If you are a CEO, sales executive or upper-level manager, business travel is more than likely a part of your life. While the travel can be a welcome change of scenery, eating healthy while traveling also poses a significant challenge if you are trying to maintain a healthy diet and lifestyle.
Here are a few of our favorite tips for eating healthy while traveling:
When you travel for business, you never know when you might encounter an unexpected delay at the airport or a meeting that suddenly goes into overtime. The best way to eat healthy while traveling is to plan ahead. Pack your own healthy travel-friendly snacks in your purse or carry-on. Individual packs of dried fruit, nuts and even pretzels all travel well and take up little to no room in your carry-on or purse.
No one likes to be hungry during an airport layover. But if you find yourself starving, try to steer clear of the chain restaurants inside the airport. They typically have a scaled down version of their normal menu and tend to offer very few healthy items. When possible, look for fresh options. Fruit, veggie cups, and yogurt are low in fat, calories, and sodium. You may be able to find a few healthy items, such as granola bars and packets of trail mix at the airport gift shop or newsstand kiosk. If you need something a little more filling, we suggest looking for more of a broth-based soup or perhaps salads and sandwiches. These items will help meet your goal of eating healthy while traveling.
If you know your day is going to be a hectic one with several meetings planned, you need to have a breakfast that is filling for your stomach. Eat a breakfast that can keep you full for longer. Oatmeal is a great choice for your breakfast in such cases. The chances that you will get enough time in between meetings to have a healthy snack are highly unlikely. Avoid pastries and muffins if possible. Muffins and pastries contain hundreds of calories and have little to no nutritional value and are loaded with refined sugar and carbohydrates that will have you crashing by mid-morning.
Most business travelers would probably sheepishly admit that their favorite part of traveling for work is being able to enjoy a nice meal on the company dime. Unfortunately, you are likely to wind up at a restaurant with a menu featuring super-sized entrees that are smothered in sauces, gravy, or cheese that can leave you feeling bloated and sluggish for the rest of your trip. You can begin with eating salads to satisfy the hunger pangs. Once you feel adequately satiated, you can move on to the main course. Choose foods that are steamed, grilled, or poached.
Go online to locate restaurants near where you will be staying and look over their menus ahead of time. Not only will you be able to offer a healthy dining option when your group is trying to decide where to go for dinner, but you will also be able to formulate a game plan for ordering.
Simple menu items that are baked, broiled, or roasted are a plus. Also ask for any dressing or sauces to be served on the side. Keep portion sizes in check by combining appetizers or ala carte items to create your own meal.
Avoid a heavy meal that contains a high number of fatty foods for dinner. A fatty meal can worsen indigestion. The symptoms of indigestion such as abdominal pain or nausea might keep you awake. Adjusting your sleep or wake cycle based on a different time zone can be difficult when traveling. However, making the right choice of food for your dinner can help you sleep well and wake up feeling refreshed.
Finally, the last thing that you need while trying to power through an early morning sales presentation is the lingering effects of the previous night’s happy hour that turned into happy hours. Not only will a few too many drinks at dinner or after-dinner hotel bar nightcaps leave you feeling fuzzy headed the next morning, but most alcoholic drinks are loaded with sugar and calories.
Choose low-calorie drink options, such as wine spritzers or a drink on the rocks with club soda. It is also a good idea to drink a full glass of water in between each alcoholic drink to keep consumption in check.
We hope you found our healthy food tips helpful! Now it’s time to put them into consideration on your next business trip. Here at Ecko Worldwide Transportation, we wish you a safe and successful business trip. And remember, we can provide passenger transportation in any city in the world. Give us a call today at 1-877-FLY-ECKO.