When you are trying to lose weight, sticking to your diet is not always easy even when you are eating at home every day. You may allow yourself to indulge if you go out to a restaurant every once in a while, and this can often help you to avoid temptation when you are eating at home. However, when you are going on vacation you may be eating in a restaurant daily, and dealing with daily temptations to indulge. Here are a few tricks that will help you stay on your diet so you won't feel too guilty when you get home.
Beverages
Soft drinks and alcoholic beverages can add a lot of calories to your diet. It is best if you can drink diet sodas, black or herbal teas, water or black coffee with your meals. If you know you are going to have a few drinks, be sure to have a few glasses of water too. This will not only help hydrate you so the effects of alcohol won't be as bad, it will also make you feel more full so you don't drink as much (this will even keep you from overindulging in soda or other high-calorie drinks).
Smaller Portions
One problem with eating at a restaurant is portion control. Look over the children's menu. If there is something you would be ordering anyway, explain to the waiter you would like to order that. If the policy does not allow you to do this, ask for a regular portion to be divided. Have only half of it brought to the table and the rest put in a doggy bag immediately. Of course, if someone else at the table is also on a diet, you can split a meal with him or her.
Munchies and Appetizers
Many restaurants bring chips, crackers or bread to the table for you to munch on while waiting for your meal. Ask the waiter to skip this or to remove them from the table. Instead, ask if they have a veggie tray as an appetizer or order a salad right away.
When you first arrive at your destination and are unpacking, take a few minutes to look at the menus for information for restaurants in the area. Find the one you want to go to as a special treat and allow yourself to indulge there. You can do this in the middle of the vacation or save it for your last night. When you finally get back home, you will be proud of yourself for your restraint and may find you were able to lose a pound or two instead of having gained a few.
