Women who travel a lot due to work, how do you make sure you stay on the wagon during trips?

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ricelean
ricelean Posts: 18 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Thoughts? Ideas? Tips? Tricks? All are welcomed :smiley:

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  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    Not a woman, but I used to travel for business frequently. Pretty much anywhere I ever stayed I had a fridge so for the most part, I'd shop for my food...sometimes we'd go out and I'd just make good decisions...and I can't think of anywhere I ever stayed that didn't have some kind of fitness room.
  • jdhcm2006
    jdhcm2006 Posts: 2,254 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    Not a woman, but I used to travel for business frequently. Pretty much anywhere I ever stayed I had a fridge so for the most part, I'd shop for my food...sometimes we'd go out and I'd just make good decisions...and I can't think of anywhere I ever stayed that didn't have some kind of fitness room.

    This. Buy your own snacks and food, bring your food scale with you, and make the best choices for food if you go out with coworkers. Also, just in case you do run into a place that doesn't have a fitness room, bring some resistance bands with you, find a workout on YouTube (Fitness Blender & Body By Amy are great channels to start with), and workout in your room.
  • dolezalovaeli
    dolezalovaeli Posts: 24 Member
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    What I do is, if I know I have to go to a restaurant (business lunch/dinner etc), I look at their menu beforehand and know exactly what I'm going to have before I set foot in the restaurant and once inside, I quickly browse the menu to see if the food I want is really there (sometimes the webpages are outdated). I don't read anything else unless I have to because there's a risk I'd go beserk and order half the menu :smiley:

    When I'm in a huge hurry I pick something fresh from Subway (small sandwich, usually from the "5grams of fat or less" section, fill it up with as many veggies as you can and stay away from cheese. Careful about the dressings - look up the calories online. Some are more weight loss friendly than others. If there's no subway there's always McDonalds so I pick Grilled chicken McWrap - the wrap has about 375kcal and is not very filling, but better than nothing.

    Otherwise when I don't have to eat at restaurants, I don't. It's often hard to guestimate the calories because god knows how much butter or oil they used etc. I stick to quick supermarket trips for lunches and dinners and get a few key items that are easy to eat and are nutritious. My favorite for when you don't have a fridge (1 day trips etc) are: turkey jerky, cup of baby carrots, a handful of cashews and few strings of cheese. Or beef jerky, apple, peanut butter protein bar (careful what you choose, some of them are loaded with carbs instead of protein). Another thing I love is pecan nuts, grapes and goat cheese. Or banana, almonds and baked chicken breast (sometimes you can find that sliced). When your trip lasts a few days and you have a fridge, you can pick from a wider range of foods because you can always store the leftovers for later.

    Now for measuring... For nuts, I have a plastic cup that I know can hold around 25g of cashews so I use that for measuring. I sometimes remeasure when home to see if I'm still acurate and if I'm off it's only by 1g or so, so no big deal. You could do that with any nuts - premeasure at home so you know exactly how much fits into the cup of each type of nuts and keep the cup in your car. For food that comes prepacked (like grapes or cheese) and you don't want to eat the whole thing, I split the content in halfves or quarters to determine the weight off of the whole package (500g package means half is 250g etc).

    And I think that's all I can think of right now :smile:
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    edited October 2016
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    - Stay hydrated and don't get too hungry.
    - Have something to eat in your tote, e.g. nuts, a piece of fruit, protein bars.
    - Most airports have a kiosk selling prepackaged salads, so when time pressed, you usually can find something that kinda fits your goals to carry on the plane. (See above for airports with nothing.)
    - order modestly in restaurants (and dishes easy to deconstruct for calorie counting, e.g. grilled meat on greens or with vegetables without sauce or dressing; I love soup, but restaurant soup is impossible to estimate)
    - For catered lunch sandwiches, take a whole sandwich but put all the meat in one half (to halve the bread), skip the cookie and chips, grab an extra fruit, if offered, for your tote.
    - I never have dessert on work travel. It sounds harsh, I know. 99% of the time they're commercially produced, not that special anyway. It helps offset the inaccurate counting. I save the gourmet eating for leisure travel.
    - Think in terms of averages.... e.g. the options for this meal might be a really bad fit (all carb no meat) but choose the least bad option and skip that treat you would otherwise have "room" for. ETA: I lave less "room" than bigger people who burn more, so some tips won't apply to all.

    I've stayed in many, many places with no fridge. My travel also had me on the move, not in the same hotel multiple nights. I often didn't have an opportunity nor time to do a grocery run in every town. Plus, eating a protein bar in my hotel room sounds kind of depressing unless I was exhausted. Despite the challenges, and there are many, it's doable.

    On the upside, if you are travelling by air, you probably get a lot of steps in!
  • not_my_first_rodeo
    not_my_first_rodeo Posts: 311 Member
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    If I know where I'll be eating, I try and see if they have their menus online. For nicer restaurants there is no way you'll get calorie information, but at least this gives me an idea of what my options are.

    I usually pack things like single servings of nuts which are a go-to snack for me.

    Find out if your room in the hotel has a fridge.

    Most places you can google ahead of time to see what options are available in terms of markets, stores, etc. I will get items like fruit, berries, some places even have veggies cut up.

    If I am going to a really fantastic restaurant, I treat myself.

    Most importantly, when I return, I have my meal plans all drawn up and a shopping list for getting back on track.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    1. Make a plan. Get a room with a mini-fridge and microwave, if possible. A full mini-kitchen -- even better. Hit up the grocery store first thing and get supplies for your room. Make a list ahead of time with ideas for easy meals and snacks.
    2. Use the hotel amenities to help you stay on plan. I know I can virtually always get instant oatmeal and fresh fruit at breakfast buffets so I plan on eating this every morning.
    3. If you're going some place that has a special regional food you want to try, plan for that. But don't make every dinner a special occasion. I usually take one meal -- if I want -- where I treat dining like a special occasion and I treat all other dinners like I do at home -- pre-plan for the meal that best helps me meet my goals.
    4. Google ahead when you're eating out so you're not surprised by the options. If you have a chance to guide where the group is eating (if you're eating with groups), grab it.
    5. If you're getting lunch brought in, it can sometimes help to have a portable snack to fall back on to help avoid hunger if you have to choose sparingly among higher-calorie options that don't fit your plan. I always have a protein bar and some 100-calorie nut packs in my bag when traveling for work. Don't ever let yourself get too hungry, especially before dinner.
  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
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    I eat out of the grocery and since I don't have anything better to do, spend way too much time exercising.
  • dimple_gal
    dimple_gal Posts: 138 Member
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    Lots of good suggestions here! My best offering is always bring your workout gear. You can go use the hotel fitness center. Keeping my workout routine helps me make better choices. I always have a protein bar in case my schedule doesn't allow for a meal, especially crossing time zones. And water. Lots and lots of bottled water.
  • laur357
    laur357 Posts: 896 Member
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    Make yourself a list of chain restaurants you like and see frequently and find a few go-to items than you can easily work into your day. Add them to your favorites so you can quickly add them to your diary.

    Some of mine:
    Qdoba - chicken burrito bowl w/ rice, black beans, salsa; McDonalds - egg mcmuffin & apple slices; Chick-fil-a - salads and grilled nuggets; Panera - half of a turkey avocado BLT and chicken noodle soup or black bean soup, fruit for side; Wendy's - chili and a baked potato or chicken sandwich and a side salad
    Study menus otherwise so you can guesstimate at non-chain restaurants. A 6 oz sirloin, vegetable, and small baked potato could very well have fewer calories than a turkey burger.

    Think about which meal is likely going to take up a good chunk of your daily calories. If you're taking clients out to lunch, try to plan a smaller breakfast and dinner. Can you have a 200 calorie breakfast and 400 calorie lunch then have 800 left for dinner?

    Drinks - if you're in situations where you're having drinks, pace yourself with water. Find a lower cal drink you like and stick with it. Also, learn what a serving size looks like. (wine, gin or vodka with club soda, etc.)
  • amandaeve
    amandaeve Posts: 723 Member
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    I'm a woman dreaming and scheming of finding work that involves more travel. It inspires me to see women out there doing it and being healthy while they are at it. Good job all of you! :)
  • ricelean
    ricelean Posts: 18 Member
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    Sounds great! Another tips is to order food that are deeply hydrated and avoid dairy products on the road. Hydration helps to keep you full, it also helps you keep your sanity and avoid rush eating. Dairy products including butter and cheese are something restaurants rely heavily on boosting flavor, absolutely bad for health and adds unnecessary calories.
    dolezalovaeli wrote: »
    What I do is, if I know I have to go to a restaurant (business lunch/dinner etc), I look at their menu beforehand and know exactly what I'm going to have before I set foot in the restaurant and once inside, I quickly browse the menu to see if the food I want is really there (sometimes the webpages are outdated). I don't read anything else unless I have to because there's a risk I'd go beserk and order half the menu :smiley:

    When I'm in a huge hurry I pick something fresh from Subway (small sandwich, usually from the "5grams of fat or less" section, fill it up with as many veggies as you can and stay away from cheese. Careful about the dressings - look up the calories online. Some are more weight loss friendly than others. If there's no subway there's always McDonalds so I pick Grilled chicken McWrap - the wrap has about 375kcal and is not very filling, but better than nothing.

    Otherwise when I don't have to eat at restaurants, I don't. It's often hard to guestimate the calories because god knows how much butter or oil they used etc. I stick to quick supermarket trips for lunches and dinners and get a few key items that are easy to eat and are nutritious. My favorite for when you don't have a fridge (1 day trips etc) are: turkey jerky, cup of baby carrots, a handful of cashews and few strings of cheese. Or beef jerky, apple, peanut butter protein bar (careful what you choose, some of them are loaded with carbs instead of protein). Another thing I love is pecan nuts, grapes and goat cheese. Or banana, almonds and baked chicken breast (sometimes you can find that sliced). When your trip lasts a few days and you have a fridge, you can pick from a wider range of foods because you can always store the leftovers for later.

    Now for measuring... For nuts, I have a plastic cup that I know can hold around 25g of cashews so I use that for measuring. I sometimes remeasure when home to see if I'm still acurate and if I'm off it's only by 1g or so, so no big deal. You could do that with any nuts - premeasure at home so you know exactly how much fits into the cup of each type of nuts and keep the cup in your car. For food that comes prepacked (like grapes or cheese) and you don't want to eat the whole thing, I split the content in halfves or quarters to determine the weight off of the whole package (500g package means half is 250g etc).

    And I think that's all I can think of right now :smile:

  • ricelean
    ricelean Posts: 18 Member
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    Love this one! Also, let me add Chipotle to the list and give them the big kudos for using antibiotic-free meat. Panera does the same.

    During my last project I had to travel 4 days a week for 4 months, with lots of client dinners and lunches.Water is always a smart choice on the table and if I have to drink, I'd go for a small glass of rose.
    laur357 wrote: »
    Make yourself a list of chain restaurants you like and see frequently and find a few go-to items than you can easily work into your day. Add them to your favorites so you can quickly add them to your diary.

    Some of mine:
    Qdoba - chicken burrito bowl w/ rice, black beans, salsa; McDonalds - egg mcmuffin & apple slices; Chick-fil-a - salads and grilled nuggets; Panera - half of a turkey avocado BLT and chicken noodle soup or black bean soup, fruit for side; Wendy's - chili and a baked potato or chicken sandwich and a side salad
    Study menus otherwise so you can guesstimate at non-chain restaurants. A 6 oz sirloin, vegetable, and small baked potato could very well have fewer calories than a turkey burger.

    Think about which meal is likely going to take up a good chunk of your daily calories. If you're taking clients out to lunch, try to plan a smaller breakfast and dinner. Can you have a 200 calorie breakfast and 400 calorie lunch then have 800 left for dinner?

    Drinks - if you're in situations where you're having drinks, pace yourself with water. Find a lower cal drink you like and stick with it. Also, learn what a serving size looks like. (wine, gin or vodka with club soda, etc.)

  • KAS0917
    KAS0917 Posts: 172 Member
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    Lots of great advice here!

    Another of my favorites is PF Chang's. You can order your meat 'stock velveted' which means they essentially steam it in broth rather than stir fry in cornstarch, then ask for the sauce on the side. I always order spicy chicken - a small amount of sauce packs a flavor punch and the calories are minimal.

    And I've always ordered salad dressing on the side and dipped my fork in the dressing rather than pour the dressing over the salad.

    For fitness, obviously the gym is usually an option. I also pay $20/month for Planet Fitness and can visit any location. Also, Beachbody on Demand - if you like their programs - is awesome. I do workouts streamed on my work computer all the time!

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