7 Travel Health Tips for Your Road Trip

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7 Travel Health Tips for Your Road Trip

Eating healthy on the road is a struggle that many of us face, especially during the summer months when we load up the car and head to the lake for a few days to enjoy some summer barbeque. These travel health tips will help you to make the right decisions when you hop in the car for that road trip. You don’t have to be summoned by the aisles of candy bars at the gas station convenience store. By planning ahead and opting for these travel foods, you’ll be able to maintain your fitness and most of all, your health.

Seaweed Snacks

You don’t have to dive into the ocean to get the nutrients from seaweed anymore. Nowadays there are more and more brands jumping on the bandwagon of providing dried seaweed snacks. Because of the “crunch” that seaweed snacks have when you bite into them, it satisfies that constant need to munch on something crunchy. More so than the satisfying crunch, though, is that they contain a high amount of anti-oxidants and other anti-inflammatory vitamins and minerals and are one of the few vegetable sources of energy boosting vitamin b-12. Of course, don’t forget the fact that they weigh about the same as a paper clip and are easy to pack, which is why they are one of the foods in our travel health tips.

Sprouted Nuts/Seeds

Almonds in general are a great source of protein, fiber, and definitely healthy fats, but they’re also a super convenient and healthy food to bring with you on the road. You have to be aware not to over indulge on the almonds simply because of their high calorie content, but they are nonetheless a tremendous snack that is easy to pack. Try choosing sprouted almonds or other sprouted nuts and seeds because they are easy to digest and allow your body to utilize more of the nutrients that they contain. Limit your servings of almonds to about twenty almonds or roughly one ounce.

Organic Beef Jerky

Disregarding most of the preservative filled beef jerkies on the shelves today, there are some healthier options for jerky. If it wasn’t for the sodium and preservatives, jerky would be one of the easiest ways to get hunger satisfying protein in an easy and convenient way. When you’re on a road trip, it’s often hard to get quality protein sources. Most restaurants serve pre-packaged or frozen meats and we don’t need to go down the fast food road. So this leaves organic beef jerky (or other jerky) as a great alternative and why it is one of the travel health tips. When picking a beef jerky, find one that is low in sodium and doesn’t contain nitrates!

Rice Cakes

Easy to snack on and practically zero calories, rice cakes make the list of the top travel health foods. The crunchy and savory snack can create an illusion that you are consuming more calories than you actually are, which will make you fuller for a longer period of time. Rice cakes are also a great source of healthy carbohydrates that beat the heck out of sugar when it comes to sustained energy. And remember that crunch that we talked about? Rice cakes give you the rewarding feeling of eating something with substance, but without the guilt.

Fruit

One of the most difficult foods to find on the road is fresh fruit, and depending on where you’re traveling to, there may not be a plentiful source of them. So plan ahead a couple of days and cut up some pieces of fruit into cubes and place them in ziplock bags. By cubing the fruit, you make it much easier to snack on and therefore much more likely to be eaten. Although fruit is low in calories, it is high in natural sugar so eating it in moderation is recommended, especially when in the car and predominantly sedentary.

Veggie Sticks

We are going back to kindergarten with this one! Carrot sticks and celery sticks; isn’t that what mom used to put in our lunch pails along with some peanut butter? They always say to never totally grow up, so in this case, let out the inner child and enjoy some fun carrot sticks! Vegetables in general are great to munch on though. Things like bell peppers, broccoli florets, and jicama keep you chewing for a while but without the calories! But most of all, it’s the nutritional value of the vegetables that we are looking for. When you’re on the road, you are definitely nutrient deprived, so any saving grace like veggie sticks is welcomed with open arms!

Nut Butters

Aside from peanut butter, most nut butters like almond butter, cashew butter, and even seed butters like sunflower butter are healthy-fat rich and provide some of the omega fatty acids that you need for good brain function (which is important while you’re driving). Peanut butter is not a recommended road trip food because peanuts are not even a nut at all, they are a legume! Many people have unknown allergies to peanuts that can actually cause brain fog and fatigue, so stick to some high quality nut butters like organic almond butter. A two tablespoon serving of almond or cashew butter contains about 170 calories, so pretty calorically dense and satisfying. It is easy to overdo it on the nut butters though, so try and limit it to about two tablespoons every couple of hours. They are now making healthy nut butters in squeezable packets that make eating the proper portion size that much easier.

Hit the Road!

With these travel health tips you are all set to head out on the open road and stay healthy in the process. Many of these foods can be brought on airplanes as well, just keep in mind that airport security may not allow larger containers of nut butters. We don’t have to resort to fast food and convenience story junk-food to feed our hunger on the road. By implementing these seven foods into your travel diet, you’ll overcome the urge to stop and pick up that candy bar. Remember to stay hydrated as well, even if it means that you have to stop more often, because being in the car for extended periods of time can dehydrate you. Safe travels this summer!