BEHIND THE BODY

Diet • Fitness • Lifestyle for Women 40+

I had (another) eye surgery last Thursday. 😝 It was my seventh one in 10 months, so this is familiar territory for me by now. What it means is two full weeks of taking it easy. I can't work out, I can't go for long walks, and I have to keep my heart rate down while I heal. And then, almost the day my two weeks are up, I leave for an eight-day vacation. So I'm looking at close to three weeks completely outside of my normal routine, away from my own kitchen, my own gym, and all the habits that keep me on track and feeling good.

This is exactly the kind of stretch that can wipe out a lot of progress...if you let it. When you're out of your routine, and everything feels off, it's easy to throw up your hands, eat and drink whatever you want for three weeks straight, and just tell yourself you'll deal with it when you get home. The problem is that after three weeks of that, getting home and getting back on track is really hard. That's how you end up further behind than where you started.

So I'm doing just one thing that keeps this from getting away from me: I'm planning. I don't mean a color-coded spreadsheet or a strict set of rules. Most of my planning is just thinking it through ahead of time, while I'm home and my head is clear. I think about where I'm going to be tempted, what's going to be hard, and what I'm willing to give up versus what I'm not.

For example, I know myself. When I sit down at a restaurant and there are fries on the menu, I'm going to order the fries. That's my weakness, and it's not changing on vacation. But because I already know it's coming, I can build the rest of my day around it. I eat a little healthier for the other meals, and I don't stack three more indulgences on top. And then the fries stop being a problem because I planned for them.

A few other things I’m already planning. I pack a few healthy foods when I travel, like tuna packets, protein powder, and Oats Overnight, so I have a breakfast or snack ready instead of walking into the buffet starving every morning and eating everything in sight. Sometimes we'll stop at a grocery store to grab a packaged salad to eat by the pool instead of ordering off the pool bar menu. And since I can't be active while I recover, I'm going to watch how much I drink, because alcohol is a lot of empty calories, and for us in our 40s and 50s, those calories tend to settle around our stomachs fast, especially when you're barely moving.

None of that is complicated, and it saves me hundreds of calories a day without making me feel like I'm missing out or sacrificing on my vacation.

The whole point is that I thought about it before I got there. Even if you don't have a specific plan, just knowing ahead of time where you'll be challenged helps you make a better decision in the moment because you've already thought it through. There’s no need to be perfect. But there's a lot of room between perfect and a total free-for-all, and planning is how you live in that space.

My Suggestion For You

Before your next trip or busy stretch, take five minutes and walk through it in your head. Picture the hotel breakfast, the dinner out, the afternoon by the pool with a drink in your hand. For each one, picture how you want to handle it before you're living it. You're not writing a meal plan; you're just thinking it through while it's easy, so you're not caught off guard later. The decision is always easier when you’re mentally prepared.

What I'm Loving This Week

I mentioned packing Oats Overnight when I travel, and these have been my go-to for years. They're so easy to take anywhere. You mix in milk or water, shake it up, and leave it overnight, and it's ready to go. I have them for breakfast or as a snack, and when I want one to replace a meal, I add a little extra protein powder before mixing it the night before. They're packed with protein at around 20 grams, high in fiber, low in added sugar, and they taste great. A quick, healthy option that makes my life easier. 😋

Because You Didn't Ask...

I've been glued to the World Cup. I'm not really a soccer person, but I love watching nations come together to compete, and seeing these countries show up and represent warms my heart. My husband is a huge soccer fan, and he's from Bosnia-Herzegovina, so this one has been personal. They played the US last week as the heavy underdog, and they played their hearts out. It was the farthest they've ever made it, and I was so proud watching them hold their own. Cape Verde did the same thing to Argentina, a country of just 500,000 people, giving the favorite the scare of their life and becoming the little team that almost did. We even got to see Bosnia play Switzerland in L.A. in the first round, which was an amazing experience. I love the World Cup the same way I love the Olympics, and I'm cheering for every country that showed up and gave it everything.

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Great chat! Let's do it again next Tuesday.

Xx,
Andrea