Post Vacation Weigh in! YIKES!

 Vacation is over....even though my mind is clearly on vacation!  (Thus the late time for posting this entry!)  We had a great time.  Stay tuned for a post with some amazing pictures and a recap of our time!!!!   But here is the question that is probably lurking in your mind.  How did she do with her weight loss efforts over vacation?   

Ok, maybe you weren't wondering how I managed my food and eating over vacation.  Maybe you don't care what I weigh.  But guess what?  I'm gonna tell you anyway!  (Yup, I get a bit feisty after vacation apparently!).

Eating on Vacation

I tracked nothing!  Not a single bite of food was tracked!  Nope.  Didn't do it!  I didn't even attempt!  Ok, honestly, I had no plans to track.  I wanted to sit back and just live and enjoy!   So there was not tracking.  There WAS a serving of some sort of dessert each night!  (ohhh can I say amazing peanut butter pie??!))   

  I would usually eat leftovers for breakfast and by mid morning we were out the door and in nature.  So we would throw trail mix and granola bars in our backpacks which we would nibble on while we were out and about.  Then for dinner we ordered from restaurants (and dessert too).  So I basically ate 2 full meals and one snack.  

We walked.  Boy did we ever walk!  One of the hikes included a staircase that contained 821 steps (that is the equivalent of about a 42 floor skyrise!), we climbed up and down mountains.  We also did the 200 steps to the one overlook (chump change after the 821 steps!).  We moved each day!  Even the 'light day' where I was in freakish misery from the aches and pains in my legs from those steps we were out hiking...just easier trails.  By the way, the stairway to hell climb?  That was actually my  favorite hike!  We actually talked about doing it again at the end of the week!

I was just hoping and praying that my hiking and movement would negate those desserts!

Fear about Stepping on the scales after vacation

I was so nervous to step on the scales after vacation!  I knew that I was probably a bit dehydrated.  I also knew that I was still having some muscle soreness (muscles retain water while they heal!)  And I know that I did enjoy each bite of those desserts!  But I had to face the music.  So the first morning after our return I stepped on the scales!

I gained!  OK, I expected it!  But honestly, I am soooooo tickled that it was ONLY 3 pounds!   That very well could be water retention!   Even better, I am determined to turn this ship around!  It's a new day....a new week....a new chance to live healthy!

And just a preview of our vacation....here is a picture!

Excitement!!!!

We are in the homestretch now to vacation! It is Friday morning as I write  this and vacation is only a few short hours of work away!   We have been working a bit each evening to prepare everything for our departure.   We will finish everything tonight after work and have one more night of sleep in our own bed before heading out to the beach for a week of listening to the waves crash, the  sounds of the seagulls squawking  and the smell of salt air!   The weather is forecasted to be wonderful!   Mid 70’s to low 80’s during the day! Perfect for being outside all day long.   The crowds should not be there either which makes us happy!  

So what does this mean for my eating plan?  For one, I   I will still be counting calories the whole time...every bite I eat will be tracked!  But I will not be  eating like a Puritan! My eating plan is to live healthy!  That means that while I do make healthy choices for ‘most’ of the time, that  I also don’t forget to live on occasion!   At the beach that may look like sharing a bucket of boardwalk (thrashers) fries.   It might mean an ice cream cone....but it also means healthy choices for  most dinners or lunches.  Typically in every day life my balance is more 95% healthy and 5% treat. (But still within my calorie budget) ..and it works for me...I’m losing slowly but I’m satisfied and feel in control emotionally!  (And honestly don’t even feel as if I am trying to lose...I’m usually not panicked about eating something or not eating something...I just go with the flow and it is working!). I know that for this upcoming  week my balance may be a bit more 80/20. And I’m ok with that!  

The GOOD thing about vacation?  When we go to the beach we typically park the car and don’t use it again until the day we leave!  (At the most only VERY sparingly). We get around by shoe leather express or bike!   We are also on the go from sunup to sundown.  I know a few years ago when we were there (without our bikes so it was all walking) we walked about 12-15 miles each day.  When we take our bikes we usually are out riding for 3-5 hours each day and then walk the rest of the time.   We discovered the hard way on one trip that we were actually not eating enough because we were burning so many calories. (Every symptom of hunger hit and not being used to those feelings we thought we were both getting sick!). So I am hoping that the heavy activity negates any indulgence!!!! I am hoping for at least a maintain! 

If you are gasping right now at my weight loss plan for vacation...just remember...at the fair the other week, I passed up the funnel cakes and fried cheese and all sorts of other goodness that the food venders were selling.  Know you know why.....I knew that vacation was around the corner and I wanted to save my indulgence for something truly special!  This is planned!

Either way, I’m not going to worry about it...vacation week comes but once a year.  My weight loss journey is not being forgotten. It is being put on the back burner for the week...attended to enough to maintain my weight but ignored enough to allow me to live!   That is the key to success...managing and adjusting to life and picking your indulgences....