Vacation dieting?? How do you do it?

I'm facing this problem as i'm going on holidays on Wednesday. I've just made up my decision that I will enjoy my holiday. I'm going on a cruise which is basically "eat and drink all day while on a boat". I am still going to get my exercise in and hopefully take some calories off my day, but if I gain a couple of kgs (even if I gain back all my losses so far) it's not going to be the end of the world. This is my first holiday in over a year and I am not going to spend half my time stressing over how many calories were in that big sugary cocktail or massive plate of pasta. I've already proven to myself that I can stick to eating the right amount of food and exercising.

I have what I want and enjoy. Having said that, I think I've been doing this so long that watching portions and making better choices are just habit. Between that and being more active on vacation, I usually break even or lose some.

Last summer we spent the week at a beach house with family. I didn't want to be a kill-joy, but I also didn't want to go back home several pounds heavier like previous years (my brother's cooking is just amazing and there is always a plethora of food/junk/snacks/drinks around). I decided not to log any food in MFP that week - I just decided to be mindful of portions, avoid mindless snacking just cause it's there, and log close to 20k steps per day on my activity tracker. It was actually easier than I thought - an early morning run on the beach, a walk to the local shops in the afternoon or walking on the beach and I easily hit close to 20k.

I went home and hadn't gained anything - I was very pleased. Now, I know what will work this year when we go again

I eat what I want, and log it as well as I can.

headed to Vegas later this month. I've talked with my husband and let him know that I'm going to try for a middle of the road between very restrictive and eating everything in sight. I'm planning to bring my powdered protein and my small blender so that I can have that for breakfast every morning. We'll do some lunches and dinners out and cook some meals at home. I plan to work out in the fitness center each day. I will be logging my foods daily. My hope is to at least not gain any weight over the week.

I enjoy! I'm on vacation! But I do make smart decisions. I indulge, but don't over indulge. We also tend to take vacations that involve a lot of hiking or city walking. We are not lounge on the beach or pool vacation types. I'm REALLY looking forward to our trip this fall to Vienna, Prague, and Budapest..... can't wait to eat my way thru those countries!

I started each day off with a 5 mile bike ride followed by a 3 mile walk (both at a cardio zone pace).

I had breakfast and most of lunch burned off before I even ate breakfast...:)

I think it depends where your head is when you're going. We recently went on vacation, and I was in go-go loss mode. I didn't really want to stop, but wanted some flexibility to have a few treats.

My circumstances are different in that I have celiac disease and am a vegetarian. We stay in a hotel with an efficiency kitchen, so I prepare most of my food. My opportunities for eating food not provided by myself are limited.

Anyway, for that vacation, I decided to change my goal to losing half a pound a week to give me a few more daily calories. I also ate a few more of my exercise calories than I normally do. I logged my food and also had the planned cheese fries I wanted that week. I came home a half pound lighter.

We're going on vacation to the same place again in September. I might be in a different mood then. I might decide to eat at maintenance for that one. I might decide to stay at the deficit I'm at now. I might decide to repeat what I did in June, or I might decide to forget logging for a week and just eat mindfully, and not overstuff myself.

It will really depend on where I'm at when the time comes. One thing will stay constant. I'll be really, really active during that week. Morning brisk walks, cycling, swimming, beach combing... that sort of stuff.

Eat at maintenance. Try to stay active. Only splurge for things I really want and try to stick to healthier options otherwise.

BJG7_UK wrote: »

Just got back from vacation. While I was on my holiday I was wonder what do people do diet wise during their vacations?

I'd be interested to find out what you guys do?? And looking forward to your responses.

When I was in Ireland for 14 days last year, I did not log or count calories, I simply chose to eat when I was hungry, made good choices I thought would fit my macros and maybe my calories, included treats, and then did not step on the scale for about a week after I returned. While on vacation, my clothes didn't get tighter, and when I stepped on the scale I was still in my maintenance range.

Vacations are for enjoyment, but I make sure I am mindful of how much I am eating, even though I am not logging and counting as usual. When I came back, I made sure I got right back on track.