Leaving my house bright and early at 5 am Tuesday November 12th to catch a flight to Atlanta GA through Dallas TX required some planning.  The first thing I had to do was check the weather and pack appropriate clothing for 4 days in Atlanta of daytime business attire to represent the WLSFA (Weight Loss Surgery Foundation of America) in our booth and then evening clothes, both casual and fancy for the night time festivities.  After that it was packing for a 3 day retreat on Hilton Head IslandSC.  November in the Southeast turned out to be challenging to say the least.  Temperatures varied from 28 degrees to 80 degrees with sunshine, wind and rain.  Needless to say I over packed in my effort to be prepared for anything.  Also in that one piece of checked luggage was most of my emergency food for the week, my supplements (both liquid and tablet), my Uggs and a down jacket to deal with the 28 degree night in Atlanta.  Which was the very evening I was going out to dinner with a friend.  Remember, I’m a weight loss surgery patient so I am cold when it’s 65 degrees out, at 28 I had to dress for the Arctic blizzard to try to stay warm.  Add my gym clothes and sneakers and my suitcase weighed in at 48 ½ pounds with 50 pounds being the maximum.  Whew, I made it!

Now came the carry on piece.  I needed my Kindle, my laptop, my power cord, my phone charger, all of my makeup, hair dryer, flat iron, and my PJs should my other piece of luggage get lost.  And a package of jerky, a Quest bar, some almonds and some protein powder and a shaker for emergencies.  It’s a good thing I work out because lifting that puppy into the overhead was challenging for sure.

I arrived at my gate with plenty of time to stand in the coffee line for just another cup, but instead decided to get myself a 33 ounce bottle of water and walk around as much as possible before boarding since I was missing my workout on travel day.  Off we went…LAX to DFW.  33 ounces of water, 1 cup of mint tea, and a Quest bar later I was walking between terminals at DFW.  Now it’s onward to Atlanta with a 5:40PM arrival...I had a 200 calorie chicken salad that I had picked up at DFW on this flight.  The thought of dragging my 48 ½ pound bag, along with my carry on and my purse to a shuttle was intimidating.  Fortunately I met someone at baggage claim heading to the same hotel so we shared a cab.  Thank heavens for bags that roll with spinners because I still had to get both bags through the airport to the cab line.  The hotel had a bellman waiting, so I was hands free from this point on.  I got into my room, hung up my clothes that mattered, and it was past dinnertime.  Hmmm, I wanted real food. 

Now I got to do something I rarely do now, let alone in my much larger past.  I went down to the bar/restaurant on my own and ordered some dinner.  Then I waited for my associates to return from their welcome event.  I ate alone and was not concerned that the entire room was watching me.  In my previous life I probably would have ordered room service and hit up the honor bar for whatever chocolates and crunchy things they had.  Not any more, it was ahi sashimi for me.  I wanted protein and I had it.

Off to bed to get a good start on the rest of the busy week.  Up at the crack of dawn and down to the gym with my shake which was protein powder mixed with coffee to get me up and at ‘em.  I should have realized that at an event called Obesity Week, that at 6:30 am the gym would be busy.  Every machine was taken.  The first available was a bike so I hopped on.  After about 15 minutes a treadmill became available so that’s where I went next.  Finally my elliptical opened up …Forty five minutes on 3 machines and I was off to start the rest of my day fueled with coffee and 120 calories and 27 grams of protein.  The day flies by when you are engaging folks in conversation and soon it was time to get ready for dinner with my Atlanta based friend who I had not seen in a year.  Jeans, sweater, Uggs, my down jacket, and off I went into the frigid Atlanta evening for a wonderful time with an old friend.  We talked for hours, and hours, and hours and pretty soon it was well past my bed time.  So off I went to prepare for another long day on Thursday.  The gym never happened on Thursday…drinking coffee in bed and helping my body to figure out what time it actually was took precedent as did catching up on some other work.  Another long day on the convention floor talking to folks, checking out new items offered for sale, and then preparing for 2 evening events that were definitely not casual. 

It was great to meet all of the folks from Lap Band (Allergan) and spend some time catching up.  I was also fortunate enough to meet the CEO of Apollo Endosurgery who recently acquired Lap Band.  At this time all I have to say is that I am excited for the future of Lap Band and look forward to seeing what the next year brings.

After all of this fun it was time to go back to the room and pack…almost.  I still had one more day on the convention floor and then wanted to change to jeans and a T-shirt for the 4+ hour drive to Hilton Head so it took some mighty mindful packing and sorting. 

Each of my mornings in Atlanta started with a shake made with coffee, had a Quest bar sometime during the day, at least two 33.9 ounce bottles of water and an extremely minimal lunch.  Dinner varied but my protein and calories were on target even if my water was a little lower than I would like.

My Hilton Head experience was back to the opportunity of 3 real food meals and while no gym was handy there were miles of beach just hundreds of feet away to walk on, so walk I did as much as possible.  I enjoyed my time in Hilton Head working and playing with a group of the most amazing ladies with incredible positive energy and a willingness to share.

Then home from Savannah airport to DFW to LAX.  I walked as much as I could before and between flights and was blessed with an upgrade to first class between DFW and LAX so I even got in a little nap with my feet up and my eyes closed.  Got in my 33 ounces on each of the flights, with some tea in between and a treat of a skinny peppermint mocha at Starbucks in Atlanta.

It is possible to get it all done while traveling - the water, the protein, the exercise.  It requires some thought and planning and taking advantage of opportunities presented.

Now it’s on to planning a healthy Thanksgiving meal.  What’s on your menu?