(The Greek falafel salad and pita + hummus I had for dinner tonight)
My job requires a LOT of travel. It seems like every other weekend I'm on the road.
When traveling with teams, I'm often at the mercy of the coaching staff's discretion when selecting dining establishments. However, our baseball travel roster is nearly 30 players and with a number like that, it's difficult to find something for everyone. Let alone a place to sit with all 35 of us. So I'm often left to wandering and discovering city streets alone, allowing for me to make better eating decisions.
The last two road trips have coincided with my new push to start a healthier life that includes a great deal of running and eating healthier. So here's my list of ways to eat healthy when you're traveling.
1.) If you have to eat fast food, be smart about it!
Lots of places are wising up and adding healthier choices to their menus. For example, Subway and McDonald's among others are adding "lighter sides." If you're going to splurge on calories with a burger or a large sandwich (see if you can opt for a whole wheat bread instead of white), get a fruit on the side and a bottle of water or even low-fat milk to drink with it! You won't have a craving for junk later and you'll shave off about 600 calories by ditching the fries.
2.) Skip the taxi.
We got placed in the middle of nowhere in Bakersfield on this trip (not a pun, I'm well aware of the fact that Bakersfield is the middle of nowhere). I overheard some of my guys talking about a shopping center near the freeway and curiously began looking up where it was located. I found out on my iPhone's GPS that the center was located about a mile away from me. After working all afternoon, I decided to save the $6-10 it might have cost me to grab a taxi and I walked. It took me about 40 minutes round trip, which was awesome because I got in some added exercise. So that gave me some room to play around with dessert and still fit in under my daily caloric goals!
3.) Get sauces on the sides.
For things like salads, wraps and sensible sandwiches that seem healthy, hidden fats, calories and cholesterols lie in the sauces doused all over those bad boys. Last night for dinner I ordered a Cajun blackened chicken wrap with veggies, avocados and bacon. I saw that it came with a pesto aioli (mayo) sauce and asked for that to be put on the side. It was a good call, because I saw some of the others and they were DRENCHED in sauce. The "side sauce" they gave me rivaled my drink - seriously. I dipped my wrap in the sauce every couple of bites to moisten it up a bit, but when all was said and done I barely used 1/4 of the sauce. Same went for the salad. It takes so much fat and unwanted additives from a meal when you put the sauce on the side.
4.) Half the plate and EAT.SLOWLY.
Most portions at restaurants are ridiculous. If you're like me, you feel bad not eating something you paid for. But then again, do you really want your extra money to go towards your belly or save you from over-eating?! I'd pay $5 to rid five extra pounds.... ha. Well, no matter how hungry you may be, cut the plate in half. Eat a bit and waste time talking with friends, reading a newspaper, checking your e-mail, etc. I guarantee you'll find that if you let your stomach rest a bit, your food will catch up with your mouth and you won't want that extra half of the sandwich. A good option is to save the other half for another meal, or just toss it. You really don't need all the food that's loaded onto restaurant plates these days (unless it's a fancy, schmancy place with teeny portions, but those places are out of my wallet's league anyways).
5.) Consult the nutritional information.
Yeah, it's a drag and yes it takes a lot of fun out of ordering off a menu. But if you're on the road, dining out isn't the same special occasion as it is at home. Yes, let yourself splurge for one meal. But for the others, be smart! There's no need to ruin any diet or health goals you may have set for yourself on a few meals out. California law now requires chain restaurants to provide nutritional information at every table or on the menu. Consult the menu and see what's the smartest choice to eat, instead of what sounds the best to you. And if you don't have a calorie counting menu, there are many of websites and iPhone applications out there to help you figure it out. My personal fave is the Daily Plate iPhone application. It cost about $5, and I've been using it every day since I purchased it. It's one of the best few iPhone apps I've paid for and I love it.
Don't believe me? Here's a list of trips I've taken this year:
Santa Barbara/San Luis Obispo
1 comment:
Wow girlie, you do travel a lot! I am jealous, but I can imagine it is hard to plan all of that. Great tips for eating healthy on the road! xoxo
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