American portions, so you have instant calorie control there. Popular breakfasts include beans and eggs with tortillas and some sort of salsa, and lunches and dinners tend to be stew-like: proteins in sauce served with rice and/or tortillas. Pepian is the big local dish - chicken in a tomatillo, pepper, and spice sauce served with rice. Quite healthy. As long as she eats reasonable portions and doesn't eat all the tortillas provided, she'll be fine. Also, I walked ALL FREAKING DAY while we were there, including hiking a volcano. I needed the carbs for energy and tried to keep some fresh fruit with me for a quick snack when I started to wilt.
The local beer is worth trying. Zacapa is the best rum in the world. And if she's in Antigua, there's a wine shop where each glass of wine you buy is cheaper than the previous one.
Also in Antigua: Hector's, which would be a 4-5 star restaurant anywhere else in the world and absolutely must be tried, and a local chocolate shop run by Pablo who's one of the most awesome people on the planet.
Worrying about calories on an active trip just isn't worth it. Eat sensibly, eat enough to fuel your activity, enjoy it.
ETA: If you guys have been at this 15 weeks, you can afford a diet break. Eating around maintenance for the duration of her trip will probably help keep the weight coming off steadily when she gets back home.0 -
Hi i'll add drinking lots of water especially in the evening0
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I travel quite a bit (usually two weeks max) and I don't worry too much. I haven't gained any weight on my last few trips. Basically I stick to drinking lots of water, eating fresh food, being mindful of portion sizes/eating one big meal and two smaller ones, limiting fried food and keeping up physical exercise (whether through activity like hiking or using a hotel gym). I know it's tough to give up control for a little while, but as long as I haven't gained (or gained more than a pound) when I get back, I'm happy. I was in Colombia last year and the portion sizes are huge with around 7 items on the plate but it seems to have been balanced out by all the physical activity. I ate lots of meat, hamburgers, a few desserts and alcohol.0
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Drink the local water and you'll lose weight.0
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If OP's sister has been doing good on her own and losing weight in her current lifestyle and now she's going to a place where more exercise will be implemented into her days then she shouldn't be obligated to stringent rules!
She apparently knows how to choose her foods and by now should be able to eyeball something in regards to inputting into MFP at the very least a rough guesstimate will be better than nothing, especially because she'll be exercising more than she is now (by OP's account).
We each have our own road to travel, Please let your sister enjoy her time there while you stick to your own plans!
How 1 eats in their own familiar surroundings will usually be different when they go out of it, so let her enjoy this time of being with her friends and getting to visit such a wonderful place
Since she will get more exercise in her days and she's well aware of good and not so good choices, allow her the opportunity to experience all the wonders of everything good over there without all these restrictions.
Remember, she's her own person!0 -
OMG, I can bold my entire post? I'm doing that for now on.
Italics too. That's awesome.0 -
azulvioleta6 wrote: »It should be fairly easy to find foods that are low calorie and low fat. It should also be easy to find good fruits and vegetables, but be very careful about food safety and cleanliness. Raw green salads are not terribly safe anywhere in Latin America. Only drink pure fruit juices that have not been made with any potentially contaminated water. Avoid ice at all cost.
Thanks for the heads up
her stomach is quite resilient, but yeah its easy to forget this especially if you are meeting local friends.azulvioleta6 wrote: »Unfortunately, those cultures tend to eat a lot of very high-carb foods, so that is a big challenge for those who are sensitive to carbs.
You are likely to get in much more walking than usual, so you may not have to be super careful about what you eat, especially for a relatively short trip.
True about the carbs! The form they are in its easy to underestimate! There will be a bet of socializing in addition to the touring; she will be wearing a fitness tracker (with incline function, for mountainous areas) she can eat a bit more carb on those days
Thanks 0 -
Thank you for your concern for my sisterPlease let your sister enjoy her time there while you stick to your own plans!
How 1 eats in their own familiar surroundings will usually be different when they go out of it, so let her enjoy this time of being with her friends and getting to visit such a wonderful place 
but its really she requested me to do that for her! I told her its only two weeks and she definitely deserves a break!
According to her she will feel more comfortable having a set of rules in addition to guidelines to help her. Otherwise what she fears might happen is that she will enjoy one meal then feel worried (as its hard to guesstimate something so unknown to you especially in terms of cooking method) and then she will just eat "safe" foods, which she already know their nutritional and calorie info, and miss on experiencing the food.
The restrictions are mostly in terms of portioning and scheduling, not in the foods themselves
As you said each has their own way, and I am only obeying her requests, with the help of the lovely people at MFP
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Thanks! thats something easily forgotten!ttcbelieve wrote: »Hi i'll add drinking lots of water especially in the evening
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She is really worried about gaining a couple of kilos, as her weight loss is now averaging 0.6 a week, so a couple of kgs will take more than three weeks to offsetCheerios0392 wrote: »How long is she going for? If it's only a week or two she probably doesn't need to worry too much and can just work off any holiday weight when she gets home... the weight gain would probably only be a few kilos
I'm going travelling soon but I'm going for a lot longer than a week or two and will be doing a similar thing to what you posted. However, my first step will be going to the supermarket when I land and buying things like protein bars, canned tuna, bread rolls, peanut butter etc and only eating 1 meal out per day.
We did this for two trips awhile back each around two weeks, and we did just that! first thing done was supermarket for snacks, breakfast and lunch; had one meal out where we just ate normally (reasonable choices, standard portion control), shared a dessert, had coffee and biscuits out.
It was okay then as they weren't really vacation trips where we wanted to explore and try new things.
But yeah that is definitely is a good idea when travelling: first thing is to go to a supermarket 0 -
I travel quite a bit (usually two weeks max) and I don't worry too much. I haven't gained any weight on my last few trips. Basically I stick to drinking lots of water, eating fresh food, being mindful of portion sizes/eating one big meal and two smaller ones, limiting fried food and keeping up physical exercise (whether through activity like hiking or using a hotel gym). I know it's tough to give up control for a little while, but as long as I haven't gained (or gained more than a pound) when I get back, I'm happy. I was in Colombia last year and the portion sizes are huge with around 7 items on the plate but it seems to have been balanced out by all the physical activity. I ate lots of meat, hamburgers, a few desserts and alcohol.
That is really good to know thanks! As for fried food, maybe I am not very observant in terms of culinery arts, but I find it really hard to know which foods are fried in latin foods in general!
So really thanks for the tip on fried food! I have underestimated how common it is there I have made her a list, of the common foods she expects there and added their descriptions and whether they are fried on not so she can limit the portions.
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sametonyrocks922 wrote: »When I travel I eat whatever I want but in a reasonable quantity and don't count/log. I don't continue to lose, but I've never gained anything but water weight on vacation.
But generally when I'm travelling I walk way more than I usually do, and maintain or even drop a pound or two. Last year when I was in Cabo San Lucas I was boozing it am to pm and eating what I pleased but walking everywhere and swimming frequently.
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Ahhhhh....Guatemalan cuisine. My mouth waters! Black beans are a staple there. They just won't be in the form you are accustomed to. They aren't refried, they aren't whole, they are more of a thick paste form. I love them. Tortillas--(corn of course) you can get them on every other corner by the cute little ladies making them by hand (5 of those suckers for 1 Q!) Be careful of street meat and fruit vendors. There are those you can trust, but the locals have to tell you which ones. If you like mangos and papayas, you are in for a treat! Plantains, cheesy tacos called "gringas", Pollo Compero, Saritas ice cream, their bakeries, I could go on. My point: indulge in their culture. You guys will do enough walking to work most of it off. It's a BEAUTIFUL country. Enjoy it and don't obsess about MFP while there. Trust me, it will be very tricky to log their cuisine. Be safe-and have fun!0
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This is why I made the statement on not being too restrictive on the "rules" because its not like going on a cruise or to your in-laws where you can get the same foods anywhere.
Have a heart to heart w/ your sister and let her know that her short time there is more precious spent with people that she doesn't get to see every day or anytime she wants. Shes going to be more active there than she's clearly used to, all in all I think everything will balance out.
I think she'll enjoy her time sightseeing, being w/ friends and taking everything in that her food "choices" should not be the center of her attention!
If she thinks or believes something might be higher calorie, she can share or have the rest to go but I think the experience of it all should be her main focus
Of course having her own "go to" snacks will help her stay on track or in moments when they may not have access to a market, street vender or restaurant!0 -
I travel a lot in Central and South America. The only time I have gotten sick was from a Whopper at a Burger King in the Cancun airport on my way home after 3 weeks touring the backlands of Guatemala and southern Mexico visiting seldom visited ruins. My wife loves the Maya villages and people. We stay away from tourist towns as much as possible and travel by bus like the locals. My general rule is to eat where the local businessmen and govt officials eat. Portions in Guatemala are not huge like in the US. The locals are used to eating 1000 calories or less in a day. If you go to tourist locations, you can pig out, but why? Smaller portions do not hold for richer countries like Argentina, Brasil, etc. But in Central America I have never had a problem. Have fun.0
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I hate this rule thing..I restricted myself while on vacation during the holidays and it was easily the dumbest things I could of done because I was so focused on weight loss and not the vacation. Just enjoy yourself out there and if you gain weight, lose it when you get back...it's not like you plan on coming back home and eating horribly (unless your will power is that bad) but based on how long you've been on a diet, you should be fine getting back on track...0
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I agree with what others are saying. I tried establishing rules while travelling to new countries and trying new things, but halfway through I ended up throwing in the towel because I felt too restricted. In the end I would gain numbers on the scale, but most of it would be in water weight. Any real weight I gained would just be lost again after getting back into normal routine.
Plus, I would get exhausted with the constant guessing game of what was in my food and whether or not it was good for me. I ended up turning down options I wanted to try.
I would say enjoy the opportunity to eat these local cuisines as you likely won't have the chance to do it again. As long as you don't go crazy, not too much damage should be done.0
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