Healthy Habits on Holiday

We all know what a healthy balanced meal should look like (if not, get yourself booked on to a BeeZee Bodies programme ASAP!)  and the importance of eating our 5 a day. However, when we are on holiday, it’s easy for this to go out the window. Our first top tip is to eat salad/veggies with every meal, this can be by having a bowl of salad before your main meal to fill you up or fill half of your plate with salad/vegetables. This will keep you full and help reduce the caloric value of your meal. 

Sauces, salad dressings, cocktails (even mocktails) all contain a lot of hidden calories, so be mindful of how much and how often you are choosing to have them. Some lower calorie options to try are salsa, balsamic vinegar and diet soft drinks (with clear spirits for the grown ups). 

When we go on our summer holidays, its often hot (duh). We’re not blessed in England with super-hot weather all the time and that’s why we love going on away! But when it’s hot, we sweat more and when we sweat, we lose fluid. This means that we need to replace that lost fluid and avoid dehydration by…drinking more fluids. The recommended amount of fluids is 8 glasses per day (2 litres), however if we happen to be in a hotter climate, we would recommend slightly more than that, so try 10-12 glasses (3 litres) as a rough guideline. One easy way to know if you are dehydrated is to check the colour of your wee! If it’s yellow, drink more! Ideally, you’re looking for a straw like colour or slightly clear. 

Most holiday resorts have a wide range on activities on offer like water aerobics, tennis and beach volleyball plus many more. This can be a great way to meet new people, be active and have fun at the same time. Why not hire bikes to get around, challenge yourself to swim 20 lengths of the pool each day or play some bat & ball on the beach? The possibilities are endless, so get off those sun loungers and enjoy being active! 

Having a three course meal every now and then is a nice little treat, however when you’re away for a week or even more, it can result in a lot of extra calories.

Our solution is to choose either a starter and a main, or a main and a desert. Or if you can’t decide,  share a starter and dessert! This will help to keep your calorie intake down but still enjoying delicious food. 

What else are holidays for, treat your holiday as a time to forget the stresses of day to day life and try to really switch off. Enjoy the company, take a book to read and recharge your batteries. Alternatively, if you’re an adventure seeker, go all in with tip number 4! Self-care comes in many forms, so whilst you are away, it’s a great time to reflect and be grateful for what you have. 

Finally, it’s very important that we all always wear sun cream! Avoid getting burnt at all costs and re-apply regularly! 

Happy holidays!