Being Healthy in Hawaii

I'm back from Hawaii (though Jason is still there. I made him promise not to tell me about anything fun that happens in his 3 extra days until he gets back).

Hawaii has jaded me. Today is lovely and sunny and 60-something in Providence and all I can think is, "but it's not Hawaii..."

This was one of the most active vacations I've ever been on. We swam and hiked and snorkeled and swam and snorkeled some more. According to online calorie counters, snorkeling burns an insane amount of calories, but I'm not really sure I buy it. Or maybe I was just enjoying myself so much that I didn't notice the calorie burnage.

The pool at the first condo we stayed at on the Big Island had markings for lap swimming. Though I only got to swim laps one morning since we were out and about fairly early the other days, swimming in an outdoor pool again was heavenly. The pool in Maui was more of a resort spectacle with grottoes and waterfalls and slides. It was super fun, but not really good for laps.

For the record, my new favorite activity is swimming in waterfall pools. Particularly ones that are tucked away and you have to hike to for a bit. I need to find some local waterfalls. The water is probably a lot colder in New England, though, and it was pretty darn cold on Maui. So cold that I commented to Jason that the water feels fine - once your skin goes numb.

We stayed in a condo with a full kitchen and cooked most of our meals, which was fabulous. I have a reputation with Jason's family as a cook - in that, I suppose, I like to cook and I can make vegetables taste good - so on our first day on the Big Island I went shopping with Jason and his dad (who is usually the cook in their home). I suggested meals that focused on protein and vegetables. There was usually a rice or potato side as well, and I figured some of that wouldn't hurt since usually I was eating it after a full day of activity. I got a ton of eggs on sale and made scrambled eggs almost every morning. We had piles of papayas.

I got more lazy once we got to Maui. First off, we didn't cook as much at the condo there and went to a luau one night. Drinks were included in the luau price and since we don't drink, we took advantage of all the virgin drinks we could handle. Tip: virgin pina colada with passion orange juice is divine. As are the taro leaf-wrapped pork packets.

The family didn't make it to the grocery store until the 2nd or 3rd day we were on Maui so we were kind of improvising food for the other meals. I'm glad I brought snacks. Jason griped about the space they took up in my bag, but me and the rest of the family ate most of them. I figured there would be some times when getting a meal wasn't convenient, and I wouldn't want to be hungry and cranky on Hawaii. I got hungry and cranky when we were in Paris a couple years ago and it wasn't pretty. My mainstays in Hawaii were a big bag of almonds and Larabars.

Basically, during week one in Hawaii I was pretty successful with the healthy living. The few days I got on Maui during week two were not as regimented. I'm pretty proud of how I ate for most of the trip, chocolate-covered macadamia nuts and coconut M&M's nothwithstanding.

By the way, they have coconut M&M's. Each one is like a teeny Mounds bar. I brought some home.