The Good Mood "Diet" and Travel

Like most travelers, I tend to over-indulge, have that extra cocktail (or 3), nibble on cookies and order the basket of fries with a Guinness while on vacation. It's easy to forget that being away from your "real life" doesn't mean you won't face the consequences of indulgence once you get back to that "real life". Too bad my travel isn't done on one of those virtual worlds like Second Life, then I'd never gain weight. Of course, I'd only get to see the sites through a computer screen, too.

But weight gain isn't really the problem, a few days at the gym and lots of water usually reverses whatever I've done to celebrate my vacation (room service, candy bars, Scottish beers). It's more the feeling sluggish, bouts of low energy, and overall blue feeling when I return home to Brooklyn. This feeling tends to also sprout up after a stressful week at work, a round of taxes (cringe), non-stop fighting of the neighbors upstairs, or trying to track down clients who owe me a check.

I'd actually been looking for a 'diet' that would elevate my mood and keep me feeling balanced. I don't really care about the weight loss, though like most people, I could easily stand to loose 5-10 pounds. I was primarily concerned about boosting my energy without going on an actual diet. Diets suck, and I'm not a fan. At all. In fact, they rank up there with sitting around in airports all day and being stuck in the middle seat on a plane with no ventilation. Yet I couldn't find any eating plan that matched my desire until I read an article about The Good Mood Diet written by Susan Kleiner and Bob Condor. Like any good frugal blogger trying to save money for travel, I bought it on ebay.

The Good Mood Diet talks alot about eggs and fish. They love their fish. And luckily, I love it. But they also let you have chocolate and some alcohol within reason. Intrigued, I skipped around the book to get a better look at the menus and braced myself for the worst. Turns out, I'll have to figure out where to buy flaxseed, which was the only annoying thing I saw on the plan. The diet provides weeks worth of menu suggestions including lean turkey, fruits and veggies, skim milk, strong coffee, green tea, olive oil, yogurt, soy, edamame (yum), peanut butter, hamburgers, pizza, pasta and of course the fish and eggs. Their 'bad foods' list is refreshingly short and features refined sugars, too much caffeine, alcohol... all the usual suspects.

The author has worked with a lot of athletes, including one with hankering for dove ice cream bars and cartons of ice cream. Eventually, all he wanted was healthy snacks on this new plan. You know, because he just felt so good. The authors suggest eliminating all "bad foods" on their list the first two weeks, but mainly to prove how good you'll feel and show you that you won't want the booze and candy bars by week three. I still think I might want a Bellhaven, but they make allowances for occasional alcohol. Honestly, I think any diet would eliminate your carvings for booze and sugar by week three (but not without a psychotic break-down). But this diet claims that you won't miss any of your favorite junk foods because you'll feel so good without them.

Makes sense. Most people eat to feel good on some level whether it's to relax, feel satisfied, alleviate stress, cope with depression, or just out of boredom. But unlike most diets that make you feel too weak to function or so guilty you're eventually convinced that you're responsible for the state of the world, there's no guilt complex here. The authors really don't give a crap if you just ate an entire cake before reading this book, they just want you to try their green tea or skim milk and cocoa suggestions afterwards. They take comfort in knowing you won't care about the next cake if you're feeling good.

A good deal of this diet is common sense. Don't eat sugar, it's a downer. Or drink alcohol. We all know these rules as fact... and do it anyway. But there was a lot in this book I didn't think I'd ever see on any diet. Caffeinated sodas (they try to convince you to try coffee and tea instead, but reluctantly allow it if you must), glasses of skim milk, burgers, cheese, whole wheat pastas and pizza crusts. Hell, the fact that bread is on here at all is enough reason for abandoned celebration. It also reminds you to eat every 2-3 hours to avoid hunger and creative recipes for seemingly yummy smoothies and sweet tooth alternatives.

So I'm going to give it a shot and see how it works. The book claims you'll feel different after the first day. Again, my goal is to feel energized and feel better, primarily while traveling. I have a press trip next week in Nevada and would love to have the energy to feel confident doing my job and speaking to media reps. I won't be able to bring flaxseed with me, but this day in age, I bet any resort features it somewhere on their menu to keep up with the hoards of healthy-spa-seeking-travelers. But tomorrow it's wheat toast, eggs, coffee, and yogurt for breakfast. Considering I usually only eat candy masquerading as Sweet and Salty breakfast bars each morning, it should be interesting to see how this all works out.

Would love to hear your comments!

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