Going on vacation, any advice?

[darrylreid]

I am going to London and Iceland for a two week vacation in a couple weeks and am concerned about staying on my LC lifestyle. I know I will indulge in more carbs than normal (I will eat specialties as I find them) but I am going to try to tamper the damage. Anyone stay on their LC WOE while on vacation? Any tips?

[cpsnow]

I was going to pose the same question. Perhaps I am in greater peril, as I have the challenge of a trip to Italy in a few weeks. I haven't touched anything close to a morsel of pasta in months, let alone a pastry. Can I really go to Italy and not eat those delicacies? I'd like to think so. The other question is is it necessary to be so strict on a rare trip to gustatory heaven? If I deviate after having been so devoted to this woe, can't I expect to get back to my present patterns when I return?

[hk-lowcarb]

I've vacationed while low-carbing and it is possible to stay on plan, or mostly (say 80-90%) on plan.

I would recommend that you try and stay as On-Plan as you much as possible. For example, at breakfast, eat eggs, sausages, etc. but avoid the toast and other carby items.

At lunch, try to avoid the carby items just as you would at home. I've heard there's lots of good cheese in England, maybe indulge in that and carry some w/ you so when you're tempted to eat something else, you can have that instead.

If you're going for a curry, skip the naan and the rice and just eat curry and veg.

According to wikipedia, animal products dominate in Icelandic cuisine, and some of the specialties are smoked fish and meat. Sounds like that would be good for low-carbing.

Again, try and stay on plan and if you do go off one day. Next day try extra hard to go back to plan. It VERY EASY to get derailed on vacation and regret it.

Have fun!

[Ilovelists]

We're off on holiday in 4 weeks, all-inclusive in Majorica. I did consider 'taking a break' while I'm there and eating what I want but I don't think it's a great idea as getting back on plan will be very difficult. I am planning on increasing my daily carb count (currently max 20g a day) but not touching any potatoes, bread, pasta or rice.

As much as I want to enjoy my holiday I want to continue enjoying losing weight much more :)

[Mandra]

It has been my experience that I can't take "time off" and then get back on track - it just doesn't work for me. But since I'm usually fairly strict, the last time I went on vacation I "relaxed" a bit and indulged more in things that were "legal" but that I either don't usually have or limit quantites of. So, more nuts, pork rinds, and high content chocolate than I would normally have. "No sugar added" ice cream. I didn't sweat it when I ordered shrimp and they came lightly breaded, or if the salad had a couple of croutons. Treated myself to a few meals that I normally can't afford. So I was able to feel that my eating was relatively "vacation like" even though I was still pretty much on plan. But, as usual, YMMV.

[Robin120]

I do mostly on plan on vacation, but splurge for local specialties. For example, in Costa Rica I tried various tropical fruits.
If I am at the beach, I buy sugar free fudge.

But for the most part, I try to stay on plan- who wants to feel bloated and crappy on vacation?

[Nancy LC]

I was going to pose the same question. Perhaps I am in greater peril, as I have the challenge of a trip to Italy in a few weeks. I haven't touched anything close to a morsel of pasta in months, let alone a pastry. Can I really go to Italy and not eat those delicacies? I'd like to think so. The other question is is it necessary to be so strict on a rare trip to gustatory heaven? If I deviate after having been so devoted to this woe, can't I expect to get back to my present patterns when I return?
The Eades documented the food they ate in Italy. I don't recall seeing pasta on their plates. There was plenty of non pasta things to eat. You might be able to find those blog posts still. The food looked awesome.

[Elizellen]

The Eades documented the food they ate in Italy. I don't recall seeing pasta on their plates. There was plenty of non pasta things to eat. You might be able to find those blog posts still. The food looked awesome.Here you go!

http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/uncategorized/low-carb-eating-in-italy/

[Liz53]

Like the others, I try to stick to my normal eating as much as possible. I may indulge in a small bit of something local and special - something I'm not likely to encounter elsewhere. If I'm "forced" to eat something off plan, such as a less healthy salad dressing, I eat as little as possible to satisfy my hunger. Normally I exercise a lot on vacation (walking or hiking) so the impact is usually minimal.

As long as you don't look on vacation as a way to go crazy (and it doesn't sound as if that's what you're thinking), you should be able to get by with minimal damage.

[Cicero2.0]

I am proud to say I actually lost 10 pounds on a two week vacation. The key for me was buying most of my food at a local grocery store and asking a lot of questions when ordering at restaurants. One trick that helped me a lot was to order appetizers as an entree. A dozen chicken wings will fill you up better and longer than some pasta dish.

[MandalayVA]

I also have active vacations--I often joke that I'm more tired after a vacation than I was before it--so I really don't worry about food too much since I've lost the snacking habit. If I was just going to lie on a beach or sit on a bus all day, though, I would pay it some mind.

[Abbie_B.]

Definitely moderation will work. The biggest thing for me is when you get home jump back in with two feet! Every time i go astray and gain it wasn't so much the vacation as the "well, I'll start tomorrow" mentality. Good luck !

[cpsnow]

Wow! I feel so much better having looked at those pictures of meals in Italy. I can't wait to try the fresh mozzarella, and that prosciutto looks delicious!

I may bend things a little and have some fruit. It's time, after all. I never intended to go fruitless for life. I love fruit, and this is a good time to reintroduce a little.

Thanks guys!

[darrylreid]

Thanks everyone, these are great tips and ideas! Basically, make the best choices you can at each meal, and if you decide to treat yourself go for it, don't regret it, and get back on the plan. Good words to live by even when home!

[mel92]

I used to go off plan while on vacation, but it was so very hard getting back on that I stopped doing it. This WOE for me has to be strict and it has to be for life. So I just find things I can eat, even if I have to pick it apart. :)

[tragedian]

Iceland is gorgeous, you'll love it.