Healthy Diet and Exercise While Traveling...

JessiTess

Hi Everyone,

This is my first post here - Sticking to a diet and exercise routine has never been my strength, but with under 90 days to go until the wedding, I need to hold myself more accountable.

I'm curious to see if anyone has any tips for staying healthy while on the road? I travel Monday - Thursday for work - usually catching an 8 AM flight Monday mornings, and then taking a 6:30-ish flight home on Thursdays.

Since I stay in a hotel (with access to a mini fridge, but no stove/microwave) I am forced to eat out during the week.  I try to stick to healthy snacks, and Kashi/Lean Cuisine type meals for lunch (I can use the microwave at the office), but dinner is quite the challenge.  It is very hard to eat out 4 nights a week and stick to a diet plan. 

I've recently begun keeping a food journal to make me more aware of what I eat, but healthy restaurant options are limited, at best. Any advice/tips would be greatly appreciated!

miguelhilary2010

If you have a fridge in the hotel, I recommend getting sandwitches or salads and just keep them chilled in the fridge, same with fruit.  I assume you can find a convenience store (Wawa, Sheetz, etc) where you could find these things.

I can't imagine eating out all of the time like that.

mehgank

If you have an iPhone, the LoseIt! app has a lot of restaurants' common dishes, so you can get an idea of what you're eating.

I know places that have fresh ingredients tend to be better. Qdoba and Chipotle are among my favorites, especially because I can make one of their burrito bowls last three meals.

You mentioned that you have a fridge in your office, so maybe you can split your eating-out-dinners into two and save some for lunch the next day.

Sloane99

Does your hotel have a gym that you can use in addition to buying some foods? If not, go for a run or long walk before or after your work day - both are great for exercise and get you moving. I also fully agree with the PP, load up somewhere on healthy stuff and just keep it in the fridge that way, even if you're reaching for a snack, it's a healthy one and definitely beats anything a restaurant may have with all their oils/butters, etc.

darkling_glory

Off the top of my head...

(1) Ask the hotel you're staying at if the have a fridge or cooler (not a mini-bar) that can be put in your room. Sometimes they'll have these on hands for folks who have to keep medicine refridgerated, and they will rent them out at a nominal fee.

(2) Don't be afraid to customize whatever you eat at a restaurant. Tell your server exactly how you want things cooked (no butter, grilled, veggies w/o salt, etc...). Most of the time, folks don't even care. It takes the chef less time to make a sandwich without mayonaisse then with it.

(3) Bring some workout clothes with you when you travel and take advantage of your hotel gym or pool. Swim laps, run on the treadmill, or just jog around the grounds.

Ginabean2011

You can still log your food/calories on livestrong.com on your phone or laptop and work out at the hotel gym. I can definitely see how food while traveling could be a major pitfall though.