Finally, the day has arrived: your summer vacation. One whole week of easy, breezy carefree days, long afternoons spent at the beach with fruity cocktails and sunset appetizers. Finish that off with a big dinner out and waking up late in the morning. Rewind, repeat.
Sounds great doesn’t it?
If you are like some people, summer is the time to eat lighter and exercise more. Until we go on vacation. A lot of us tend to eat and drink like it is our last holiday only to come home and get on the scale to see all our hard work at losing weight or eating healthy gone right down the drain.
Let’s be real. Not many people lose weight when they travel and vacation is a chance to relax and get a little loose. Besides, you might be off to Italy or France or some other foodie place where the need to eat your way through the vacation is just too great. So what can we do to make our next getaway different and not blow all our good efforts at healthy eating to bits? Here are a couple of tips to consider before you pack your bags.
It is not always about the food
Yes, you might be on an eating tour of Italy, or taking a week’s worth of cooking classes in Paris. But a vacation is never all about the eating. Vacation is about being with family, seeing the sights, relaxing with a book in a hammock, or catching up on some much needed sleep. Be aware of making the decision to use vacation as an excuse to eat ice cream with the kids every night or buying the pound of fudge at the boardwalk. It won’t feel so good in a week.
Stay away from the fruity drinks – most of the time
Am I bursting a bubble here? Think about it. Would you drink the frozen strawberry daiquiri topped with whipped cream at home? Don’t start now. It’s hardly worth the 1,200 calories and its definitely not worth the sugar. On the other hand, you are on vacation. If having a couple of drinks nightly is going to be your thing, or you can’t imagine vacation without a daily dessert, then make wise choices. Light beer, white wine spritzers, or hard alcohol with club soda are good fall back drinks. Have one scoop of ice cream rather than the nightly hot fudge sundae.
Keep Snacks All Around You
There is nothing worse than being away from your kitchen without an emergency supply of snacks. Not having healthy snacks for you and your family while traveling ups the temptation to grab a quick bite at the fast food restaurant. Be prepared to keep hunger at bay with whole grain popcorn, fruit, cut up vegetables, hummus, or unsweetened dried fruit and nuts.
Keep Moving!
Make a pact with yourself to do one active thing a day. And I don’t mean floating in the ocean. Walk the beach, go bike riding, learn paddle boarding. Take your vacation as an opportunity to try something new, get reinvigorated about an old exercise like walking or just keep in motion. Vacation should not be an excuse to take a break from healthy living.
Now I would like to hear from you. How do you handle vacation temptation? Is it an excuse to blow it all, or an opportunity to rest, recharge and renew? I would love to know in the comments below!
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