VACATION all I ever wanted…but I didn’t want to come home 5 pounds heavier!

I am headed out tomorrow morning for an extended weekend of music, fun, fancy, and FOOD. I am going to spend the weekend with some of my dearest friends with whom I love to practice extreme levels of decadence—eating delicious, homemade food straight out of their garden and drinking copious amounts of wine. We are even making a cameo in New Orleans for a day! So how do I plan on coming back from my excursion guilt free? By following some very simple steps:

1) Bump up the workouts the week before. Weight Watchers teaches you that life is all about balance, and the program gives you a full week to find that balance. You get daily points to spend each day, but you get additional weekly Points to spend when you need a little extra treat. You also earn activity points from exercise to use when your weeklies are gone. Even when you are working toward weight loss (and not just maintenance), it makes good sense that you should take in more calories if you are burning more calories (as long as you don’t go overboard). Yes, I will be running 10K tomorrow morning to counteract that delicious hurricane waiting for me a Pat O’Brien’s. My handy dandy calorie burner tool at the bottom of this blog (you can use it, too!) tells me I will burn 576 calories during my hour-long run. There are about 500 calories in one of these fruity bad boys, so it is a good thing I’m hitting the pavement early!

2) Get some exercise in when you can. Take a long walk after a big lunch or the morning after an evening of indulgent imbibing. Headed for the beach? Go for a morning swim. Throw the Frisbee around, shoot some hoops, opt for a tennis match—take your pick! You will be surprised how quickly your activity points add up and help curb the damage you are doing to your Point or calorie count.

4) Drink LOTS of water. Staying hydrated is important when you are making the most out of your holiday. You will feel more energy to get a little exercise in when you can. You will simultaneously flush out the toxins and salt destined to make you retain excess water weight.

3) Don’t abandon all semblance of portion control. Just because you don’t always have a kitchen scale, calorie counter, or measuring cups, you can still estimate proper portion sizes:

4) Make good choices when you can. Fill up on fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains at every opportunity—breakfast and lunch are typically primo opportunities (there is more to a breakfast buffet than eggs and bacon, people! Opt for oatmeal and strawberries instead of biscuits and gravy). Can’t miss the vacation hot-spot with the best burger in town? Get a side salad with it instead of fries. Split your entrée with a friend. Skip whatever useless carbohydrate the restaurant forces on you before you order—you wouldn’t eat that garlic bread at home! Opt for fresh fish instead of the porterhouse and steamed veggies instead of a butter-drenched baked potato. Choose the Pinot over the Port (see May’s slimming down cocktails entry).

5) Snack healthy. If you know you will be surrounded by bad choices, pack your own! Pack fresh fruits (e.g. apples or bananas—check out this awesome banana bunker for safe banana travel to prevent bruising), low-fat granola bars, or pre-portioned bags of healthy nuts (e.g. almonds or pistachios). Steer clear of empty calories that won’t stick with you throughout your afternoon play.

This is your vacation, so enjoy it! And understand that you can indulge a little without completely throwing your good habits out the window. Plan ahead, make good choices, control portions, and get in a little exercise when you can.

BTW for dedicated readers: I won’t be back until Tuesday night, so my next entry will be Wednesday. I’ll fill you in on all the good VACAY dirt then!!!