Healthy Travel Tips
Summer is the time most of us travel, and it makes it the easiest time for us to blow our diets. The vast majority of us do. While it's important to relax, enjoy ourselves, and have fun on vacation, there are a few simple tricks I have to maintain a healthy lifestyle and avoid coming home feeling like I have fallen off track.
First, if we fail to plan, we plan to fail. When we actually take the time to plan ahead and prepare our nutrition for the trip just as we plan and prepare our outfits, we spend less money and save ourselves a lot of stress.
If we don't have a kitchenette where we are staying, I do a bit of research in advance to find out what restaurants are nearby and have a look at their menus. This allows me to choose where I would like to eat and gives me assurance that I will have some healthy options. If we do have a kitchenette where we are staying, I do some research to find out what organic grocer is nearby where I can pick up groceries.
TRAVEL SNACKS
Fresh Food - Depending on where we are traveling, it can be difficult to find organic produce so packing a few things that keep fresh easily will ensure we have a few healthy options. Fresh fruit and veggies also have more water content which can help with preventing dehydration. The fruit and veggies I find stay fresh best are apples, oranges, grapefruits, tangerines (they peel a lot easier than oranges and grapefruits which is helpful when traveling), carrot sticks, celery sticks, and jicama sticks. Bringing a travel pack of nut butter is a great addition to add some protein and healthy fat to stay satiated longer. Hard boiled eggs, avocado, coconut wraps and himalayan salt also travel well and make for a quick and simple breakfast.
Trail Mix - Trail mix is always a crowd pleaser, but can have unhealthy additives and unwanted ingredients. Home-made is best and often the most affordable. I make my own with cashews, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, sunflower seeds, almonds, cacao nibs, and goji berries for an added immune boost.
Bars - Bars are the easiest snack for traveling. My favourites are Primal Kitchen, Woods, Bulletproof, Larabar, URAAW (if you want to build your own!), and either Epic or Meatbar as a grass-fed meat stick. Meat sticks are great to add to snacks because we tend to eat too many carbs and not enough protein and healthy fats. This will help keep you satiated longer and prevent you from snacking more.
Bone Broth - If you know me, you know I love bone broth. It is one of my favourite superfoods and I feel so nourished when I have it. LonoLife makes bone broth packs for the keurig as most hotels/airbnbs now have keurigs. Organika makes a grass-fed bone broth in a powder form that is also easy to travel with. All you have to do is add hot water.
Coconut Oil - Coconut oil travel packs have a multi-purpose use. I blend it into my morning tea, use it on my skin as a moisturizer, oil pull my teeth, and use it for cooking if where I am staying has a kitchenette.
SUPPLEMENTS
Probiotic - Our gut bacteria changes when we travel so taking a probiotic helps keep our immune system healthy, our mood stable, and can help prevent digestive distress. Saccharomyces boulardii is a great one in particular for preventing traveler's diarrhea.
Activated Charcoal - This is the best for preventing hangovers and for not getting sick from eating questionable food.
Greens Formula - None of us eat as many vegetables when we travel so a good greens formula helps cover our bases. A morning greens drink always gives me an energy boost and is like an insurance policy if my diet isn't going to be great that day. You can get this in a powder or capsule form.
Digestive Enzymes - Poor quality oils are almost always used in restaurant foods, along with other things I wouldn't typically eat at home. Taking a broad spectrum digestive enzyme with meals can help decrease bloating and any gas or digestive distress that can come with eating out.
Electrolytes - We often get so dehydrated when we travel but we aren't able to bring liquids on planes. An electrolyte pack is great to bring with you so that when you're able to get some water, you can stir it in and better hydrate yourself. If you aren't traveling on a plane and can travel with liquids, Concentrace mineral drops are fantastic.
Melatonin - Melatonin can be a great option for regulating our sleep/wake cycle when we are changing time zones. Taking 1mg per hour of time difference can help with getting over jet lag faster. Earthing is another great way to combat jet lag if you're off to somewhere warm.
OnGuard Essential Oil - The air on an airplane makes me cringe just thinking about it. I typically bring my bottle of OnGuard in my carry on bag and mix 1 drop into some water before, during, and after the plane. The oils in this blend are antimicrobial and help boost the immune system. What I will also do is mix 1 Tbsp of pure aloe vera gel with 20 drops of OnGuard and water to make a simple triclosan-free hand sanitizer that doesn't dry out my hands.
Now I’d love to hear from you. Are you planning on traveling during the summer? What tips would you like to try implementing? Do you have any extras to add? Share and let me know!