Last week I returned from our family vacation to South Carolina to visit my husband’s dad. It was pretty much four days of sleeping in, soaking up some sun, chilling out, and eating.

We started our stay with a day trip to Myrtle Beach, where we swam in the ocean, went to a water park, and saw a couple of sharks from the pier. (Luckily, this was AFTER our swim – Eek)! My in-laws live about an hour inland in a log cabin on the lake, so we were also able to enjoy a little boating, fishing and relaxing on floats for hours in the water over the weekend. It was really nice to spend time with them.

On the eating front, we went out nearly every night, and dessert was never missed. One night we all ordered a deep-fried cinnamon and sugar croissant with ice cream and strawberries. OMG – I must say it was delish!!

Even with vacation splurges like this, I was proud of myself for still being cognizant of starting my day with eggs, ordering some veggies at dinner when available, tried to watch how much water I was drinking, and stayed active with kayaking and an outdoor workout.

My typical goal is to eat healthy 90% of the week and to treat myself with foods I love the other 10% of the time. I’d say my vacation eating was about 75% healthy and 25% freebie foods, so not too, too crazy.

I love that I have a healthy balance of both eating for nutrition and eating for pleasure. Life is too short not to enjoy the treats you love once in awhile, but it is also too short to live with the challenges and costs that come with diseases fed by a high dose of unhealthy foods all the time.

Travel can be an easy excuse to break away from your healthy lifestyle and cave into all cravings. But, just remember, even short weekend trips that go totally out of control, can cause you to spiral back into a poor eating pattern when you return if you let it.

So on your next summer getaway or weekend at the lake, do your best to continue to eat healthy. Indulge a little. You don’t have to be perfect. But, just avoid a complete sabotage of your hard work back at home.

Arm yourself with some healthy options that are convenient and portable, like protein bars, grass-fed beef jerky, nuts, seeds and fruit and take them with you. Keep up on your water, order your meals around a lean protein, order veggies when you can, and try to stay active. If you are in my Facebook group, Inner Fire, be sure to check out my top three favorite protein bars in a post last week. If you are not a member, I’d love to have you join us!

Hope you have safe and happy travels!

Let’s get FIRED UPP,

Nat

P.S. If you or someone you know would benefit from changing their mindset and improving their health and fitness, Fit, Fueled & Fired Upp is the perfect place to start. If started now, this 14-week program can give you a head start to get back into those skinny jeans just in time for fall. I'm offering a Summer Special on this program until July 15th, so get in on the deal and save nearly $50!

#travel #summer #healthylifestyle