Eating For Health

So many of us will be hitting the road as the weather warms up.   A relative is relocating from one state to another and is on a 29-hour road trip.   Other relatives are headed to the beach on a seven-hour road trip.   Too often those on a road trip push their health to the side and stop at Fast Food places for a quick bite to eat.   Even if one had good intentions to eat healthier a road trip can sabotage your efforts.   My husband showed me a good article on “How to Eat Healthy on the Road” in the AAA World magazine.   Many others have written on this topic.   On your next long road trip, how can you eat healthier?   As Wander Wisdom notes, Once I started bringing my own foods and snacks on trips, I felt noticeably better.   My energy levels were high, I was less hungry and I didn’t have to resort to eating the kind of unhealthy meals I’d never eat at home. Men’s Journal recommends avoiding the “feel bad” foods.   Skip the juice ...

Seems like everyone is going on vacation this summer.   But how can you enjoy your vacation and not return 5 or more pounds heavier?   We all want to have fun on vacation by eating out in new restaurants, trying new foods, and not worrying about gaining weight.   For those who want to return from vacation at the same weight they left, what are some things you can do?   WebMD has some good advice in their article, Avoid Vacation Weight Gain: 5 Simple Rules   .   Tip 1:     Plan Ahead to Include Some Physical Fitness Every vacation my husband and I go on, includes hiking on trails, renting bikes to enjoy some bike trails, or walking a lot.   Yes, we still enjoy site seeing, eating at restaurants, but we also enjoy being active on our vacations.   On a recent trip to Yellowstone, we hiked a lot, walked a lot and also rented bikes and enjoyed biking by a number of geysers.   The WebMD article notes , “Keep in mind that physical acti...

Summer is a great time to hit the road.   Off to the beach, the lake, the mountains, or a long road trip.   Many people stop for a quick bite to eat at gas stations or other places that offer a range of food items.   How can you eat healthy while on that road trip?   Watch the calories – sitting all day in a car burns up a lot less calories.   A short trip not to worry but a long road trip can decrease your daily burn of calories by up to 400 calories.     Take some healthy foods with you – pack a cooler of yogurt, some fresh fruit, veggies like baby carrots, some nuts, healthy nutrition bars and even some sandwiches to eat along the way.   My husband and I often eat at the picnic tables at rest stops – we eat the food we brought with us.   I once told my daughter to bring her lunch on a long road trip we were taking.   She pulled out a gourmet assortment of food – hummus and veggies, a fresh homemade salad, fruit, homemade ...