Two years ago I got married. About 8 months prior to the wedding,
I did a boot camp and lost 30 pounds. I had a fantastic wedding and I
looked amazing in the dress. My new husband and I set off for our
honeymoon in Maui. I was thinking how I was going to not gain weight on
the trip. I had asked around, and everyone said it was not possible:
"You cannot not gain weight on vacation." Well, I didn't accept that
answer. Four days after the honeymoon, I was within ounces of the weight
I was the day of the wedding. Contrary to what people say, it is
possible to not gain weight on vacation.
The first obstacle was traveling day. You are not allowed to bring any food across borders, so I had to try to get decent food in the airport terminals. There are healthier foods in airports than in the past, but not many. I grabbed water and nuts. In the lounge-yes, bless my husband, we traveled mostly first-class-I found fresh fruits, low-fat yogurt, and granola. That was my first mistake. I am intolerant to dairy, but in choosing between intolerance and higher fat food, I chose intolerance. My body didn't forgive me. Within a couple of days, I started coughing like I had been smoking for thirty years and I develop a throat ache. After a few more days of dairy, I felt like I was choking. I felt like I had a sinus infection and my body started to feel bad overall. My choice to not gain weight overshadowed my body's own signals. It was a good example of me not listening to my body's needs. It was also a perfect example of what I wanted to change about myself with my new plan and my contract: I wanted to start listening to my body's needs. That was more important than a low-fat yogurt. I shouldn't force my body to digest something that it can't, just because I did not want to gain weight.
Back to the plane ride. For the first leg of the trip, we were in economy for a five and a half hour trip. I had brought along a bag of healthy nuts and a banana. I dozed off but in a bad position, and by the time we landed in Los Angeles, I had a neck ache and the beginning of a migraine. My husband and I were also exhausted. On the night of the wedding, we went to sleep at five in the morning. I woke up at nine, unable to go back to sleep. We then had to get up at five in the morning to catch the plane, so I'd slept only nine hours in two nights. In Los Angeles, we had a three-hour layover before our next plane. I was miserable: hungry, tired, neck ache and migraine. We had soup and salad, but I felt so miserable at that point that all I wanted was comfort food. Being tired and sick is a weak point for me: I start to crumble. We made our way to the lounge where I found some Advil and my husband massaged my neck. He knows where my pain is, so he is good at alleviating it, but comfort wasn't instant. So I turned to my instant comfort: food. They had all kinds of food in the lounge, including cookies and those raisins covered with yogurt (yes, another good move on my part!). I temporarily turned into a cookie monster. I am not proud of that moment. The wait was so annoying. I just wanted to get there, already!
Finally, we got onto the next plane for another five and a half hour trip. But for this leg of the journey, we were flying first-class. The flight attendants were great. I don't know if it was because we are going to Maui, but everyone was nice, smiling, and relaxed. I felt better, but I was on a slippery slope at this point. I had a nice meal of shrimp, rice, and vegetables and white wine. I also gladly accepted the bread and the warm chocolate cookies. What is the point of being in first-class if you are not going to have those cookies? At this point, my adult self was wondering what happened. I was an alien to myself. Who was this girl? Where was the girl who left home that morning with all the right moves and beliefs? Well, I was exhausted. I think the wedding, the mad rush to lose the weight over the previous eight months, and the stress of not taking a decent vacation from work for almost a year, not to mention the eighteen hours of traveling got to me. It felt like all my good resolutions went out the window. Luckily, two glasses of wine and the great seats eased up my stress and my headache was almost gone by the time we landed in Maui. What could I do but put down an action for myself to work on getting through those hard moments without letting my younger self take over.
I would like to add a side note here. I had a choice to be pissed and upset at my mishaps or let them go, move on, regain my resolve, and enjoy our arrival in Maui. I could either embark on a guilt trip and a worry trip or let everything go and move on. I was good at feeling guilty about my setbacks. I was good at setting huge expectations for myself and when I didn't follow through, I was harsh with myself. But you cannot control everything. When things don't go exactly the way you plan, let them go. I learned to let them go and then, when I was in a quiet setting where I could think and write, I'd have a chance to re-evaluate the situation and get back on track.
So we get to Maui and our driver was waiting for us. Nice, chatty fellow. Thank God for my husband, who is a pillar of strength, because at that point I could not put two words together. We finally arrived at our hotel, and were welcomed with Hawaiian leis and cool drinks. They were quick and professional-not their first day. They knew their stuff, and we were quickly brought to our room with our luggage right behind us.
We had seen pictures of the room, but they did not do it justice. It was huge and amazing. It had a big terrace and huge bathroom. We loved it. It was only six in the evening, it was midnight to us. We were tired but didn't want to just go to bed, so we changed into summer clothes and went to the main lobby bar that overlooked the pool area and the beach. We had a drink and some light food. But by eight o'clock, we were in bed completely exhausted but tremendously happy.
We slept amazingly well, ten hours. Woke up refreshed and ready to visit the hotel and the area. Right then and there, I decided to forgive myself for the day before and move on. I did not want to enter into a negative spin. The place was amazingly beautiful and relaxing. We were there (finally) and I could relax, enjoy life, breathe, and take care of my body and my soul. The hotel had a great gym and a great spa. I found a scale in the spa so I hopped on. I promised myself not to be over that number before I left for home. We enjoyed our visit to the spa and had a great breakfast. I registered for a couple of cycling classes, and I hired a private trainer for a couple of sessions to make sure I stayed focused on my training. I didn't mind eating more as long as I could stay active and burn off those extra calories. The good thing was that I could do other activities, such as kayaking and swimming.
I knew that I needed to plan things out. It is a must. So I set out to advance this book, read from the series of The Wheel of Time (13 books in the series; each book is 900 pages), exercise, work on my tan a bit (although I am not crazy about lying in the sun for hours). We also wanted to see Pearl Harbor and the whales. But for the first couple of days we took it easy; we relaxed and slept almost ten hours a night for the first week. I wanted to relax and enjoy myself, but I also wanted to remain conscious of my choices and focused on my goal to not gain weight on vacation. I tried to find the balance between not being too strict, but also not having junk food (because having junk food is a flag that there are deeper problems).
A typical relaxing day when we didn't visit anything would follow a similar plan. I'd get up early (around six in the morning), make coffee in the room, and write for a couple of hours while eating fruits and almonds (I'd stopped eating yogurt!). I would go to the gym for an hour or so with or without a trainer, and then meet up with my husband. We would go over to the pool and find a cabana because I don't like to stay in the full sun. I'd read or write some more, and order a salad or a protein shake for lunch. Around mid-afternoon, my husband would go to the gym and I would continue reading and writing until it was time to get ready for dinner around seven in the evening. After dinner, my husband and I would go for a walk on the beach. That would be a typical day. I allowed myself alcohol in the evenings, although I stayed off booze altogether for a couple of the evenings. All in all, there was no secret to my success. I simply planned my day.
One day, we went to visit Pearl Harbor. That day started at six in the morning and ended at nine in the evening. Wow! Full day. I did not have a gym work out that day, but I did a lot of walking, I am pretty sure I walked over 10,000 steps. One problem I encountered was that we were not allowed bags or purses of any kind on the military base, and I need to eat several small meals every day. After our short flight to Honolulu, we took a tour bus to Pearl Harbor for the visit. It was an amazing place to visit; it brought me back to the basics, to what's important in life. But, the tour put me in a situation where I was hungry and had no food. I quickly became moody and bossy, and my husband vowed to always carry around a granola bar for me just in case!
After the visit to Pearl Harbor, we got back on the bus and visited some other places. We finally ended up at a restaurant we like, the Cheesecake Factory. After a lot of food, I was calm and collected again, but, unfortunately, I devoured bread and butter and way more food than I needed because I had waited too long before eating. I learned that I shouldn't go more than two or three hours without food. Even on vacation, I still prefer to eat more often but smaller meals. A mini-meal can be a vegetable and a protein or even just an apple. Not a full meal, just something to keep me going. Sometimes, just knowing I have food available is enough to calm me down.
It was a long day, and when I get tired and there is no place to relax alone, I tend to eat more. Looking on the positive side, I found and confirmed my areas of weaknesses, so I could plan in the future to counteract them.
I tried something while I was in Maui-a private meditation session. My only regret was that I tried it on my last full day there. Because anxiety makes me eat, finding ways to release stress and anxiety is important. I use exercise but I found that meditation also works. My teacher said that the best time to meditate is after a good jog-a good sweating session. Once I came back home, I kept up with the meditation every day. I find it does work better after exercise. The combination of the two has gotten rid of some of my worst anxiety.
In summary, you can avoid gaining weight on vacation by following a few simple tips. Plan your day and be extra active because you will eat more on vacation. Try to avoid junk food and fatty desserts, and stick to wine rather than those fruity or creamy alcohol drinks. Take advantage of new and fun activities to do. Keep an eye on your weak spots. Also, try to stick with the good patterns you started at home, such as writing in your journal as often as you can. I found it helped to weigh myself at the resort at the beginning of the trip and to check in every four or five days. I am not a big fan of the scale, but it seemed to help me keep an eye on things. And, above all, don't forget to relax and enjoy yourself. Let go of the worry and the guilt.
Summaries
- Plan ahead. Those long days of traveling are brutal.
- Keep active. Go to the gym, the pool, or the beach. Find new activities to do.
- Stay away from fruity and creamy alcohol drinks.
- Stay away from junk food and fatty desserts.
- Enjoy!
The first obstacle was traveling day. You are not allowed to bring any food across borders, so I had to try to get decent food in the airport terminals. There are healthier foods in airports than in the past, but not many. I grabbed water and nuts. In the lounge-yes, bless my husband, we traveled mostly first-class-I found fresh fruits, low-fat yogurt, and granola. That was my first mistake. I am intolerant to dairy, but in choosing between intolerance and higher fat food, I chose intolerance. My body didn't forgive me. Within a couple of days, I started coughing like I had been smoking for thirty years and I develop a throat ache. After a few more days of dairy, I felt like I was choking. I felt like I had a sinus infection and my body started to feel bad overall. My choice to not gain weight overshadowed my body's own signals. It was a good example of me not listening to my body's needs. It was also a perfect example of what I wanted to change about myself with my new plan and my contract: I wanted to start listening to my body's needs. That was more important than a low-fat yogurt. I shouldn't force my body to digest something that it can't, just because I did not want to gain weight.
Back to the plane ride. For the first leg of the trip, we were in economy for a five and a half hour trip. I had brought along a bag of healthy nuts and a banana. I dozed off but in a bad position, and by the time we landed in Los Angeles, I had a neck ache and the beginning of a migraine. My husband and I were also exhausted. On the night of the wedding, we went to sleep at five in the morning. I woke up at nine, unable to go back to sleep. We then had to get up at five in the morning to catch the plane, so I'd slept only nine hours in two nights. In Los Angeles, we had a three-hour layover before our next plane. I was miserable: hungry, tired, neck ache and migraine. We had soup and salad, but I felt so miserable at that point that all I wanted was comfort food. Being tired and sick is a weak point for me: I start to crumble. We made our way to the lounge where I found some Advil and my husband massaged my neck. He knows where my pain is, so he is good at alleviating it, but comfort wasn't instant. So I turned to my instant comfort: food. They had all kinds of food in the lounge, including cookies and those raisins covered with yogurt (yes, another good move on my part!). I temporarily turned into a cookie monster. I am not proud of that moment. The wait was so annoying. I just wanted to get there, already!
Finally, we got onto the next plane for another five and a half hour trip. But for this leg of the journey, we were flying first-class. The flight attendants were great. I don't know if it was because we are going to Maui, but everyone was nice, smiling, and relaxed. I felt better, but I was on a slippery slope at this point. I had a nice meal of shrimp, rice, and vegetables and white wine. I also gladly accepted the bread and the warm chocolate cookies. What is the point of being in first-class if you are not going to have those cookies? At this point, my adult self was wondering what happened. I was an alien to myself. Who was this girl? Where was the girl who left home that morning with all the right moves and beliefs? Well, I was exhausted. I think the wedding, the mad rush to lose the weight over the previous eight months, and the stress of not taking a decent vacation from work for almost a year, not to mention the eighteen hours of traveling got to me. It felt like all my good resolutions went out the window. Luckily, two glasses of wine and the great seats eased up my stress and my headache was almost gone by the time we landed in Maui. What could I do but put down an action for myself to work on getting through those hard moments without letting my younger self take over.
I would like to add a side note here. I had a choice to be pissed and upset at my mishaps or let them go, move on, regain my resolve, and enjoy our arrival in Maui. I could either embark on a guilt trip and a worry trip or let everything go and move on. I was good at feeling guilty about my setbacks. I was good at setting huge expectations for myself and when I didn't follow through, I was harsh with myself. But you cannot control everything. When things don't go exactly the way you plan, let them go. I learned to let them go and then, when I was in a quiet setting where I could think and write, I'd have a chance to re-evaluate the situation and get back on track.
So we get to Maui and our driver was waiting for us. Nice, chatty fellow. Thank God for my husband, who is a pillar of strength, because at that point I could not put two words together. We finally arrived at our hotel, and were welcomed with Hawaiian leis and cool drinks. They were quick and professional-not their first day. They knew their stuff, and we were quickly brought to our room with our luggage right behind us.
We had seen pictures of the room, but they did not do it justice. It was huge and amazing. It had a big terrace and huge bathroom. We loved it. It was only six in the evening, it was midnight to us. We were tired but didn't want to just go to bed, so we changed into summer clothes and went to the main lobby bar that overlooked the pool area and the beach. We had a drink and some light food. But by eight o'clock, we were in bed completely exhausted but tremendously happy.
We slept amazingly well, ten hours. Woke up refreshed and ready to visit the hotel and the area. Right then and there, I decided to forgive myself for the day before and move on. I did not want to enter into a negative spin. The place was amazingly beautiful and relaxing. We were there (finally) and I could relax, enjoy life, breathe, and take care of my body and my soul. The hotel had a great gym and a great spa. I found a scale in the spa so I hopped on. I promised myself not to be over that number before I left for home. We enjoyed our visit to the spa and had a great breakfast. I registered for a couple of cycling classes, and I hired a private trainer for a couple of sessions to make sure I stayed focused on my training. I didn't mind eating more as long as I could stay active and burn off those extra calories. The good thing was that I could do other activities, such as kayaking and swimming.
I knew that I needed to plan things out. It is a must. So I set out to advance this book, read from the series of The Wheel of Time (13 books in the series; each book is 900 pages), exercise, work on my tan a bit (although I am not crazy about lying in the sun for hours). We also wanted to see Pearl Harbor and the whales. But for the first couple of days we took it easy; we relaxed and slept almost ten hours a night for the first week. I wanted to relax and enjoy myself, but I also wanted to remain conscious of my choices and focused on my goal to not gain weight on vacation. I tried to find the balance between not being too strict, but also not having junk food (because having junk food is a flag that there are deeper problems).
A typical relaxing day when we didn't visit anything would follow a similar plan. I'd get up early (around six in the morning), make coffee in the room, and write for a couple of hours while eating fruits and almonds (I'd stopped eating yogurt!). I would go to the gym for an hour or so with or without a trainer, and then meet up with my husband. We would go over to the pool and find a cabana because I don't like to stay in the full sun. I'd read or write some more, and order a salad or a protein shake for lunch. Around mid-afternoon, my husband would go to the gym and I would continue reading and writing until it was time to get ready for dinner around seven in the evening. After dinner, my husband and I would go for a walk on the beach. That would be a typical day. I allowed myself alcohol in the evenings, although I stayed off booze altogether for a couple of the evenings. All in all, there was no secret to my success. I simply planned my day.
One day, we went to visit Pearl Harbor. That day started at six in the morning and ended at nine in the evening. Wow! Full day. I did not have a gym work out that day, but I did a lot of walking, I am pretty sure I walked over 10,000 steps. One problem I encountered was that we were not allowed bags or purses of any kind on the military base, and I need to eat several small meals every day. After our short flight to Honolulu, we took a tour bus to Pearl Harbor for the visit. It was an amazing place to visit; it brought me back to the basics, to what's important in life. But, the tour put me in a situation where I was hungry and had no food. I quickly became moody and bossy, and my husband vowed to always carry around a granola bar for me just in case!
After the visit to Pearl Harbor, we got back on the bus and visited some other places. We finally ended up at a restaurant we like, the Cheesecake Factory. After a lot of food, I was calm and collected again, but, unfortunately, I devoured bread and butter and way more food than I needed because I had waited too long before eating. I learned that I shouldn't go more than two or three hours without food. Even on vacation, I still prefer to eat more often but smaller meals. A mini-meal can be a vegetable and a protein or even just an apple. Not a full meal, just something to keep me going. Sometimes, just knowing I have food available is enough to calm me down.
It was a long day, and when I get tired and there is no place to relax alone, I tend to eat more. Looking on the positive side, I found and confirmed my areas of weaknesses, so I could plan in the future to counteract them.
I tried something while I was in Maui-a private meditation session. My only regret was that I tried it on my last full day there. Because anxiety makes me eat, finding ways to release stress and anxiety is important. I use exercise but I found that meditation also works. My teacher said that the best time to meditate is after a good jog-a good sweating session. Once I came back home, I kept up with the meditation every day. I find it does work better after exercise. The combination of the two has gotten rid of some of my worst anxiety.
In summary, you can avoid gaining weight on vacation by following a few simple tips. Plan your day and be extra active because you will eat more on vacation. Try to avoid junk food and fatty desserts, and stick to wine rather than those fruity or creamy alcohol drinks. Take advantage of new and fun activities to do. Keep an eye on your weak spots. Also, try to stick with the good patterns you started at home, such as writing in your journal as often as you can. I found it helped to weigh myself at the resort at the beginning of the trip and to check in every four or five days. I am not a big fan of the scale, but it seemed to help me keep an eye on things. And, above all, don't forget to relax and enjoy yourself. Let go of the worry and the guilt.
Summaries
- Plan ahead. Those long days of traveling are brutal.
- Keep active. Go to the gym, the pool, or the beach. Find new activities to do.
- Stay away from fruity and creamy alcohol drinks.
- Stay away from junk food and fatty desserts.
- Enjoy!
Sophie Lamarche Barnes
http://www.helpheretoday.com
I am a life coach and I help people with their problems. More specifically, their problems with maintaining their weight, relationships or career.
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Sophie_Lamarche_Barnes
http://www.helpheretoday.com
I am a life coach and I help people with their problems. More specifically, their problems with maintaining their weight, relationships or career.
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