Vacation Pounds: Why You Shouldn't Worry

Have you ever come back from vacation with more than just some great memories?

Maybe the jeans you wore on the plane at the beginning of your trip were just too tight for the flight home.

Are you worried?

You shouldn’t be.

Gaining a few pounds on vacation happens to most people. Taken out of our daily routines, we rarely make time to exercise. We might squeeze in a run here or there, but as my husband likes to tell me: “Relax. You’re on vacation.”

That’s exactly what I did last month when I went home to visit family and friends in Northern California. Yes, I still ate nutritious foods – for the most part – but I indulged here and there when I normally wouldn’t.

Was there time to go lift weights at the local gym near my dad’s house?

No.

But I spent plenty of time with my family, watched my kids splash around the pool with their cousins and caught up with my girlfriends from high school.

Did I know I was going to gain a few pounds on my trip?

You bet.

And I’m not worried.

That would take the fun out of indulging in birthday cake. Or sampling the local fare at Fisherman’s Wharf.

But I know what to do when I get home. I go back to my exercise schedule and my stockpile of healthy foods within easy reach. And within a couple weeks, my weight is back to where it was before vacation.

My jeans fit, too.

Alice Warchol is a fitness instructor and freelance health writer.

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