11 Tips for Traveling Lite

Business trips are stress times and the ability to totally lose control of what you eat is tremendous. Yet, business trips are the times when you need to be at the top of your game. If you are not eating right your performance will suffer.

Traveling – whether for business or pleasure – doesn’t give you a license to overeat. With a little thought and pre-planning, you can take healthy food choice items with you or make those choices on the road so that you are in top form to be a real road warrior.
1. Pack peanut butter and rice cakes, pieces of fruit and bottled water into the extra storage area in your laptop computer bag.

2. Order a fruit plate and yogurt for breakfast from room service rather than a basket of fat laden muffins

3. Eat your largest meal at mid-day. Calories are calories no matter when you eat them but your will power is stronger when you are not as tired.

4. Ask the hotel to empty the mini bar. Out of sight, out of mind.

5. Choose a brightly lit restaurant. Studies have shown that people eat more when the lights are low, especially when they are alone.

6. Pack vacuum packs of tuna or chicken salad, protein bars, vegetable sticks, raw nuts and string cheese. They all travel well and those that need to be kept cold can be put in a zip lock bag in an ice bucket.

7. Use the hotel room coffee maker to heat water for instant soup mixes. Just don’t put the soup through the coffee maker.

8. Drink plenty of bottled water. Even regional differences in tap water can cause you digestive difficulties, plus airline travel is very dehydrating.

9. Avoid alcohol. Travelers tend to drink more alcohol than normal and this can directly impact your business performance both while you are drinking and afterwards.

10. Be the first person in your group to order in a restaurant, making healthy choices. People tend to mimic the orders already placed at their table.

11. Pack cheese, yogurt, sea sticks, light deli ham, veggie pieces and fruit in a cooler if you are driving.

Tags: Advice, Diet, Food, Tips, Travel