Weight Watcher's Diaries Part Seven
By Carol Daelemans

Week 7: Food Orgy
This week I deserted my husband, left him with the children and ran off to Chicago. My mother, two sisters and I all managed to coordinate our schedules and get three whole days we could travel together to that great shopping and eating Mecca, Chicago.

I had every intention of using up all of my weekly bonus Points to cover those days. I could eat bread and water at home but I was going to try as many good Chicago restaurants as I could in the time we had. I figured I could tack on 12 Points to each of the days bringing them up to 36 Point Days. And since we would be walking as much as possible, I added some exercise Points as well. This brought me up to 40 Points for each day. If I worked out at the hotel's gym (4 dilapidated treadmills in a row down in the dingy basement of the hotel) I could nearly double the amount of food I was allowed in one day! As we all know, vacations take careful planning. This is never more true than when you're planning on dieting and eating well while you're away.

We drove to Chicago, all four of us in one SUV. This is actually more fun than you might think. We left between 6:15 and 7am depending on where you were on the pick up list. Luckily for me, I was last so I got a little more sleep. As the trip began we were all in high spirits. Kathleen decided to take this opportunity to interview us all for ideas for her books and articles. She told us we could only say funny things while she had her laptop on. Once the battery died we were supposed to fall silent I guess.

Our plans for the city revolved around eating and shopping. Mom & I were also going to revisit the Chicago Museum of Art while my much more beautiful sisters went off to the spa for a little luxury treatment. Still, the most important aspect was food. We'd made all our dinner reservations a month in advance and had narrowed down the lunches. And since having at least 2 snacks a day is important for keeping your metabolism revved up, we penciled in Garrett's Famous Fabulous Caramel Corn.

Nostalgia Eating Hip-a-ceros Extinction
Every time we walked past Garrett's, famous for their mile long lines that wrap around the city, there were no lines. This is considered a sign from GOD to stop in and get some. We were able to work in our metabolism boosting snacks every day single day without fail. Instead of the half pound bags of our good ol' elastic waistband yesteryears, we only bought small bags this time. They were hot and fresh and just big enough to snack on as we shopped and walked. If we'd have bought more to bring home we would have eaten more. This way, were not at anytime violating Caramel Corn portion control guidelines. I personally believe this is the best way to do it. This way you get the food as it's peak of flavor and freshness and you don't waste calories on nostalgia bingeing.

Food Road Rules
Kathleen's toying with a book idea, The Rules: Food Edition. She's got a zillion food rules that keep her out of her "fat" jeans and we developed a few more on the trip. First off, Weight Watchers Points should not transfer over state lines. I have already said that any trip I might take out of the country will not be listed on my Points Tracker. Points Trackers don't have kg measurements for food and all the "Euro to US" calculations would just be too confusing. Rule # 2, eat only the very best version of your food fantasy. For instance, when in Chicago eat Garrett's Caramel Corn. When in San Francisco eat Sourdough bread, when in New York, splurge on Lilac chocolates. The only time tortilla chips are worth it is at a place that makes them fresh from handmade tortillas. In other words don't eat these things unless you're where they make them best.

One of our lunches was at Rick Bayless' "Frontera Grill." Mmm mmm good! They make the food tasty by using spices and vegetables rather than thick sauces with unknown enormous Points values. The lunch itself wasn't Points heavy but I managed to add them by trying their best margarita and a sampling of their most current desserts. I realize I'll be way behind in the Points after this week but man-oh-man, has it been worth it!

"My sister, Carol, is a liar. Okay so there's some truth to this..."
We had cocktails before dinner, sometimes with dinner and once after dinner. We went to a wine bar after dinner one night, ate at several good restaurants and even had dessert with lunch one day. These are all things I do not do at home so I didn't feel the least bit guilty about indulging on the road. Besides, we ate healthy breakfasts and mostly sea food the rest of the time. The types of places we ate used fresh ingredients and a minimum of heavy sauces and absolutely nothing deep fried.

Downsizing Hubba Hubba Portions
Portion sizes in restaurants are always and everywhere too big. Since we were in a hotel, I certainly couldn't pack up leftovers to take home. Sure, I was on vacation and planning to use up all my Points but I didn't want to use them all in one meal. To make up for this we shared a lot. The key is too "call" the best thing on the menu so you're certain to fulfill your grandest food fantasy. Kathleen likes to "try" everything, "It's research and besides. I cycle so I can try everything without looking like Wimpy on a hamburger holiday".

One lunch, my Mom and I shared a huge burger and an order of the hand cut house made fries and we each had a salad (with low fat dressing, of course) so we didn't feel cheated. Okay, so we got in a few servings of something our bodies truly needed. We shared entrees everywhere we went and in each instance the servers were kind enough to plate our orders for us so we didn't have to pass our plates around.

Believe me, since starting Weight Watchers, I've had my share of disapproving what-about-my-tip glares but it's always worth overcoming my reluctance to trouble the kitchen to able to taste something really "bad" like a fresh, juicy burger with all the fixings. And besides, Kathleen says it doesn't put the cooks out, "It takes two seconds to split an order. But be gracious if you're charged a reasonable split fee because there is some cost to the house. Extra dishes require extra hands to wash. Extra garnishes require extra hands to prepare. In my Maui restaurant we served a full order of the sides and specialty condiments with every split order to keep the customers coming back".

Parting with Pound Pal Parting Gifts
When the trip was over I had a half a Point left. Not bad. I was as accurate as I could be with my little handheld Points Tracker. The evening we came home, we were all too tired and a bit full to care about dinner. The next day, every single one of us, mom & my younger sister included, doubled our regular workouts in order to combat some of the city of Chicago we'd brought home with us on our hips. I don't want to think about what my Monday morning weigh in will think of my trip but I'd do it again in a heart beat.