Staying on track on vacation

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PositivelyFlawed
PositivelyFlawed Posts: 316 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
We are headed to South Carolina for vacation and although I'm not overly stressed about it. I thought i'd reach out and see what tips and tricks people have for staying in control when away from home.

My hubby and I have already planned health cooler meals/snacks for the drive down to avoid the pull of rest stop fast food.

We also have some beach time, hiking day trips and a zoo visit to keep us moving, but i'd love to hear what others have done to keep things going while on vacation :)

Replies

  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,139 Member
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    My tips..

    Enjoy your vacation and don't worry so much about calorie counting and being accurate. However, I would try to log stuff in as best as you can just so you have an idea as to what you are eating. When I go on vacation my logging is no way close to as accurate as when I am home, but I am fine with that. So log as best as you can, eat whatever you like, and most of all have fun. I also try to mix in a few days of exercise as well, but sometimes the hotel gyms are not what I am used to at my gym, so I cannot workout in my normal fashion …but 45 minutes is better than nothing...

    You can get back on track when you are back from vacation.
  • DrWhoIsYerDad
    DrWhoIsYerDad Posts: 263 Member
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    Vacations are hard for me, eating out is a big part of them
  • greengoddess0123
    greengoddess0123 Posts: 417 Member
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    If it's a car trip, I bring my food scale on vacation, and try my best to log as accurately as possible. Restaurant meals are approximated, of course, unless it's a chain with a website that calculates nutrition and calories, like Subway or Moe's.

    I bring my running shoes, and run early. If it's a beach/pool thing, I do 30 minutes of workout swimming before I play.

    I also set my calories to "maintenance" for that week. It feels like such a treat to be able to eat more than usual, so I can mentally relax about food a bit. I know that as long as I keep below the maintenance calories, I won't gain. Then when I get back home, it's back to the deficit.

    Have fun on your vacation! B)
  • wizzybeth
    wizzybeth Posts: 3,573 Member
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    A lot of people end up either losing a little or maintaining on vacation because they are walking around doing touristy things a lot more than what they'd be doing if they were home.

    I would say have plenty of cold water on hand to drink but enjoy special treats too - it is a vacation after all!

    We are to the beach this year and I *know* and we will be eating out 90% of the time. I have already decided that I am going to have a nice big breakfast at least two days of the 7 we are there, because I really enjoy this one restaurant's French toast. So I will be eating a much lighter lunch and supper those days (plus I'll be riding my bike a LOT! Long Beach Island is a biker's haven!!!!) and the other days I'll just have a lighter breakfast and lunch and have more fun at supper! :)

    Just make sensible choices but don't deprive yourself of something you will really really enjoy - just be "mindful" and that's the most important thing.
  • PositivelyFlawed
    PositivelyFlawed Posts: 316 Member
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    Setting calories to maintenace sounds like a great idea for the mental aspect. I've never been perfect at staying under my calories (but have still lost steadily) but going over always comes with a hefty dose of guilt. Setting to maintence is a great way to get out of my own head so I don't stress on vacation!

    Luckily our push up point is my mother in laws, so we still have the luxury of cooking/eating most of our meals at home or prepping picnic lunches and such. My husband, who is from SC, has already planned restaurant visits to all his fave places that he's missed out since moving to Canada, so there will be some of that ofc!

    My biggest worry is relaxing on vacation but then coming home and not having the same gumption (sp? haha) to get'er going again, which is why I want to try and stay the course as best I can!
  • barbiereynolds701
    barbiereynolds701 Posts: 98 Member
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    I always set my calories to maintenence mode. I also do a week of maintenance every 5-6 weeks. Just gives me a mental break and it's nice to be able to eat a little more even if it's just a week. I still exercise, I still log, I'm still mindful, but I also haven't cut out eating anything I love!
  • Sarasmaintaining
    Sarasmaintaining Posts: 1,027 Member
    edited May 2015
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    When we went on vacation while I was in active weight loss I just upped my calories to maintenance levels and then jotted calories down on a piece of scrap paper in my purse as we ate, to give me an estimate where I was at every day. I actually lost a pound still :)
  • PositivelyFlawed
    PositivelyFlawed Posts: 316 Member
    edited June 2015
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    So I went. I enjoyed and now (predictably) I'm struggling to get back on track. The first half of vacation was good. I didn't always log, but I made healthful choices and was quite active. Then, as we got closer to the end of vacation and a BBQ for my daughters Bday and Memorial Day Weekend in the states it all went to heck. Came home to a 2lb gain on the scale (can't be certain it was a gain since I didn't log really), but I told myself it was water, so I fought all week to get back on track and failed repeatedly, then the weekend happened and now here I am 5lbs heavier than 3 days before vacation.

    I could just scream and it's no ones fault other than my own. So here I am week 2 post vacation, trying to hop back on the wagon! It's like i oought to have not even bothered posting this tread for advice since I am a self-fulfilling prophecy.

    This is mostly a vent, but I am happy to hear any advice,even if it is harsh.
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,268 Member
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    my last vacation I came back 5lbs heavier on the scale...took all of 3 weeks for it to be gone.

    Enjoy your vacation...don't worry about staying on track and losing...just log like you normally do....with the phone app if you want/can.

    When I vacation I can't log as I have no internet access typically and I have no idea what I am eating or how much as no food scale...but it's the lack of access that gets me.

    Would I log if I could...probably but it would be loose logging.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,139 Member
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    I would suggest drinking a lot of water to flush out excess sodium/water retention, that should result in about a two to three pound water weight loss.

    Look at this way, do you really think you over consumed 17,500 calorie in two weeks? That would be about 1250 per day over maintenance.

  • Bshmerlie
    Bshmerlie Posts: 1,026 Member
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    I just got back from a long weekend vacation. I tried to eat at maintenance but still gained a pound so obviously didn't track it well enough maybe because I didn't have a scale. But also since I was eating out I noticed that my sodium intake was through the roof. So maybe that pound I gained was just water weight. One day I had a 1000 calorie burrito for a late lunch and I didn't feel the need to eat again for the rest of the day so I actually stayed within my calorie goal or maybe not because I did have to guess on how many calories the burrito was.
  • geministyle
    geministyle Posts: 30 Member
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    ellivort,

    It's possible that you might be seeing a "delayed reaction" on the scale. I came home from Maui after a week of eating whatever I wanted and weighed myself - zero change. After being "strict" for a few days I hopped on the scale again and was 3 pounds up. WTF!!!

    I'm just now starting to peel off those 3 pounds, and I was already 20 pounds overweight, so I get your frustration.

    I do think things might have been even worse had I not worked out every day on vacation. I found a gym that offered a week's membership, and it was actually kind of fun working on in a new environment. This is something that I'll continue to do in the future - look for new gyms, dance classes, etc.
  • aarar
    aarar Posts: 684 Member
    edited June 2015
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    In my nearly 1000 days of using MFP (100lbs lost and have been maintaining for nearly 2 years), I've done a cruise, Vegas, a couple of Europe trips, a couple of all inclusive resorts and Disneyland. My best advice is to continue to log every single day to the best of your abilities (obviously some days the food will just be guesses). The idea isn't 100% accuracy or to deprive yourself while on holidays, it's to keep the consistency of logging so that it's easier to get back on track when you return.

    Also try to make at least 1 good eating decision every day. If you're going to be eating a big dinner, eat a lighter and healthier breakfast. If you're going to a buffet and would normally go back for thirds, stop after you've gone seconds instead.

    Enjoy and don't stress out! When I travel I'm over on my calories just about every day. Way over. Like 3000-4000 calories per day type of over. It is what it is. A holiday is a very short period of overeating in the grand scheme of things.
  • BigLifter10
    BigLifter10 Posts: 1,151 Member
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    I agree with most of what has been said (and I didn't read all of it)...but the thing I find the most helpful for myself.....I bring my smaller George Foreman grill and my magic bullet. I even pre-make chicken while at the hotel (or wherever) for meals on the go. Last trip I only ate out twice in one week. I came home two pounds lighter and saved lots of $$ by not eating out. I used to be a restaurant junkie - esp on vacation.....so by bringing those items along to use....BIG help. Took some thinking the first time, but I have it down now (including the shopping list). What a difference!
  • shmulyeng
    shmulyeng Posts: 472 Member
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    ndj1979 wrote: »
    My tips..

    Enjoy your vacation and don't worry so much about calorie counting and being accurate. However, I would try to log stuff in as best as you can just so you have an idea as to what you are eating. When I go on vacation my logging is no way close to as accurate as when I am home, but I am fine with that. So log as best as you can, eat whatever you like, and most of all have fun. I also try to mix in a few days of exercise as well, but sometimes the hotel gyms are not what I am used to at my gym, so I cannot workout in my normal fashion …but 45 minutes is better than nothing...

    You can get back on track when you are back from vacation.

    This is my approach exactly.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    make reasonably good nutritional decisions and be active. I've never had a problem maintaining my weight on vacation...I don't think I would try dieting for weightloss on vacation, but I've never had any problems maintaining. I generally way more active on vacation than I usually am at home...my maintenance generally is around 3000 calories and it's even higher when I'm on vacation with all of the moving I do.
  • Angiefit4life
    Angiefit4life Posts: 210 Member
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    Thanks for all the tips. I am 1 pound from my goal and a bit worried about the end of the month! We're going home for a few weeks (vacation for us- the joy of the military life)
    Going to try to drop an extra pound (2 total )
    I am going to do my best but enjoy family and lots of Cuban food!

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