Keto on holiday: how to keep carbs minimal

I asked myself whether is possible to eat completely keto while on holiday. Of course, is possible. Unless you are visiting Carboland, where avocados are potatoes in disguise and the eggs are made of the same substance as donuts.

Is it worth living totally ketogenic during holidays? Well, depends.

Personally, I decided that in my future holidays, I will eat ketogenic but with some freedom. I the regret dieting strictly during a trip to Paris. Didn’t taste the Parisian pastry.

Of course, this doesn’t mean devouring a whole plate of pasta every time I see one. This means enjoying my stay with less stress. Of course, I won’t cheat with the first piece of bread I will see.
I will evaluate what is worth to me and what I think is giving me a great experience. That’s why next time in Paris I will eat some macaroons. Sorry, not sorry.

Below, are some tips to enjoy the holidays, eating low-carb and keeping the carbs to the minimum.

Read also the keto essentials to pack for a trip.

Bring your keto essentials

Everybody has essential keto products. For example, I wouldn’t go on holiday without MCT oil. I need that tablespoon per day.

Bring with you the keto products that:

• you need in order to follow your diet without suffering
• you won’t find in your stay
• will keep you from cheating with a worthless meal

Bringing with you some of your favorite products will keep you consistent and focused. Find a way to fit them in your suitcase, in a way they won’t break/leak.

If there is something that you can’t take with you, for example because they are fresh products, or too heavy, write down a list of products to buy once you are at destination.

For more ideas read the best keto products to pack for a trip, where I wrote all the most convenient ones.

Research the places where you can eat keto

Research the locations you are going to visit.

How is the low-carb scenario in that particular country?
Will you have restaurants with low-carb options?
Is the buffet of the restaurant customizable?

Think about your holidays and plan ahead your meals. Research the options concerning:

• Breakfast places options
• Restaurants
• The buffet/restaurant of your hotel
• Street markets
• Supermarkets
• Supplements and low-carb stores

Going for drinks? Read the best wines to drink on keto or the best mixed drinks for the keto diet.

Set some rules

Keto is a lifestyle. Are you going to regret not tasting the original taste of pizza in Napoli? Then you are not considering it as a lifestyle but as a diet.

Most of the people stop their diet during the holidays, but people on keto, are having a hard time leaving ketosis.

Important: It’s essential to understand that having some freedom doesn’t mean fall into old habits. Act with moderation and you won’t regret a thing.
Exaggerating for not worthy meals but only to feast is going to end up in a disaster.
Plus, if you are eating low-carb for quite some time, you will feel it. Avoid the carb hangover!

Here’s some rules to live keto but without falling of the wagon on your holiday:

80-20 rule

This means eating clean and low-carb for 80% of the time and have some treat in the 20% of the remaining time. For example, you can have flawless nutrition the whole day, and have a concession in the evening, like a small dessert or a small piece of bread.

One cheat day per week during holiday

You can decide to eat keto or low-carb the whole week, and treat yourself once per week.
The pros of this are motivation and having a breath of fresh air.
The con, in my opinion, is the risk to cheat with a not really worthy meal.

Small bites

This means eating generally low-carb, but with controlled freedom. It means, having a low-carb meal and taste a piece of brand or a bite of croissant. This means for sure leaving ketosis for the whole holiday, but if you only have some guilty bites, won’t make so much damages to your weight.

Cheating only in the last 3 days of the holiday

You can promise to yourself that you will cheat only in the last few days of the holidays. This will sustain your motivation and self control. Plus, eating low-carb, willkeep you energised enough to enjoy your trip. If you still want it, you will have some treat when the holiday is almost over.

Keto meals ideas on holiday

You can definitely eat keto for the whole length of your stay. Read the keto products to pack with you for a trip, because you’ll need them. If you normally intermittent fasting or omad, you could keep this habit.
Here are some suggestions for your meals on holidays.

Keto breakfast on holiday

• If you usually eat savory for breakfast, you won’t have problems. Whether you eat your breakfast at the hotel buffet or in some restaurant, you can easily grab lunch meat, cheese, and eggs.
• If you are used to a sweet breakfast, this is more difficult. What I would do is taking my keto-friendly commercial bread with me if it’s a long stay. A jar of jam. If it’s a short stay (maximum 5 days and the journey allows me that) I would also take some keto desserts like homemade cookies or pie. Or probably I will take my favorite bar and start my day with a sweet bar and an Americano.
• If you are on a trip on the road or you rent a house for your stay, you can as well have your products with you or buy low-carb products in any supermarket. Depending on where you are, you will have a nice choice.

I don’t do breakfast because I got used to fasting until lunch, but on holidays I would probably “cheat” with this, by eating a keto or high-protein breakfast.

Keto lunch and dinner on holiday

If you are staying at a resort and you have a full board with a buffet for each meal, shouldn’t hard to find something low-carb. Most resorts have to make most of the people happy, by making sure all the choices are available.

In all my stays at some resorts I always had great choice (even too much). Not difficult at all to find every kind of roasted meat, eggs, salad and berries.

Before you book a hotel, I suggest strongly checking how the buffet is organized. Feel free also to reach the hotel and ask about the availability.

I once stayed at a resort with a very big buffet: they cooked the eggs and the pasta in front of me. In this kind of luxury resort, you can even bring your own low-carb pasta and ask them to cook this for you. The bigger the resort the more custom able is the food.

Before my keto life, I once stayed at a small resort on Maldives. I was in a small island without supermarkets. My mistake was to not bring with me any snack (dietetic or not). That’s why from now on I will always have keto snacks with long shelf life in my luggage.

If you consume your meals outside, google research should be enough. The best places where you can find keto options are:

• Brasseries
• Fresh fish restaurants
• Italian and Spanish restaurants
• Greek restaurants
• Persian restaurants
• Salad bars
• Fast foods, such as Mc Donalds, Five Guys, Burger Kings

If I know that I will visit some places with not enough keto options, I would bring some keto bread with me.

Keto snacks on holiday

• In the middle of nowhere, I’d take with me a snack on the go, probably a bag of nuts or a bar.
• If I know that I would find a supermarket or a street market, I would buy some snacks there; but I would be more comfortable just going with my snacks.
• I would also take a low-carb creamer and MCT oil to make my coffee keto-proof everywhere I go.

I am looking forward to traveling again, and these keto holiday tips are coming with me! Do you have more tips?

Hi, I’m Simona! After experiencing the restrictions of keto, I’m now enjoying a balanced diet that brings freedom and happiness to my eating habits.

You find me on Instagram, Pinterest, and sometimes on Facebook.

I also write a lot of keto recipes on my Italian blog keto-with-simona.

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