Amanda Pasko, MS, MPH, RD, is an entrepreneur and leader in the field of nutrition. She is the founder and owner of Athletic Peak Nutrition & Performance, LLC, providing nutrition to support athletic performance, energy, and overall health.
The late summer is not an uncommon time to travel. In many cases, eating while on the road can be different from eating at home. Especially when looking to continue with training while out of town, or with a special event as part of your trip, it can be helpful to have a plan to fuel while out of the house. Here are 4 steps to making sure your fueling on the road matches your health goals.
1. Start with a plan: When will your meals and snacks be?
Consider when you usually eat, from breakfast to lunch to dinner, as well as any snacks that you generally have. Now look at your schedule when traveling and consider when you will realistically be able to eat. Often, breakfast can take place as planned. Lunch and dinner may need to be earlier or later. If a meal needs to be significantly earlier (more than an hour or so) than you would otherwise have it, it can help to bridge the gap between the next two meals with a snack. If a meal needs to be significantly later than you would otherwise have, it can help to have a snack sometime between the prior meal and this meal. Snacks with a source of protein (for example, yogurt, hard-boiled eggs, shake/bar, nuts, or meat – jerky meats can be easy options for travel) and fiber (for example, granola, wheat-based products, fruit, and nuts) are often most effective at promoting satiety and fullness.
2. Consider your options: Where will your meals and snacks come from?
Particularly if you are approaching a competition or have specific food options in mind, it can be helpful to consider ahead of time where you will get your meals and snacks. Here are some thoughts from the example above:
Breakfast: Before having left, breakfast can likely come from home. Preparation the night before can ensure a balanced and satisfying breakfast with less time to prepare.
Lunch: With the flight timing, lunch would likely be at the airport. Again, considering the lesser availability of time at airports, it can be helpful to scan the airport restaurant options ahead of time to know what your choices are.
Snack: This would again likely come from the airport. Snacks can also be relatively easier to bring on the road, here are some easily portable options from each food group:
Grain: bread, bagels, pretzels, granola bars
Protein: jerky meats, power bars, shakes, nuts
Dairy: shakes, yogurt (if kept cool)
Fruit: banana, orange, apple, pear, blended packs
Vegetables: baby carrots, blended packs
Dinner: Having arrived, dinner would likely be at a restaurant. If your meals and snacks were less balanced than usual, now can be a chance to balance them off.
3. Meet your needs if you are active
Especially if you have health goals to reach or will have challenging workouts while on the road, consider how common options may or may not meet your needs.
“Healthy restaurants”
Most restaurants or menu items marketed as “healthy” have amounts of grains, protein, fruits, and vegetables to match most people’s needs, coupled with variable fat content. If you are especially active, you might need more carbohydrate than these meals offer. Consider adding carbohydrate to meals (ie, extra bread on the side) or at other points in the day (ie, granola bar, bagel). This is especially important if exercise with high duration or intensity is on the horizon.
Many american restaurants
The majority of American restaurants have amounts of protein that match or exceed most people’s needs, have variable amounts of carbohydrates, are lower in fruit and vegetables, and tend to have more fat and overall calories than are ideal for most health goals. For most health goals, especially healthy weight loss, it can help to ask for sauces and creams on the side, reduce portions, and incorporate fruits and vegetables as sides.
4. Getting to bed and waking up
In many cases, travel requires getting to sleep and/or waking up earlier than normal. These changes can be especially pronounced when changing time zones. While natural light exposure upon waking up and around sunset can be incredibly helpful in sleeping adequately when traveling, nutrition can play a significant role too.
Here are some nutrition strategies to help with falling asleep
Tryptophan: major sources include chicken, turkey, fish, egg whites – can promote sleepiness
Magnesium and L-theanine supplements: can promote sleepiness and relaxation
Larger amounts of carbohydrate: can help to initiate sleep
The impact of a larger meal closer to bed and afternoon/evening caffeine is highly individual: the best way to know how this will impact you is looking at your past experiences
Here are some nutrition strategies to help with waking up earlier
Caffeine: acts as a stimulant, promoting alertness
Simple carbohydrate: found in fruit, refined grains, and sports products – provides fast energy
Eating immediately upon waking up: while sleeping can lead to a suppressed appetite, eating even in the absence of an appetite can boost energy early in the day
Travels are a part of many people’s summers, and while nutrition on the road may very well look different, it can still align with your health goals. I specialize in helping people to use nutrition to reach their potential in their sport as well as to reach health goals, and I know firsthand that travel is something worth planning for.
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Amanda Pasko, MS, MPH, RD, Nutrition Entrepreneur
Amanda Pasko, MS, MPH, RD, is an entrepreneur and leader in the field of nutrition. She is the founder and owner of Athletic Peak Nutrition & Performance, LLC, providing nutrition to support athletic performance, energy, and overall health. She has worked with professional athletes and individuals with a broad range of health goals across the US. She also trains for and competes nationally and internationally in track and field, including 2 World Championships and 3 international wins in the ultra multi-events, involving all track and field events over the course of two days. She holds a Bachelor's in Kinesiology & Sports Medicine from Rice University, a Master's in Nutritional Epidemiology from Harvard School.
