How do you not gain weight while traveling?
Oct 3, 2020, 9:14 am
#31
Join Date: Nov 2015
Posts: 35
Exercise. If nothing else, walk several miles, easy to do anywhere. Eat continental breakfast: toast, coffee, juice. Whatever is served for lunch, eat half of it, e.g. half a sandwich. At dinner order sensibly (not a 1 lb steak) and don’t feel obligated to eat everything. No desserts. Pretty basic stuff.
Oct 7, 2020, 7:46 am
#34
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To the original question: I always try to go for a run while I'm out on business trips. I enjoy seeing different cities and it's pretty doable in almost any weather as long as you know what to prepare for.
Oct 13, 2020, 9:27 am
#36
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It's business trips that are really tough for me. Usually big long dinners with a lot of booze, often followed by late nights out with more booze. *Not* my normal lifestyle at home...all rich foods, late hours, poor sleep, etc. I try to squeeze in a good run when I can but still, when I get home, I feel like I need a solid 2-3 day detox from pretty much everything.
Oct 13, 2020, 10:20 am
#37
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Washington DC metro
Programs: Virtuoso
Posts: 2
Be mindful
The success in managing weight is no different than success in business. You need a goal (not to gain weight) and a sound plan (realistic goals and measurable steps). Over the years and Millionsflown I have more successes than failures. I few suggestions based on my success:
1 - Never skip a meal. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. In a hotel I stay away from the buffet and order a la carte for control (2 eggs, roll and fresh fruit/coffee). Lunch is a salad for base with choice of protein. Dressing on the side. Alcoholic beverage pre dinner if social situation calls for it; sparkling water is my go to if I know there will be wine at dinner (limit to 2 glasses if not drinking pre-dinner). Starter salad and Main is whatever (fish is preferred) shared or leave over half - with no guilt. Dessert is no more than 2 small bites as the 3rd bite and beyond is redundant. When I am dining alone I eat at the bar or communal counter if that is the set up. Never do room service as it is too challenging to control amounts and sides (oh, french fries!) in private. If I overdo it at any meal, I learn from the experience and move on. No penalties or guilt -- especially if it was enjoyable.
2 - Walk walk walk wherever - walk up with the escalator instead of just standing there as an example. Gym in hotel is a must and even if I get to it 2x on a week stay I consider that a win.
3 - Airline food (Business Class) is portioned controlled so not a problem in my view. Economy long haul (more than 3hr) I take aboard a snack (salad or yogurt and fruit).
Enjoy the ride and mangia bene.
1 - Never skip a meal. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. In a hotel I stay away from the buffet and order a la carte for control (2 eggs, roll and fresh fruit/coffee). Lunch is a salad for base with choice of protein. Dressing on the side. Alcoholic beverage pre dinner if social situation calls for it; sparkling water is my go to if I know there will be wine at dinner (limit to 2 glasses if not drinking pre-dinner). Starter salad and Main is whatever (fish is preferred) shared or leave over half - with no guilt. Dessert is no more than 2 small bites as the 3rd bite and beyond is redundant. When I am dining alone I eat at the bar or communal counter if that is the set up. Never do room service as it is too challenging to control amounts and sides (oh, french fries!) in private. If I overdo it at any meal, I learn from the experience and move on. No penalties or guilt -- especially if it was enjoyable.
2 - Walk walk walk wherever - walk up with the escalator instead of just standing there as an example. Gym in hotel is a must and even if I get to it 2x on a week stay I consider that a win.
3 - Airline food (Business Class) is portioned controlled so not a problem in my view. Economy long haul (more than 3hr) I take aboard a snack (salad or yogurt and fruit).
Enjoy the ride and mangia bene.
Oct 15, 2020, 2:17 pm
#38
Join Date: Aug 2017
Programs: Hilton Diamond, IHG Spire Ambassador, Global Entry
Posts: 2,859
Blaming going out to dinner is a victim statement. It's getting that cocktail/bottle of wine, appetizer, loaf of bread, unhealthy sides, dessert, pizza, etc.There absolutely are healthy options, just no one wants that.
Oct 31, 2020, 12:04 am
#40
Join Date: Oct 2019
Location: PDX, OGG or between the two
Programs: AS 75K
Posts: 2,864
Lots of gyms have daily fees which is great when you are away from home.
My dieting is mostly about planning ahead. If I have no food and am stuck in an airport I'll probably end up with a cheeseburger and fries (and a couple beers to wash it down). When I plan I can do okay. For flying I try to take boiled eggs and lettuce leaves wrapped around lunch meat and cheese. Sometimes bring an avocado with me as well. I do well with low-carb (not no carb) diet. Carbs are so easy to find that I mainly try to bring everything else and I get carbs anyhow (bags of Chex mix on the plane, etc.). I also always pack a few small foil pouches of chicken (love the tuna but don't want to make enemies in tight quarters). Bring a plastic fork and some napkins and these will get you through in a pinch.
My dieting is mostly about planning ahead. If I have no food and am stuck in an airport I'll probably end up with a cheeseburger and fries (and a couple beers to wash it down). When I plan I can do okay. For flying I try to take boiled eggs and lettuce leaves wrapped around lunch meat and cheese. Sometimes bring an avocado with me as well. I do well with low-carb (not no carb) diet. Carbs are so easy to find that I mainly try to bring everything else and I get carbs anyhow (bags of Chex mix on the plane, etc.). I also always pack a few small foil pouches of chicken (love the tuna but don't want to make enemies in tight quarters). Bring a plastic fork and some napkins and these will get you through in a pinch.
Oct 31, 2020, 11:21 pm
#41
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2013
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Posts: 10,130
Everyone has their own strategies. Years of consulting and then corporate business travel have led me to a pretty streamlined routine (except vacations, on vacation all bets are off -- my wife likes to joke about how when I'm on vacation mode, I will go along with just about anything vs typical rigid eating and workout routine I have at home and during regular business travel):
1) Breakfast is either a yogurt or a protein bar (think RxBar -- will bring them with me overseas). I used to be a proponent of no breakfast but it made me hungry and I overate my lunch
2) Light lunch (salad being the preferred option) and definitely have skipped lunch when I just get busy
3) NO snacking during the day -- my first 6 months of consulting I snacked a lot, ate all the bread when we went out to dinner, and rarely exercised, and it showed. If I'm starting to get hungry before dinner I have a banana, drink some water, or chew some sugar-free gum (same as what I do at home)
4) Exercise every day -- even if you just manage to run 1 mile on the treadmill, getting your exercise in is key on the road. I will often head to the gym after getting off a transcon flight before going to bed and that helps me adjust to the time change more quickly
5) No soda -- though this one is so variable. I can get by with a single shot of espresso (or two if it's a particularly long day or was a long night the day before) and bonus is many hotels now put Nespresso in the room so this ends up being free for me. I also love just plain water and I know that's definitely not the case for everyone (my wife is in that boat for sure)
6) Plan ahead your dinners -- it can be tempting to go all out every night, especially when you are on a generous per diem (or better yet on actuals with no cap). No one is saying don't enjoy the local food and take advantage of eating it on OPM, but if you are in a city for 3 nights, have 2 nights of low key meals and save up for that 3rd night. Especially important -- it's OKAY to say NO to an invite to a team dinner. Of course if it's a business dinner with key clients, the MD/CEO/VP, etc., it's okay to say yes -- but if you are doing regular travel with a team it is perfectly fine to say no to going out to dinner. While it might seem sad, eating dinner alone in your room prevents you from grabbing that drink you don't need or that piece of bread that you don't need or that really good dish that loaded with butter and cream. I also find that having the personal space on a couple of nights is good for my mental health -- I can eat dinner, do some work, hit the gym, and go to bed.
The other big thing is stop thinking about it as "being on the road" -- if you eat healthy and maintain a healthy lifestyle at home, it's pretty easy to replicate that on the road these days. If you eat fish 2-3 nights a week at home, do the same on the road. If eat salads for lunch every day at home, do the same on the road.
1) Breakfast is either a yogurt or a protein bar (think RxBar -- will bring them with me overseas). I used to be a proponent of no breakfast but it made me hungry and I overate my lunch
2) Light lunch (salad being the preferred option) and definitely have skipped lunch when I just get busy
3) NO snacking during the day -- my first 6 months of consulting I snacked a lot, ate all the bread when we went out to dinner, and rarely exercised, and it showed. If I'm starting to get hungry before dinner I have a banana, drink some water, or chew some sugar-free gum (same as what I do at home)
4) Exercise every day -- even if you just manage to run 1 mile on the treadmill, getting your exercise in is key on the road. I will often head to the gym after getting off a transcon flight before going to bed and that helps me adjust to the time change more quickly
5) No soda -- though this one is so variable. I can get by with a single shot of espresso (or two if it's a particularly long day or was a long night the day before) and bonus is many hotels now put Nespresso in the room so this ends up being free for me. I also love just plain water and I know that's definitely not the case for everyone (my wife is in that boat for sure)
6) Plan ahead your dinners -- it can be tempting to go all out every night, especially when you are on a generous per diem (or better yet on actuals with no cap). No one is saying don't enjoy the local food and take advantage of eating it on OPM, but if you are in a city for 3 nights, have 2 nights of low key meals and save up for that 3rd night. Especially important -- it's OKAY to say NO to an invite to a team dinner. Of course if it's a business dinner with key clients, the MD/CEO/VP, etc., it's okay to say yes -- but if you are doing regular travel with a team it is perfectly fine to say no to going out to dinner. While it might seem sad, eating dinner alone in your room prevents you from grabbing that drink you don't need or that piece of bread that you don't need or that really good dish that loaded with butter and cream. I also find that having the personal space on a couple of nights is good for my mental health -- I can eat dinner, do some work, hit the gym, and go to bed.
The other big thing is stop thinking about it as "being on the road" -- if you eat healthy and maintain a healthy lifestyle at home, it's pretty easy to replicate that on the road these days. If you eat fish 2-3 nights a week at home, do the same on the road. If eat salads for lunch every day at home, do the same on the road.
Nov 7, 2020, 6:59 am
#42
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: MCI
Programs: AA LT Gold; BA Silver; Hilton Diamond
Posts: 3,081
Later I noticed the fork was gone. I never even noticed they'd taken it, which is a lesson learned. So yeah, plastic is the way to go if you're flying, unfortunately.
Someone mentioned room service; my trick with room service or takeout is, first, tell them no bread, no fries whatever it is you don't want to even start eating. And when you're through, if it's takeout put all the trash in a trash can somewhere else on the floor. If it's room service and there's food remaining, do the same with the food so you wont' be tempted to eat what's left.
Nov 7, 2020, 10:39 am
#43
Join Date: Oct 2019
Location: PDX, OGG or between the two
Programs: AS 75K
Posts: 2,864
"Plastic" is key here. I travel with a metal knife and fork to avoid single-use plastics and so I can buy ready-to-eat (or microwave) food in local stores. Last time I flew, in March, I was coming home from Bolivia. As country after country closed their borders, even to transiting passengers, the only way out was from La Paz to Santa Cruz to Miami on Boliviana. The "security" guys at Santa Cruz asked to check my computer bag as they saw the utensils on the X-Ray. No big deal- they'd checked them out when I came in through Peru as well and there had been no problem when I left my home airport. MCI.
Later I noticed the fork was gone. I never even noticed they'd taken it, which is a lesson learned. So yeah, plastic is the way to go if you're flying, unfortunately.
Someone mentioned room service; my trick with room service or takeout is, first, tell them no bread, no fries whatever it is you don't want to even start eating. And when you're through, if it's takeout put all the trash in a trash can somewhere else on the floor. If it's room service and there's food remaining, do the same with the food so you wont' be tempted to eat what's left.
Later I noticed the fork was gone. I never even noticed they'd taken it, which is a lesson learned. So yeah, plastic is the way to go if you're flying, unfortunately.
Someone mentioned room service; my trick with room service or takeout is, first, tell them no bread, no fries whatever it is you don't want to even start eating. And when you're through, if it's takeout put all the trash in a trash can somewhere else on the floor. If it's room service and there's food remaining, do the same with the food so you wont' be tempted to eat what's left.
Nov 17, 2020, 11:20 pm
#44
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: TOA
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"Plastic" is key here. I travel with a metal knife and fork to avoid single-use plastics and so I can buy ready-to-eat (or microwave) food in local stores. Last time I flew, in March, I was coming home from Bolivia. As country after country closed their borders, even to transiting passengers, the only way out was from La Paz to Santa Cruz to Miami on Boliviana. The "security" guys at Santa Cruz asked to check my computer bag as they saw the utensils on the X-Ray. No big deal- they'd checked them out when I came in through Peru as well and there had been no problem when I left my home airport. MCI.
Later I noticed the fork was gone. I never even noticed they'd taken it, which is a lesson learned. So yeah, plastic is the way to go if you're flying, unfortunately.
Someone mentioned room service; my trick with room service or takeout is, first, tell them no bread, no fries whatever it is you don't want to even start eating. And when you're through, if it's takeout put all the trash in a trash can somewhere else on the floor. If it's room service and there's food remaining, do the same with the food so you wont' be tempted to eat what's left.
Later I noticed the fork was gone. I never even noticed they'd taken it, which is a lesson learned. So yeah, plastic is the way to go if you're flying, unfortunately.
Someone mentioned room service; my trick with room service or takeout is, first, tell them no bread, no fries whatever it is you don't want to even start eating. And when you're through, if it's takeout put all the trash in a trash can somewhere else on the floor. If it's room service and there's food remaining, do the same with the food so you wont' be tempted to eat what's left.
David
Nov 29, 2020, 7:32 am
#45
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Well, if of interest, the United Shop is offering a bamboo set with its own carrying case: Eco-Skies® ChicoBag® Utensil Set
David
David