Long hours and work travel

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Hopelessbird
Hopelessbird Posts: 133
in Motivation and Support
I do a lot of work travel (1-2 weeks per month). Plus, I usually work 12-16 hours a day when I travel. Healthy food choices are sometimes limited - especially internationally. Then there are the dining out with clients. I would sometimes sleep for only 5-6 hours to squeeze at least 1 hour of exercise at the gym.

Right now my weight loss has stalled for a few weeks, I want to kick start that again. Any folks here that work travel have tips?

Replies

  • tinabell153
    tinabell153 Posts: 298 Member
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    Hi! I travel for my work too, but not nearly as much as you do. We do about 3-4 trips per year that last about a week. It is very difficult to eat healthy while traveling. I usually pack my own snacks for plane rides and to eat in the hotel room, such as peanuts, apple chips or a banana. I also make sure I eat fruit and veggies whenever they are available.

    Here are some tips that may help that I use:
    1. Drink plenty of water - avoid sugary drinks or diet sodas
    2. Bring healthy snacks
    3. Do stretches whenever you have free time (in hotel room, every bathroom break, etc)
    4. Don't eat fast food - may be difficult, but if you have to get a salad

    Hope this helps!
  • AlsDonkBoxSquat
    AlsDonkBoxSquat Posts: 6,128 Member
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    You can always request your chicken or fish be poached instead of their normal preparation, which decreases calories from oils. Request veggies to be steamed. Order the salad and use lemon instead of dressing, request no croutons. If you can change just one aspect of the plate of food you are ordering you can really decrease the overall caloric value of the plate. Lay off the fast foods and the tempting desserts. When in doubt choose the white fish (not fried). Order any and all sauces and dressings on the side. Push half your starches away. When you don't have an hour to hit the gym, do some hiit (tabata) in your hotel room (30 - 45 minutes all out effor should give you a good burn).

    Basically, every time you look at the menu be thoughtful, think about preparation and try to figure out little ways to cut back on the caloric values. When your plate arrives take a second to do the same, and then be thoughtful about portion sizes of all the foods on your plate.
  • sharleengc
    sharleengc Posts: 792 Member
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    If you have the funding, buy a dehydrator. My husband travels 90 miles to work each day and home. We dehydrate fruits and veggies so he can have them in the car as a snack or something to munch on at work so he doesn't have to buy junk at the store.

    As for eating out, what about salads? A lot of salads can be filling if you have some type of meat on them. You can always ask for a light dressing since that's where a ton of calories come from. My husband also has Subway's menu memorized so he knows what falls within his calorie goal for lunch and what doesn't.
  • Hopelessbird
    Hopelessbird Posts: 133
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    Hi! I travel for my work too, but not nearly as much as you do. We do about 3-4 trips per year that last about a week. It is very difficult to eat healthy while traveling. I usually pack my own snacks for plane rides and to eat in the hotel room, such as peanuts, apple chips or a banana. I also make sure I eat fruit and veggies whenever they are available.

    Here are some tips that may help that I use:
    1. Drink plenty of water - avoid sugary drinks or diet sodas
    2. Bring healthy snacks
    3. Do stretches whenever you have free time (in hotel room, every bathroom break, etc)
    4. Don't eat fast food - may be difficult, but if you have to get a salad

    Hope this helps!

    Thanks for the tips. I usually don't drink sodas and I hate fast food. I could bring fruits with me during domestic travel but that is not allowed for international.
  • DisneyAddictRW
    DisneyAddictRW Posts: 800 Member
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    Your situation sounds similar to my husband's. He has done a few things to help when he travels. He packs almonds, granola bars, protein powder, and other snacks he can carry with him. He tries to stay away from gas stations and fast food. He usually finds a grocery store and buys stuff for sandwiches, string cheese, and a package of water. He buys the cheapest cooler or sometimes brings a folding bag cooler from home. Sometimes he can be 30 to 60 minutes from anything. He can be stuck in the field with nothing to eat for 8to 10 hours. Since he packs a cooler he can take a break when he needs to and eat in his rental car. He logs everything in mfp before heading out for the day so he knows what his meal plan is. He also drinks lots of water. He plans his hotels with a gym or a safe area so he walk walk/run outside. He also takes his IPAD and can use that for videos online if the gym sucks. He watches sodium when he's on the road. Eating out and gas stations it's easy to find horrible food choices.nits not easy but he makes sure he has good choices.
  • SCSTWG
    SCSTWG Posts: 182 Member
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    I travel quite a bit for work and have these tips to offer:

    1. When booking hotels, pick ones that have a decent fitness center. Return to ones you like if you are going back to the same places.
    2. If your trips are short, try to plan your meals and snacks before you go. Research if there are any grocery stoers close by and research the restaurants in advance for healthy options. Consider hotels that have small kitchens.
    3. Drink lots of water and bring small skacks with you from home when possible.

    It is difficult when you are traveling. Especially if you have an expense account and find yourself in nice cities with great restauants. I have used travelling for work as an excuse, but with some effort you can get by almost as good as you can at home. I have a trip this week for 4 days, and I already know most of me meals and have a general plan of attack. Good luck.
  • DisneyAddictRW
    DisneyAddictRW Posts: 800 Member
    Options
    Hi! I travel for my work too, but not nearly as much as you do. We do about 3-4 trips per year that last about a week. It is very difficult to eat healthy while traveling. I usually pack my own snacks for plane rides and to eat in the hotel room, such as peanuts, apple chips or a banana. I also make sure I eat fruit and veggies whenever they are available.

    Here are some tips that may help that I use:
    1. Drink plenty of water - avoid sugary drinks or diet sodas
    2. Bring healthy snacks
    3. Do stretches whenever you have free time (in hotel room, every bathroom break, etc)
    4. Don't eat fast food - may be difficult, but if you have to get a salad

    Hope this helps!

    Thanks for the tips. I usually don't drink sodas and I hate fast food. I could bring fruits with me during domestic travel but that is not allowed for international.

    He's scheduled to travel internationally but hasn't yet. His employer has a water filter they take to help avoid getting sick. He's informed never to eat fresh fruit or street vendor fruit when internationally traveling. That's a much harder situation to get figured put sorry I can't be much help there.

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