I started my journey in September 2011 and around November, got it in my head that I wanted to take a tropical vacation with my SO in May of this year. I have been plugging along and making progress and think I will be pleased with where I am by the time our vacation rolls around. Right now, the thought of my trip to Mexico isn't the *only* thing that is motivating me, but it's one.
I will not be at my goal weight/size when I go to Mexico. According to Lose It!, I should hit my goal weight on October 23, 2012. I'm sure that will be pushed back with going on vacation, and I'm OK with that.
What I am most afraid of is that I will get back from Mexico and just kinda lose interest in my weight loss goals. I'm not losing the weight because of the trip, I planned the trip because I was losing weight.
Has anyone else experienced a lapse in commitment after a major event? How do you get back on?
My grandmother would say I'm borrowing trouble and I shouldn't worry until it comes up. Thing is I don't *want* anything to come up. I want to come back from my trip, do my laundry, and hit the gym monday morning like normal.
I've definitely had temporary setbacks whenever I travel or stop following my routine.
The thing that always got me back in the saddle was the scale. I call it my facing-the-music moment when I see the "damage" and start reversing it ASAP.
I know I went a few months not being totally vigilant and thankfully I only gained a few pounds but I know my body craved sugar and larger portion sizes. It took a while but I tackled it with baby steps.
1. Make sure I'm drinking a lot of water and hot tea again
2. Sleep normal hours
3. Eat my homecooked meals
Then when things got back to normal with eating and sleeping. I slowly added exercise back into my routine starting light with yoga and building up the intensity until I'm back to where I was before the setback
You have been working at this since September. Along the way you have developed new habits and that doesn't go away overnight. I think most of us have lapses in commitment every so often....I know the boards were buzzing about the Thanksgiving/Christmas season wreaking havoc on our weight loss efforts. However, there is a difference between taking a break - as you anticipate doing over your vacation - and completely falling off the wagon forever. I think that you will be fine - the progress you have made so far will only motivate you to keep going!
I want to go to Asia in the same time you are, going with a food-pushing family (yikes). I'm scared too.
BUT I think that pre-planning and confidence in yourself will carry you through.
Your vacation is just 1 chunk in time-a small percentage of your entire lifetime. Is it worth months of effort to only be thin for just one moment?
Clearly not to you, otherwise you wouldn't be scared. Even if you don't feel motivation right after you get back, continue to do what you are doing now-don't overthink if its worth it or not, just keep on following the same habits that are making you healthier. Tell yourself-its your choice to go off or back on your diet-so there's nothing to be scared of, its all in your control.
I also like what your grandmother said. All this worry might be just wasted emotion, and you may come back with a full head of steam after looking great on your trip.
But if it turns out that you have wobbled a bit, you might need to fire up your motivation again, to kind of re-energize yourself. Whether that is imagining how you will look and feel when you reach your goal, or looking at other people's goal pictures and stories, find the spark that will re-ignite the drive in you again when you get back.
I hope you have a terrific time and enjoy your weight loss on your trip.
I had a bit of a wobble after my 3-week trip back to the States for Thanksgiving. And combined with Christmas/NYE, a house move and a job change, it took me until late Jan to really get back into gear. I concentrated on maintaining during that period because I didn't really have the energy to focus on losing. I did still wind up losing a few pounds, but I have to admit that weight loss wasn't the main focus of my life then.
When I've just taken week-long vacations, I've always been honest with myself the day after getting back home and hopped on the scale. I wanted to know how much damage I did, or even if I did well, and the scale was the easiest way to remind myself how much more work I needed to do. I also got straight back to my normal eating and exercise patterns, so I didn't feel like I gave myself a chance to slack off.
It was this past February and I have to say I was really worried that slacking off and drinking frozen cocktails for a week straight would do me in. In the past, I gain during a vacation and never get back on track when I get home. Eventually I pretty much quit after saying tomorrow, tomorrow etc...
This time I decided NOT AGAIN. I enjoyed myself on vacation - I had the frozen drinks and nachos...but I worked out every other day and I was SO proud of myself I had WAY more motivation when I got home b/c I was able to tell myself, "Self: if you were able to work out and eat moderately healthy while on vacation then you sure as heck can do it at home!" haha. Running on the beach in the a.m. was really fantastic actually - my hubby and I also played tennis at the resort which was great, I did a water aerobics classes that were really fun and I went to the gym which faced the pool and visualized running to the swim bar after my workouts. You are supposed to enjoy your vacation but, as I'm learning, it doesn't have to be a free-for-all to derail all you've worked for. Just remember this is for life, not for a bikini. If you stay motivated while on vacation, I think it's a lot easier to keep it going once you get home. There is nothing worse than getting home w/ a tan and nothing fits...trust me. Good luck.
I was going to suggest something like what the previous poster just mentioned. Treat the vacation as a brief foray into the rest of your life. Enjoy yourself, but don't go insane. Eat moderately healthily, especially at breakfast. Don't just sun tan on the beach, move around on it. If you come back a couple of lbs up, do what any normal weight person would do and just work hard to get it back off.
Side note: it's always interesting to watch one of my friends, who has never been overweight at all, and how she manages her weight. If she has overindulged one day, she will consciously deny herself for the next couple of days, so her weight doesn't really get out of maybe a 5lb range. But, she doesn't obsessively weigh herself. She doesn't have to.
I understand your fears. In the past, vacations are what derailed my weight lost. This time is different, due to losing weight for my health. While on vacation three weeks ago I just ate the same as if I was home, with just a few minor treats. I used the gym where we were staying and walked alot while out sightseeing and shopping.
I have a longer vacation coming up in eight weeks and will be gone around 10 days. Due to the location and what we will be doing I will have a bigger challenge with my eating.
A month after your trip you will be so glad that stayed the course.
I took a diet break during a week-long vacation at the end of last summer. I didn't log or track any food (I'm a calorie counter). I *did* continue to limit portion sizes, paid close attention to whether I was actually hungry or just bored, and made reasonable choices (split a meal with someone at a restaurant, skip bread/fries, etc.)
For example, we were on the boardwalk at the beach and everyone was getting funnel cakes and ice cream - I got chocolate dipped strawberries. Still not "healthy" but 10x better than the other choices. It was a decadent treat, and I didn't feel deprived at all. I also limited myself to one alcoholic drink a day and made sure to get in some walking every day.
I actually had lost a few lbs when I got home and was right back on plan with logging the next day. It did take me several months to get back into my exercise routine though, but that didn't slow down my losses.
The place where we are going is all-inclusive. There is a wine and tapas restaurant on the resort that I am positively giddy about. I've looked up all the restaurant menus and am absolutely salivating at the options.
This is what has me worried.
I went on a cruise with my ex-husband once and gained 7 pounds. In a week. And that didn't include unlimited booze.
But the resort also has bicycles and tennis and water sports and I am hopeful that coupled with the 50+ pounds I've already lost and the 20 more I hope to lose by that time, I will be ready to "play" in ways that I've never been able to before. They have a gym - and right now, I can see myself getting up to put time in on the elliptical before SO wakes and then enjoying a hearty breakfast on our deck.
I'm just excited both for my weight loss and also for my trip. I just want to keep the excitement/motivation/commitment even in the face of unlimited wine and tapas
I once gained 5 lb on an 8 day cruise...it was miserable...I ate so much...but I remember I hated the way I looked on that cruise - I never lost the weight before it, I didn't work out, I have no pictures to commemorate it...it sucks.
All Inclusives are all I go to in Mexico [we go once a year] - they are great and worth it, but so are you - 10 frozen drinks a day will probably cause weight gain, but one or two followed by a vodka soda or light beer or glass of wine would probably be a much better option and you get the fruity drinks w/out going overboard.
The resort gyms in Mexico run the gamut, some are small w/ no air conditioning, some are awesome so ck your resort for photos prior. I think since you are already conditioned and losing weight it might be easier for you to enjoy yourself without going overboard. Plus, remember walking in the wet sand burns a BUNCH of cals!
Afraid Commitment will Slip after Trip
