Eat Healthy Anywhere!

Holiday season is all about family and friends...and lots of time spent traveling to see them. You’re on the road, in the air, or at a rest stop – and you’re ravenous. When hunger strikes it’s all too easy, despite your healthy intentions, to lose yourself in a gigantic cinnamon bun or crunch through a tray of Day-Glo nachos. You don’t need me to remind you those aren’t great options. Luckily, when you’re out and about, you needn’t choose between starving and eating junk. Instead of stealing your children’s junk food from them, read this before you pack and you’ll be prepared to make tasty, nutritious choices on the go.

Gas Station Mini-Marts
Best Choices: Low-fat yogurt. It’s loaded with calcium and protein which will help you feel fuller. Can’t find yogurt? A package of low-fat string cheese or even a small carton of skim milk can be nearly as filling, especially when paired with a piece of fruit.

Runner Up: Instead of buying packaged trail mix, which is full of sugar and fat, mix up your own from items sold at the quickie mart. Start with low-sugar dry cereal such as Shredded Wheat or Cheerios, then add raisins or some other dried fruit and some nuts or small pretzels. Ask for a paper bag to mix everything together and you’ve got a high-fiber snack that’s crunchy, salty, and sweet!

Worst Choices: A cream-filled doughnut. I feel like I really shouldn’t have to point that out here, but it’s holiday season so I’m going to offer it as a reminder! This high-sugar, high-trans fat combo has no redeeming qualities. Sure you’ll get a quick energy boost, but that will be followed by an equally quick drop in blood sugar, which will leave you feeling tired, cranky, and craving more sugar. Basically you’ll feel like you’re five years old again. Let’s not retrace those steps, OK?

Vending Machines
Best Choices: A small bag of plain pretzels – not honey-mustard or any other flavor, which can add fat. Pretzels are a satisfying, low-fat crunch without any trans fats or added sugar, and the single-serving bag means you get built-in portion control. A close second is a small bag of peanuts or almonds (my personal fave), which is packed with protein that will fill you up.

Runner Up: Whole-wheat crackers with peanut butter. They’re higher in fat and/or calories than pretzels, but they have good fat and a little fiber which will keep you fuller longer.

Worst Choices: Potato chips, corn chips, and tortilla chips. Most snack chips are low in protein and fiber and are high in the two worst kinds of fat: saturated and trans.

Airports
Best Choices: A protein or energy bar from a newsstand. Look for one that has less than 200 calories and three or more grams of fiber. Avoid chocolate-coated bars, since these are often higher in fat and laden with sugar.

Runner Up: If all you can find is granola bars, look for one with the shortest ingredient list – such as oats, nuts, dried fruit, honey, and not much else. Or tide yourself over with a small (one or two-ounce) portion of unsalted nuts. Another decent option is a slice of cheese pizza. There’s calcium in the cheese, the tomato sauce counts as a vegetable serving, and it’s moderate in fat as long as you skip things like pepperoni.

Worst Choices: Salty snacks, such as potato chips. When you’re about to get on an airplane the last thing you want to eat is something high in sodium, since it can make you feel bloated and dehydrated (NOT a fun state of being!). A candy bar is a close second because if you have sugar on an empty stomach you’re not going to feel satisfied and you’re just going to crave more sugar. Again, who needs it?

Movie Theaters
Best Choices: A child-size popcorn (about five cups). With eight grams of fiber, it will satisfy your urge to munch and keep you feeling full. It’s only 300 calories if you skip the butter (it’s actually butter-flavored oil).

Runner Up: Junior Mints! Although there’s nothing particularly good for you in them, they’re lower in fat than most of the candy bars at the theater. Try to share the box since movie theater portions are usually gargantuan.

Worst Choices: Anything jumbo size or called a value combo. That large popcorn (about 20 cups) with extra butter (oil) and a large (44-ounce) soda add up to almost 2,000 calories. An entire movie-size package of Milk Duds has 595 calories. YIKES!

Mall Food Courts
Best Choices: A lean-turkey sub on wheat or multi-grain bread with mustard and plenty of vegetables (skip the mayo, however). The whole grains and vegetables have fiber to fill you up while providing vitamins and minerals. Turkey is low in fat, and the protein helps control your appetite. Of, if there’s a sushi counter, order a salmon roll and some low-fat, high-fiber edamame. Fish is the protein source with the most nutrients for the lowest number of calories.

Runner Up: A broth-based vegetable soup, such as minestrone or udon noodle. You’ll be getting a couple of servings of veggies. Plus, the high volume of soup helps you fill up on fewer calories. Stay away from milk and cream-based soups though, they’re usually high in fat. Soups also tend to be salty, so skip them if you’re watching your sodium intake.

Worst Choices: General Tso’s chicken with white rice. In fact, don’t ever order this dish if you can help it! Where to start? This dish is deep-fried, often with dark-meat (fattier) chicken, and it’s served with nutrient-barren white rice. When food court Chinese is your only option, go for steamed or stir-fried mixed vegetables over brown rice.

Meet the Trainer

Crystal is a certified personal trainer through the National Sports and Conditioning Association (NSCA). She has a passion for helping others live a healthy lifestyle and
coaching them to push their limits beyond what they
think they are capable of.