Traveling on “The Diet”

Here we are in Virginia traveling for a few days visiting friends. What are we going to do? we asked when it was time to pack up and go. How will we eat the way we want to for three and a half days? There are more problems as well… you don’t want to offend your hosts, you can’t bring too much food with you and the food you do bring must be kept cold during travel. What to eat on the road when the only alternatives are Wendys and Subway?

So here are our few tips… there are definitely still some gaps here, but it’s something to start with and we know it made a difference in how we felt after three days out of routine if we had not planned at all:

Beforehand:

• Collect or buy several small jars or secure tupperwares
• Collect or buy plastic utensils, napkins and
• Get a paper or plastic bag for dirty dishes/utensils and trash while on the road
• Buy a quality weekend cooler for summer travel. this makes packing the car easier and if your hosts or the hotel does not have a fridge/room in the fridge you can keep your stuff in here for a few days if you keep things cold
• Prepare some foods for the road (see below)
• Make and freeze smoothies for the road. Take them out of the freezer when it’s time to go and half way through the trip, they’ll be the perfect consistency for eating

For the Road:

Planning ahead for road snacks will eliminate those weak moments when you find yourself wandering up and down the pathetic offerings in the snack aisles in gas station centers:

• Meal ideas:
  • french toast
  • empanadas
  • egg sandwiches
• Snack ideas:
  • nuts
  • fruit
  • veggies
  • seeds
  • dried foods such as apples, apricots, meat etc.

Food for the destination:

Even a few nutritious foods can make a big difference when you find yourself eating meal after meal of “conventional” American fare. We can’t tell you how much better we felt after eating just a little of the below after a bloating meal of burgers, fries and store bought pasta salad.

• plain yogurt
• fermented vegetable (sauerkraut, etc) (this is probably the most important one!)
• nutritious bread
• butter if you don’t’ expect to find it at your destination
• teas and alternative sweeteners if you use them

• *Don’t forget vitamins and supplements if you use them. Skipping these just adds insult to injury to your system if you already expect to be off your usual eating routine for a while.
• *Depending on the destination and nature of the travel, you may also just plan a trip to the grocery store once you arrive for fresh fruits and vegetables as well.
• *Problems arise when you hope to buy hard to find items in a new location. It’s best to just bring it with you!

Being Gracious Houseguests:

• There’s no reason to feel bad about your eating choices! Talk to your hosts in advance of your destination so they understand why you are walking in the door with coolers and bags of your own provisions. Explain your new “diet” and be very conscientious of how you are coming across. Don’t explain why you have changed your diet unless pressed and even then, be very careful of sounding superior.
• We found that eating a blend of “conventional” food along with our own helped balance out the one extreme of eating everything set before us and suffering in silence and offending our hosts terribly by refusing their food entirely.
• Be proactive and suggest meals when and if appropriate. Offer to shop for and prepare meals when and if appropriate. Failing these two options, try…

Eating Out:

• Suggest going out to eat AFTER doing your own research of where might be a good location to eat that could meet everyone’s needs/wants. Some ideas that aren’t GREAT (but can be worse than alternatives are) and are usually popular all around are:
  • Local pizza restaurants (not the chains which use MSG in the sauce and the cheapest ingredients)
    • choose items with lots of veggies!
  • Mexican restaurants
    • choose items with lots of veggies and as little sauce as possible
  • Local Greasy Spoon type restaurants (especially if other fast food chains are likely to be suggested. at least the food here will be higher quality than fast food)
    • order items high in meat content and as low as possible in fried foods

In General, remember to:

• *Not be afraid to ask about ingredients in food such as MSG

• • *Order water, not soda, lemonade or iced tea from a soda machine/fountain. If you must order iced tea, request unsweet tea
  • Try and order something that will include as much of a balance as possible (ie, not all fried, not all meat, not all bread…. try to get a variety of food types)
  • Seek out vegetables! Ordering a salad with meat added may be the best bet when eating out.
  • Avoid sauces and dressings which are extremely likely to have MSG, HFCS and/or sugar. At the very least, be sure to order dressing on the side.
  • Learn to spot frauds. Don’t order items you suspect are not made on the premises.
  • Avoid fried foods
  • Avoid marinated or seasoned meats which are also likely to have high MSG content
  • If you must order a dessert, remember ice cream is your best bet

• • • Items that are typically safest when eating out:
      • raw or steamed vegetables
      • baked potato
      • quiche or other egg-based meals
      • baked, broiled, steamed fish and meat (none or very little sauce/seasoning)
      • items with a lot of cheese such as plain nachos or veggie quesadillas
      • thin crust pizza with fresh ingredients (no sausage which will have MSG). Order pizza w/o tomato sauce if it is suspect.

Overall, a little planning goes a long way and with some practice it is not impossible to travel and maintain some of your nutritious habits. Please post comments of your own tips…

You too, can kick the sugar habit…

We did it and so can you. It’s really not as bad as it sounds. You DO have to give it a chance. You DO have to experiment with other sweeteners and be willing to have sugar cravings for about two weeks. After that, it is easier. The less you eat, the less your body “wants” it… amazing!

And yes, to answer your next question, sugar really is that bad for you. I won’t use up pages telling you why except to say that research really does support how sugar is a powerfully dangerous “anti-nutrient” to our bodies and contributes to many now common diseases. Sugar has not always been with us and people who are not exposed to it in remote parts of the world do not have the same health problems we have in “civilized” nations. Why don’t you hear about it, you say? Hm… interesting question… start reading labels and the answer will become quite clear.

Oh, by the way, sugar also manifests as high fructose corn syrup — the most dangerous offender because it has been so highly processed. You may also see sucrose, fructose, etc. Artificial sweeteners are no better and may be worse, but we won’t go there today. Don’t eat them! Other sugar varieties will not help you either — for example “raw” sugar, etc… you need to skip over sugar entirely.

Instead, I will go straight to the list of sugar alternatives you can begin shopping for and using your cooking and baking. Although I hope you find this list helpful, please do not use it as a carte blanch ticket to eat as much of them as you want. You should still be very conservative with sweeteners of any kinds.

1. Maple Syrup
2. Stevia (powder or liquid)
3. Brown Rice Syrup
4. Sorghum Syrup
5. Raw Honey
6. Fruit jams

*When you are a desperate for a refined sugar substitute (for example if you must bake in large quantities), you may use rapadura / Succanat (usually found in health food stores) or pilloncillo (must be grated) which is dehydrated sugar cane juice.

For everyday sweet needs, stevia works great. I usually rotate using stevia, maple syrup, sorghum and honey in my oatmeal. The syrups are good for baking. Stevia and honey are good for hot drinks.

In time, you may even find you don’t’ need your foods to be as sweet as you once did. This happened to us and now we have a hard time eating store-bought or other people’s goodies when pressed to do so.

$ Note: pilloncillo, stevia liquid (it lasts forever) and sorghum syrup seem to be the cheapest products overall, maybe jam. Pilloncillo takes time to prepare by grating first however. Find it in the Latin foods section.