Ten days from today my family of nine is flying to the other side of the world to spend three weeks with our families in the US. I am sure that we are going to have a great vacation. I am also sure that I am going to gain a ton of weight.
“Don’t be so negative,” you might say. I’m not. I’m being realistic. My kids have been eating foreign things for 10 months and although our family is the number one reason we are going home, food is a close second. Very close. Photo finish, close. Yesterday we all got giddy at the thought of having Kr*ft macaroni and cheese with hot dogs cut up into it. How sad is that? Every time we discuss what we are going to do in the US, it dissolves into what we are going to eat in the US. Every event has a food plan attached to it. A night at the movies starts with dinner at a steakhouse, college football is planned around nachos from a Mexican food restaurant, and you can’t have an open house without a big sandwich, right?
I have read a lot on this site about planning ahead. O.K., here is the plan. I am going to start exercising this week and I am going to continue exercising all through my trip. Hopefully that will off set some of the eating. I am going to avoid the cookies and deserts that go along with the season because for me, the meals will be the treat. When I want something sweet I am going to eat oranges. Nothing says Christmas in Arizona to me like bags of oranges straight from the orchards. Finally, I am not going to freak out when I gain weight over this trip and I am not going to lie about it. The plan for next year? Change my family’s pattern so that our next trip home is more about fun and less about food!
This week I stayed the same. I am so surprised and amazingly happy that I stayed the same because I have been eating away my stress. That has got to stop. Maybe I could ride away my stess. Stationary bicycle, here I come!
Fight the Fluffy 
Travel can be tough especially when you are going home to all the yummy foods you don’t usually get. I think you have a good plan and even if you gain a pound or two, it doesn’t mean that you can’t get back on track later.
Enjoy your visit home and don’t beat yourself up.
Absolutely. I’d say enjoy a taste of everything. Just try to practice moderation. And those Arizona oranges? Yum!
I was talking with my hubby once about favorite vacations. “We would go to LA and eat pizza at this restaurant”, “We would drive to Utah and stop at this place for rock candy”, “When we went to Payson there was this bakery”. He pointed out that every memory had a food attached to it. Can you tell you and I were raised by the same mother?
BTW, I accomplished day two of exercising, had extra energy from my workout, and so I made a big breakfast for the family, of course. Next breakfast I will pick healthier things!
Funny, I was thinking that you and I and third sister our age range should get together for lunch when you are here. Maybe we should pick a salad restaurant.
Umm, if you’re really getting together, I wanna come. I’m in Arizona. I’m a fun girl. Plus, I know lots of places with salads… or not…
I think realistic is good. I think oranges are a GREAT idea! Obviously exercise is always a good idea. But especially, I know for me it’s good to remember that gaining a healthy, slender body is a journey… backtracking WILL happen, it’s what I do overall that will count in a year from now.
Our last trip centered around the fact that the hotel was less than a mile from an Olive Garden. I feel ya, babe. Just keep in mind that a sudden change in diet could result in some pretty yucky tummy troubles! Find some tums before the fun starts!
Your plan sounds really good, so the next question is have you planned for some good Italian, because you’ve definitely covered some of the other major food possibilities. 😉
Staying the same when handling stress is a good goal. Just keep getting on the scale so you can track it.