By: Clare Pattison

We are reminded time and time again that having a plan and executing the plan are part of the secrets to success with our lap bands.  By sharing my most recent plan, execution, and debriefing with all of you it will help me create new plans for the future and possibly provide some insight for others.  In Canada holiday = vacation.

So here is the plan I made before we went on holidays:

It’s holiday time!  We’re taking a long road trip through the mountains and out to the west coast for the next two weeks.  Gone are the days I would watch from the car at stops while the kids ran around or just sit in my lawn chair at the campsite too hot, tired and cranky to move.  I am 174 pounds lighter and so much fitter than I was then.  This trip I want to do my best to stay active despite long hours in the car so here's my plan. 

I'm taking my resistance band and a skipping rope with me on the trip.  Yes, you read that right, a skipping rope.  There is one hanging on the wall in my gym and I've been eyeing it for a while.  Yesterday I got up my courage, took it down and tried it out.  If it turned out to be a colossal epic failure, at least I gave it a shot.  I’m not a runner and there are no ellipticals in the campgrounds and I want something more intense than walking.  The skipping was GREAT cardio.  Even taking it slow and easy was Holy Heart Rate, Batman!  I could only do 60 turns at a time and then take a break.  I’m heading off after to work to buy my own.  Whipping that out at a roadside stop or in the campground is going to be super!

What else can I do while on the road?  I can use my resistance band for all my back, chest and arm exercises by wrapping it around a tree, over a beam on the playground monkey bars, or just standing on it.  I can do step ups on a park bench.  I can do lunges and squats anywhere at all.  I can use the picnic table seat for push ups and to put my legs up on for crunches.  I can just be a kid and run up the playground equipment and down the slides, especially fun now that I fit!  And when we stop for the day, there is always that wonderful exploring walk around the campground.

And food for the road?  No more cheezies, chips, twizzlers and pop (soda) in the car!  I have beef and turkey jerky, roasted almonds, apples and water bottles in the cooler along with some good quality protein bars just in case.  We’re planning on buying ready-cooked roast chickens and bagged salads at the grocery stores for picnics along the way, and Subway roast turkey “make your sub a salad” as the quick stop of choice.  I’ve got our protein powder and shaker bottle tucked in there as well.  And there won’t be a roadside fruit stand that we don’t stop at!  I think we’re going to save money as well as eat healthier this trip!

So that’s the plan!  It’s going to be an active, healthy and fun holiday!

So how did it actually go?  Exercise wise, it went pretty well.  I was able to find an empty campsite or playground area for early morning workouts most days.  Step ups, push ups, dips on the picnic table seats, skipping rope anywhere at all, lunges and squats on the riverbank or sidewalk.  .  .  I went to a local swimming pool fitness room three days and swam laps another day just paying the drop-in fee each time.  I went before anyone else was up and was home before they were even awake so I didn't disrupt anyone else's day.  We stayed at our nephew's house for two days and he had exactly the same equipment in his basement that I have at home so that was a bonus.  I volunteered to hop out of the car and go in to get coffee instead of us using the drive through windows and did as much walking as I could when we stopped for a break.

As for food, it was good as well.  I think once I decided that I could make it work no matter where I was, it turned out just fine.  Steak sandwich without the garlic toast is available almost everywhere and so are omelets without the toast and potatoes.  I always ask for grilled tomato slices instead now and everywhere has been happy to accommodate that for me.  We stopped at a farmer's market and bought garden fresh organic carrots and heirloom tomatoes to munch on that lasted a couple of days, and at a roadside fruit stand and bought cherries and plums for the day. and a peach each that we ate right there on the side of the road.  Any time we felt the growlies coming on, we had roasted almonds and jerky in the car along with a bar of high quality very dark chocolate.  One square of that was such a treat!

I found making protein drinks with powder very messy and keeping the shaker bottle clean and fresh was a challenge so we ended up buying ready-to-serve protein drinks along the way.  They were expensive and I prefer them cold, but they were drinkable and kept the wolf from the door when needed!

Did it go perfectly?  No.  I succumbed to corn chips and dip at my sister's place and fruit jellies at my step moms, and for sure I didn't get enough water in.  I sometimes waited too long to eat and then ate too much or made less-than-ideal choices but it was real life and I think I did okay.  Proof?  I was within a pound of what I weighed the day we left.  I'll take that!

Lesson learned?  I made a plan.  I carried through with the plan.  I altered the plan whenever I needed to but kept within the spirit of what I was trying to do.  I didn't let my plan get in the way of having a fun holiday, and I didn't let having fun get in the way of staying on my plan.