Eating, Traveling, Living Mindfully

It can be so hard to find and choose healthy food options while traveling. We don’t always have the best options available to us, and when driving on interstates sometimes the closest or most affordable restaurant is fast food. Try these tips next time you are road-tripping, you will be surprised how much easier it can be to nurture yourself and your family. Eat well, travel well, be well!

• Plan ahead. Consider how many mouths you must feed (including yourself!) and how long you will be traveling in the car. We have found that it is most effective to pack healthy snacks for our car ride then eat fuller meals while stopping in a town. I always make and pack easy and FILLING protein-full snacks, such as homemade granola bars or trail mix before we leave for our trip.

• Tubberware is key. Not only do you reduce the amount of trash in the car (the less clutter the better) but you will have easier access to your snacks. Whenever we eat out, we will pack leftovers in our containers for later. Tubbaware keeps foods fresher for longer, especially when you don’t bring a cooler.

• Pack fresh fruit and vegetables, but not more than you can eat in a couple days! I will slice apples, buy organic baby carrots, and cut up a couple celery sticks to go along with a jar of peanut butter or even honey. Everyone loves this snack! Just be sure to have a packet of wipes handy to clean up any mess this snack could make (we never forget to put a bib on our son with this one). 

• When stopping in a town for a full meal, look up ahead of time where you will go instead of stopping at the first place you see (which is usually fast food). We always search for farm fresh or vegetarian menus because we KNOW they will have healthier options than other places. Even if it is a little longer of a detour from your main route, you will be surprised what hidden gems exist that are totally worth it!

• Drink plenty of water! A lot of the time when we are traveling, we think we are hungry and want to snack because we are either bored or just thirsty. Fill up a few reusable water bottles before the trip and remember to drink often. Whenever we stop, we refill any bottles we’ve emptied just to be sure we won’t run out. It’s important to stay hydrated!

• Keep your food front and center! If your food ends up in the back of the car, you are most likely going to stop somewhere fast to eat instead of digging out your healthier options.

• Drink superfood shakes. Drinking power shakes are a fantastic way to get ALL your essential nutrients for the day, no matter what else you eat or drink. They are very easy to make while in the car and are absolutely delicious. Whoever is co-pilot can mix up a shake for the other car riders in the full water bottles (or blender bottles).

Be gentle with yourself. Making sure you and your family are well nourished can be hard, so give yourself some slack if you need to take the easy route through a drive thru or when the kids are begging for ice cream. It’s the intention and effort that counts.