5 Tips to Stay on Track During Summer Vacation

Ahhh, Summer Vacation! Sometimes it feels like we are waiting for this wonderful and elusive time all year. But don’t let two weeks at the beach cause you to throw away all the hard work you have put into your New Year’s Resolutions (you’re still keeping up with them right?). If you follow a few simple guidelines on your next trip, you can maintain all the improvements you have made, and maybe even make a few more. But most of all, you will have a wonderful, relaxing, memorable trip shared with your loved ones.

• Keep Eating - One of my favorite things about traveling is all the eating that I get to do. I love to experience the different foods and flavors, whether I am in a different country or one hour from home. You can eat at a chain restaurant like Chili’s, California Pizza Kitchen, or McDonald’s right where you live so take a food adventure on your vacation. I travel to Hawaii usually twice a year and I love to explore the farmer’s markets. I get to try new fruits and vegetables, most which were picked that day or the day before. While in Hawaii, I also love to eat Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, Chinese, and Korean. I cannot find the same quality in the Asian restaurants on the East Coast. And the local fish in Hawaii is just amazing. Try and do a little research before your trip about the local cuisine. Local Harvest is a great resource for farmer’s markets in the US. With so much information on the web, it should only take a few minutes to get some good ideas. Ask your friends, ask the concierge at your hotel: tell them you really want to experience the local cuisine. Some words of caution from personal experience, the 24-hour buffet on your cruise ship is not always the best choice. Grab fruits and veggies. You can always take a few snacks with you just in case. I always make a homemade trail mix before I fly anywhere; airplane food is not always savory and delicious.
• Keep Moving - I could lay on the beach from sunrise to sunset pretty much every day, but I try to mix it up a little. Depending on where you travel, there are always activities for visitors. You can take advantage of surfing lessons, or learn to kayak. You could go hiking or learn to rock climb. There are plenty of walking tours in every city, or you can make sure that you take a walk every night after dinner with your fellow travelers, or let that be your quiet time. If you use a pedometer at home, take it with you. If you don’t, pick one up and have a vacation contest to see who takes the most steps.
• Relax - Like I said, I could lie on the beach all day, but everyone has different ideas of relaxation. Relaxation and movement could be the same for you. Whatever you choose to do, it should be fun and not cause you any stress. If it isn’t “perfect,” laugh about it and remember it as a funny story from your trip.
• Keep Hydrating - When traveling to warmer climates, or simply a climate you are not familiar with, make sure you are drinking lots of water. When we are sitting at our desks all day and the bottle of water is sitting in front of us, we see and remember to keep sipping. When we are out and about having fun adventures it can be pretty easy to forget to drink water. I am guilty of this, even as a personal trainer! So keep drinking your eight glasses a day…and a margarita does not count!
• Keep Drinking - What, drinking? Seriously, but not the way you think. Drink in your surroundings, watch the sunrise, the sunset, sit outside and count the stars, have a bonfire, just sit and watch the people. More often than not, we do not get enough down time in our lives. Make your vacation work for you. We will never have enough time to do EVERYTHING, but we can make the experiences we have with the ones we love satisfying and memorable.

Vacations are a time to be shared and savored. If you get off track from your goals, just take a deep breath and refocus. It’s wonderful to treat yourself and have fun, just make sure to celebrate every moment and create lasting memories.