Vacation destinations tend to be hotter than home, so your body hangs on to water for a little. it might take 1-2 days, but it might take as long as a week for your body to let go of that water.
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Weight gained after a vacation or indulgent weekend doesn't mean you've put on fat. It's probably just water retention, experts say. Rebel Wilson said she gained almost seven pounds while on vacation at an all-inclusive resort. Eating more salt and carbs can make us gain water weight, not fat, a dietitian said.
The reason for the five-pound “gain” is water retention. What is this? Not only do certain rich foods leave you retaining water, but you also have the physical weight of the excess food traveling through your system for at least 48 hours or so. Kind of gross, but it's in there!
Water weight is the most common cause of the scale increasing. And if you've eaten out a lot on vacation, then you can blame the extra salty foods you ordered. But sodium isn't the only nutrient that can increase water retention. There's a major macronutrient you eat every day that causes excess water gain: carbs.
The study found that 61 percent of the participants gained weight while on vacation, with an average gain of 0.7 pounds, and that the weight gained throughout the entire study averaged 0.9 pounds. There was a large variation, however, with some participants losing weight and some gaining as much as 7 pounds.
DehydrationIt's easy to forget to drink enough water when you're traveling. Dehydration can increase your chances of experiencing travel bloat and indigestion because it causes food to move more slowly through your digestive tract.
Pressure changes can disrupt the gases in the digestive system and cause them to expand, leading to discomfort, bloating, and sometimes nausea. There's also the fact that when you're traveling via plane, car, or train, your usual diet has to change.
One of the biggest culprits of bloat (and other digestive woes) while traveling is staying sedentary. Whether it's a long plane ride, multiple hours in a car, or lounging on the beach, all of that sitting slows down your digestive tract.
Make sure you get to bed early when you're back, and stick to a strict sleep schedule over the first few days home. These act as a natural diuretic, which will help you strip that water weight quickly. You should expect to use the bathroom more, but just know that's all the extra weight going down the drain.
“Flying often causes major water retention, which can impact the scale. So, with that in mind, use the scale on vacation as a means to increase accountability, exercise damage control, and to keep your head in the game,” he said.
According to a latest study, researchers found that adults going on a one-to-three-week vacation gained an average weight of nearly one pound during their trip.
Fortunately, if you've overindulged on delicious food on vacation (which is great!), you can easily recover. Simply go back to your normal clean-eating habits and active lifestyle, and any weight that you gained while on vacation will come off.