Sailing stormy waters

I just got back back from my honeymoon in the Maldives. We had a great time, lots of sun, probably too much in fact. Lots of sea and lots of relaxation.

It's funny, that should be enough for most people but unfortunately it can get a bit boring after awhile. Being stuck on an island in the middle of the Indian ocean is most peoples idea of fun but sometimes you want a bit more freedom to go where you please and do what you want.

But being on an island, with the only way of getting off being a speedboat when its time to leave, can feel...well...a little bit restrictive at times.

Then there's the serenity plan. So the resort we were staying at, the Oblu Select Sangeli, like most of the resorts in the Maldives has an all inclusive plan. Which means all you can eat and all you can drink, which is awesome...for most people! But, if you're someone who wants to watch their waistline, and even worse would like to lose some weight but at the same time wants to eat, drink and indulge a little, then its an absolute nightmare!

It's a paradox, in that on one hand you're restricted because you can't really get off the island, but on the other hand you have complete freedom to eat and drink as much as you want. The real problem is thats its the wrong way around! You want restriction on food, but freedom to get out and about. So this brings about the question of restriction. When to have it and how much.

I suppose thats what regulating your food intake is all about. Controlling how much food and when.

This holiday was actually quite a good one in terms of food but not necessarily weight. In terms of the scale weight I've definitely added 3-4Kg and that can be scary. In terms of food regulation there were a lot of positives which can be great to take forward into future holidays.

Going back to a previous post about what to measure, then if I were to look at scale weight and be attached to that, then the holidya could be considered a bit of a disaster. However, and I have to be honest here, I had to remind myself several times, thats not what I need to measure. What I need to measure is the habits and identity. How well am I acting in line with the person that I want to be? Thats the question

And in answer to that, I'd say overall very well. I wasn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, nor did I want to or intend to. I wanted to indulge. I wanted to try the different dishes and food preparations that the Maldives has to offer. But I also want to to regulate what I eat because afterall, stuffing yourself and feeling bloated just doesn't feel great!

So after the mass hysteria of the buffet in the first few days, I eventually settled into a nice routine of having one plate of food. I'd portion control. Taking a little bit of the foods that I wanted and sticking to one plate of food. Occasionally, I would go a little over but I made good progress, which leaves me knowing that I can do it again next time as long as I don't give in to the initial hysteria.

Now that I'm back of course I want to get rid of the excess, but if I fixate on the scales then not only will I feel like a complete failure and derail any progress, but I'll be falling into the trap of measuring, or more to the point, focusing on the wrong things.

What needs to happen, now that I'm back is turn down the calories, remember the dimmer switch analogy, and hold it there for an extended period of time. If I do that, then the weight will take care of itself.

Remember, this game isn't about weight loss. Its about how well you can regulate intake. That about habits and skills. Can you turn the dimmer switch up when on holiday without going crazy and can you turn it down when trying to lose weight but still navigate social events.

Now that I'm back, I need to be in a solid deficit. I don't need to fall into the trap and misery of trying to lose weight and the restriction of it all. I can enjoy social events, even look forward to them. I don't ned to fret about the Indian food my mum will dish up, I can portion control and buffer here and there. I don't need to avoid anything, I can accept and embrace.

Instead of spending the next several weeks trying to lose weight, my focus is on holding a calorie range. This had brought some calm to the storm and whenever I bring calm to the storm, I'm usually successful. So stayed focused on the right things and bring a little calm to the storm.