5 Tips for Eating Clean While Traveling

Traveling around the country or the world is an incredible experience. Yet, it can also easily cause you to stray from your healthy diet.

Whether you are backpacking through Europe or enjoying the incredible amenities of Bermuda cruises, you will be surrounded by delicacies throughout your trip. You will also be constantly on the go and thus tempted to grab fast food.

While avoiding these temptations is difficult, it is not impossible. Here are some tips for eating clean while traveling.

1. Come Prepared

Instead of grabbing a salty or sugary snack at a convenience store or vending machine, pack your own healthy foods to satisfy your hunger. Apples, sugar snap peas, baby carrots, sliced peppers and bananas are easy to transport and hold up fairly well during travel. Single-serve bags of almonds and walnuts are great options, as well.  

Pack some peanut or almond butter that you can spread onto your fruits or veggies for a satisfying treat. Other good choices include protein bars, whole-grain rice cakes or crackers, homemade trail mix, sliced cheese and oatmeal.

2. Drink Water, Not Alcohol

Hydration is an important part of clean eating. Unfortunately, a busy vacation schedule can easily cause dehydration. To prevent this condition, carry a water bottle with you at all times, and drink from it regularly. You can even set a timer on your phone that reminds you to sip water every half hour.

If you are traveling in North America or Europe, you can simply pack a reusable container and fill it up with water at a restaurant or fountain. In third-world countries, however, you should stick only to bottled water.

Do not forget to hydrate before boarding your plane, as well. Politely decline any flight attendant offers of soda or fruit juice.

If you get sick of regular water, you can add some flavoring such as lemon or strawberry. However, you should limit your intake of other beverages, particularly alcohol. Sugary mixed drinks, in particular, are just empty calories. If you cannot resist the bar at your hotel or resort, try to limit your drinking to a few hours each day. Be sure to also wash down each alcoholic drink with a glass of plain water.  

3. Do Not Skip Meals

It is all too easy to skip meals when you are on the road or rushing from attraction to attraction. Yet, if you do not have breakfast or lunch, you will be more likely to overeat at dinner. Ideally, you should have four to six small meals a day, including snacks, instead of three large ones.

4. Be Smart When Dining Out

Just because you are in a foreign country or a new state does not mean you have to dine only at restaurants. You can get an equally enthralling cultural experience at food markets and grocery stores. Foods in these locations are usually cheaper and healthier, and you can more easily control portion sizes.

Even if you frequent the markets and stores, you will probably have to eat at a restaurant at some point during your trip. Still, there are ways to make this experience as healthy as possible.

For starters, order only foods that are broiled, roasted, baked, grilled or steamed. Request that the portion size is the smallest available. If your dish comes with salad, ask for a healthy dressing of lemon, extra virgin olive oil or vinegar. Any heavy sauces that come with the meal should be placed on the side so you can control how much you consume.   

5. Indulge a Little

A bit of indulgence each day will prevent you from feeling as if you missed out on the full vacation experience. Just limit yourself to one small treat per day, and consider splitting the dessert with your traveling buddies.

Do not let your vacation ruin the clean diet that you worked so hard to maintain. With a bit of effort, you can continue eating healthy even while traveling.