[lisa32989]

Originally Posted by Luv2listn

The knowledge on this board blows me away. Some day, there should be a thread on how to search on this board effectively

Check the first post of the daily chat thread for directions on searching.
Another tip: I always click "Advanced Search". It seems to help to search titles only.

[shasta10]

Originally Posted by Luv2listn

folks...apparently, there are several travel threads on this site but the search function cannot find them...

I am going away the third week of March... in that week there will be much drinking..some eating (the country doesn't seem to be into sweets) and a lot of walking...

I gained absolutely silly pounds when I went off IP over Christmas... still haven't lost what I gained..

Should I phase off with #2 or just cut off cold turkey and deal with the weight gain afterwards ?

I cannot get over the feeling that Ip does something to your body ..when I went off of WW, I didn't have the massive weight gain and went off that cold turkey as well..

No matter... cold turkey or phase off ?

Ian

I just discussed this with my coach yesterday. I am going on a trip at the end of March and a weekend trip next weekend. I am hoping that by March I am close to maintenance or on maintenance but I wanted to understand my options. My coach said that I could do an accelerated phase off (instead of 2 weeks for phase 2 and 2 weeks for phase 3), I could do it in a few days each and then stay mindful of the phase 1/2/3 rules and then come back to phase 1. She also said that for this weekend, if having a glass of wine was something I wanted to do I just needed to know my body and my reactions. Since I did Atkins years ago and drank wine then, I know that wine is not a trigger for me. So, she "sanctioned" it for me. But, cautioned that I should only have 1 glass of wine (not 3). Also, since this is a ski weekend, I will be exercising so I needed to talk about adding in a packet or more protein as I will be exercising.

[Grateful4Health]

This is a great thread.

In case this adds to the conversation:

I did some international travel Summer 2014 and didn't have any trouble bringing about 10 baggies of veggies and leafy greans in my carry-on. I also took dry packets - bars, chips, and powders in the carry-on, and that was fine. I have a friend who took Beef Stroganoff and because it was liquid they took that, FYI.

I likely went through 4 to 5 different countries' security checkpoints, dogs sniffing/passports/all luggage checked/pat downs/many questions, etc. (not because of IP, just the procedure for everyone in some places).

I also packed about 2 weeks worth of "dry" items and also 8 pre-made puddings in my checked bags, and that was also fine.

Like others have suggested, I mixed things in water bottles (I would drink it and bring the empty one through security between different country's checkpoints) and also sometimes buy a black coffee and then use the cup to mix up some cereal, etc.

Everywhere I went I was able to get green salad (some countries you need to be more careful about raw veggies because the bacteria might effect you poorly, but I was OK - in Africa I mostly stuck to cooked veg though). I usually just found a grocery store when I would arrive in a country and pick up more veg, wash it and use the ziplock bags I had to "replenish".

If I couldn't find 8oz. protein for the day, I just ate an extra bar. I didn't worry during that time as much about restricted, if I needed to do 2 bars rather than 1 I was fine with that, and if I did a lot of walking I added a packet for the day.

Overall it all worked great, restaurants were very accomodating, I would just learn in the given language to say some version of "I have medical problems, no sugar no fat please". I was able to stay 100% IP Compliant and came back with 10 lbs lost.

p.s. I did ask ahead of time for the "low fat low calorie" gluten free meals on the planes, thinking maybe it would get me some extra veg or edible protein, but it was pretty useless. I might have gotten a hard boiled egg or a few ounces of chicken, maybe a few pieces of steamed broccoli from it overall, but mostly it was still full of sugar and fat and dressing and carrots.

[loser58]

just returned from a road trip with a bunch of 8th graders, staying in a hostel and KOA cabins. We were driving, so I brought a cooler for the car. Before we left I blended 2 cups of spinach with 8 oz of water then froze it in a plastic container. Packed three of those into the cooler with drink packets and the magic bullet. Where I had access to a kitchen, I blended the drinks in the bullet. Where I wasn't able to use the bullet, I just added the packet to the container of thawed spinach/water and shook. This was an easy way to make sure I had my first two cups of veg everyday. Most days we ate at least one meal in a place where I could get the other 2 cups.

Love my bullet, and rarely travel without it now.

[AvasMommee007]

What great tips--thank you SO MUCH for sharing!!!

[Grateful4Health]

A little bump so the newcomers can see this thread on the first page...

[frawniemae]

Before leaving for my 2wk roadtrip through AZ/UT/CO I organized my packets for the day in big ziplock baggies: a breakfast drink mix, protein chips or crisps, tuna pouches (and plastic forks) when the day would find us on the trail or in an area where I wasn't sure there would be a restaurant, and a bar for my evening snack. Since we were going to be at a different hotel for 11 of the 13 nights we were gone, all I had to do was grab a baggie and put it in my duffle. For fresh veggies, I bought a big bag of pre-trimmed raw broccoli and cauliflower and divided it into 4 cups servings sizes (hubbie ate it right along with me!), had a couple bunches of celery trimmed and ready to eat and a bag of mini bell peppers handy. These fresh veggies traveled well and lasted for about 6 days (until we ate them all) without any problems. I found a grocery store and replenished for the remainder of the trip. I also had a gallon of whole dill pickles stashed in case I ran out of fresh veggies but they also came in handy on those long stretches of road when the munchies hit (these did not go in the cooler.). I had made some beef jerky that we munched on while driving plus to use as part of a backpackers lunch.

I had searched the web for restaurants along our route which helped some but some, I found out the hard way, were opened seasonally and we had to find somewhere else to eat. For instance, we were going to eat at one place that was a local deli and served times similar to Subway but they weren't open yet. Luckily, just down the road, a new burger place had opened and they made their own patties. I chose the buffalo burger with extra veggies. Hubbie ordered the same but he ate his fries and I saved mine along with the bun for him to eat that evening in the hotel with some sandwich meat I had brought. We also ordered side salads to take with for supper because where we were staying that night had only one restaurant that we knew of and they were totally al fresco and it was very cold so we weren't sure they'd even be open. turns out they weren't. So we had tuna on salad greens for supper. We did this a couple of times. When we did eat at a restaurant, I found the servers very helpful. I didn't stress over spices and oils they might use but I did request no marinades, butter, dressings or sugar. I had used Rainbow's "IP to go" bag idea and had mine packed with various Walden Farms dressings, stevia, Bragg's, olive oil, IP salt and assorted hot tea for evening.

I just hope that next time we go I can remember what I did!!

My family and friends make fun because I can go overboard when organizing something but it's just the way my brain works. The trip was very successful in all aspects. I lost right at 10 lbs and hubbie lost 3 (he is not on IP but eats close to what I eat, just doesn't forego his cheerios, bread and potatoes). There were a few days when I know I didn't get all my water in but when driving 5-8 hours a day, well, you know....I'm not opposed to dropping trou next to the car but some of the roads were busy ones...

[frawniemae]

Bumping because it's summertime and vacation traveling is probably on many peoples' minds! Tons of helpful info inside; start at page one!

[Grateful4Health]

Thought I would bump this page up since so many people are asking about vacations and holidays…. summer!

[Grateful4Health]

bump for newcomers

[mandasquared]

Thanks for the bump, there is lots of great info