Staying FIT while on vacation is one of the most frequently asked questions this time of year.
While I have dozens of strategies and tips to share, best to start with the most important one.
While staying active is one way to combat vacation weight gain, you really need nothing more to take along other than your own body for mini vacation-style workouts. And yes, I’ll be showing you some of my favorite body weight moves later this week!
However, what you EAT requires a bit more planning and has a far greater impact on your ability to stay on track while you are away.
Yes, Vacations are meant to be enjoyed….
but overindulging every single day can pack on the pounds. One of the unnecessary places we make poor choices on what to eat is WHILE we are in route to our destination spot.
It never fails, while on our way to our destination spot, we either find ourselves at the Starbucks or McDonald’s in the airport or on the highway, taking in far too many calories before we even get there!
Don’t let this happen to you.
You can get this junk food anytime. Save your vacation calories for more exciting and unique treats.
Avoid the on-the-go temptations by making a point to pack travel snacks to help curb your appetite and allow you to stay on track.
This is why the COOLER is your #1 Travel Fit Kit Tool.
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What a great idea! We always pack a cooler and bag of healthy snacks when road tripping. I like to bring baby carrots, almonds, grapes, cheese cubes (for those lucky ones in my fam that can eat dairy!) Kashi crackers, raisins, and plenty of water!
Also, protien mix is portable- when travelling instead of bringing a huge tub, dole it out in serving-size portions in snack bags. In a pinch, you can buy a bottled water, dump your mix in and shake!
This is a great reminder post….
Holly,
Wow, have fun in Cedar Point. We went a few years ago and had a blast. We stayed at the Wolf Lodge. Have fun.
What I pack in my cooler – I actually pack one every day for work to cover all the meals I will need while I am away from home.
Greek Yogurt
Nuts
Cottage Cheese
Apples
Blueberries
Grapes
Cut up Vegetables
Grilled chicken
String Cheese
Protein Bars
Protein Powder when in a pinch
Water
First and foremost I would pack water, then veggies and fruit
Bottled water, apples, almonds, raisins, dried cherries, and cereal bars. I do this when we are shopping too. Besides saving calories it also saves money! Hate to be nickeled and dimed before we even get to our destination!
I pack apples, and a bag mixed with walnuts,pecans, almonds,dried cranberries,pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, shredded coconut. I also may put in a chocolate coconut wheyprotein bar in case I get the chocolate urge.
I always pack fruit, sandwiches and a few healthier snacks like pretzels and hard boiled eggs, too. I also bake oat bars for emergency energy boosts when not a lot else is available. Water we buy en-route. We live in a very hot climate and most of our holiday travel is by air, so there is a limit to what we can take with us… but healthy sandwiches and home made oat bars are a winners. One other essential is that we all have a good breakfast before we leave the house, whatever the time!
I pack fresh and dried fruit, nuts, Lara Bars, water, string cheese, and raw veggies.
We plan on doing a road trip this year so I want to take my Vita-Mix along to do green smoothies.
organic spinach and mixed greens
kale
fruit
nuts
water
carrots
Great idea. I think that is the toughest part of a vacation – not having healthy snacks at your fingertips. A small cooler is a good idea to keep in the fridge at work too! Then I won’t be tempted to run downstairs to the bakery or Tim Hortons for a mid morning snack…
Tks for the great idea!
I have been thinking about this issue a lot lately. We are going on a trip to visit some friends in Minnesota in a month. It will take 12 hours to get there and we will drive straight through. My mom bought us a cooler that is thin and long (just right to fit behind the front car seat). It has fold-out tables on either side and two little chairs for the kids to sit at (very cool). Now, my job is to fill it because I am NOT buying food from the gas station. We get in trouble everytime we do because we always buy foods that are not healthy, plus it is more expensive. I am planing on cutting up a bunch of fruit and putting that into containers, having salad and sandwiches for lunch and taking some sort of nuts (which, thankfully we all like). Oh, and water and gatorade to drink. Beyond that I’m not sure what else to bring. I’m not sure if we even need to bring more than that. I guess we will soon find out!
We are doing a road trip across ND, SD, MN and WI this summer (also in search of the waterparks and amusement parks) so this will be an essential travel tool for us, too. Not sure if we’re allowed to cross the Canada/US border with fruits and veggies but definitely going to try. Also water, juices, sandwiches/wraps, cheese and crackers, granola bars, rice chips.
We’ll be stopping at a grocery store at least once every few days to replenish our stock and make sure we don’t have to eat “junk” every day.
Can’t wait!
I always pack a cooler whether it be a day trip to a park or traveling by car, bus or plane. My main reason for always packing before was $$$. It is much cheaper to bring along snacks. Now, I still do it, but I pack healthier things, fruit, nuts, granola bars, dried fruit. YUM! I’m getting hungry:)
Everyone said it – fruits and veggies, crackers w/nut butter, leftover chicken or turkey, cashews, almonds and water. I try to take whole fruit because the cut up ones get mushy. I just put a moist paper towel in a baggie to clean up afterward. We just bought a van that we are outfitting with a refrigerator so we don’t have to take a cooler anymore. Can’t wait to get it! Every time we leave the house we take food. Even if it’s only a two hour drive.
Thanks for the information. After reading this along with what everyone else has said I should be good to go and on my way to a skinny mini on my vacation. Thanks I’m looking forward to the road trip now.
Good info! I will have to agree with the rest of the ladies who posted above on the “road trip snacks”. Grapes, nuts, dried fruit, and water, water, water! The temptation to stop at fast food places is always there, but I guess the moral of the story is to be prepared.
I really need to start doing that… I don’t plan and then end up eating junk in fast food restaurants… I’m going to look for one this week!
Great reminder! We have a long road trip coming up. My plan is to pack some of the following:
- water
- raw carrots, peppers, celery, cucumber and grape tomatoes
- veggie dip
- cheese cubes
- almonds
- wholegrain crackers
- apples, bananas, peaches, cherries (whatever is seasonal)
- wholegrain wraps
- deli meats
- mustard packs
- green tea in a thermos
I will pack:
WATER
Apples
Grapes
Grilled chicken roll-ups (mmmm, and healthy too!)
Nuts
Raisins
Veggie Chips
Juice
I like the baggie idea and paper towels (a must!)
Thanks for helping me think about this – heading to Austin (3 hour trip) soon and this just helped me plan for it!
Hard boiled eggs
Nuts
Veggies
some fruit
water
String Cheese
I have always taken a cooler in the car when traveling. I used to do dance competition in the early ’90′s and bought one that plugs into the cigarette lighter. Unfortunatly my choices for the cooler then were definitely not what I would pack now. Today I would include fresh fruit and vegetables, e.g. grapes, apples, cut-up melon, baby carrots, celery sticks, and hummus (for dipping the carrots and celery), greek yogurt, Ryvita sesame rye crackers & peanut butter (one small cracker w/peanut butter can stave off hunger for me), homemade trailmix (nuts, raisins, dried cranberries). I would also put in a few hardboiled eggs and almond milk and protein powder and spinach for making smoothies. I have a Magic Bullet that works well if it doesn’t have to chew up things like frozen raspberries.
I like to bake up protein muffins then freeze them. Put them frozen in the small cooler bag I take on the plane to keep other things cool, since they don’t allow ice on the plane.
I always tell myself I will prepare some healthy snacks for the road and always end up not doing so! So this year (in less than 2 weeks from now actually) I will really stick to it and not listen to my husband who tells me not to bother because we can just get something on the road … Thanks for all the good ideas from everyone and enjoy your holidays
Appreciate the straight forward information. When we travel there is always a case of water and a cooler with snacks. We bring along apples, carrots, grapes and bananas. Then Kashi crackers with string cheese. Beef jerky and my own trail mix because I put in it what we like as a family. The fast food places have been stopped at in the past but we are trying to make better choices. Just have to remember what we put in our mouths effects how we feel and how we look.
We are on vacation now and for the plane trip I packed fresh cherries, pistachios, Lara Bar, and some leftover protein pancakes that my boys love to eat plain! Oh, and we brought our (empty) water bottles and filled them once we got through security. For day outings I’ve been packing apples, peaches, strawberries, carrots, broccoli, cheese sticks, nuts, and Lara Bars plus LOTS of water as its 90+ degrees here!
What a great reminder. I will be sure to pack lots of good snacks when we travel later this summer. Thanks, Holly, for all the great information you remind us of every day.
We packed apples, greek yogurt, cut up veggies, nuts, and pretzals for the car ride. Then, I also packed an entire seperate suitcase with stuff to make food at the hotel and just for a quick snack so we could stick to our plan. Oatmeal (use the coffee maker in the room for hot water), peanut butter, bread / pita bread…etc.
Sticking to your plan can be easy if you take time to plan ahead. Thanks for the reminder!!
Great reminder! I also pack a list of healthy restaurants along our route (and a map marking their locations/exits). Even with planning we sometimes need to stop and in a pinch it is great to have alternatives to the fast food so easily accessible on the turnpike. You might have to drive a mile or two off the highway to get to there but the (hopefully) more healthy food you find is definately worth it. Plus once there grab a menu for next time — we called ahead last week for a veggie pizza at exit 65 that took 20 minutes to make — our tummies were happy to have hot food with no wait and my husband was happy to support a local mom and pop business. Have a great trip Holly!
Sometimes I pack broccoli and carrots, with some lowfat veggie cream cheese. Nuts are common, apples, water… I’m pretty boring so I am liking seeing the variety everyone is posting – gives me lots of ideas.
What kind of cooler is that?
We went to WV about three weeks ago and made sure we were stocked up so we wouldn’t be tempted on the road. Our cooler had water, apples, oranges, plums, nuts, and cheese. When we did stop to eat we did not over do it.
Hey Iris – I’m from WV! We’re getting ready to go camping at Canaan Valley on the 4th of July weekend and these post are giving me some really good ideas for what to pack. I was just thinking this morning…gee what do I take on this trip so I can stick with the program? Thanks ladies!
We have truly become such a convenient prepackaged processed food society….no wonder we are so FAT!! Reading this post takes me back to my childhood road trips…there were 5 of us kids and of course feeding all of us was expensive, but we sure didn’t have the prepackaged food like is available today! And we were so lean back then!
Mom would pack a cooler of sandwiches (peanut butter, honey, banana; egg salad; pimento cheese for Dad), fresh fruit like grapes, apples, bananas, raisins; and a little something sweet for dessert….oatmeal cookies. We only needed 1 or two to be totally satisfied!
And of course thermoses of water, and a jug of apple juice or grape juice. This was all before individual bottled water.
We only stopped for gas and restroom breaks. Ahhh the memories!! Such fun times!
Today, as an adult, I pack my cooler in very much the same way…as basic, raw, and healthy as I can make it!
Have a fabulous trip, Holly, and everyone else! Be safe!
xx Mary Bess
nuts, pre-portioned scoops of protein powder (just add water), peanut butter, bananas, Erin Bakers’ Breakfast cookies (found online) 1/2 of one plus Greek yogurt is a great mid morn snack. Hummus, Kashi crackers. Celery and hummus also.
MY WATER BOTTLE, TO REFILL AT EVERY STOP!!!
My two thoughts on cooler foods are:
Nothing sticky, and Nothing High-Calorie! In the past I would bring granola, raisins, and nuts–and we would be eating hundreds of calories because we were munching. Too much of a good thing is STILL too much.
I like to bring beef jerky! Everyone’s favorite car snack is definitely beef jerky. Bananas, plums, whole grain crackers or flat bread and neufchatel (or Laughing Cow if you have it) to put on it. I like granola bars dished out by myself so the children don’t eat 4 packages each, and I like definitely TONS of bottled water. And bring a roll of paper towels and a thing of hand wipes and hand sanitizer to cover all the possible messes.
As basic, raw I can get.
Apples, almonds, raisins, crackers, protein bars
For the kids bananas, cheerios, trail mix, PB sandwiches
I have to say we used our cooler heaps when we travelled around Tasmania for 2 weeks. It was fabulous….not only did it save us a bucketload of money but also HEAPS of calories too!!
We packed fruit, salad, yoghurt, nuts, sandwiches, water……definitely a must on a holiday!!!!
We pack a water bottle or two that can be refilled, low sodium V-8′s for me, whole almonds mixed with dried cranberries and cherries, cheese or cheese sticks, crackers for the kids/husband, whole grain buns and deli turkey meat, jar of sliced pickles, mustard, fruit and some kind of chips/pretzels for snacking for kiddos. We love pistachios but they can sure make a mess in the car.
Quick rides (less that 3 hours) are just water, fruit, and mixed almonds with dried cherries or cranberries and low-sodium V-8′s.
I never would have thought to do that. My parents used to pack the cooler when we would go on long car trips but now I mostly drive alone or with my fiance’ and this is a deffinately a better option than what we currently do; grab whatever we can find along the way.
I’m sending this to my girlfriend as she recently did an 8hr road trip with her husband, 5yo & 9 month old and they stopped via McDonalds for their bfast !! Not saying it’s a bad thing, it could’ve been their PI (not!) but seriosuly we need to change our mindset when it comes to clean eating and not fall for the trap when travelling!
Bring an eski! AKA cooler in the U.S =)
Thanks for the great reminder Holly and keeping us focused!
Luv Dani xx
We went on vacation 2 weeks ago and did this pretty well…although I did have a few PI (and a couple not planned) I stuck to my plan pretty well! It saved us a ton of $$ and now I am going to continue to keep my cooler with me in my car…although I like the one you are showing us Holly…where did you get it??
I will have to read all of the responses and jot down some new snack ideas!!
Hi Holly
I really need to pack a cooler because we are having a family reunion which falls smack in the middle of my 12 week transformation program. I certainly do not intend to fall by the wayside so I’ll be carrying my cooler with fruit, veggies and my dumbells.
We just got back from a trip to Michigan’s Upper Pennisula. I packed cut up apples, carrots, hummus, applesauce, turkey sandwiches, and some herbal tea I brewed into ice tea. It works like a charm every time.
Going back to NZ from Beijing for the break for a holiday with my 2 young grandsons. Will take our reusable water bottles, apples, bananas, dried fruit, sandwiches made with advocado, egg & cheese and rice crackers
In the past going anywhere with 8 kids always felt like it took me forever to finish the job of packing etc. By the time I actually got everybody in the van to leave I was exhausted and said “ok” to getting food on the road! It has been quite awhile since then and I am inspired to pack great healthy snacks next time- thanks for all of the yummy and simple ideas!
Tons of water, fresh fruit & veggies, cheese…it all depends how long we are going to be gone. Can’t wait to see more!
This will be reliving times with my children as we had to pack healthy snacks when we attended frequent swim-meets.
Raw Almonds
Apples/fruit in season
Sm. tupperware container of almond butter
Deli Meat (nitrate free)
LF cheese sticks
Lean chicken precooked/seasoned by me
fresh veggies
Protein powder/RTD
Tuna packed in water
water
Arnold Thins
Shakeology
We’re about to move out of state, and I’ve been thinking about what to do for the road trip with our 18-month old. This reminds me that I can make it like a REALLY LONG trip to the zoo or something like that! I usually pack a lot of similar stuff to the above…nuts, dried fruit, vegetables, cheese cubes, etc. And LOTS of water.
Love the info. I usually pack pretty much the same stuff like apples, oranges , cheese and almonds. I also have a tendancy to pack a few not so healthy snacks too. My husband doesn’t like fruit or nuts so it makes for a real challenge. Especially if there are M&M’s close by.