You have probably heard of it, and more than likely you have tried it. Sticking to a diet while vacationing.
For the past week I have been away from my desk at work and indulging my whims on a lovely stay-cation. On the very first day my friend Trish and I went out for Thai food for dinner before hitting up our book club. Phad Thai may not be the most diet-friendly way to kick off a vacation, but there you have it. I limited myself to have the portion and I had it served up with a dish of brown rice instead of white. I limited my calorie intake in other areas so as not to push myself over the 1300 calorie diet ledge. And… Success! Yay! Score one for Fuzzy Bear Slippers, Zero for temptation.
If only it could have lasted. The next day my mother came into town and we went to visit an old family friend who cooked a lovely lunch of salmon (healthy!) and a side of homemade artichoke dip (not so healthy). There were a lot of fruit and veggies, which was good too, but I guarantee you I overindulged in that delicious dip (pretty sure the health benefits of celery are negated by artichoke dip spread all over it). Later that night I ate several slices of pizza at my sister's house, but vowed to start off better the next day. Um, yeah. Right.
It was at this point that I decided that I was not going to count a single calorie during my time off. I opted to enjoy myself and to not worry about undoing myself. This occasionally entailed cheesecake for breakfast, or lunch, or dessert… It also involved several meals out (where I did make conscious decisions about quantity), such as Dick's Drive-In (where I enjoyed a Dick's Deluxe, minus a meat patty and some sauce, a small fry and a small chocolate milkshake). I ordered an extra cheeseburger and fry with the intention of eating them, but instead mustered some willpower and saved them for my husband when I got home. I ate at Applebee's where I had a virgin strawberry margarita, but shared it with my daughter so that I wasn't taking the total hit. I also ordered a steak without any of their cheesy or sautéed toppings, and stuck with a leaner cut of meat. (BTW, really? Cheese on a steak? Come on America!) This particular night was also mitigated by a 3 hour leisurely stroll/sit on the beach. It wasn't really exertion, but I am sure it counted for something.
I think my greatest accomplishment during this time off was not allowing myself to pig out when I wasn't hungry. And believe me, that was a huge accomplishment. I kept myself busy with reading books I enjoy so that I didn't get bored, and I kept a bottle of water next to me so that I didn't get up and get something sugary to drink. Also, not eating if I wasn't hungry occasionally led me to skip a couple meals. If I ate a large or late meal, and didn't feel hungry, I didn't sit down and eat the next meal. If I did feel hungry, then I ate.
Finally, the day of truth. Preparing to go back to work today and get back on the band wagon, I weighed myself to assess the damage last night, and was shocked to discover that I didn't put on a single pound. In fact, I didn't go up or down. While I would have been happier if I had lost a pound or two, I learned a lesson about enjoying myself within moderation (cheesecake for breakfast aside), and I am pleased to essentially start where I left off. Besides, I didn't put in the work to lose weight this last week, so it almost would have felt like cheating if I had managed to shave something off. I feel much better about stagnation under the circumstances.
Sometimes dieting feels like a real punishment, but my intent this time around to try to do it in a realistic way with real food is really pleasing. I haven't suffered much, and because I am working the things I like into my daily diet I am not feeling deprived. Granted, I am not going to be eating anymore cheesecake for breakfast (for a while), but I don't feel bad about the occasional eggs benedict either.
F. Bear Slippers
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