Business trips

monicuza
monicuza Posts: 14 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Dear all,

I struggle incredibly to keep within my calorie limit during business trips. While I can try and make sensible choices at breakfast (hotels will always have fruit, cereal, yoghurt, etc), lunches and dinners are very hard to keep track of. Especially buffet lunches and dinners.

I normally have no alcohol during business trips to help a little. I cannot, however, bring my own sandwiches or anything like that, as lunches are usually working/meeting lunches. Do you have any tips?

I try not to stress too much about it as I am not terribly overweight, nor do I want to lose weight overnight. I aim for a long term life style change (and eating habits change). But I would be happy to get any tips from those who have found any practical solutions to this issue.

Thanks:)
Monica

Replies

  • HMD7703
    HMD7703 Posts: 761 Member
    I travel for work (and pleasure) often and do not find it hard. If I want to indulge, I do so. For me, I try to stay away from high carbs (potato, pasta, bread) and focus on the protein and veg. Seems to work well enough.
  • AmandaLou4319
    AmandaLou4319 Posts: 73 Member
    I struggle with this all the time. I am about to start 4 weeks on the road :(

    I often spilt meals, eating half at the meal and then taking half back to the hotel. You end up wasting food, but the portion sizes are just so big.
    I also always order off the "low calorie" part of the menu. If there is not such a section, the a salad with the dressing on the side or grilled fish is a safer choice.

    Also, there are some night I will pass on dinner saying that I would like to get a solid workout in. Most people are fine with that, if that is ok with your job.

    Looking up the menu before you get there is also smart. That gives you time to consider all the options and make the one that is best.

    It is a tough thing to balance! Good luck!
  • Retiredmom72
    Retiredmom72 Posts: 538 Member
    While talking business, it's easy to put food in your mouth without thinking. Buffets are always hard. You may want to think about choices before you go in to eat. Even if it's a buffet, plan to eat healthy choices and avoid high calorie items like fried foods and cheesy dishes. Try to eat more vegetables. If there is something you really want, start with a small amount. You also may want to drink a glass of water before you start eating.

    Go got a salad with dressing on the side or a light soup to start. Be careful of the bread that is on the table before the entree. Research by putting in your favorite items on the buffet to see how much you would normally eat and decide if you need smaller portions or to avoid certain foods. Good lick.
  • Retiredmom72
    Retiredmom72 Posts: 538 Member
    Wasn't trying to be funny at the end. Meant "good luck."
  • jennylee133
    jennylee133 Posts: 26 Member
    I struggle with the same thing but think you're of the right mindset not to stress too much about it. I generally just try to make the best choices for the meals where I have less control and compensate during the ones where I do (i.e. breakfast in the hotel).
    Depeneding on where and how you are traveling; I have also packed healthy snacks that enable me to eat less at those meals where I have less flexibility.

    When possible I also try to offset any increase in calories by walking a lot or getting in a workout at the hotel.

    Good luck to you. I am anxious to see what others have to say as well!
  • fitness925
    fitness925 Posts: 3
    I receive daily emails from this site: http://www.hungry-girl.com/

    She offers a lot of tips about buffets, restaurant survival guides, etc. It helps me and gives a lot of great alternatives for women on the go! Hope it helps you! Good Luck!
  • PRMinx
    PRMinx Posts: 4,585 Member
    Dear all,

    I struggle incredibly to keep within my calorie limit during business trips. While I can try and make sensible choices at breakfast (hotels will always have fruit, cereal, yoghurt, etc), lunches and dinners are very hard to keep track of. Especially buffet lunches and dinners.

    I normally have no alcohol during business trips to help a little. I cannot, however, bring my own sandwiches or anything like that, as lunches are usually working/meeting lunches. Do you have any tips?

    I try not to stress too much about it as I am not terribly overweight, nor do I want to lose weight overnight. I aim for a long term life style change (and eating habits change). But I would be happy to get any tips from those who have found any practical solutions to this issue.

    Thanks:)
    Monica

    I struggle with this too. It's not even so much the food, it's finding the time when your on a business trip to log calories and get exercise. I try to stick to the healthier items in the buffet and I've done a lot better at bringing healthy snacks with me on the road, but I do understand that when you are exhausted from travel, it's really hard to push away a tasty meal. Adding to that, for me, there's almost always drinks involved.

    I guess it's just a work in progress. Every time I go on a trip, I try a little bit harder. But I still can't seem to find the time to log consistently while on the road.
  • csm1021
    csm1021 Posts: 13 Member
    I also travel a lot for work (within the US and overseas). Traveling this year has really been a test of how committed I am to this lifestyle change!

    When I travel I my expectations are to get in my 8 glasses of water a day and maintain my current weight. With flying I might go up a few pounds but as soon as I get home its gone within a day or two.

    As far as food choices it can be difficult... Breakfast does seem to be the easiest at hotels. Its nice when they offer eggs as a source of protein.

    For lunches I try to stick to salads or broth soups if going out to eat. Sometimes I'll go to a grocery store and pick up snack type foods for lunch: almonds, low cal cheese, greek yogurt, fruit, hummus and veggies.

    Dinner is the hardest part of the day especially if going out for business purposes. I try to mostly fill up on salad (order dressing on the side). Order an entree but only eat half depending what it is and the size of the dish. I try to avoid dessert but if everyone else is having it I'll order a latte or have some ice cream.

    Depending where I am going I might bring some snacks with me. I usually bring nuts, fruit leathers, protein bars. That keeps me from making unhealthy choices.

    And I always check to see if the hotel has a gym. If they do I pack workout clothes and try to get my workout in every morning because you never know how long the day is going to go. If they don't have a gym I'll look online to see if running routes have been posted for the area that I am staying in.

    Good luck!
  • AUChE
    AUChE Posts: 7 Member
    Great topic. I just joined the day before a business trip and thought it would be a pain, but luckily, the restaurant I went to had menu items listed in MFP. Planning ahead is a great idea. You have to have some safe items already planned out that most all restaurants will have. I'm no expert dieter, but making wise choices off the menu like grilled chk or fish, salads, etc seem like the only options. Maybe a veggie burger would work too. Buffet? Now that's a great question. Thanks RetiredMom for your answer. Just stick to green salads, steamed vegetables, and grilled meat.

    I spent about 30 minutes yesterday looking at menu items at a couple of fast food restaurants. If your stuck with fast food as your only option, it would be a good idea to do some research on what combos/items are good options. Sometimes I'm out in the middle of nowhere on a business trip and McD's is my only option. I got a grilled Chk sandwich and a bowl of soup at Chick-Fil-A yesterday for under 450 and walked out full. I could have done better, sure, but not so bad. Adding that slice of cheese to make it a Delux is something I decided to skip and was surprised at how low-cal the soup was.

    Oh, and don't forget to add that walking/running around in the airport parking lot/gates to catch your flight to your exercise calorie deduct so maybe you can squeeze in a beer at the bar.
  • TheNewDodge
    TheNewDodge Posts: 607 Member
    I travel for business a lot. It isn't easy. I usually just try to eat at maintenance when I'm on a trip. You can load up your carry on with protein bars. Most Airport newstands/stores sell Muscle Milk Light or a comparable protein shake.

    If you've got a client dinner at night or have to get something delivered, try just having a protein bar for lunch.
  • bufger
    bufger Posts: 763 Member
    I also travel alot. I'm actually 4 days into a 2 week business trip at this very moment! I find a supermarket and get my lunch from there for work, i've found a part of the office with a fridge and asked if i could use some of the space for these 2 weeks and the people were ok with it so i've bought loads of fruit to snack on. I have my 8 cans of diet coke, 1 per day as a treat even thought its 1 calorie its still sugary. The evening meals is the hardest so i always try to find a gym, i'm lucky this time because i can use the gym next door to the hotel for free so i basically train to pay for the calories i might have for my meal. Every night i'm making sensible choices but im not completely worrying about it as i've already offset the meal.

    1 hour of cardio = Cod in batter with a portion of chips (fries) and 2 beers. I'm ok with that as a tradeoff! tastes so much better knowing you've worked for it too
  • monicuza
    monicuza Posts: 14 Member
    Thank you so much to all of you.

    I will definitely make more of an effort to pack my gym kit for business trips. I sometimes forget and end up regretting it every time! It's probably be the one change I can make immediately and I will worry less about buffet lunches knowing I worked out in the morning.

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