Sometimes a GAIN is a victory!

We got home from a 10 day vacation Tuesday night. I stepped on the scales on Wednesday morning and was up 4/10ths of a pound. I brought home a souvenir from my trip in the form of FAT - ha! The surprising thing is that 4/10ths of a pound is a HUGE victory for me.

In years past a vacation would have been a time of a "large" gain - possibly ten pounds! I would eat 3 meals a day out (with today's restaurant portions that can be a HUGE number of calories), I would have treat foods, desserts, and then all the snacking in the car and hotel. In addition I would not have exercised much!

This trip I made GOOD choices in food - kept the snacking in the room to a protein bar or diet soda and got lots of hiking and walking in. That 4/10ths of a pound truly IS a victory! The amazing thing is I had JUST as much fun as the old days when I ate any and everything I wanted on a trip and then some!

I did have to plan and make some key choices to keep that to 4/10ths of a pound. In case you have a trip in your future here are a few things I did:

1) I took a box of protein bars in my checked bag.
2) I took my empty water bottle through security and filled it at a water fountain so I could have water on the plane.
3) We hiked or walked EVERY day on our trip.
4) We ate ONE meal a day in a restaurant. We stopped at a Wal-Mart on the first day of our trip and bought one of those insulated bags which we used as a "cooler". We picked up diet soda, fruit, and sandwich fixings and made our own lunches.
5) In restaurants I still looked for the healthier choices - chicken breast instead of a big burger, soup or salad instead of pizza or fried foods.
6) We focused on "seeing things and activity" instead of on meals
7) I carried my scales with me (in my checked bag) to keep an eye on my weight.
8) I did strength exercises in the hotel room, while waiting in lines, and even while sitting on a rock having a picnic lunch on the trail!

So, yeah I may be up 4/10ths of a pound, but I bet that and some will be gone by next Wednesday! It's a victory to me!

Press On!