Staying Fit On The Road

How to keep fit and eat right when you are traveling.

By Leslie Gilbert Elman and Julie Ritzer Ross

The life of a meeting planner can take a toll on one’s body, mind, and spirit, especially if you’re a planner who needs to spend more than a little time on the road doing site inspections, attending meetings, and traveling for other work reasons. Here are a few simple tips for keeping yourself fit—and for eating well—when you’re away from home.

You can start with the hotel you choose. If possible, reserve accommodations that include a swimming pool, walking trail, and/or fitness center. Pack a bathing suit, sneakers, and workout clothes—a simple sweatsuit or Tshirt and shorts will do.

Many hotels and resorts now offer regularly scheduled classes, such as sunrise yoga sessions or evening aerobics or spinning sessions. If you are traveling with a friend or associate, invite him or her along to join you in keeping fit.

“Having a fitness buddy or partner is an excellent idea,” says Bill Sonnemaker, the CEO of Catalyst Fitness in Kennesaw, Georgia, who was named 2007 IDEA International Personal Trainer of the Year. “It’s a great way to help people adhere to an exercise program.”

If you’re shy about exercising around other people, take the in-room option. For example, Hyatt Hotels broadcasts YogaAway videos on its in-room entertainment systems. They’re free and you can tune in anytime. At Omni Hotels, guests can request a Get Fit Kit, which includes dumbbells, a floor mat, an exercise band, and a booklet of suggested exercises, plus a bottle of mineral water and a hand towel. Marriott and Renaissance hotels also have fitness kits available for guest use; the selection varies from location to location. Or you can simply download an exercise podcast onto your iPod or MP3 player to take with you on the road.

Alone or with a companion, try 10 minutes of yoga stretches in the afternoon, between your day’s activities and dinner, and you might be surprised to find that you’re still perky by the time the waiter serves dessert.

After dinner, aid digestion by taking a walk, stretching, and performing some diaphragmatic breathing (controlled by the muscles of your stomach, not your chest). To help you sleep, make sure your body is well-hydrated, try to follow the same routine you follow before bed at home, and keep the TV switched off. In the morning, Sonnemaker strongly encourages doing some core-stabilizing exercises.

Finally, build a couple of hours of downtime into your daily schedule while you’re on the road—time each day to exercise and feel fit.

A Word About Food

Eating well on the road presents many fat-, salt-, sugar-, and calorie-laden obstacles. However, healthy dining and traveling need not be mutually exclusive.

All it takes is a little advance planning—and a little bit of willpower. Start things off right before you get to your hotel. Some airlines now offer snacks and meals that are much more nutritionally sound. For example, United sells a Right Bites snack box that includes choices like tuna, organic crackers, hummus, and raisins. It’s available for $5 in coach class on most North American flights of 3.5 hours or longer.

But because most airline food doesn’t fall into the “healthy” category, packing your own edibles is a much better idea. TSA security rules prevent travelers from bringing liquids and gels in excess of three ounces onto planes, meaning that some healthy favorites, like peanut butter, won’t pass muster. However, solid snacks like bananas, trail mix, nuts, carrot sticks, and energy bars shouldn’t be a problem.

Any food purchased from restaurants and stores located beyond airport security checkpoints can be taken onboard flights, so buy a bottle or two of water and a salad or grilled sandwich to eat instead of what’s served on the plane. Better-for-you options should be a little easier to find now that airports have started to add healthier alternatives in addition to their standard array of fast-food spots. Dr. Amy Lanou, a senior nutrition scientist for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, recommends selecting vegetarian dishes that are low in fat and high in fiber, such as a bean burrito or vegetable sandwich.

If you’re driving or taking a train to your destination, fill a small cooler with bottled water or juice, fruit, cut-up vegetables, yogurt, sugar-free applesauce or low-fat pudding, and homemade sandwiches, advises Boston-area nutrition consultant Heidi Reichenberger McIndoo. Other options are low-fat string cheese, dried fruit, and baked tortilla chips.

Travelers who prefer not to drag along a cooler should resist rest stops and fast-food joints, opting instead for an independent restaurant or cafe. “That way, you’ll not just eat better, but you’ll get a feel for the place you’ve stopped at, which is an added bonus,” says Lanou.

You might also consider picking up a copy of Healthy Highways, by Nikki and David Goldbeck, which contains mini-reviews of health food stores and vegetarian restaurants across the U.S., broken down by state and with driving directions from major roads.

Proceed With Caution

A little foresight can also help you eat more healthfully once at your destination. For instance, no one says travelers have to eat out every meal. Staying in a hotel with a mini-bar or small fridge? Visit a local supermarket and stock up on healthy sandwich ingredients, like roast turkey and low-fat cheese. If your room has a microwave oven, you can even select an entrée from the prepared foods section.

Keep some nonperishable snacks on hand in your room, too. “Packages of nuts, peanut-butter snack cups with crackers, and whole fruit all make great snacks and can help curb your appetite a bit so that if you do head to a restaurant, you don’t go there starving,” notes McIndoo. “It’s always easier to make better choices if you’ve taken the edge off your hunger a bit.”

Certain types of meals present health-conscious travelers with special challenges. Buffet-style meals, at both restaurants and meetings and conventions, top the list. Lanou advises starting off by telling yourself ahead of time that you’re not going to try everything. “If you do,” she says, “before you know it, you’ll be filling your plate with every starch and dessert you see.”

Dr. Timothy Harlan, a New Orleans-based internist and professional chef known as Dr. Gourmet, tells his patients to promise themselves they’ll visit the buffet just once and help themselves to one meat, one vegetable, and one starch, preferably whole-grain bread or brown rice.

McIndoo takes a slightly different approach. “Look for the fruits and\ veggies first and fill two-thirds of your plate,” she says. “Then you only have a small bit of your plate left for the more calorie-dense foods. When you’re ready for your second helping, go back for more fruits and veggies.”