Hello Everybody,
Many of us try to get fit before we go on holiday. The beach is a place where we do not want to look over weight. Keeping to a healthy weight loss program for a few weeks will certainly help you lose a few pounds before you go away. But what will you do when you get there? Is it worth trying to maintain your weight at all?
The maximum weight loss I would recommend is two pounds a week. It will take you nearly two months to lose a stone. But if you eat a high fat, high sugar, high calorie diet on holiday you can put on half a stone in a fortnight and probably will. So it really is worth doing what you can to minimise weight gain, even if you do not maintain your previous weight completely.
Here are a few tips which may help.
1. Before a big evening meal have a light meal a couple of hours earlier. Try a little cottage cheese or chicken and a small salad without mayonnaise. This will cause you to eat less high calorie food later.
2. Eat smaller portions. The size of your plate determines the size of your meal. Enjoy your food but do not have massive portions. One of the reasons the French are slim is because they eat less at a sitting.
3. Get some exercise. You should aim at two half hour periods a day. Morning and evening is best, particularly in hot climates. Walking, cycling, swimming, tennis are all good, but anything which gets you moving is worth doing. Do not think of exercise as a chore, make it part of the fun.
4. Drink plenty of water. If you are drinking water you are not drinking high sugar fizzy drinks or alcohol. In an unfamiliar country avoid tap water even if it is labelled ‘drinking water’. Bottled water is a lot safer.
5. Do not snack. It is easy to take a packet of crisps and a coke to the beach. Then have an ice cream when you get there. That is how the calories creep up on you. Take a bottle of water and some fruit. Wash or peel the fruit to avoid a major slimming experience.
6, Look in the mirror. After a week are you happy with what you see? A business man will tell you that if you keep doing the same thing you will keep getting the same results. So it may be time to make a change in what you are eating and how much exercise you are getting.
7. Be realistic. You are on holiday, not at a health club - or if you are on holiday at a health club you do not need my advice. Of course you will eat more on holiday, and you will not know the calorie value of all you eat. If you only put on a couple of pounds you have done well and can easily lose it on your return from holiday. But remember, half a stone is a lot more difficult.
That is all there is to it. No need to spoil your holiday with constant calorie counting. All you need to do is what you would do at home to maintain your weight loss program. Do not worry if you miss the target. Just be aware of pitfalls and try not to miss the target by too much.
See you soon,
Peter Stockwell
4 June 2010
Photo. f_snarfet )Flickr)
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