FUEL: HOW TO STAY LEAN ON VACATION

We just came back from a 7 day trip in Cayo Coco, Cuba and had a blast! The weather was beautiful, the ocean looked straight out of a Travel & Leisure article and despite what I had heard about the food in Cuba, it was pretty good at our resort.

When we first arrived to our room, I noticed an odd thing in the bathroom – I noticed a scale. For most people, this is the last thing they want to see while vacationing but I decided that I would weigh myself before & after the trip to see what kind of damage I did over the course of an all inclusive week.

To my surprise, my weight stayed relatively the same throughout the trip and I didn’t feel like I sacrificed any enjoyment in the process. We work so hard to look good on vacation and it’s a shame to lose all your gains.

Here are few tips on how to keep lean without skimping on having fun.

DRINK SMART

When it comes to drinks, I made a conscious decision to avoid beer because of the instant bloating. It didn’t seem worth it to me. My choice of drinks were Mojitos without sugar, A glass of Champagne and the occasional whiskey on ice. Champagne is only 80 cals per glass. Even though it’s kind of a lame drink choice, it’s only b/n 2-8g of sugar per glass depending on the type. When you skip out on high sugar cocktails you keep your insulin levels from going nuts.

EAT HIGH PROTEIN/LOW CARB

It’s easy to get sucked into the Americanized foods at all inclusives such as burgers, fries & pizza but let’s be honest, Cubans aren’t known for this type of cuisine so why not go for Cuban food staples. I stuck with high protein foods like fish, chicken, beans and went for fattier cuts like bacon or pulled pork on occasion.The fatty meats made up for the lack of processed carbs and keep me satiated.

KEEP ACTIVE

We literally walked everywhere and often. There was a golf cart that came around to give you a lift but we skipped out and used it as a chance to explore.

We swam everyday in the ocean and in the pools. In between swims, I brought my baseball glove to play catch on the beach instead of lounging around all day.

We also committed to hitting the gym 3/7 days. The idea wasn’t to workout too intensely but rather to maintain, so sessions were limited to 30min full body circuits. Who wants to spend their holidays in a gym?! Not me!

Despite all of my efforts, I cut myself some slack on a few meals and ate and drank whatever I wanted. The 80/20 rule is always a good strategy and will keep you from feeling completely restricted.