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Nervous about traveling!

zagbee
zagbee Posts: 40 Member
edited November 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi everyone! I have only been at this MFP business consistently for about 2 months now. I have lost a significant amount of weight in this time and I could not be happier about it. It is now very easy for me to keep up with my new nutrition and fitness habits in my regular life because I have a lot of control over my time and what I am buying/cooking for food. However, I am getting ready to travel for a good portion of December. We will be on the road for about 3 days going there and again coming back, and will be staying at my in-laws house for a little over 2 weeks.

I am very worried about keeping up with what I have been doing without having the control over everything. We will be on the road a lot, be staying in multiple hotels, and will mostly be expected to eat what is offered to us while we are there. There will also probably be a lot of meals out.

I guess I am just looking for some advice on how to maintain what I have been doing while in this new situation. I know the logical thing is just to log everything, but I feel like there will be a lot of unknown since other people will mostly be preparing our meals. I am scared that I will ruin all of the work I have done over the past couple of months while on this long trip especially since I am still relatively new to this. Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

Replies

  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
    Estimate the best you can. I mean, what else can you do?
  • snickerscharlie
    snickerscharlie Posts: 8,578 Member
    If trying to log and maintain a deficit is going to be problematic, I suggest giving yourself a break until you get back home. Doesn't mean you can pig out without consequences, mind you, but a few weeks at caloric maintenance instead of deficit isn't a big deal in the larger picture of the rest of your life. ;)
  • zagbee
    zagbee Posts: 40 Member
    DeguelloTex wrote: »
    Estimate the best you can. I mean, what else can you do?

    I know you're right. I guess I just need to chill out!
  • zagbee
    zagbee Posts: 40 Member
    snickerscharlie wrote: »
    If trying to log and maintain a deficit is going to be problematic, I suggest giving yourself a break until you get back home. Doesn't mean you can pig out without consequences, mind you, but a few weeks at caloric maintenance instead of deficit isn't a big deal in the larger picture of the rest of your life. ;)

    Very true! I guess I need to stop thinking so much about how the trip will go and focus more on getting back to what I have been doing when I get home. Thank you!
  • MommyL2015
    MommyL2015 Posts: 1,411 Member
    edited November 2015
    I am traveling for about 14 days during Christmas, which will include 4 days of driving and stopping to eat and staying at various homes and hotels. Since I'm not bringing my food scale and may not be able to come here to log anything some days, I'm just going to not sweat it and just do my best. It's all I can do and since traveling and visiting family and sleeping in hotels and on air mattresses is stressful enough, worrying about food isn't in my plans.

    I will obviously not make a point to stuff my face every day but I'm really not going to worry, even if I find I've gained weight when I get home. I know I won't gain more than a small fraction of what I've lost, so why worry? I know what to do when I get back home and I can safely ignore the barrage of "holiday weight loss gimmick" commercials that will start appearing after the new year. :)

    Honestly, I think I will miss my treadmill the most when I'm gone. I know I'm going to try to make a point to walk every day because I've come to really love it and it's gonna be hard! I'm in SC and we're traveling to Massachusetts. BRRR! I'll call it resistance training if I walk in some deep snow. LOL
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    edited November 2015
    Portion control is the key when eating unknown food. Divide restaurant meals in half and maybe don't eat all of the half. Limit bread, pasta, dessert, and alcohol. Get your protein. Take/buy hedltjy snacks, apples, nuts, dried fruit, Atkins bottled protein shakes, protein bars. Lots of water. Order salad instead of fries, obvious things like that. Be smart but dont stress. Walk as much as you can or other exercise. I lose weight on vacation doing these things. Have fun!
  • zagbee
    zagbee Posts: 40 Member
    MommyL2015 wrote: »
    I am traveling for about 14 days during Christmas, which will include 4 days of driving and stopping to eat and staying at various homes and hotels. Since I'm not bringing my food scale and may not be able to come here to log anything some days, I'm just going to not sweat it and just do my best. It's all I can do and since traveling and visiting family and sleeping in hotels and on air mattresses is stressful enough, worrying about food isn't in my plans.

    I will obviously not make a point to stuff my face every day but I'm really not going to worry, even if I find I've gained weight when I get home. I know I won't gain more than a small fraction of what I've lost, so why worry? I know what to do when I get back home and I can safely ignore the barrage of "holiday weight loss gimmick" commercials that will start appearing after the new year. :)

    Honestly, I think I will miss my treadmill the most when I'm gone. I know I'm going to try to make a point to walk every day because I've come to really love it and it's gonna be hard! I'm in SC and we're traveling to Massachusetts. BRRR! I'll call it resistance training if I walk in some deep snow. LOL

    Good to hear from someone in a similar situation! I wish I had started all of this a long time ago, but I think since I haven't been doing it all that long I am worried I will just go right back down the rabbit hole with all of the freedom! I usually work out from home so I am hoping to also do a lot of walking while we are there if I can stand being out in the cold! Thank you so much for your reply. :smile:
  • zagbee
    zagbee Posts: 40 Member
    lorrpb wrote: »
    Portion control is the key when eating unknown food. Divide restaurant meals in half and maybe don't eat all of the half. Limit bread, pasta, dessert, and alcohol. Get your protein. Take/buy hedltjy snacks, apples, nuts, dried fruit, Atkins bottled protein shakes, protein bars. Lots of water. Order salad instead of fries, obvious things like that. Be smart but dont stress. Walk as much as you can or other exercise. I lose weight on vacation doing these things. Have fun!


    Great advice! Thank you!
  • scolaris
    scolaris Posts: 2,145 Member
    Just do your best. A life without a little travel would be a boring life indeed. Make sure you have access to simple things like water & fresh fruit. It's okay to create your own travel plan. On our recent road trip with high mileage my husband & I just eliminated 'lunch' altogether to save both time & calories! We hiked in the early a.m., ate more of a brunch and then drove until dinner. Build walking into every day possible, or find out if you can squeeze in a work out. Share or split a treat if you can. When you get back home your regular routines will be waiting for you!
  • joelo_83
    joelo_83 Posts: 218 Member
    Carpe the damn diem. Go have fun, enjoy yourself and don't stress too much about your tracking while traveling. Enter the things you can guess or scan, and don't worry about the rest. Most of all do not let it take away from your experiences there. Life above all ;)
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,368 Member
    edited November 2015
    I always gain weight on vacations, even being careful, but it's easy enough to lose it afterwards. Just try and make good choices as much as possible and to stay active. Definitely keep logging though, even if you have to estimate... that might help you skip an extra piece of bread or something, if you see that your breakfast was more calories than you think, for example.

    But yeah I also stress out about it every time, so you're definitely not alone!
  • __Roxy__
    __Roxy__ Posts: 825 Member
    When traveling I make sure I have lots of snacks packed... I like to munch on the drive! Fruit, veggies, nuts, popcorn, water, all packed and accessible. That helps me not buy chips or other junk from the gas stations along the way. When in restaurants, try to choose the lean options, with sauces or dressings on the side, so you can add them in your own quantities. When at a friends place I either offer to cook or help cook (aha! sneaky way of seeing what goes in the food). If the meal is already prepared upon your arrival ~ then the best you can do is portion control and guesstimate. When traveling you can also try to get in some quick 15-20 minute walks here and there, by saying you need to stretch your legs or want to see the local sites. Good luck, enjoy your trip!
  • rosebarnalice
    rosebarnalice Posts: 3,488 Member
    Repeating what others have said, but in short, control what you can and let go of the rest.
    #for the drive, keep a cooler in the car filled with veggies and other healthy snacks
    # make wise choices when you're eating out;
    # walk when you can
    # watch your portions
    # estimate and log the best you can
    # offer to cook or shop once or twice if you can
    # when offered something thats really out of bounds, my mom used to say "just one bite is still polite"
    # it's ok to be honest--let your in laws know you've been working at losing weight and that you're trying to stay on track through the holidays. Chances are, they'll understand . . . And even if they dont, at least they're less likely to thing you're just being rude or ungrateful if you don't graze like a cow.
  • zagbee
    zagbee Posts: 40 Member
    Really awesome ideas here! Thank you so much! I am really glad I posted. :smile:
This discussion has been closed.

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