It’s the season again – we’re moving into that infamous Thanksgiving through New Years, where the average American will gain 8-12 pounds! One of the main reasons for this is that we are stepping out of our normal routines for both exercise and diet. It is even more challenging when you travel during this season because you are away from home and have less control over your exercise and eating habits.
However, where there’s a will, there’s a way. Here are some important tips to avoid weight gain while traveling:
Plan your meals and your exercise. This is probably the most important tip, because with a little planning you CAN eat healthy and get exercise.
2. Start reviewing your itinerary and planning your meals while traveling. We all know how lousy the food is in an airline, so instead of being subjected to the lousy and unhealthy food, bring your own food. In many airports today, there are plenty of healthy options that you can buy and take with you on the plane. Great options include:
a. Nuts – see below
b. Ready to drink shakes like Muscle Milk (start seeing this even in an organic option in airports!).
c. Nutrition bars – see below
d. Hard boiled eggs
e. Salads with chicken
3. Buy even better shelf life foods before you leave home. Excellent choices for meals and snacks that are easy to carry include:
a. Nuts – come in cans and pouches with smaller packaging which is ideal because while nuts are healthy they are high in fat and even healthy fats are high in calories! No honey glazed and if you have to worry about salt stick with unsalted, toasted nuts. The best choices are pecans and walnuts and Brazil nuts, followed by almonds, then peanuts and cashews in terms of sugar content.
b. Nutrition Bars – There are a ton of healthier bar choices out there now, and they’ve figured out how to make a healthy bar that tastes damn good without a ton of sugar with lots of fiber, healthy fats, and protein. Several Kind bars fit this bill, including dark chocolate and sea salt; Caramel Almond and Sea Salt; and dark chocolate cinnamon pecan. These bars taste great and will satisfy you and travel well.
c. Ready to mix shakes – there are many great options for low sugar, high protein shakes that taste great and come in packs that are easy to mix in a plastic shake bottle after you add water. Gone are the days when these options have to be mixed in a blender. Experiment a little and you can find shakes that come in single-use packets that mix pretty well in a plastic shaker bottle.
d. If you’re driving, consider packing some ready-to-eat meals in a cooler that are either ready to eat cold or that can be easily microwaved or baked when you arrive. If you bring some of your own food and healthy desserts, you know you have good options!
4. Focus on a great breakfast, because you can get eggs in every city in America, both in restaurants and in people’s homes. Eggs are a fantastic meal that really satisfies, and they can be prepared in many different ways. Starting the day with 2-3 whole eggs along with some sautéed vegetables, some cheese and some berries will satisfy your hunger and make for a healthy meal that is easy to come by!
5. Get some exercise! Plan before you go – worst case scenario, you can use resistance bands and get a great workout in a very small physical space like a hotel room. For resistance bands and workouts with them, visit www.resistancebandtraining.com. Try this one for a great bodyweight workout: https://workoutanytime.blogspot.com/2016/03/the-three-best-bodyweight-exercise.html
6. Take a walk and see the neighborhood or visit some nearby attractions. Sitting on your ass all day while food is being prepared all around you is asking for trouble! Get up and actively go out for part of the day or offer to run errands for the group or help with some of the physical chores if you’re staying at someone’s home.
This post How to Eat Healthy While Travelling Over the Holidays! was original published at “http://workoutanytime.blogspot.com/2021/11/how-to-eat-healthy-while-travelling.html”