Vacation Alert...

That's what my auto-responder is set to at work this week - a notice to everyone that I won't be answering their emails until my return to routine. And vacationing I am - in Savannah, Georgia at the moment savouring the sunny southern comfort and clear blue skies. Loving my grandson and my daughter, spending some relaxed time with DH - not rushing around on a Saturday trying to squeeze all of life into a single car ride.

Sometimes I think we all need a Vacation Alert message to pop up in our brains while we're actually on vacation. Why do we think that we can "fall off the wagon" for a week while we're away from home? Why do we think we deserve or need a vacation from our healthy lifestyles and choices? Why do these myriad changes we're trying to make feel like their own form of work once we're away from home? It's not work - it's life. Whether we're home or not.

A couple of times this week I've popped a homemade praline (7000 cal, 680g fat and 1 g fibre! You get the idea!!) in my mouth with the pre-thought of "it's okay, I'm on vacation" but, truly, that's the wrong message! I can't afford to take a vacation from my health. There is no justification to allow a vacation to interfere with eating thoughtfully! I don't NEED a vacation from my usual nutritious diet.

So - I'm changing my praline moments to something more accurate and sustainable. I've run more than 20 kms on this trip, biked for 3 hours around old Savannah yesterday, spent an hour practicing yoga on the beach (and have the gazillion bug bites to prove it too), biked an hour tonight on the surf line of the beach - all in all, I've maintained a healthy exercise program and there is room in my intake for a praline because I haven't overeaten elsewhere. I have consumed a healthy diet and there is room in a healthy diet for a homemade praline.

So - I can have it if I want it. If it's worth it (homemade pralines Georgia style are sssooooo worth it!) and if there's room. Not because I'm on vacation.

Back to the beach.