5 Steps on How to Stay on Track While Traveling

It’s summer time! 

1. PLAN AHEAD

…and get set up for success, everytime! 

When you are traveling, do you decide, you are going to go to Hawaii without looking at any of the details about Hawaii?

The flight schedule. 

Which island you’ll land on. 

Where your hotel is.

Renting a car. 

Where the attractions are.

Dinner reservations. 

This list goes on…

Why would planning your personal health be any different, regardless of the destination? 

We like to suggest planning ahead because we believe your ability to enjoy your time without regret starts before you begin. Whether you’re driving or flying to your getaway, planning includes but is not limited to the food you choose to bring with you, the places you choose to stop and eat along the way, and the time you’ll decide to train or be active. 

Don’t wing it. Plan. Stay in control.

For example, if you’re flying, options for food can be limited in transit. I find this is an ideal time to plan on bringing some healthy snacks with you for the trip. This can save you both time and money before you get to the gate. Think about it. If you were to buy a coffee, water and sandwich at the airport, it could cost you up to $20 or more! Crazy right?! So why not pack some protein bars, fresh fruit, or make a sandwich at home to avoid the lines, spending more or those ever so tempting airplane cookies? This way you will be able to have food that will fit your nutritional needs, and save those calories for a nice restaurant while you’re away. 

If your travel plans include a road trip to reach your final destination, map out where you’d like to stop along the way. It might be slim pickings, but if you look ahead of time, you’re more likely to find the best of the worst versus settling for some fast food stop you know is going to leave you feeling off later on. When picking a place to stop, make sure they have some good options for you to adapt to your plan. Hole in wall places and random gas stations are probably not going to have decent options that work for your goals. Go for healthier restaurants (or at least ones with a variety of options), or even a grocery store to grab a quick bite or re-stock your snacks.

2. Protein intake

Protein is essential for every single biological function of your body. Regardless of the day, type of training or your location, when we constantly hit our protein goal, we will burn more calories, assist our body’s muscle maintenance and stay satisfied. This helps curbs cravings and burn additional calories. When we consume 1g of protein per pound of our goal body weight every single day we are less likely to store body fat or crave that fast food meal, and ultimately see optimal results sooner. 

The downfall of many people I help is that they don’t prepare to have a quality protein source with them when needed. This is a challenge on the road, but eating enough protein in frequent intervals will help keep you full and help your body to stay in a muscle building, fat burning state. As you know, carbs and fats are easy to find but a high-quality protein source is almost impossible and if you do find it, it might cost you an arm and a leg. Have you seen how much beef jerky costs? 

That’s why I always carry a few scoops of Level-1 and some Level-1 bars with me on the road. Level-1 is a high-quality, slow digesting protein powder that mixes easily with water and hits my sweet tooth every time. It mixes great with cold water or coffee! (All my coffee lovers out there, this is a game changer) Since they are high in protein and lower in calories, I can pair it with a piece of fruit or a bag of almonds and have a complete meal that keeps me satisfied in transit, or in a crunch. 

If sweets aren’t your thing, jerky or some cold cut deli meat can work too. I’ve been known to make a sandwich before my flight, and stop at a supermarket instead of a rest stop just to have better options for protein. Be sure to read the protein content on the nutritional label no matter what you’re purchasing. The front of the packaging is meant to get you to believe that everything is healthy these days. However, the nutritional labels do not lie. If you want more guidance on reading a nutritional label, please check out our guide here.

3. Be OK with putting on a few pounds

***A note on eating food while away***

Know this: while you are away, your food intake will not be perfect. Don’t be let down when this happens, it’s normal. If you’re eating out more frequently than you do at home, it’s likely that your meals will be high in fat and carbs, and lower in protein. 

What I have put into practice over years and years of eating on the road is super simple and extremely effective for enjoying new cuisines and saving room for dessert or alcohol. 

a. Double the protein

If you are eating out, your protein portion will be smaller than if you prepared the meal yourself, so spend a couple of dollars on some extra protein and reap the benefits of getting to your protein goal. 

b. Be Flexible

The goal while away is to hit your protein and stay close to your calories. Don’t worry about the carbs and fats being perfect at every meal or every day while you’re away. Learn to be ok with not being in control. Control what you can and learn from these moments. 

c. High fat won’t make you fat

Since we do not know how each meal is prepared, we can assume that most restaurants will be using cooking oils, butter, or deep frying food. Of course this makes the food extra delicious, but we can agree that these additional calories will not benefit our health and fitness goals. When we stick to meat and veggies, we’re likely to save ourselves a couple of calories to enjoy later on during dessert or having your favorite adult beverage. 

d. Treat yourself

You’re on vacation after all, so go ahead and plan that one amazing night with no tracking, no regrets and place this in your memory forever. You’ll be back home and settled into your normal routine soon enough. One enjoyable meal has never ruined someone’s progress. 

4. Good morning! Get going! 

Now that we know where you stay is important. Let’s talk about your morning routine. Remember you are on vacation to live, not to sleep in. And if you’re being honest with yourself, you’re (hopefully) going to be enjoying your days out and about, either relaxing or staying active. With that being said, sticking to the plan and knocking out training first thing in the morning will allow you to focus on fun the rest of the day! 

These days more than ever, hotels have accommodations for your fitness needs. When I travel, I’ll always look at the location of the hotel in comparison to where I plan to be on vacation. Then I check to see if the hotel has a gym. The gym will not be awesome. It’s most likely going to have a very limited amount of equipment. Don’t be disappointed. It’s not your normal gym, so don’t compare it to what you do at home. Remember, some training is better than no training. Get in, sweat, get out, and go enjoy the day! 

Let’s make the most of it by committing to staying in a location that has a workout facility that’s functional. This could be a morning walk, body weight workout, or strength session with dumbbells. I know that regardless of what the gym has, I always feel better after I get my morning sweat in. 

We’d love to assist you in making the most of your training, no matter where you are. If you are interested in having a training platform which provides daily programming for all types of fitness needs, including an at home no equipment needed workout plan check out HS|TRACKS. For only $1 a day, it’s going to come in clutch for those hotel gyms that only have a dumbbell rack and a yoga mat.

If you’re staying at an Airbnb (or similar), check out gyms nearby. It’s an experience to drop into a new gym or class, meet the locals and ask them for some healthy recommendations nearby; you never know what hidden gems they’ll share with you. 

It’ll help you get a good start to your day by heading to a nearby location to sweat early in the day. This way you can enjoy yourself, your company and your vacation without dwelling on “should I work out later?” If you’re unable to find a gym, we suggest investing in a simple set of dumbbells and a jump rope. Equipment like this is portable, and lasts forever so you will always have an option to get in quality training while you are away. 

5. Drink more water

I know what you're saying, “Guys, I don’t want to stop 5,000 times to go pee!”.  I get that, but would you rather stop and use the restroom a few more times during the day or be dehydrated which  will make your hunger and craving signals go up, have low energy and be irritable on vacation? 

By staying moderately hydrated you give yourself a chance to avoid those cravings and help yourself stick to the plan.  As a bonus, you’ll be less fatigued from travel once you get to your destination or during the day while you are on vacation. 

Bring a water bottle with you, or just buy a water bottle to refill after you arrive. Drink water before you head out, when you come back, and every time you make a stop along the way. Hydration is super underrated, and when you’re outside of your normal routine we understand that it can be challenging, but hey! We’re here to challenge you to look and feel your best, regardless of where you are. So what do you say, Challenge accepted?

In conclusion: 

Road trips, vacations and getaways with those that you love shouldn’t be a cause to worry about what you will eat all day long, how you train, or losing progress.  Ultimately, you are in control of every moment of your time at home and your time away. What we mean is that if you can think ahead just a little you can easily travel and not ruin your diet, progress, or habits that you’ve worked so hard on. 

The point of the whole experience is to share it with your loved ones, stick to your guns on the road and let the experience come when you get where you’re going.  If you need help with a plan that will work for you or any other advice on how to not overeat once you’re at your destination, feel free to reach out. 

If you are interested in sticking to the plan while traveling, please fill out this form to access our travel guide. 

#becomebetter

#wearehiddensummit

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