Staying on Track While Traveling Part III

Published: 2021-10-10

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Last week, we discussed some additional things you can do to prepare for travel. Although this seems like a lot of preparation, once you get in the habit of doing it, it will become a part of your routine and the time spent will be negligible compared to the benefits you get. Some additional things to consider when you travel to help you stay on target.

Staying on your routine - If you can stick as close as you can to your normal routine, this will help immensely. This is hard, especially if you have business dinners in the evening. However, being the last one out is not always required. For those I work with, they know that early dinner (6 or 6:30PM) is preferable since I am typically up at 3 AM and at the gym by 3:30.
Limit alcohol consumption – Not only does this add a significant number of empty calories, but it also adds to dehydration in the AM, poor or disrupted sleep and it can also sideline your healthy food choices. We tend to make less than desirable food decisions after having a few. After a few, that desert all the sudden looks more enticing, and we are more likely to partake. The bread you weren’t going to have, you now find yourself scarfing. If you are going to have alcohol, try to limit it to one or two and make sure to drink plenty of water in between.
Review the menu before going out – with google and most menus online, this will literally take you 5 min. Doing this when you are not starving can help you make a better food choice. Also, if you do have some alcohol and have looked up your meal prior, this will often help you make the right food choice. Confused on what to look for?
- Avoid pasta heavy meals – these are loaded with carbohydrates and often have more fat associated with
- Avoid cream sauces – these will tend to have a lot of fat
- Avoid excessive amounts of bread. It is ok to have one or two, but to plow through a whole basket by yourself is a lot of unnecessary calories that can lead to overeating once your meal arrives.
- Pick pure proteins – picking the right food does not mean you have to avoid steak. For me, I will do a steak, no sauces, and a plain baked potato. Is it better loaded? Yes, but I also know that I have to sacrifice somewhere to keep myself on target. You can also do this with chicken or fish. Try to avoid cheese with heavy creams or sauces.
Healthy snack before dinner – I will often have a protein bar 40-60 minutes before we are to have dinner. This helps me curb my hunger, prevents me from making hasty decisions and prevents me from overeating bread prior to my meal arriving.
Uber Eats – I use this app a lot when I travel. Especially if I don’t have a dinner meeting and I am looking to stay on track. This will allow me to select categories (healthy) and choose something that looks good to me. Lots of variety and allows you to screen what you are getting. Check the nutrition blogs.
Packing night before – most of us have to travel to a location to do what it is we do when out of town. To save time and maximize my sleep, I will layout my supplements I take when I get up, layout all my gym clothes, pack all my things I need to take with me when I leave and pack my healthy snacks for the day.

Trent Nessler

A lot of this may seem like overboard, but for someone that has traveled a lot for the last 15 years, this has made a huge difference in my ability to keep on task. I hope you find it useful and can implement some of this with yourself and your team.

Staying on Track While Traveling Part I

Staying on Track While Traveling Part II

Staying on Track While Traveling Part III