Eating Healthy While On Vacation
Erica Wells, RD
With vacation time just around the corner, it’s time to start developing a plan of attack for making sure your healthy eating habits don’t come unraveled while you are out of town. Sure, when you are on vacation you should kick back and enjoy yourself, which includes eating tasty local food. What you don’t want to do is use the fact you are on vacation as an excuse to eat everything in sight or eat junk just because its there. This becomes particularly tricky with all inclusive resorts and cruises, when unlimited food is at your disposal. You are on vacation but your eating habits should not be. Instead, find the balance between enjoying the local eats while maintaining awareness about what you are eating over the course of your day.
Eating Out
Since likely you won’t be on any sort of structured schedule and may be eating out for your meals, it is easy to stray away from your healthy habits. Sticking close to your regular routine may help you to stay on track. Start your day by selecting food items for breakfast similar to what you may normally do at home (for instance if you eat oatmeal with fruit every morning, select that option instead of getting a stack of pancakes with eggs). You can use lunch or dinner as the time to choose something different. On the other hand, since variety is the spice of life, you can use this opportunity to choose a healthy menu item that is too involved to make on a daily basis, such as a vegetable and egg white omelet. When I go out to eat, whether its out of town or local, I try to choose something with a lot of healthy ingredients that I don’t normally make for myself when I am at home. I also use eating out on vacation as an excuse to try something new! If you have a hankering for something sweet, share dessert. Also, pass on the appetizer (unless you are planning on making this part of your meal). Most appetizers are unhealthy and are just going to fill you up before your actual dinner arrives.
Snacking
Eating out can be expensive (both for your wallet as well as your waistline). When I go somewhere within driving distance, I often bring healthy snacks from home (like pistachios, nut bars, fruit or veggies) which allow me to have some good options on hand for when I get hungry between meals. Even when you fly its easy to stash nuts or bars in your bag or just stop into a local market if its available and pick up some of these ready to eat items.
Drinks
Watch out for those sweet/fruity beverages served poolside. Too many can really rack up the calories therefore should be taken into account when you are planning your meals for the day and should be consumed in moderation.
Activity
Get out there and move! Odds are you aren’t going to be hitting the gym while out of town and that is okay. Instead try to find ways to work at least 30 minutes or more of activity into your day. Whenever possible, walk instead of drive, take a taxi or subway. Get out and explore the area whether you are in a city or surrounded by nature. If you are headed to the tropics, get out into the water for some kayaking, stand up paddle boarding, skiing or snorkeling. Jump in the pool or head to the beach for some volleyball. Not only will you burn calories but also get more out of your experience. If the idea of sport-like activities don’t strike your fancy, no worries – just head out for a walk or jog on the beach.
