Vacation Help

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ellexesse
ellexesse Posts: 10 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Heading to a mountain resort for the long weekend and unfortunately none of the restaurants provide any caloric information. Any tips or tricks for staying within my MFP goal while I'm away? Thanks!

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  • Zedeff
    Zedeff Posts: 651 Member
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    Log every day as 3000 calories. Eat and drink anything you want. Go back to dieting when you get home.

    MFP is for a lifestyle change. Your lifestyle should include indulgences that are not part of your routine. A vacation seems the perfect time to indulge.
  • ellexesse
    ellexesse Posts: 10 Member
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    While I totally respect what you're saying, I'm only 3 weeks into my journey and in the past weekends away, an "event" etc, have all been where I've slipped and fallen back into an unhealthy lifestyle even after I've returned. Looking to try and keep it in check this time and hopefully keep up with my progress :)
  • markrgeary1
    markrgeary1 Posts: 853 Member
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    I log the best I can, correct food from a different restaurant. Generally don't snack. I've been pleasantly surprised to come back from vacation and the scale reads less. Good luck on your trip.
  • dubird
    dubird Posts: 1,849 Member
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    Log best you can and make sure to walk around more. Don't worry as much about calorie limits, but keeping up the logging is good for building the habit. But don't stress over it; it's a vacation! Chances are you'll be burning more calories than you usually do, which will help offset any extra you eat. ^_^
  • AJF230
    AJF230 Posts: 81 Member
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    I understand your point here.
    I went to the beach for 2 weeks and went totally "open-loop" No calories tracked and no weight taken each day. I came back and was 2 pounds lighter. We walked a LOT, and were pretty active, and I did moderate my diet. While my kids were eating ice cream, I had a taste and was done. While folks had donuts for breakfast, I sipped my coffee and was quite happy. That's what kicked me into using MFP and I've only done better since.

    You can get by 2-3 days open-loop. You probably have a sense by now what things are calorie-wise. You know for lunch to get maybe the salad with side dressing instead of the "reuben sandwich with extra sauce." Or to have eggs and toast for breakfast and not "eggs and bacon and waffles and sausage and grits with butter." Have dessert. Better yet, share it. Have a beer or wine. Not 3. This also will make being back home after less of an abrupt change back.

    And you're at a mountain resort! Make use of the activity options. Hike, walk, swim, etc.
  • French_Peasant
    French_Peasant Posts: 1,639 Member
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    The simpler the foods are that you eat, the easier it is to take a crack at estimating them. Fried eggs, fruits and vegetables, salads without frou-frous like croutons or cheese, for example, or slabs of meat, where you can estimate 4 oz as the size of a pack of cards. A pocket scale that you can throw in your purse is very handy as well. I am not a low carber, but the more I avoid bread items, the better I do at staying within my goals. Aaaand...be very careful with alcohol; stick with things you can easily estimate or that come with some fringe health benefits like a loaded Bloody Mary.
  • nowine4me
    nowine4me Posts: 3,985 Member
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    Pretty much every restaurant offers chicken, fish or beef. Stick to those with veggies/salad. Skip anything with sauces or that's too tricked up. Keep the drinks to a minimum, red wine, light beer or champagne. Share a dessert.
  • cross2bear
    cross2bear Posts: 1,106 Member
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    I would advise as similar to someone earlier - stick to meals that you can identify the ingredients, or have had it in the past where you can remember what the calorie count was. Avoid the refined carbs like bread, pasta etc, in favour of salads or other veggies. Pass on the sauces or gravies, or just have a little. I am not a fan of the philosophy of taking breaks from watching what you eat as its a "event" or a "vacation" or a "special day" because it is all to easy to blur those things into a full on lapse. My approach is that if this is truly a new lifestyle, then that lifestyle is in place every day. Its all about balance, and I cant imagine that see sawing from habits that advance you to your goals with days that dont are going to be really satisfying. Good luck!
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
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    A mountain resort? Awesome! Do as much hiking as possible, and make an effort to get enough calories to fuel your adventures. :smile:
  • wessx1
    wessx1 Posts: 58 Member
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    Take your food with you
    I always pack my food with me if am on diet.
    Enjoy your vacation.
  • misscagal
    misscagal Posts: 195 Member
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    I went to Europe - try logging venison stuffed quail or something I couldn't even pronounce lol. I still did my best - I looked up both components but didn't get overly concerned as I had at least logged something. But remember you are on vacation and that means you are there for a break for yourself. Enjoy.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    Go enjoy yourself...it's a few days of vacation...it's pretty irrelevant to the big picture.

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