I just returned from an 8-day vacation in Mexico with my husband, kids, and 6 other families. This trip is one reason I finally got a fire under me to take charge of my fitness and nutrition goals. Let’s face it – nothing get’s most of us motivated to lose some pounds quicker than the thought of wearing a bikini in public.

The good news is, I wore the bikini and I felt good about. The better news is that now that my bikini week is over I’m still totally motivated to keep this eating and exercise program turned up to the max.

Ultimately this was another test to see if I’ve really changed my habits for good. I had told myself that I was going to enjoy the trip. Meaning, I would not worry about nutrition, drink moderate alcohol, but not go crazy. As far as exercise, I still managed to workout 4 of the 8 days and I walked nearly 10 miles every day. Nutrition was tricky due to what was available and not being able to prepare all my own food but I put in a good effort.

What I learnt is, 8 days is too long to defer from my no sugar, whole food, no alcohol diet. Did I have fun? YES! Would I do it again? YES- but not anytime soon! Is getting back to my routine harder that I thought it would be? YES! It’s also a little sad to see what damage a person can do in only 1 week and how it takes far longer to do the repairs.

In many ways I do think I’ve changed my habits for good. I was ready to get back to my routine by the end of the week and I’m as motivated after wearing the swimsuit as I was before to continue with my weight loss goals. I will say that eating freely was a little scary – by the end of the week I became less and less conscious of what I was putting in my mouth and I could feel my old habits creeping in.

Overall, I’ll take this past week as a great lesson in a healthy life balance, listening to my body and really being honest with myself and with my nutrition habits.

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