It blew my mind…

This video blew my mind, it is absolutely amazing, so inventive, and yet, so simple.  It’s a great example of thinking outside the box.  Creativity is so inspiring, I hope it inspires you as much as it did me!

Behind the scenes (fascinating):

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How I Lost 18 lbs. On My Holiday

I thought the title might catch your attention! In reality, it’s how I did not gain another 18 lbs on my holiday, because I easily could have.  I am proud to report that I only gained two pounds on my month long Mexican holiday.  (Yes, I know, I whole month, crazy, isn’t it?!  Never in a million years would I have thought I would be going away for a whole month but I truly believe the good fortune that has come to me has all to do with the positive thinking I have been practicing for the last few of years, but more on that later).

So for two of the four weeks I was away we had an all-inclusive all-you-can-eat&drink deal.  As a rule, I steer clear of “all-you-can-eat” situations as they are only trouble. I always feel I have to get “my money’s worth” so I inevitably end up stuffing myself. I have learned it is best to avoid them all together.  So a whole fifteen days of it was a little worrisome. And this was delicious gourmet food, no crappy buffets. So it really is quite a feat that I only gained two pounds!

HERE IS HOW I DID IT:

How to deal with the “all you can eat & drink” dilemma:

At the beginning I started to overeat to “get my money’s worth”, after all I felt like a kid in a candy store, luckily, I quickly snapped out of it and realized that over-eating makes me feel like crap and there’s nothing worse than spending your holiday feeling bloated & sick. I gave it some thought and set some goals for my holiday:

• Not to gain weight
• Stay in relatively good shape so I can get right back to teaching upon my return (one year I took a month off and it took me three months to get back to where I was, I’ll never do that again!)
• Feel good!!! (as in healthy)

So I applied my “The Ying and the Yang” strategy (in other words, what goes in should equal what comes out):

• For breakfast each day I had a fruit plate and a fresh squeezed orange juice

• For lunch each day I had:
  • a green salad with a vinagrette
  • one taco (I started with three at first)
  • a fruit plate
  • one lemonade

• My healthy low calorie breakfast and lunch allowed me to enjoy an indulgant 4-course dinner, guilt-free.  This was my average dinner:
  • 3 slices of bruschetta (a little slice of baguette with chopped tomato & olives on top)
  • minestrone soup (anything that consists of mostly vegetables has almost no calories)
  • grilled fish with a salad (with vinaigrette) or vegetables (no rice or potatoes)
  • 4 martinis!  yes 4, because they were small and not strong (usually my max is two)
  • if I really wanted dessert I shared one with my husband (about half the time), I never ate a whole dessert by myself

I felt great! I did not feel deprived in any way or bloated & sick from over-eating.

Here are some of the other strategies I used for not gaining weight on my holiday yet still enjoying great food and drinks!:

• If you’re in Mexico, you are constantly given deep fried tortilla chips. I asked for plain tortillas instead, cut in quarters. I could enjoy the guacamole and salsa without feeling sick & bloated afterwards.  If I eat those deep fried chips, I can actually feel the oil oozing out of my face afterwards, not to mention the huge lump in my belly (and cellulite). Just not worth it!
• I declined the bread basket at dinner.  If others are enjoying the bread and I am really missing it, I take a deep whiff of the bread and enjoy the smell. I actually find smelling it more enjoyable than eating it, it almost has the same effect as eating it with no bloating after-effect. But it takes will-power not to eat it.
• I replace rice & potatoes in entrees with vegetables or salad
• I avoid creamy rich salad dressings
• I limit the sweet drinks to one a day as they are packed with calories
• I limit the alcoholic drinks to two a day as they are packed with calories and that’s all the alcohol I can take before it’s no longer fun
• I stay active. Lying around all day expending zero calories and then over-eating is a guaranteed way to gain weight
• I always took the stairs – and we were staying on the fifth floor (I counted an average nine times up and down a day – so that really adds up).
• I went to the gym every day and did the stationary bike for half-an-hour (hard enough that I was sweaty at the end of it), and about half-an-hour (sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less) of weights and a few other exercises
• If lying by the pool or beach I would get up about every hour and do a few laps around the pool
• I took long walks along the beach
• I joined some of the on-sight activities: volleyball, dance lessons, bocci ball, kayaking, anything is better that lying around all day
• I made sure I was drinking at least 8 glasses of water a day, this is especially important in a hot climate

And viola!

You can feel good, enjoy yourself and not gain much weight

(hopefully none) on your holiday!

How ’bout you?

Share your own tips below in the comments!

Would love to hear from you.

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Happiness Revealed

This video really touched me, so I wanted to share it with you.

I hope you will invest the time to watch it, it is so worth it.

xo Ali

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