Tips To Have A Healthy Vacation

Your vacation is a time to relax, unwind, kick back, slow down and fuel your soul by letting go of the stress of your day to day life! Unfortunately I also find that it can be an anxiety provoking scenario for many of us that are either healthy eaters or are trying to lose weight and change our lifestyles. It doesn't have to be that way and I want to help you figure out how to make that happen. Most of us have no idea how we are going to enjoy ourselves without overindulging into a food or alcohol coma. Over the past few years I have completely transformed my own body and health through trial and error plus researching lots of tips out there to make it as easy as possible. I am excited to share these with you today because I want you to go on vacation, enjoy yourself and not have any guilt. Vacation should be a time where you do enjoy yourself and feel guilt free enjoying things you aren’t normally on a weekly basis but it is not a free card to pig out until you feel sick or get sick. Changing the way that we think, so that our sole focus is not on the foods that we eat but the memories we are creating with the company that we are with!

1. Resist the urge to splurge. When we eat out we tend to tell ourselves that this is our cheat meal for the week. We also tend to tell ourselves we are on vacation so order all the things we typically wouldn’t eat! These foods are higher in calories and fat and usually are WAY higher in chemicals, sodium, trans fat than we could ever anticipate. The other factor is that even the act of eating out is going to cost your more calories than when you eat at home. This is because most restaurants do not cook clean. They use high fat oils, butters and sauces to achieve flavor that blows your mind. Even when you order grilled chicken, steamed veggies and a baked potato most likely the chicken has a marinate, the veggies are in butter or oil or grease and the potato possibly comes smothered with butter. Also restaurants tend to serve us with larger portions and we eat it all. Let’s not forget the hot warm bread with the warm sugar butter that we can not pass up while vacation. So what can you do to combat this restaurant nightmare?

Order an appetizer as a meal.

Order a half size portion

Split your food with someone else.

Box up 1/2 of your meal right away before it ever even hits the table.

Ask if they have a lunch portion size available.

Pass on the foods that are not going allow you to feel good in your skin.

Try to make the best choices as possible but also make sure you are going to enjoy what you eat.

If you know you want a cocktail make sure it’s not sugary and skip the dessert or vice verse.

Stick to water and enjoy the company you are with!

2. Enjoy the scenery and sample the food. While on vacation most likely it is a place that you enjoy going and that has lots to see and do! Instead scheduling your trip around which restaurants you want to go to focus on the things you are going to do that are going to create the memories! For example, bike riding, hiking, snorkeling, kayaking, long walks on the beach, massages and yoga classes. Sure when you hit up a nice restaurant and see a dessert that completely blows your mind you should sample it vs gorge yourself in it. Ask for someone else to split it with you and just do a little bit! My children usually want ice cream & you better believe I am not passing up on one of my favorite foods to eat but I will grab a small or kiddie size serving while making sure I savor each spoonful. So this small gelato hit the spot. I made sure to savor and enjoy every bite.

3. Use exercise as your secret weapon. When I go on vacation I still keep up with my workouts. If there isn’t a gym where I am traveling to no problem I can stream a workout on my phone or from my laptop that requires no equipment. Walking to and from the pool bar is not going to cut it! Takes the stairs instead of the elevator. Walk to the restaurants or biking to it instead of driving (plus it will save you money). Take an after dinner walk on the beach every night. Rent bikes or check the hotel if they provide bikes and ride to breakfast or each morning go for a ride. Have a family fun day of stand up paddle boarding or wave surfing! Swim laps at the pool or race your kids and do anything you can to stay active.not only will these activities allow you to stay active but it will also allow you to spend quality time with your spouse or your children.

4. Make better choices where you can. When I travel I look at the restaurants where we are staying to find places that are serving choices that will allow me to eat healthier meals. You are not going to find me taking my family to fast food restaurants like I would’ve allowed in the past because of my why not nothing counts on vacation attitude. What happens when you find yourself struggling to make healthy choices? Look at the options and improve them on your own. Skip drenching foods in condiments, pass on the creamy dressings or creamy sauces and substitute them with a vinaigrette or vegetable based sauce. Do not be afraid to ask restaurants if they accommodate you by making a meal you would like to eat a bit healthier, like substituting the French fries with a salad and asking your son to taste two of his fries.

5. Water is your friend. Keep all systems going by drinking your daily water requirement throughout ghost your entire day. Most of us find ourselves hungry because we are actually thirsty. Traveling can dehydrate you especially flying, and so can being out in the sun more than your body is used to. If you can, stock your car, backpack, or hotel room with ice-cold bottles of water. Bring water everywhere you go.I always hit up the local grocery store wherever I go and buy a few cases of water. If your mouth is dry then you are already past the point of thirst! Plus staying hydrated also is going to keep hunger at bay more than you think it would. Water in your alcoholic beverages does not count either.

Benefits of Drinking Water:

-helps keep your skin looking clear

-boost energy

-decreases cravings

-fluses toxins from the body

6. Eat When You’re Hungry and Stop When You’re Comfortable- It sounds simple, but many of us have gotten out of the habit of paying attention to whether we’re truly, physically hungry. You are on vacation, so slow down and savor every bite you chew. Eating opportunities and celebrations are all around us when we are vacationing, and we’re in the “I’m on VACATION!” mindset. That’s when we will be the most vulnerable to eating even if we aren’t hungry and not stopping when we are comfortable. Besides your going to end up feeling bloated and not good in your own skin when you are overeating.

7. Pack healthy snacks- This is one of the easiest things to do! A lot of times we think oh I can find an apple and almonds anywhere! Then the gas station you stop at doesn’t have apples and the almonds are salted! You are right back to square one again! So how do you combat that? The answer is easy. You pack as many healthy snacks as possible. Pack things that won’t melt either if you are headed to the beach. Head to the local grocery store and grab oranges, apples, berries, bars and unsalted raw nuts. We also pack a mini blender to make our daily superfood shakes which keeps us getting fuel for our bodies and helps keeps our guts healthy. You can’t control everything while you are on vacation but the things that you can control you absolutely should! It’s a lot easier than you think it may be.

I always pack:

Fruit unless traveling outside the country because they travel well.

Unsalted raw nuts.

Almond butter or peanut butter in packets or a jar.

Shakeology or Daily sunshine Packets– AKA superfood smoothies, yes you can take them on the airplane.

Mini blender that blends in the cup (I also pack toss away cups to make more while traveling with family).

Bottled water if it’s a road trip.

BeachBars, a healthy snack bar that are minimally processed & enjoyed by everyonein this family.

Kettle corn is a family favorite too.

8. Go Easy on the Alcohol- It’s easy to get carried away with the drinks on vacation especially the sugary signature drinks but they also pack on the calories pretty quickly! Plus when I start drinking sugary wines or cocktails I start craving all the snacks even when I am not hungry. It’s really hard to track how much you ingested as the drinks flow! Plus you can get dehydrated pretty quickly! So my rule of thumb is 1 glass of water for every alcoholic drink. If I don’t see healthy cocktails on the menu, I ask if they can modify a drink and if not then I skip it. I love drinking fresh squeezed lime margaritas with no mixes or added sugar. I also love mojitas with fresh fruit or coconut and no added syrups or sugar.

9. I always lay out my plan ahead of time and share that plan with my family! I know when I am getting my workout in I feel better, so I got up before my family wakes up and I made it happen. If my husband is running or golfing early than I stream my workout in my room or on our hotel balcony. If I don’t feel comfortable working out at the hotel or at someone’s house I ask them if we can go for a run or try out a class at their local gym. You never know who you seek to inspire by your healthy habits rubbing off on them plus it’s a fun thing to do together.

Also, it is YOUR vacation! Don’t ever ever let anyone make you feel guilty for sticking to your healthy habits! I mean who has the right to tell you, “It’s vacation, you should enjoy it!” Seriously you should enjoy it and indulge here or there if YOU want to. Vacation is supposed to be fun and I want to have the energy to enjoy it! So I am going to stick to my guns on the things that are important to me! Having dessert 6 nights out of the week with bread at the beginning of every meal with sugary cocktails is not going to make me feel good. Instead after each meal I am going to regret my decision, feel sick to my stomach and by the end of the week I am not even going to want to put on a bathing suit because I just don’t feel good when I am not fueling my body well. That to me is not fun! I don’t want to come home from vacation and have to start at square 1 because I decided to binge like crazy! I own my body, my emotions and my decisions. I don’t feel guilty for eating healthy and I also don’t feel guilty for enjoying a cocktail or a small gelato with my kids, its actually what we should do! Those are the things I like and I want to teach my kids a healthy balance.

Enjoy your vacation!! Feel free to follow me on IG stories at @freshfitkate as I head on my next trip to see what I am doing to keep that healthy balance and enjoying my vacation without overindulging to the point I feel sick. If you are ready to start a healthier journey but have no idea where to begin or what tools to use and would love to have support along with accountability I would be honored to be on this journey with you and help you reach your goals! I would love for you to fill this out & then I will email you with more details: https://freshfitkate.typeform.com/to/gqVhh1

I hope my tips help you to enjoy your vacation feeling your best while not feeling deprived.