8 Tips For Healthy Eating While Traveling
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HOW TO EAT HEALTHY WHILE TRAVELING
If you travel a lot for work or pleasure, you know that healthy food can sometimes be hard to come by. There aren’t to many healthy options even if you just need to stop quickly for a snack during a busy work day. There are so many unhealthy options and temptations lurking around every corner and every check out line. It’s not that there are zero healthy options but they seem to be few and far between. Eating healthy while traveling means taking things into your own hands most of the time.
One thing that can help tremendously in terms of eating healthy on the go is being prepared. Being prepared is 75% of the battle when it comes to traveling. Yes, it requires a little planning, effort and a special nutrition strategy. Luckily, you can adhere to your healthy eating plan with a little extra work. These 8 tips for healthy eating while traveling provide some solid ideas to staying on track while on the go.
Location Matters – When you’re choosing where to stay, it’s all about location. Let’s say you’re traveling for work and you’ll be in the same location for at least a few days. Finding a spot that’s close to healthy resources is key. It’s easy to use the excuse that there’s nothing around to eat that’s healthy. Don’t make that an excuse. Do your research before hand.
Is there a grocery store nearby that you can run to for healthy snacks and/or meals?
Are there healthy cafes or restaurants within walking distance that you can stop in for a bite to eat?
Is there a meal delivery service that could deliver to you?
Accommodations With A Kitchen or Kitchenette – One of the best ways to ensure healthy eating while traveling is to have access to some type of kitchen. Extended stay hotels, vacation rentals and Air B & B are all great options if convenient to your location. If a kitchen isn’t available, having a refrigerator in your hotel room for some healthy options is a great alternative. The point being that if you have either a kitchen or a refrigerator, you have the ability stock up with good snacks and easy meals. Things like fresh fruit and vegetables, bottled water, cottage cheese, greek yogurt, nuts, natural peanut butter, rotisserie chicken and canned fish are fantastic options that are easy to store and don’t require a lot of prep work to create a quick meal or snack.
Ship Items Before – Another strategy would be to ship your favorite dry goods to your location before hand. These items are quick, easy items that can be shipped to your location if you don’t want to or can’t tote them with you.
beans
seeds
bread
nut butters
Carry A Cooler – Tote your health food around with you. Stock a cooler full of your favorite healthy snacks, sandwiches, bottled water and anything you need for the day. This options works well if you can drive to your location and bring your cooler with you. If you’re flying, you’ll need a collapsible cooler to pack in your suitcase.
Research Restaurants In The Area – Do your research before you go. Even if you have access to a kitchen or a refrigerator, you still may want or need to eat for a few meals. Find out what restaurants are in the area and which menus offer healthy options that interest you. You can plan any outings to one of these restaurants and know what you’re going to eat when you walk in the door. Here are a few tips for restaurants.
Research the menu before going.
Ask for protein to be grilled or cooked without added fats and/or sauces.
Ask if you can make substitutions or changes based on your dietary needs. Most restaurants are willing to accommodate.
Protein Powder – Protein is often the hardest thing to come by. Healthy eating on the go is made much easier if you can bring some protein powder with you. Even it it’s a back up, you know you have a good protein source to go to if you can’t find a viable option. Sometimes your healthy eating strategy might require using a combination of options. For example, finding some fruit and vegetables might be easy but grabbing a protein source might be pretty expensive. In certain cases, protein powder can fill in the gaps.
Supergreen Supplement – It’s often times very difficult to get the correct amount of vegetables in when traveling. This is the perfect time to incorporate a great supplement like Amazing Grass, Green Defense or Greens +. A supplement is just that – a way to supplement your diet. While this shouldn’t be your mainstay to getting in vegetables, it can always be used as a way to up your micronutrient intake and get some greens into your diet.
Bring Homemade Snacks – Bring homemade non-perishable snacks with you. Homemade granola or protein bars, protein muffins, kale chips and homemade granola or trail mix are all wonderful options to take with you. If you have healthy food with you, chances are that you’ll eat that healthy food rather than seeking out the junky stuff.
New! Grocery Delivery Service - When this blog post was first written, there weren’t as many grocery delivery services available as there are now. With the onset of services from Target, Walmart and Amazon, you can now have healthy food delivered to you anywhere. This is another great option to check out prior to arriving in the area you’ll be staying in. Check out which services would deliver to you and the type of items that are available.
SUMMING IT UP
If you’ll notice (or maybe you already have), the common theme here is that you need to be prepared. If you’re committed to a goal of weight loss, a health goal or just want to ensure you’re eating good quality meals, you’ve got to set yourself up for success. Healthy eating while traveling is totally doable but it does require a bit of planning and strategy to make it work. To recap:
Plan ahead by checking out your location and what’s available to you.
Try booking accommodations that facilitate healthy cooking or have a healthy menu on site to make clean eating easy.
Ship items beforehand if you know you need specific things that can’t be packed in a suitcase.
Take a cooler with you if possible with any perishable items.
Grab snacks and supplements that can be toted or stored easily when traveling.
Bring your own - homemade snacks, meal prep items or any additional homemade food that you can easily take with you.
Look into healthy meal delivery or grocery services to make nutritious food easily accessible.
If you need additional help with nutrition or staying accountable, consider joining us for a wellness retreat or sign up for our online personal training to get help with fitness and nutrition. - Margot
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