Last month I went on holiday to Romania for 5 days and I need to be honest, I was quite nervous about how this may get in the way of my health and weight loss journey. I made a promise to myself that I would start putting my health first every day and finally achieve the goals I have been wanting to for years now. Enough was enough, this was my time.
I know we encourage people to not stress over their holidays and use this as a time to unwind, accepting that they may gain a pound or two and this is absolutely fine. We don't go on many holidays across the year and so it is very much deserved. We also provide people with the confidence and knowledge to lose any weight gained over this period once they have returned.
I wanted to tackle this trip differently. I wanted to prove that it was possible to go on holiday and not come back heavier. I needed to prove to myself as well as all of you that it was possible to have a holiday and enjoy yourself while remaining healthy too. I followed all the advice from the website and our experts while away, I kept their voices in my head the whole time and I came back a pound lighter than when I went away!
It was quite simple to achieve this. Let me break this down with some of the simple steps I took to achieve this loss:
- Walking over 10,000 steps a day - on holiday I love to explore, I love seeing the sights and getting to see the local area so why not do this on foot and get your steps in at the same time? One of the things I did whilst away was booking myself to join a walking tour. I walked for hours on this day but was learning about history and culture the whole way round, I barely noticed all the steps adding up!
- Limiting alcohol - This wasn't a boozy holiday for me at all, I'm not usually fussed about drinking, I can usually leave it and so this didn't bother me at all. I had one alcoholic drink whilst away and this was as part of a gorgeous meal I had for my friend's birthday. I am usually completely fine with a bottle of sparkling or still water; which brings me on to my next point...
- Drink plenty of water - If you are walking lots you are going to want to keep yourself hydrated but I really found this stopped me from feeling so hungry throughout the day. It stopped me snacking completely and meant I ate well at meal times and avoided anything else throughout the day. I wanted to carry on as I was at home by just eating three big meals a day.
-
Pick your meals carefully - we ate out for nearly every meal whilst away, this is not uncommon on holiday. On the first day I got there, I went to a shop and bought a big tub of greek yoghurt, some berries and some eggs. This way I knew my breakfasts were covered and I would be getting a big hit of protein with some fruit first thing instead of being tempted by sugary pastries. At lunch and dinner I always picked the leanest protein I could on the menu with a side of vegetables. I don't eat meat but have recently started eating fish again after being vegetarian for years. I ate lots and lots of fish and vegetables on holiday. There was usually a vegetarian starter I liked the look of, such as a bean spread or a soup. I would then be full enough with those two courses that I didn't want or need dessert. The whole time I was away I had one dessert - again this was the same meal I had an alcoholic drink with. This was one specific meal that I went all out for. It was a birthday meal for my friend and it was our last meal away.
- Do not snack - if you do not snack at home, why would you snack on holiday? I didn't feel like I missed out at all by not snacking. I still ate everything I wanted to and I came back feeling healthy and refreshed rather than sluggish from eating lots of unhealthy snacks and sugar!
One of my aims from this holiday was to come back feeling healthy and proud of the choices I had made, I wanted to prove to myself and all of you that you can holiday in a way that helps you achieve your goals. I was more than happy with maintaining my weight after the holiday but I actually managed to lose weight!
I had the best time, ate incredibly well, drank alcohol, rested AND lost weight! What more could you want from a holiday?
