4. Walking Is Your Secret Weapon
I personally never deny myself any foods I want when I travel, and I rarely put on extra weight. I'm usually sightseeing, which means I'm walking all day, every day, and this seems to offset any extra calories I might consume. So go ahead and take that stroll after dinner, swim in that beautiful hotel pool, take your kids up on that early morning hike!
5. A Treat a Day
How do you pass up strawberry crepes with cream if you are in Paris? How do you manage to vacation in Hawaii without tasting pineapple cheesecake? How can you resist stopping at Dairy Queen with the kids and having a chocolate-dipped Frosty?
The answer is: you don't. Just try to keep your treats to one a day. After that, opt for a healthy choice instead.
“I personally never deny myself any foods I want when I travel and I rarely put on extra weight...so take that stroll after dinner, swim in that beautiful hotel pool, take your kids up on that early morning hike!”
6. Better Choices on the Menu
Make healthful choices that appeal to you at fast food and restaurants whenever possible. Why is it important to order more healthful choices only if they appeal to you? Because if they don't, you’re going to feel like you are depriving yourself and resent it.
Sometimes you can make a fast food or restaurant choice instantly better just by ordering it with a different condiment or sauce (say, Dijon mustard instead of mayonnaise, or marinara sauce instead of a white sauce).
7. Hide the Mini-Bar Key
You know that little refrigerator that comes with your hotel room that is filled with all sorts of beverages and candy? Hide the key, it can only lead to no good -- physically and financially.
8. Water Is Your Friend
Keep all systems going by drinking your daily water requirement. Traveling can dehydrate you, 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.
9. Take “Five a Day” on Vacation with You
Now, more than ever, make an effort to get five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. It will make meals seem more filling and satisfying. It will provide enough fiber in your diet, and keep your intestines regular. And it will keep your levels of antioxidants and important vitamins high so you are less likely to get sick.
10. 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. 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.
Published May 9, 2003
SOURCES: Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 1999, 99:442-444
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