Weight Watchers recipes and Success Stories: Tips for Healthy Travel

Healthy travel seems like a crazy and oppressive way to not have fun when on the road and that is that last thing I want to tell someone to do. Travel is a time for changing lifestyle and exploring what you haven’t seen. I find myself that the trouble with all of this is at we also have a problem staying in shape and staying healthy.

It all comes with our priorities and how we plan.

When you travel the planning needs to happen before you leave home and will finish when you get home so here are 10 tips to help you stay in shape and arrive home in even better shape then you left

Eating tips for Healthy Travel

1. Pack snacks for the road – whether I am traveling in a car or in a plane I am never sure where my next snack will come from so I always pack my backpack with some fruit. I have always worried about this when going through security at the airport but fact is I have never been stopped so it seems to be ok to bring some fruit.

Healthy Travel Tips

2. Water not Soda – It is very easy to drink some soda or juice and I know that this will happen when I travel so I always stop at a grocery store in my destination and buy bottles of water. I don’t tend to pack water before as it is not allowed past airport security but it is always handy to have a bottle or two in the car for healthy travel outside of airports.

3. Eat local food – One of the great things about travel is the fact that you get a chance to eat locally grown produce as well as the local cuisine from an area. The sooner that you can eat fresh fruits and veggies after they are picked the better they are for you, so try to find out what grows locally and eat away!

4. Morning and Night Water – Because schedules are such a mess when traveling it is really hard to keep to a normal plan, and you probably don’t want to anyway. What I do is as soon as I wake up in the morning I drink a big glass or two of water or if in a sketchy area just a big bottle of water and again at night when back to the hotel I do the same.

Elevations, different temperatures and lots of different exercise and eating plans will mess you up so try to have a good hydration plan starting and finishing with water to be sure.

5. Watch the Restaurant Meals – I am a big fan of going out for meals but recognize that what I eat is not always that good for me. When we travel as a family we always get a kitchenette in the hotel room so that we can make the majority of our meals with food we know and then have one meal out a day.

6. Order Responsibly – One of the biggest problems we all run into besides scheduling eating times when we are on the road is the bad ways that we order. Healthy travel in a restaurant starts with ordering with discernment and making sure your choices are good.

When you are ordering at a restaurant watch how they cook your meal. In most places, just like at home the chef will cook for taste not for nutrition. Stay away from sauces and deep fried food and instead get grilled meat and salad or veggies instead of fries

Exercise Tips for Healthy Travel

1. Book Hotels with Amenities – When booking a hotel for your travels make sure there is some kind of gym, google the hotel if need be. the fact is that a little exercise will make your travel more comfortable and give you the energy to make the most of your days and if you don’t set yourself up for success you will fail to exercise.

2. Plan your exercise and activities – Even though you probably do not know when you are going where on your travels everyone seems to plan the next day at least.

In the evening before decide how much exercise you will be getting, a hike maybe? Surfing all day? Sitting by the pool?

And plan your exercise around that. If you will be out sightseeing all day then plan to go to the gym for a workout in the morning. If you are just by the pool then start the day with cardio.

If you do cardio and then walk around all day you might run out of gas before the day is done so plan ahead!

3. Plan Active Activities – Now when travelling on vacation this is easy enough to do but when you are travelling on business it is a lot more difficult.

You can perhaps go out in the evening and walk the town, like many people plan a jog around the new city you are in (be careful of unknown neighbourhoods) or even just rent a bike to travel around instead of always taking a car, this gets you active and you also get to meet more people and see more in your journeys.

Tips for Eating Better At The Airport

Nutrition conscious travelers have finally been heard. Finding diet foods at an airport is much easier than it used to be. There are far more healthy choices to grab on the run (or waiting between flights), but it still falls to the dieter to be selective and choose wisely.

Common Sense: Plan Ahead

Do not to arrive at the airport hungry. Whether you’re heading to the airport from your home or a hotel, schedule time to eat ahead of time.

The one way to ensure you don’t ruin your diet while traveling is to bring your own food. Suggestions include: Energy bars, Nuts: Almonds or cashews, Carrots, celery, cherry tomatoes, whole grain bread with light cheese or peanut butter, Fruit (apple, banana, grapes), Yogurt, unsweetened dried fruits

Hungry and Have Nothing With You

Takeout kiosks/news stand

Fruit: Apples, oranges and bananas as well as cut-up pineapple and watermelon.
Hummus: Often found in a snack pack with raw vegetable or pita.
Nuts: A great protein boost and easy to carry on the plane. Caution: Be sure your nuts are unsalted and don’t overeat.
Oatmeal: Avoid overloading with too much dried fruits, brown sugar or nuts.
Salads: They are usually quite fresh (rapid turnover). Beware of the dressing and crispy noodles, croutons or bacon.
Sandwiches: Even if pre-made, they can be a good choice, but beware of too much cheese or tuna/ chicken salad with mayonnaise. Plain turkey or chicken can be filling and if you can eat only half of the bread, all the better. And – no – you do not need the bag of chips that comes with the sandwich.
Yogurt: More common at airports (both in containers and frozen). Keep it plain without a lot of add on fruits and toppings.

Food Chains Now Have More Healthy Choices

Au Bon Pain: Garden Vegetable Soup is good with only 80 calories for a medium-sized serving.
Burger King: Select the junior Whoppers or junior sandwiches and skip the fries. Or order a salad (with the dressing on the side).
Dunkin Donuts: The egg white veggie flatbread is a great choice and can be even lower than the 280 calories if you have them hold the cheese.
McDonald’s: There are a lot of choices from salads and fruits to yogurt parfaits. A small hamburger or chicken sandwiches can also be good.
Starbucks: Their oatmeal is only 150 calories. If you must have a bagel, their multigrain is less than 300 calories, but be careful smearing on the cream cheese.
Subway: This chain has always been diet friendly, especially if you order your sub small or on a pita pocket. Just be careful with any add ons like cheeses and dressing.
Wendy’s: Consider their baked potato (no cheese, butter or sour cream). And Chili to put on it. This is my wifes favorite.

Yes, you can definitely make it through an airport without ruining your diet. Of course, if you got stuck in traffic and have only five minutes to get on the plane for a four-hour flight – enjoy that little bag of the airline pretzels (which are not THAT BAD for your diet).

So there are nine things you can do. This week in my travels across the west I had some trouble keeping all of these intact and ended up suffering. At home there is a fridge and a schedule but on the road that schedule and access to healthy travel was only as good as the way I made it, and sometimes I did not do so well

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