Eating For The Road And Beyond

6½ simple but effective tips for eating better on the road

by Dr Dave (Woynarowski)

A question I often get asked is, “Dr Dave, I am hitting the road for a few days. How can eat well and not blow it during my trip?”

This is a great question.

Let’s face it -- if eating is the center of your trip, you are likely to be eating mostly the wrong things.

For a case study in this I will recall one trip my very own parents, who should have known better, took several years back.  

It was one of those “Barge down the River” deals.

Sadly, I don’t remember whether it was the River Seine or Rhine or what ever... the point is, it was all about... eating.

When I asked the customary, “How was your trip?” question at the airport, what I got was a veritable culinary litany, a mealtime blow-by-blow of everything that was eaten, down to the last morsel.

By the time they got through the whole trip, I felt 10 pounds heavier myself.  I think I skipped meals for 3 days after that!

Which brings me to my first point.

If you are on a road trip, you are not on a cruise. You are not on a floating smorgasbord. You HAVE control over what is put in front of you and unless you stop at buffets you will not be tempted by cost savings.

     1.  Eating at “All-You-can-Eat” buffets is to be avoided at all costs. 

          Now what if you succumb and break the first cardinal rule?  

2. If you are going to commit a dietary “sin,” sin big and sin all at once.  Here is a case where “In for a penny, in for a pound” actually has some merit.

You see you can only absorb so much fat and cholesterol at one sitting.  So if you’ve blown it already, may as well keep going.

But pay attention to Rule Number 3

3. Once you’ve blown it, your body will crave a similar amount of sugar, fat and calories for the next day or so.  If you succumb, you’ll be in a vicious cycle of wild swings in your blood sugar and the hormones your body uses to regulate that blood sugar.

Result:  You will keep pigging out.

Not good.

Here is how to handle the post pig-out cravings. 

A)  Eat small, frequent meals the next day, preferably of whole grain, fruit and veggies. 

B) In a pinch, you can use whole-wheat peanut butter crackers.  You get protein, some slow release carbs to keep the energy up and... you can stay on the move.

C) Stay well hydrated.  A little known fact that you can use as a trick is that to some extent our stomachs crave the same amount of volume on a daily basis.  If you fill up with water, you may help fool your tummy into being less hungry (now you know why any well-designed diet includes a specific water recommendation).  Believe me... its well worth a few extra pit stops to stop hunger dead in its tracks!

4. Beware the salad trap.

A lot of people eat salads at fast food places because they think they are healthy choices.

Well, “healthy” is a relative term.  Compared to a half-pound “fat burger” slathered in cheese and mayonnaise, salads ARE a healthy choice.

But compared to what you’d normally whip up at home, they are a sure fire way to get fat!

The problem lies in the dressings they give you.  Almost all fast food joints use dressings that are mainly fat.  That always-too-small Pack they give you... can add over 300 calories to your “healthy’ salad.

My suggestion?  Carry some low or no-fat salad dressing with you on your road trips.  It’s not that hard to pack an ice chest from stop to stop.  Heck, you could even carry the whole salad with you from home if you like.

Add this to your fast food salad and you’ve got a reasonably healthy, satisfying meal without a whole lot of added fat calories from the dressing.

This brings me to another tip:  Nowadays they make small plug in coolers that will fit easily in most cars and keep your food chilled while you are enjoying the highways and byways.

You can stop at healthier fast food places (think of those commercials you’ve seen with the folks who lost weight eating a certain sandwich!) and eat less while packing some for the next meal.

Or even better... just stop at the grocery store and keep your cooler stocked with fruits and veggies.

Couple all this with a small pocketknife, and you’re on your way to having all the tools you need for a healthy road trip.

5. Try to avoid sodas, “juice” drinks and those ever-more-popular energy drinks.

Folks, here is a great source of empty sugar calories that will surely spoil your figure... and possibly your trip.  Those energy drinks are usually loaded with caffeine as well.

6. Finally, the single biggest mistake that people make when hitting the road is forgetting to take their vitamins.  This is the first thing I pack when I go by planes, trains or automobiles.

Why?

Well, if there was ever an argument for a multi-vitamin -- it is the “road trip.” Flagging energy levels and bad eating habits can be offset by a good Multi.

One other supplement I always carry is my Pharmaceutical Grade Fish Oil. It is a little known fact that you can offset the bad effects of bad fats (trans, saturated and Omega 6) by consuming good fats like Omega 3 fish oils!

Even less known is that several scientific studies have shown that Omega 3 fish oils can promote weight loss and fat burning.

They seem to be especially effective against that unsightly belly fat.

So next time you pack up the car, don’t forget the Fish Oil.

And be sure to have a great trip!

Dr Dave

Oh Yeah, I almost forgot the “half a tip”!

This one takes the form of a recipe.  It is highly filling, nutritious, satisfying and easily portable.  This recipe will supercharge your metabolism and keep you alert for the journey.

It is also quite temperature stable and will withstand most extremes of hot and cold.

So unless you are planning a trip to the Sun or Pluto, you shouldn’t have any issues.

Mix in a tall cylindrical container:  12 ounces of raw, shelled almonds, 10 ounces of raw, shelled walnuts, and one 8-ounce pack of dried blueberries.

Make sure they are mixed evenly.  This has protein, good fats and anti-oxidants.  But pay attention to portion size because there are some calories here.  A handful constitutes a serving.

And don’t forget the water!

Have a safe one.  

 

Dr Dave Woynarowski is a Board certified Internist and Anti-Aging physician.  He designs and manufactures cutting-edge anti-aging supplements and his website contains a wealth of free information on a broad range of topics including exercise, fat burning, weight loss, metabolism, and, of course, staying young! For more information go to: www.DrDavesBest.com