It's hard for me to stay on track when on vacation. A lot of times I'm not doing the grocery shopping or cooking and there's usually fast food involved.
I decided that to try and not gain weight while still enjoying my vacation my mantra would be "Make a healthy choice." For me this did not mean skipping treats but rather making a better choice than I had previously done while vacationing.
Here are a few ideas:
1) Plan Ahead
- I've found that with trying to diet or eat healthy it's all about planning ahead. We didn't want to stop for fast food on the drive down to So Cal so I packed lunches and snacks ahead of time. Sandwiches, nuts, fruits, veggies, etc. were all great to have along the way.
2) Split Meals/Food
- When we were at Disneyland we did this all the time. We bought 2 churros and split them between our family of 4. 1/2 of a churro was enough to enjoy the taste without consuming all those calories.
- When my hubby and I ate at a restaurant we split our monte cristos and pomme frittes. The waitress was happy to do that for us and it was plenty of food, especially with how heavy it was. (But good, oh so good!)
3) Make a Better Choice
- On our way home we left later than expected and had not planned on stopping for dinner. When we were on the road and realized we needed to eat before continuing our drive we stopped at a little gas station. This one building housed several fast food restaurants including Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, and Burger King. I enjoy Taco Bell and give me a whopper and fries any day! But this time I was trying to keep my healthy vacation idea in mind and opted for a Subway sandwich loaded with veggies and a fat free sauce. Was it the best thing I could have eaten for dinner? Probably not. But it was a better choice than what I normally would have picked.
For me I guess I learned that even though I'm on vacation I still need to be accountable to myself. It's not ok to say "well, I'm doing tons of walking around the parks so I can eat junk all day long." I can enjoy my vacations and indulge in treats but remembering these three things will help keep me on track when I'm not in my home environment.
