How Much Weight Do You Gain On Vacation?
A more succinct version of this article was originally published in Cove Magazine’s September/October Issue- which was a true honour of mine - to actually be published as a Fitness Writer.
Out of office is on. The suitcase is packed. The dog is with the neighbour. Your passport is by the front door. You’re off on your holiday and you cannot wait.
Perfection. You’re saying goodbye to the stress of your day-to-day life and you can taste the Tequila Sunrises by the pool. My goodness, I love a Tequila Sunrise.
Bliss.
Except for one thing…
That nagging thought in the back of your mind that this all-inclusive holiday will undo all your progress in the Gym or in terms of your weight loss journey.
The hotel has a gym – but you don’t want to be that person…
And you have earned the cocktails…like really earned them.
So how will you stay fit on holiday and manage to enjoy yourself?
The answer is really straightforward: You do not have to worry about it.
Just this morning I had a chat with a friend of mine who was adamant she put on 6kgs on her Honeymoon. She didn’t. I know she didn’t…but this highlights a crucial component of the question: How much weight will I gain on Vacation?
In this article, I will outline all the facts to help your anxiety about gaining weight whilst on vacation go away.
Your holiday is to be enjoyed - not be anxious about - so please read this, and enjoy the metaphorical weight of worry lifted from your shoulders.
Before we get into it, I want to thank you for being here and reading my work. I want to thank you so much - that I would love it if you sent me a friend request so we can stay in touch a little more - and I can offer much more help to you than just this Blog Post. I will send you a Calorie Calculator, my book, free workouts and much more (some of which will be appropriate - some of which might not).
So if you like the cut of my jib we can become friends by:
Table of Contents for: How Much Weight Will I Typically Gain On Vacation?
Why Do You Gain Weight On Vacation?
How Much Weight Will I Gain on Vacation?
Should I work out on Vacation?
How To Avoid Weight Gain On Vacation
How Long Does It Take To Lose Vacation Weight Gain?
Why Do You Gain Weight On Vacation?
I just want to clear something up right now - I have used the word “vacation” in the headings for this article, as it will hopefully mean Google will prioritise this web page when you search for it, but from this point forward I cannot, in good faith, keep using the term “Vacation” for what I know to be a “Holiday”.
I mean my American friends no disrespect. But I just can’t get used to calling a holiday; a vacation.
I hope you don’t mind…and that we can still be friends.
Back to holiday weight gain…
This might seem obvious to you, and you are probably thinking that clearly, the answer is because on your holiday you are simply planning to not move from your sun lounger, enjoy all the free Cocktails by the pool, and not do a workout once.
Which you are more than entitled to do.
Essentially, whilst you are on holiday, you are going to move a lot less and eat a lot more.
I want to book a holiday just thinking about it…
However, that is not really the reason you gain weight on holiday.
You are gaining weight on holiday mainly due to water retention - not body fat increases. Your diet is probably containing a few extra Carbs in the form of Ice Cream, Chips, and Sandwiches when you are out and about…
Carbohydrates are like a sponge. Have you ever wondered why your porridge oats soak up the water you put in there? Well the same thing happens when you eat and digest carbs as this study [1] concludes:
“Our findings agree with the long held notion that each gram of glycogen is stored in human muscle with at least 3 g of water. Higher ratios are possible likely due to water storage not bound to glycogen.”
For every gram of carbohydrates you ingest, your body will also absorb 3g of Water. This water obviously affects the scale, as well as might make you feel more bloated or a little heavier.
We commonly associate these feelings with body fat…but it honestly isn’t…and now I will show you why it isn’t body fat, and exactly why you have nothing to worry about from a one to two-week holiday.
How Much Weight Will You Gain on Vacation?
The easy answer is… nowhere as much as you would believe.
The scientific number is 400g.
This study [2] found that the net gain of 61% of participants out of 122 adults with an average age of 32 who gained weight on a holiday between one to three weeks was 300g and the average weight gain was 400g.
Like with all studies that sum up an average we must always still remain clear that there are some people on each end of that spectrum. In this study [2] some people did gain up to 3kgs and some others did lose weight. What we don’t know about these people is their baselines - what weight they were starting at, what their maintenance numbers are, or even the type of holiday they went on.
So let’s look into it some more.
Just because you are on holiday, doesn’t mean your body behaves any different in terms of Calories In and Calories Out. To gain weight you must take on more calories than you burn, and to lose weight you need to be in a Calorie Deficit.
So how many calories do actually add up to weight gain?
According to this study in order to gain one kilogram of body weight, you need to eat an extra 1000kcals a day over your maintenance level. That is 7000 extra calories a week.
That is the same as 12 Big Macs.
The same as 50 cans of Soda.
And then again as previously mentioned, half of that kg is body fat and half is water.
Therefore to gain one kilogram of body fat you need to eat double that amount.
2000 extra kcals a day. Which is a lot.
The study also suggests that if you keep the protein high, then the impact of fat gain is smaller – and the more you eat, you also move more – so that will help keep things in check as well.
I am almost certain you will be indulging on your Holiday - but to the degree of 2000kcals a day, over your maintenance. in order to actually gain 1kg of Body Fat - I think is highly unlikely.
Some other reasons that participants gained weight whilst on holiday are:
Increased Alcohol consumption leads to increased caloric consumption. Before the participants went on holiday they reported only having 8 drinks a week, then during their holiday, this doubled to 16.
Decreased physical activity on returning from holiday which is a sign of you not having the motivation to get back on track when you return.
I just want to pick up on that last point a little more, as the first one makes logical sense, but the second one is a much more psychological issue.
The reasons that many people don’t continue their exercise regimen when they get back from a holiday are probably twofold.
They only started their exercise because of the holiday, not to improve the overall quality of their life, and now that moment in time has been achieved they have no other reason to exercise.
They feel like they have gained a lot more weight than they have, and therefore believe that continuing with the process is even more futile, and then just give up on themselves even more.
If you are considering engaging in an exercise regimen solely because of an extrinsic goal: a holiday, a wedding, a sporting event, a reunion or a birthday party…then before you have even started you are putting a psychological time cap on your ability to continue with your fitness past that event.
Extrinsic goals often lead to a real struggle with motivation in people - so much so I have dedicated a whole other Blog Post to that very topic.
These goals are materialistic.
As Edward Deci says in his book “Why We Do What We Do”:
“…strong aspirations for any of the intrinsic goals — meaningful relationships, personal growth, and community contributions — were positively associated with well-being. People who strongly desired to contribute to their community, for example, had more vitality and higher self-esteem. When people organize their behaviour in terms of intrinsic strivings (relative to extrinsic strivings) they seem more content — they feel better about who they are and display more evidence of psychological health.”
Therefore if you want to not gain weight on holiday, well you don’t actually gain that much weight on holiday as we have established, but have the perception of gaining weight on holiday - don’t try and solely lose weight because of the holiday.
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Should I work out on Vacation?
I deeply and truly feel this GIF.
I suppose someone’s desire to work out on holiday comes from the worry or anxiety around “losing all of their progress”.
Well, I come bearing good news.
Your fear and worry about losing strength and muscle is not needed because you simply won’t lose strength and muscle.
Let’s look at the average length of a holiday: According to the State of the Nation report [4] by Roy Morgan in 2019 focusing on Tourism; the average Australian overseas holiday is 21.6 days. In the US it is 17.7 nights, and in the UK is 8.7 nights.
My goodness, the UK needs to step up their game.
However, across all nations, these time frames are not a long time to abstain from training.
The first thing you need to remember here is that just because you aren’t in the Gym…doesn’t mean you aren’t preserving or continuing to build muscle.
You can build muscle by doing all sorts of activities like walking, hiking, surfing, jet skiing, and horse riding - its not just about being in the Gym.
Remember that pool I mentioned before…?
When I have a new online client who is relatively new to exercise, any movement helps them to get stronger – not just their workouts in the Gym – and we make sure we focus on maximising other forms of movement.
Plus you just don’t lose muscle in 21 days when on holiday.
A study [5] by Manchester Metropolitan University found that if you totally immobilize someone they lose only 5-10% of muscle mass in 10-21 days.
“Totally immobilize” – now I am lazy on holiday, but I am not totally immobile.
Added to that this study [6] in the Journal of Sport Sciences found that over a 16-week period, beginners who completely ceased training only lost 5% muscle and 22% strength.
When you are on holiday, you will have moments of complete rest, but you will also still continue to move – maybe more than when you are pinned to the desk in the office – and that movement will not be detrimental to your physique at all for the time period you are on holiday for an average of 16 nights.
Also in terms of diet – keep the protein up to preserve your muscle mass - this will help witha number of things, but But don’t fret it too much.
Keeping your muscle mass up is important, and if you can get one workout in a week on holiday you will see no noticeable changes either negative or positive as long as you get back on track when you return. The key to sustaining those resutls
How To Avoid Weight Gain On Vacation?
I wanted to put this into this Blog Post, even though we have already established you really do not need to worry about possibly gaining 400g.
But if you are feeling a little anxious about it all the same…then it is always good to have a blueprint of things you can focus on to help balance your feelings and worries.
My top tips to help you avoid weight gain on holiday are:
Eat Big Breakfasts - a recent study [7] published in the Cell Metabolism Journal took 31 overweight subjects and analysed the difference in hunger and appetite control between one group who ate the majority of their daily calories at breakfast, to another group who ate the majority of their daily calories at dinner. Both groups consumed the same number of calories, and the same macronutrients and both groups lost weight - about 4kgs. However, the group that ate the bigger breakfast reported far more satiety throughout the day and far fewer cravings. Plus hotel breakfasts are the best - so why wouldn’t you fill up for the day?
Consider your Nourishment - there is nothing worse than when you are on holiday and it gets to about day 7 or 8 and you realise you have eaten out every day, you are devoid of vegetables and fruits and you just feel awful - internally and externally. Try to make sure you always order some vegetables with your dinner and some fruit with your breakfast. Not because it will save you calories, but it will certainly make you feel better about yourself in general, and that in turn will stop you from psychologically beating yourself up because you feel like crap.
Hydrate - I always tell my clients to drink 3 litres of water a day.
Get back on track when you get back home - a crucial
Keep your steps up - this is fundamental to any weight management plan. Your steps and base level movement are the biggest driver of your metabolism that you have control of. It’s amazing sitting by a pool drinking cocktail - but also going and exploring the world is life-changing. Below is an image of my fiancee climbing the Batu Caves Steps in Malaysia to get to a temple in the mountain…
When you go on foot, you really can experience some astounding things. These caves were truly amazing, however the monkeys on the stairs to the temple in the caves were not.
Monkeys are viscious!
A Final Word…
Your holiday is your time to do what is best for you.
If that means staying on plan with your workouts then do - please be my guest.
In the same way, if you want to continue your diet on holiday - you should.
But equally, if you don’t want to - then you shouldn’t.
Either way a successful path to fitness lies in the enjoyment of the overall process because that is what inspires consistency.
Enjoying the process for many of you will mean enjoying rest time - time away from the regime you have been following because we all need to recharge our batteries.
There is nothing wrong with taking a rest. There is nothing wrong with not worrying or being concerned about your fitness when on holiday because it is YOUR HOLIDAY.
And equally, if you book a hotel that has a Gym, because you enjoy working out that much, then do that too. It is your life, your body, your fitness journey and what you do and how you explore your own journey is entirely up to you.
Just promise me one thing…
If you are thinking about staying on track on your holiday you don’t need to do it out of fear of gaining weight or losing all of your progress.
Because neither of these things actually occur.
Give yourself that dose of self-love and empathy you deserve.
Stop controlling yourself through fear and worry.
You are worth more than that to yourself and your family at all times and especially when you are on holiday
That is my fiancee, my Mum and Dad, and myself on holiday in Devon the Christmas before I moved to Australia…getting our steps in and taking selfies!
Man, I miss my parents.
As always if you have any questions you only have to ask me.
To be able to do that don’t forget to send me a Friend Request by filling out the form below, and then you can email me your questions.
It would be my pleasure to answer them.
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References:
Fernández-Elías VE, Ortega JF, Nelson RK, Mora-Rodriguez R. Relationship between muscle water and glycogen recovery after prolonged exercise in the heat in humans. Eur J Appl Physiol. 2015 Sep;115(9):1919-26. doi: 10.1007/s00421-015-3175-z. Epub 2015 Apr 25. PMID: 25911631.
Jamie A. Cooper, Theresa Tokar. A prospective study on vacation weight gain in adults. Physiology & Behavior, 2016; 156: 43 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2015.12.028
Beate Ott, Thomas Skurk, llias Lagkouvardos, Sandra Fischer, Janine Büttner, Martina Lichtenegger, Thomas Clavel, Andreas Lechner, Michael Rychlik, Dirk Haller, Hans Hauner, Short-Term Overfeeding with Dairy Cream Does Not Modify Gut Permeability, the Fecal Microbiota, or Glucose Metabolism in Young Healthy Men, The Journal of Nutrition, Volume 148, Issue 1, January 2018, Pages 77–85, https://doi.org/10.1093/jn/nxx020
2022. [online] Available at: <https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/02/160201220320.htm> [Accessed 14 September 2022].
de Boer MD, Selby A, Atherton P, Smith K, Seynnes OR, Maganaris CN, Maffulli N, Movin T, Narici MV, Rennie MJ. The temporal responses of protein synthesis, gene expression and cell signalling in human quadriceps muscle and patellar tendon to disuse. J Physiol. 2007 Nov 15;585(Pt 1):241-51. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.2007.142828. Epub 2007 Sep 27. PMID: 17901116; PMCID: PMC2375459.
Brad Jon Schoenfeld, Jozo Grgic, James Krieger. (2019) How many times per week should a muscle be trained to maximize muscle hypertrophy? A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies examining the effects of resistance training frequency. Journal of Sports Sciences 37:11, pages 1286-1295.
Leonie C. Ruddick-Collins, Peter J. Morgan, Claire L. Fyfe, Joao A.N. Filipe, Graham W. Horgan, Klaas R. Westerterp, Jonathan D. Johnston, Alexandra M. Johnstone,
Timing of daily calorie loading affects appetite and hunger responses without changes in energy metabolism in healthy subjects with obesity,
Cell Metabolism,
2022,