Posted on November 14, 2014 by Jenny Cromack

 

Many of our personal training clients and gym members travel a lot with their jobs. In an ideal world you should have all your meals planned. (For advice on planning meals around a busy lifestyle click here) however due to delays or changes of travel plans you may sometimes you find yourself stuck in train stations or airports. So what can you do to make sure you can eat healthy when travelling?

Firstly, live by the Boy Scout motto….’Always Be Prepared!’

Having a Tupperware box with a portion of nuts or seeds to hand in your bag will ensure there is always a healthy option and will stop you reaching for a naughty snack.

In airports and train stations there are often restaurants and the opportunity for a healthy meal. A lot of restaurants now offer a healthy or low calorie option. However, if at first glance you’re struggling to find a healthy option think about how you can modify the meal. For example, if there is steak  and chips on the menu ask to swap the chunky chips for seasonal vegetables or salad.

As well as restaurants there are also shops which allows you to be in complete control of what you eat. If these are available saying you could only grab a chocolate bar is not an option! There are often salads available – just make sure you check the food labels to ensure they are as natural as possible and avoid the dressings that are often high in salt or sugar. To add more substance to your salad purchase some cottage cheese, nuts or some pre cooked chicken slices, this is much healthier than grabbing a sandwich.

In shops like this you can often even make your own salad, grab a bag of salad leaves, a punnet of tomatoes, a healthy protein source and hey presto you have a healthy meal!

If you just need a snack then fruit or nuts are always the best option and there is always a coffee shop or shop selling these. Avoid cereal bars and flap jacks although they are often promoted as being healthy they are often ridiculously high in sugar.

If you are flying and you need to eat during your flight then we would always recommend that you take your own healthy meal with you. Some research has found that a single plane meal can have up to 1,000 calories and 53g of fat in them and you know how small some of these meals can be! If you buy disposable foil or plastic containers you can put your healthy meal in these and then bin it after without having to worry about carrying a tupperware box around.

It goes without saying that you should avoid any fast food places!

Hopefully this blog shows how you can eat healthy when travelling but ultimately it is down to being prepared.