17
Tara’s Friday Bite – Healthy Eating While Traveling
It is one thing to eat nutritiously when you are in the comfort of your own home, but it’s an entirely different situation on the road. When you are pulled away from your routine, most people just throw up their hands and decide there is nothing they can do but to eat poorly. However, if you put a little thought into it, you can enjoy your travels and not pay for it through the first quarter of 2011!
In the Airport
Airports are notorious for overpriced, bad tasting and nutritionally horrendous food. We all know this yet there are still lines wrapped around the food court because people find themselves starving and unprepared. Here are some tips to avoid diet pitfalls in the airport:
- Eat before you go. Make sure you enter the airport with a full stomach. It will be much easier to avoid the sugary temptations and I promise the long lines will be much more tolerable then on an empty stomach!
- Stock your carry-on. Pack a few protein bars in your carry-on bag so you can beat your hunger to the punch. For longer flights, you may want to pack something larger like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or swing by the sandwich shop on the way to the airport. These are easy, healthy snacks that will satisfy you and not leave you starving halfway through your cross-country trip.
- Stay hydrated. I suggest bringing a reusable water bottle and drinking it on the way to the airport. Make sure to finish it before security and then fill it up at the water fountain when you get to your terminal. Water bottles can be pricey at the airport!
On the Road
When preparing for a road trip, we will take an extra 30 minutes to update our iPods or make sure we have DVD’s for entertainment, but we often just hope for the best when it comes to food. If you do this on the road, the “best” that you are hoping for will most likely be a fast food drive-thru or a gas station smorgasbord.
- Pack a cooler. Stock a cooler with fruit, sandwiches and drinks. You’ll have fresh food at the ready and the cooler will help prevent your food from getting crushed under your feet!
- Bring food you enjoy. Make sure to pack food that you enjoy and is easily eaten in the car. The last thing you want to do is pack a bunch of food you aren’t looking forward to eating and find yourself in the drive-thru instead.
- Stay hydrated. Dehydration can be misread as hunger. I know we tend to avoid water when driving because we don’t want to make a lot of pit stops, but try to drink 8 oz. of water per hour to stay hydrated and prevent over-snacking. It’s worth the extra stops!
I wish each of you a happy and healthy holiday! Enjoy time with your friends and families and I will see you in 2011!
Tara Coleman www.taracoleman.com
Tara Coleman is a Clinical Nutritionist living in San Diego, CA. She blogs for Total Gym Inside twice a month with “Tara’s Friday Bite.” Leave us your comments with ideas for future topics or email Tara directly at tara@taracoleman.com.
