8 On-The-Go Healthy Holiday Travel Tips For Feeling Your Best
Traveling for the holidays and want to feel your best? Slide into this newsletter for more. I've got you!
Happy Friday!
My guess is, a lot of you reading this will be running around NON-STOP until January 1st, 2023. From shopping, to visiting family and friends, and to holiday parties, it’s go-go-go, ho-ho-ho, "Yippee-Ki-Yay, Motherf*****!”
‘Tis the season for some festive burnout. When you run around like this, putting your health first is just not on the radar. First things first, that is normal. Try not to put yourself down for not being perfect, or for skipping steps or self-care rituals. Sh*t happens. Once you’re able to accept that, read on for some tips to be ON-THE-GO while SAYING NO to things that will not serve you.
-I’m talking NOT skipping meals because you’re “too busy” and then it’s The Binge That Stole Xmas.
-I’m also saying that you can find time to move and get your steps in while decking the halls and lighting your menorahs.
It can all be done WITHOUT burnout, starvation or binging, and here’s how:
1. STOP saying YES to everything and everyone.
You already know that you’re going to be on the go for a few weeks. Pick and choose. I know Shonda Rhimes wrote a whole book about saying yes, but I’m pretty sure she also tells people/things/thoughts to scram when they aren’t serving her. Give yourself permission to say NO to some things.
-You don’t have to go to every party.
-You don’t have to eat every cookie that is offered to you.
-You can eat your favorite foods.
-You can skip a workout.
-You can workout on a holiday/whenever you want.
Translation: YOU CAN DO WHATEVER THE F YOU WANT!
2. HAVE A HOLLY JOLLY ROADTRIP PREGAME
No, I’m not suggesting that you go on an alcoholic bender before you drive for 5 hours to Grandma’s house. I’m suggesting that you eat a well-balanced/protein packed MEAL before you get into that car/train/plane, or at least eat it in the spaceship at the beginning of the trip. Not a snack, a whole dang meal. Here’s why: Too many road snacks that aren’t nutritionally sound, or no food at all, can F you up. Bloating, bathroom shenanigans, arriving too full to enjoy all the treats Grandma made, or so starving that you hoard the cheese board. Eat before the trip starts. Please!
Most of us hit the road in the morning. Eat that breakfast! If you’re going to give me the excuse that you “don’t have time” in the morning to cook and eat breakfast, I’m going to send you to this Overnight Oats recipe, and I’m going to tell you to make this road trip meal the night before. Done.
3. PACK A SNACK! (or 3)
Yes, you can still pack road snacks even if you eat a meal beforehand, but this is for when your breakfast/lunch/whole meal fullness has dissipated and you’ve still got hours to go. You don’t have to pack the whole snack aisle. Take a few things. The goal is to NOT arrive to your destination ridiculously famished. Arrive with an appetite, but if it’s a ravenous one, you might over do it on… everything. Overdoing it one day won’t mess up any progress, but you might feel sick. This newsletter is about feeling your best. The ultimate goal here: To not feel like hot-roasted a$$ cheeks. Save the roasting for your chestnuts… and arguments.
Here are some great travel snack ideas (you can bring your own food through security/on a plane, just not liquids like soup/smoothies/drippy dips, so take advantage of this fact!):
Fresh fruit
Nuts
Seeds
Things in pouches: nut/seed butter, applesauce, tuna/salmon packets. If you’re traveling with people, you might be a jerk if you whip out fish. Take that ISH outside.
Hard boiled eggs: Same deal here… don’t do this to your loved ones (or strangers) unless you’re going to eat it OUTSIDE.
Yogurt: Ok, this one kinda smells too (can you tell I have sensory issues? solidarity!)
Jerky: If you don’t eat meat, I love this brand.
Protein bars
Crudités and hummus/dip
Be mindful of how many snacks you pack. You aren’t going to a deserted island for 5 days (unless your family refuses to be prepared for company). Really consider how much food you actually need. Don’t be greedy or stingy!
4. BUY A SNACK! (or 3)
If packing snacks slipped your mind, have no fear. Gas stations, markets, airports and train stations all have nibbles. Here’s what to go for. I recommend getting 1 of each macro group for a satisfying snack:
Protein: Yogurt, eggs, string cheese, protein bars/bottled drinks, jerky
Carbs: Fresh fruit, dried fruit, popcorn, pretzels, whole grain crackers
Fats: Hummus, nuts/nut butter, seeds, guacamole packets
Try to avoid: Cookies, cakes, candy, chips, and other highly processed foods on the way to an event. Why? Because that stuff is already going to be there when you arrive, and most likely going to taste a hell of a lot better. Save your tastebuds for Aunt Mary’s homemade chocolate chip cookies. Much more satisfying than a stale AF gas station find, in my opinion.
5. BUILD A MEAL ON THE GO
If you skip tip number one, try not to throw in the towel by shoveling a party-sized pack of peanut m&ms in your mouth at a rest stop. This isn’t Diet Hard With A Vengeance. We’ve all been there, I’m not judging, but you can build a well-balanced meal on the go too.
Choose:
1-2 protein servings, 1-2 carb servings, and 1-2 fat servings, and as many fresh (or cooked) veggies as you’d like to build a meal.
6. HAVE A HOTEL/AIR B+B/GUESTROOM STASH
I’m not going to lie, I get major food anxiety when I show up to places and there’s no legit food plan. While I can’t yell at your family for demanding you show up and yet there’s no food, I can tell you to have a stash of goodies handy. Just a little stash of healthy snacks (consult my lists above for options), that way, when Cousin Jan’s Osso Buco still has to braise for another 3 hours, you aren’t left hangry. And having snacks to eat during her meltdown will make it extra entertaining.
*If your hotel room has a mini-bar fridge that’s full - you can ask them to kindly empty it, or provide an empty one. To my folks that take insulin, you probably already know this, but if not, you can use it for your meds too.
7. PREPARE YOUR MIND BEFOREHAND
Make a list of how you want to go about feeling your best on this trip. What does feeling your best look like? What do you personally have to do to feel it? Write all of these things down. As you navigate your trip, consult your list. You don’t have to be perfect, but asking yourself before you make any decision, “will I feel good after this” is very important. Not how you’ll feel “during” - but after. This can be used for alcohol, food, working out, not starting a fight at the table… you name it.
8. CONSIDER YOUR NONNEGOTIABLES
What are your boundaries? What’s nonnegotiable? Here’s another list to make. Do you have step goals? Veggie/fiber goals? Water goals? Mindfulness goals? Workout/Movement goals? That’s awesome, and I think you should stick to them no matter what if they’re important to you. You can eat your veggies have your cake to. Enjoy, and don’t worry about what anyone else thinks of your choices.
There’s still time to grab my FREE ebook for more mindful, not mindf*cked, holiday health tips. Click the button below to download.
If I haven’t covered a specific issue you’d like some help with, comment below.
That’s code for: I’m offering some free coaching. Take advantage, friends!
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
Kristen
DISCLAIMER: Please consult with your DR before starting any general fitness, nutrition, or wellness program or tip. This newsletter is NOT a substitution for professional, medical, therapeutic, or mental health consultation, diagnosis, and/or treatment. This newsletter is for informational, educational, and entertainment purposes only. It includes science-based/general guidelines, and is NOT personalized advice or training. These are just suggestions and if you try anything, you do so at your own risk.