I travel often for work, it's one of the things I love most about my career. In the past, I have traveled for one corner of the US to the other to support our programs. Currently, my travel is mostly within a three state area, but occasionally, like this week, I am invited to venture outside of my home territory to assist peers in their development. Development is what I love most about the positions I have held over the last fifteen years, but more specifically, the last three.
However, with the journey I am on, travel can be a burden too. We often don't think too much about it, you go out to eat for lunch, dinner...it sounds fun! When you are on a healthy path, it is a challenge. Can you force your companions to eat where you want? Of course not. You must make the choices that are best in the given situation.
Yesterday, I did great. I ordered off the less than 700 menu, dropped the rice for broccoli and didn't eat the sauce that came on the side. Today, not so good. We ended up at a Mexican restaurant. My favorite. I stayed away from the chips. But, ordering was a big challenge. I ended up with a Carne Asada steak served with guacamole, rice, beans, grilled peppers. I ate the steak, the guacamole, two bites of beans and half of the grilled pepper. Still, in my best calculations, it was probably close to 700 calories. I was miserable. Not, miserable from a "feels bad about my choices" point, but my body just felt gross.
What did I learn from today's lunch? Speak up. If there is a genre of food that can be calorie laden or that may be a trigger food for you, respectfully ask if there is another option. If you need to follow the group, your only choice is to make the best decision possible. And, I feel like I did.
So, what else can you do when you are traveling? I try not to eat out every meal. Yesterday I went to whole foods and picked up carrots, hummus, apple, peanut butter, almond milk, bananas. This is survival food for me. It helps me to have my own snacks so that if I am hungry, I don't grab something on the go from a convenience store. I also travel with a small blender and my Shakeology. And, when it comes to dinner, I have options.
Tonight, I researched the surrounding restaurants. The calories of the average meal in a restaurant exceeds 1000. Even when I find something lower, the sodium content is off the charts. So, I opted to drink a Shakeology shake with peanut butter and banana mixed up in a travel blender. I've had some carrots and hummus and I very well may have apple and peanut butter later.
To me, the key to surviving a trip without crashing your lifestyle (diet by any other name) is to be prepared. Have a plan and do your best to stick to it. And, should you trip up over unforeseen obstacles, just keep going!
So, as I started, so shall I leave you:
“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who'll decide where to go...”
No comments:
Post a Comment