Find yourself traveling for work? Three tips to keep healthy on the go

Carrie Liken
Sep 5, 2018 · 4 min read

I was really excited to see this article in the New York Times on August 28, 2018 and to recognize that other travelers are feeling the same way about needing (and wanting) to find healthy options when they are on the road. It’s hard enough to find healthy options in airports and train stations, and even harder to find those that are gluten free on top of that!

This quote sums it all up:

“Now that healthy dining at airports isn’t nearly as challenging as it used to be, fliers have no excuse not to eat well before they’re airborne…The old mentality used to be — and rightly so — that you could only get junk food at an airport, but the choices of unprocessed and healthy foods today are overwhelming.”

I believe this is true — but only for those who are traveling to or from the larger cities with larger airports. There are still segments of the population globally who have very few healthy options when it comes to travel, and much of the existing options tend to be processed and unhealthy.

It’s so important to know what you are getting yourself into and how you can adequately prepare. I’ve found that being on the road and having to contend with celiac disease, that it has become even more important to make the right decisions before I start my trip using the Three Ps of business travel and healthy eating: Planning, Packing and Preparing.

Planning. This is the first stage, where you’ve identified that you are going on a trip and that you can look at your schedule to identify where and when you will be on the road. Taking a look at your calendar and isolating when and where you are traveling will help you to determine whether you need to pack a lunch, pick up some food at an airport (and hopefully something healthy if you are traveling in a larger city) or choose another option. Planning should be built into your packing process — if you are packing for a trip, you should know to just also plan your foods, too. It should become second nature. For example, every Sunday I usually find myself packing a suitcase for my trips, so at the same time, I create a spreadsheet to help with my planning process so I know what meals I can possibly control and what meals I cannot.

Packing. My mantra is “Going away? Aim to eat in.” Just because you are traveling for work doesn’t mean you can’t have your own home-cooked meals. Airplane food is arguably some of the worst, sodium-laden (and not-always-gluten-free) foods you can eat, and not much better can be said of airport food (despite the above-mentioned NYT article!). If you are going on a multi-day trip, you may not be able to pack every meal (nor would you necessarily want to), but you can pack some meals that will help you keep healthier on the road than if you left your food options to chance. If I am traveling over breakfast, I often pack a TSA-friendly oatmeal jar and add hot water to the oats after I board the flight. If I am traveling over lunch or dinner, I pack a TSA-friendly salad. Sometimes I even pack multiple meals and make sure I am staying in a hotel that allows me to store my meals in a refrigerator in my hotel room upon arrival. If you’ve planned correctly, you’re able to better pack accordingly.

Preparing. After you’ve planned and packed, there are inevitably times when you will either find yourself without a home cooked option, or you find yourself out to dinner or drinks with colleagues or clients, or you’re on a multi-day trip and couldn’t pack enough food for that length of time. Doing a little preparation work before you leave will help you mitigate choosing unhealthily in the moment. For example, if you have your dinners with customers planned at certain restaurants and you know where you are going beforehand, review the menu online before you go and decide upon a few healthier options to order. If you know you are going to be grabbing drinks with your work colleagues, maybe make up your mind beforehand to have a glass of water in between each alcoholic beverage. (Drinking alcohol makes you less inhibited, which also encourages more food consumption where you may end up making less healthy choices throughout the evening). It’s all about looking ahead and knowing what you are getting into and being prepared and proactively tackling healthy options.

You cannot outsource your health. No one is going to force you to be healthy on the road, nor is anyone going to police you while you’re on the road, either. You can’t necessarily control where your food is coming from unless you pack it yourself, but if you follow the Three Ps you will certainly set yourself up for a more healthy business trip so that you can arrive (and return) energized and ready to tackle the business ahead of you.

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