I have an early flight and then a night with a friend who seems determined to feed me. She'll test my resolve -- I think I can handle her, but any thoughts on pushy friends are welcome.
Any tips for getting through airports and restaurants and dealing with lack of sleep due to early departures and late returns? I generally eat my way through this sort of ordeal -- snacking at the gift shops just to pass time.
I fancy myself an expert on this. In the last 3 months, I've traveled for 6 of the 9 weeks!
First, remember you can bring food into the airport. If I am leaving early, like you are, I bring a Greek yogurt and some crystal light with me as well as nuts and a cheese stick for breakfast - sometimes lettuce wraps. If I can grab a scrambled egg/veggie omelet somewhere, I will do that (if it's on work's dime). Otherwise, I grab a coffee and eat what I have. Since you are in Ph2, you can also buy some dried fruit - just make sure it's 100% fruit or bring your own whole piece! That way you can also snack on the plane.
Bring a book with you or treat yourself to one at the airport instead of buying food. You can kill time that way. My dirty secret is buying rag magazines instead of food.
When you land, head to a grocery store or even a pharmacy. I stock up depending on where I am staying. If my hotel has a fridge, there is more of a selection (you can grab cheese sticks, yogurts, etc). If not, I buy nuts and jerky (read labels!) and fruit leathers (100% fruit) if I can't find whole fruit.
By way of dinner, do your research - pick a restaurant and tell your friend you want to go there. That way you can scope out the menu ahead of time and pick something yummy. I usually do a small steak (5-7 oz) and lots of veggies, one glass of wine and sip lots of water. I only do berries for dessert or cheese platters.
I fly a bit and I always bring an insulated bag full of food for flights. It can include: cottage cheese or yogurt (usually mixed up with cinnamon or crystal light and/or fruit beforehand so I don't have to deal with that), washed celery/carrots/pepper strips/broccoli or cauliflower florets, a small container of hummus or guacamole (I save and reuse the little containers that salad dressing comes in at restaurants), Laughing Cow cheese wedges/cheese sticks, washed apples/grapes or easy-to-peel mandarins, dried green beans, jerky (I get the vegetarian kind, haha), nuts, dark chocolate squares.... I have even brought a prepared kale or cabbage salad... I carry an empty water bottle through security and fill it at a water fountain for the flight and I bring plastic cutlery so I don't have to worry about finding that. If I remember to, I order a special in-flight meal but obviously most domestic flights don't have meals anymore, only SCARY snack selections.
In airports, if there is a Subway I will sometimes get the omelet sandwich (egg white or whole egg) on flatbread with ALL the veggies (including spinach instead of the sad lettuce) and toss the flatbread - it's like an omelet taco of sorts. I think the eggs probably are not just *eggs* but in a pinch I will get this. For lunch, salads (again if they will do it, spinach instead of lettuce). Otherwise, yeah, airport food is hard. I found a great place for amazing salads in the Denver airport and many places do have grab-n-go salads now so hopefully you can find that if you have to eat in the airport and don't have enough food with you.
About dinner with your friend - hard! That is my downfall. Usually I don't say I am on a diet but claim that i have been eating really horribly (claim airport/airline food!) and am really, really craving something healthy - a salad, a lot of veggies - or claim that I pigged out in transit and just want something light. Good luck on all of this!!
Travelling has always been a downfall for me, so thanks Jenne and emmaD for the advice!
These are all great ideas -- and so simple -- I just need to adjust my thinking about food, and all of these tips will be very helpful to me as I do that.
I like the idea of treating myself to books and magazines -- and telling my friend that I'm craving fresh and healthy foods.
Yay fruit! I get to reintroduce that today, so that will make the trip easier - so will packing little "snack bags" for myself. They made traveling easier for my kids, so why not me?
All I know is that I appear to be all-in or all-out. If I am not of the mindset that I am doing this *right*, travel or no travel, I enter this free-for-all zone of "vacation mode" or something like that, going wildly off plan with the Cinnabons and McDonalds french fries, newsstand snacks, etc etc ETC. There is not much moderation with me apparently... So I have had to learn techniques such as bringing my own food - one motivation is that the bag gets lighter and smaller as the food is consumed! So at least I eat that first and am not hungry enough any more to eat all the airport crap.
Let us know how you fared when you return! I am always learning new tips from folks here...
I have found that when I tell people I am on a doctor-ordered eating plan and I have food allergies so there are foods I simply cannot have (such as dairy, which is in many foods and really limits what I can have) that they don't ever push food on me. For some reason, a "doctor ordered plan" doesn't invite a challenge the same way "I'm on a diet" does. It also happens to be the truth- my doctor is closely monitoring my weight loss and she does tell me what I can and cannot eat and how much I need to exercise.
Bring snacks and know where your "emergency exits" are
At Starbucks, they have a fruit and cheese plate that comes with an assortment of cheeses (not lf, but work great in a pinch!) with half an apple, a couple whole wheat crackers, and almonds and dried cranberries.
Outback has a steak I LOVE.
Panera has soup and salad that I really enjoy, etc.
For snacks, I love fruit (especially apples), almonds, deviled eggs, lunchmeat and cheese roll ups, sweet peppers, snow peas, Think thin bars, triscuits, etc. A little cooler bag is my best friend.
These are all great suggestions. If you are going out to eat with your friend ask her if you can choose the place (maybe google some places ahead of time and check the menus) and order something yummy but still on plan. I agree with everyone about bringing substantial snacks like nuts and string cheese and carrots etc. with you. A skinny latte is also satisfying and gives you a serving of dairy too. The key is planning ahead. Good luck!
Traveling on Tuesday - survival hints?
