We got back from Rehoboth Beach, DE today and I would have to say that I was not successful in keeping on-plan for the past 3.5 days. I have, though, successfully determined that I am unable to make wise food decisions when vacationing with three people who should really be making the same food decisions as I, but have not yet chosen to do so.

My holiday weekend started out very well. NS granola bar with fat-free yogurt and orange juice on Friday morning. It was all downhill from there.

In a nutshell, the weekend went something like this.

Friday: Wendy’s fast food is first. I went with the single hamburger with cheese and side Caesar salad and diet Coke. Not too, too bad. Cheese not wise, but only used about ¼ of the Caesar dressing on side salad which was good.

Next up: Nicola’s Pizza in Rehoboth Beach. Menu states that all ingredients are fresh with fat-free dough. Ok, looks promising. We got a large, plain for everyone. I added a side salad with dressing on the side and an unsweetened iced tea. The men also got a stromboli and French fries (which menu states are cooked in cholesterol-free oil). Ok, not entirely horrible except I ate a second slice of pizza when I KNEW that I was already full. Not wise.

And, finally, I had a Kohr Brothers chocolate soft-serve (small dish) to top off the day (this could’ve been way-worse if I had added the chocolate jimmies which I really, really wanted).

Saturday: Our hotel gave us $5.00/per person coupons for breakfast. Ok, good deal. We head down to the hotel café. I decided on the Don’s Casserole since it was listed under the “healthy options” section of the menu. I don’t know who Don is, but I’d love to see what he looks like. Don’s Casserole consisted of a “bed” of potatoes, bacon, sausage, ham and cheddar cheese topped with scrambled eggs and 2 slices of toast. Oh yeah, and it came with a small fruit cup. I guess that’s were the “healthy option” came into play. So, I ate ½ of the eggs, 1 slice of cheese-covered bacon and 3 small hunks of the sausage. I gave the rest to Chris (my DH) and ate my fruit cup. Even the waiter said it was way too much food for one person. Go figure.

Anyway, breakfast laid like a rock in my stomach all day until about 4:00 when I started to feel some grumbling happening. While my 3 friends chowed down on funnel cakes, I opted for some fat-free pretzel nuggets (it was the best I could get at the corner store). And, I have to say, I felt damn proud of myself for not even having one bite of the funnel cake.

Several hours after the funnel cake extravaganza & long naps (except for me), everyone decides that they should eat dinner (I’m basically starved at this point). Dos Locos for Mexican, they say. Ok, I say. I should’ve said no. I started off with a Yuengling Lager (beer) on draft and my share of tortilla chips and salsa. I ordered the sirloin fajitas which consisted of a sliced 7oz sirloin with green peppers and onions with a side of diced tomatoes, shredded cheddar cheese, refried beans, Mexican rice and sour cream all to be combined in 3 flour tortilla wraps. I should have had one. I ate two. However I did skip the rice and beans, but just had to have the cheese and sour cream. I did wash it all down with water though instead of a second beer.

For the finale: one Smirnoff Black Cherry vodka cooler. I felt like a slug.

Sunday: We again had breakfast in the hotel café. I picked pancakes and bacon this time. I was deceived again. I picked the pancakes because I had seen them on other diners' plates the previous day. There were 3-3” round pancakes on the plates. Well, I get my plate and each pancake is about a 9” round. There were three of them. I wanted to die. Apparently, what I saw the previous day was the kid's plate. So I ate one pancake and the bacon. I stopped when I started to feel full. Good idea, huh?

So, we all head down to the beach because it’s a beautiful 80-degree day with a light breeze. After we’re down there for a few hours, someone suggests lunch. The three amigos want pizza again. Oh lordy. Since I don’t want to draw attention to myself and don’t want to make the others uncomfortable, I say “Sure!” I had 2 small slices of plain pizza, about 6 fries (which were horrible), diet Coke and then a 32-oz bottle of water. Later, back at the hotel, I had a few of the pretzel nuggets and another cooler.

Around 7:00, we head down to the Ram’s Head Tavern for dinner. I scoured the menu and decided on the crab melt which was basically a broiled crab cake on an English muffin topped with tomato and cheese. I also got a garden salad with dressing on the side. However, I neglected to notice that the melt came with fries, so there they were gleaming on the plate. I ate the crab cake with tomato & cheese minus the English muffin and the salad. I had a few of the fries. Ok I had more than a few, but I didn’t finish the whole pile. I rounded out the meal again with unsweetened iced tea.

We all then headed back down to the beach for fireworks. They would have been nice except for the dope-head, drunken loser family that decided to plop down right in front of us. Now I know that fireworks are in the sky, but these people would NOT sit down and shut up and everyone is compacted on the beach under blankets because the wind coming off of the water was moist and freezing. So, Loser Dad comes back with a pizza for everyone (I know, beach towns eat a lot of pizza!), plops the pie down on the blanket, starts yelling at the kids for getting sand (duh!) all over the blanket, throws (yes throws) his cigarette butt right at the 4 of us and almost gets into a fist fight with my friend’s husband since Loser Dad threw his cigarette right next to my friend’s blanket almost igniting it in the process. God Bless America.

Since it was our last night, we all wanted ice cream. Yes, after the spectacle I witnessed earlier, even I wanted ice cream. I opted for a small tiny cup (one normal-sized scoop) of Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream. I was in heaven. Overall, it was the best, not-so-great food item I had all weekend. Oh wait, except for the Smirnoff coolers!

Another July 4th holiday is over and I am back to work tomorrow and back on NS full-time. I’d like to say that I enjoyed my non-NS food experience this past weekend, but I’d be lying.

Lessons learned:
1. Americans are unhealthy and fat.
2. Restaurant owners do not know what a “healthy option” really is.
3. Restaurant owners do not know what a reasonable portion size is.
4. Choosing to be healthy is hard.
5. Succumbing to the food desires of others is easy.
6. Putting myself first is not easy for me.
7. Food indulgences will happen and I should not feel guilty about them.
8. I want to be healthy – AND happy!
9. I want to be able to indulge on vacation and not feel bad about it.
10. Even “skinny” people gain weight on vacation.

I have not weighed myself yet. I checked my weight before I left on Friday morning. I stayed at the same weight that I posted on 06/25/05 (220 lbs). I haven’t decided if I really want to know how much I gained. I think I do.

I have to be accountable for my choices.

Happy Birthday USA!


07/05/05 UPDATE: I weighed myself this morning and only gained 1/2 lb this weekend! I'm totally impressed with myself, but I have to make sure that this doesn't give me license to eat like this all the time. ~Sue