In my last post about staying healthy on vacation, I mentioned that Ricky and I just returned from a “Low Carb Road Trip” together.
We went to Okaloosa Island on the Emerald Coast in Destin, Florida and we had an absolute blast! 😀
It was an 8 hour road trip from Middle TN, so we ate on the road and otherwise ate at the hotel cafe & beach restaurants throughout the trip. Like I mentioned in my last post about how to stick to a diet, several people made comments like “hey, you’re on vacation, eat whatever you want!” I don’t think that way. In fact, I’d rather eat healthy on vacation than any other time! I want to feel my absolute best and ENJOY the trip. 😉
I actually find it easier to eat low carb when I’m traveling. I’m not much of a cook (by preference), and I live in a very small town where take-out and restaurant options are extremely limited. When I travel there are TONS of delicious low carb options to explore, which I love!! I’ll share a “photo tour” with you of my meals throughout the trip, to show you how easy it is to enjoy beautiful foods while you’re out & about – and still stick to your low carb diet.
This is a current full-length photo of me. My shorts are a size 12, but they’re quite loose so I just ordered a new pair at size 10. I’ve gained weight since my hysterectomy last year, and lose slower now than I did before, but I’m on a mission to get in great shape (I have a way to go on that! lol) and be at my absolute best in my 40’s.
In addition to weight loss (and not wanting to GAIN), one of the main reasons I eat low carb is because it makes me feel SO much better. When I don’t (and yes, sometimes that happens!) I feel bloated, my joints ache, my ankles swell, and I have more back & muscle pain. My doctor wants to say “fibromyalgia” but I’m pretty sure it’s just inflammatory arthritis. Either way, eating low carb totally fixes all that – so it’s an easy fix!
Low Carb Road Trip – Food Journal Photo Tour
We headed out early Friday morning (before 5am!) to beat the traffic in the major cities we would be driving through. I boiled eggs the day before, so I brought those and some pecan halves – plus my coffee, of course! – and we snacked on those in the early hours. Pecans are a GREAT source of healthy fats, by the way. 😉 They’re one of my favorite low carb snacks, or sometimes I’ll have 1/2 cup of pecan halves for breakfast even.
Our first “pit stop” was a McDonald’s and by then I was getting hungry. I ordered a Sausage Egg McMuffin (“double sausage, double egg please”) and ditched the muffin. It’s actually cheaper to order a double than it is to buy two! I only ate one sausage patty and one fried egg, and had the other half later in the trip…
By the time we arrived at the Ramada Plaza Beach Resort and got settled in, we were both ready for a solid meal. Unfortunately the restaurant was closed in the afternoon hours, so we had to eat in the lounge. The lunch menu had a few salads (bleh) and mostly sandwiches.
I decided on a bacon cheeseburger and here’s how I ordered it: “I’ll have the burger with cheese, bacon and mushrooms – no bun, and a side of cottage cheese instead of fries.”
The burger and bacon were way overcooked. 😛 I was famished though, so I ate it all – even the pickle. I simply ate it with a fork, and dipped it in mayo & mustard. After that we decided to nap, so we had a really late dinner (around midnight I think). The only places open at that hour were Taco Bell, Wendy’s, Waffle House and Denny’s. We chose Denny’s as the best option to get “real food” with plenty of low carb options.
I scoured the menu and noticed they had avocado and sour cream on some of their dishes, so I ordered “Two fried eggs, bacon, and a side of avocado and sour cream please.” I cleaned that plate too. 😀
I just had coffee and snacked on some pecan halves for breakfast the next morning, as we were going out for a nice lunch at The Crab Shack on Fort Walton Beach. We shared a platter of raw oysters to start:
For lunch I ordered the bronzed mahi-mahi topped with (real) crab meat and bay shrimp (drizzled with lemon butter), with squash & zucchini on the side. It came on rice, but I requested a side salad instead of the rice:
I don’t recall having dinner that night, but to be fair we’d slept in and this was a late lunch – and a big meal. I was busy chatting with friends so I ate slow and the meal dragged on through late afternoon. That (plus the salad too!) really filled me up! We had an evening nap after, and then a nice beach walk for a good mile or so.
The next morning we had a late breakfast at the resort cafe. Given it was late in the morning (rather close to lunch, actually) and I’m wary of scrambled eggs in restaurants, I ordered off the menu. I remembered they had cottage cheese from the day before, so I ordered steak & fried eggs with cottage cheese and strawberries on the side:
I love strawberries and cottage cheese together. 😀 They go together like salmon & avocado!
We had an amazing time and did lots of beach walks and swimming for exercise, and of course ate healthy throughout the trip. It was a lot of fun, with a lot of beautiful foods to enjoy!
I hope this gave you some good ideas for eating out or on the go.
If you scour the menu you’ll usually find things like sour cream, avocado, cottage cheese, berries, mushrooms, etc. I often just order “a la carte” and let them figure out how to ring it up. I don’t bother with making a scene about it, getting all “religious” about my diet, or trying to force a server to come up with something creative for me to eat. I just order with a smile, and enjoy my meal. 😉
Love your blog and especially liked this road trip essay of your restaurant meals. I’m a low-carber for many years, but to say I’m devout would be a stretch of the truth. In fact, I’ve lapsed many times and every time, I feel those same symptoms of bloat, achy joints and general malaise that you describe. It is no coincidence — I always come back to low-carb eating when I’ve abused myself too long. It seems I was much more disciplined 8 yrs ago, totally happy with my weight and how I felt (not a slave to food cravings). I’m trying to understand why I am pulled back to sugar and grains when I know I can easily create wonderful substitutes for everything. If you have any insight to share on the reasons some people become wayward low-carbers, I’d be happy to hear them. We can’t change what we don’t understand and I’m stumped as to why I’m so easily off-track this last couple of years. BTW – LOVE the 2 new (to me) food pairings. Strawberries and cottage cheese and Salmon and avocado. Never paired those foods before. Pears and cottage cheese only and Salmon on its own. Can’t wait to try both. Thanks so much. Your blog is truly helping me get back on track. I’ve set a goal to lose the 35 lbs I gained back. Never give up is my motto.
Thank you, Pat! π I actually got the idea for strawberries & cottage cheese at home one morning when I was looking for something “new” to eat. I added a dash of cinnamon and it was delicious. See: http://www.travelinglowcarb.com/4184/simple-low-carb-breakfast-idea/
I wish I had a good answer for you on that topic. It’s a great question! April 2014 marked three years since I went low carb, and there have been several times I’ve gone back and forth. I regret that every.single.time – ugh! Not only do I have to deal with the physical symptoms AND go back through ketosis again (double ugh! lol)… I have to deal with the “beating myself up over it” too.
Fortunately, going low carb really educated me on food choices, and specifically food combining – and got me interested in “real food” in a big way. So even when I do go off plan, I eat A LOT healthier than I did before.
One thing that really helps me a lot is the 90DayLowCarbChallenge.com group. I host 2-3 official challenges a year, but the group stays open & active year round and I check in there daily. It’s great accountability – and it’s nice to have so many people to “low carb” with! π
I love these tips as well as the pictures…..The BEST
We are going to Florida in a few days and this will help when eating out
Great! Have FUN on your trip, Sharon!!
We had a blast. π
*cheers*
Thank you so much. I often go OFF my diet when I go ON vacation but after this year I might be stopping all that nonsense!!
I am so happy I found this sight you give me so many ideas of what to eat.now in restaurants also.
Can’t wait till july2 I’m on your new 90 days
I’m loosening inches but not lbs. and I had my hysterectomy and
They cut me from navel down so I have a scar.
Thanks for everything
Lindy
Welcome Linda! π I’m glad you joined us at 90DayLowCarbChallenge.com – it’s such a fun group!! It’s common to lose inches but not see the scales move. A lot of people experience that. As long as you feel better and look better, that’s the key. π
@Ms Shell – I think most people do, but that’s exactly when I want to feel my absolute best! It would be one thing if it only happened once a year for a weekend, or even a week. But it seems there’s always a holiday, get-together, event, trip or some other reason to celebrate and/or “splurge”.
I know for me lately it’s been Easter, Mother’s Day, my daughter’s graduation, my birthday, Father’s Day, a 4-day music festival, the trip to the beach – and I’m sure I’m missing a few things in between, lol. It’s been non-stop lately!
We actually went for a crazy fun hike to see an amazing series of waterfalls on Easter instead of making it about a meal this year. Sometimes it’s fun to break the traditions and get out & do something different!
I’m new to your blog, but today’s email was especially helpful for me. I’ve been low-carbing off and on for 20+ years now (I’m 44), and I really want to get back on it 100%. I do feel like my body likes not having wheat (and other carbs) and sugar especially. I don’t eat sugar, but mostly wheat products seem to be way to convenient when lacking time. Since turning 40 I’ve noticed new aches and pains (back especially) and also my first bad case of tendinitis for a few months now. I’ve been trying many things to cure it, but now I’m really curious if going full on low-carb and not swaying would help it. Thank you for inspiring me, it’s really given me a reason to get back on track for good.
Welcome Jana! I’m so glad this post inspired you. π I know what you mean about wheat products – and even processed foods and carbs in general – being so convenient. I used to cook (A LOT) but rarely do anymore at all now, and prefer to spend as little time as possible in the kitchen (lol).
One of my favorite low carb “convenience foods” is pecan halves or walnuts. They are both very low carb and high in healthy fat. That, and boiling up several eggs at once so I have them on hand in the refrigerator. I like to cream them up with mayo & salt to dip my pecans in – or as a side item even. Super easy!
To get the full effects of a low carb diet, you want to get and stay in ketosis. It’s a chemical change that occurs in your body when you consume less than 20 net carbs per day (which should be mostly in green or high fiber vegetables).
Your body will go into ketosis, meaning it burns fat for energy instead of carbs/sugar. That’s when you’ll feel amazing, see less inflammation, lose weight of course, and just feel better all around. It also lowers cholesterol and blood pressure, gives you more energy, etc – there are tons of healthy benefits to a “keto diet”. π
I actually started eating low carb three years ago just to lose weight. I was amazed that it practically cured my constant aches & pains! I did a little research, and it turns out that carbs promote inflammation in the body. Who knew!
Thanks for this post! It helped a lot with ideas and also to stay motivated to stick to low carb on vacation :). You look great!
Thank you Samantha! and You’re welcome. π
Low the low carb travling and 90 day. I can’t wait til vacation with a these ideas..
Thank you Nikki! What are you doing for vacation?? π
Lynn, you mentioned you were wary of scrambled eggs when eating out, will you explain why?
Hi Wanda,
Sometimes restaurants will add pancake batter or other starches/carbs to scrambled eggs to make them “fluffy and pretty”. This is particularly common on breakfast bars. I’m also wary of scrambled eggs being “a real fresh cracked egg” (vs some goop poured out of a big plastic bag – ack! lol).