Leaving for vacation -- a bit nervous

I leave on vacation in a few days. I'm a little nervous, mostly because I'm afraid to get out of the exercise habit, but partly because I'm thinking that food issues will be a challenge for me. I'm setting myself a goal to be back at my regular weights and cardio routine by 2 days after I get back. This should give me enough time to resolve the jet lag I'll have. We have some major walks and hikes planned while on vacation, so I think I should maintain fitness (hope). I'm giving myself permission to have a Guiness (dark beer) while there, on a night I won't be driving. I haven't tried alcohol. I'm taking power crunch bars with me, so I can get some protein along with my Irish potatoes. I'm taking Spenda, because I've read that it is nearly impossible to find in Ireland. Any other suggestions from people who have travelled after WLS? Eileen (I'm excited about vacation, too, looking forward to being out the toxic (to me these days) US for a while.)

Eileen, Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate..... Traveling always causes dehydration!! Be extra careful about you fluid intake... Remember, Teas, coffee and Guinness are going to dry you out more, so.... take it easy. I drink on occasion and all I need is one or two (versus a bottle) to get tipsy these days. HAVE A BLAST... and Kiss the Motherland for me.... (Kathleen Mary-Catherine Tompkins) (maiden name) Kate Z

I second Kate's hydration comment! As for anything else... be sure to pack your vitamins. Good going on the Power Crunch bars and such. Rich and I have only done small jaunts that are car rides away since surgery. We have therefore been able to pack tubs of protein, baggies of protein, shaker cups and all that jazz. Not sure what we would do for bigger more far away journeys. I found sweet 'n low impossible to find in England (pre-WLS) and was bummed but then found little purse size dispensers of saccharin that are the cutest. Still have one. They have tiny little saccharin pills in there... pretty concentrated. Great for travel. Those individual pouches of nuts are great for travel. Buy a box at Costco. So when you need a protein snack... it is portioned and readily available. Other than that... enjoy your Guiness (personally I'm more a half 'n half gal myself). Say a toast for us. Have a wonderful time. May the road rise to meet ya... Kathy

Hi Eileen, Wishing you a lovely trip and blessing of much peace as you do the last minute things to prepare. Your goals upon return are so wise and will surely help you get back into the groove. The only idea I can think of is to have a supply of cheese/peanutbutter crackers along. Tho not lo-carb they do offer a protein on the go. When we travelled to Tennessee recently I brought a jar of peanut butter which helped me get in the protein and balanced blood sugar en route. Are you Irish by chance? If so you just may feel 'your Irish roots' wigglin' while there . Have fun. Mary

Thanks to all for the great suggestions. I'm going to Costco tonight to pick up peanut butter & crackers, some nuts, and beef jerkey. I have been so bad with my water lately that I hadn't even thought of working on keeping hydrated. I'll take along a re-usable water bottle. Yes, I'm Irish, from both my mother's and father's side. County Kerry. Red hair, freckles, the whole bit. Eileen

Hi Eileen ~ Your vacation is going to be so incredible! Have a wonderful time! When we last traveled to England, I found out a couple of things. It was difficult to find protein bars there that weren't filled with sugar, etc. Also, their nutritional labels were much different to read. They would give you the nutritional information for an amount larger than say, the protein bar itself, and then you would have to figure it out from there. Not a big deal, but for a while I couldn't believe how many calories everything had! Of course, I drank lots of water that I toted around with me everywhere, and lots of hot tea (I love tea!). I could not find any flavored waters that were low/zero calories and not carbonated. So, water got a little boring, but probably just because I couldn't find something else to drink. Eating out was ok -- my pouch it not too picky. I just stayed away from the fried items. One of my sole snacks was nuts, which I got tired of after a week, but they were easy to carry around. My eating schedule was way off, so I just hoped that I was getting in enough activity to offset any calorie overload. It worked -- I didn't lose any weight, but didn't gain any either. I'm sure you'll be fine in the exercise category. Bon Voyage! Angie